Pay or subsidize if you want returning workers tested for Covid: Industry to govt

Nagpur: As workers are returning after the exodus during lockdown, industries in areas like Butibori and Hingna have been asked to get each of the returning workers tested for Covid.
Though their return is seen as a sign of revival, the test order has left industrialists concerned. They say it may not be practically possible to get every worker tested.
Letters have been sent to the units by Gram Panchayat Takalghat and the tehsildar Hingna pointing out a standard preparing procedure. Apart from mandatory tests, it also calls for 14-day quarantine for the returning workers.
The industrial estates, located outside municipal limits, are governed by the concerned gram panchayats.
The letter by the Takalghat Gram panchayat says as workers are returning to industrial estates there are chances they may be suffering from Covid. It calls for mandatory testing and quarantine. The tehsildar letter is prior to this and also directs the management of units in Hingna and Butibori to get workers tested.
“It may turn out to be a major outgo for the industries. Workers have slowly begun returning. Industries are ready to get the tests done if it is subsidized by the government,” said Nitin Lonkar, former president of Butibori Manufacturers’ Association (BMA).
Suresh Rathi, president of Vidarbha Industries Association (VIA), said, “the units are already taking enough care, temperature is taken at entry and the area is sanitized. Getting tests will only add to hassles.”
However, Indo Rama Synthetics India Ltd (IRISL), the oldest and largest unit at Butibori, has laid down a strict protocol. “We are testing not only the workers returning from out of Nagpur but all those reporting to work after a gap. So far, 2000 have been tested and around 25 were found positive. The strict rule has prevented the infected persons from entering the premises,” said an official here.