Odisha recorded a sharp rise in COVID-19 infections with daily cases going up by 32.65% on Thursday.
While 394 persons tested positive on Thursday, 297 did so on Wednesday. The western districts have reported a high number of positive cases.
As per the official data, highest 70 cases were reported from Khordha district. It was followed by Kalahandi (43), Nuapada (40) and Bargarh (34).
Kalahandi and Nuapada share border with Chhattisgarh. Authorities said people with travel history from Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh were initially infected with the virus. One educational institute in Bhawanipatna, the district headquarters town of Kalahandi, alone reported more than 35 cases.
The tally has now increased to 3,41,311. After the recovery of 3,37,091 persons, the active cases are 2,246 while 1,921 persons have succumbed to the disease.
After a steady rise in fresh cases, local authorities such as the Collectors and Municipal Commissioners have been directed to demarcate the containment zones, at the micro level in accordance with the Central guidelines.
“The zones will be notified by the respective Collectors or Municipal Commissioners and information will be shared with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. With the detection of positive cases, containment measures, as prescribed by the MoHFW should be scrupulously followed in the containment zones,” said the government issuing guidelines for April.
“Testing would be carried out as per the prescribed protocol. The proportion of RT-PCR tests in the mix should be scaled up to the extent possible. Effective demarcation of containment zones, in vulnerable and high incidence areas, is key to breaking the chain of transmission and hence critical to containing the spread of the virus,” the government said.
Stating that the School and Mass Education Department had allowed physical classes for Standard IX and XI, the government said considering the situation, the department may allow intra-school class promotion examination giving the option of online examination to the students with the consent of their parents.