HT Bureau
GUWAHATI, April 13: Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal emphasised on creating micro-containment zones along with extensive testing to combat the resurgence of Covid-19 pandemic.
Speaking to deputy commissioners, joint directors of health and other stakeholders associated with Covid-19 management through a video conference here on Tuesday, Sonowal asked the DCs to focus on creating micro-containment zones coupled with extensive testing to prevent the pandemic snowball into a major health crisis.
Sonowal said that the second wave of the novel coronavirus pandemic though pushed up the daily surge of positive cases in some parts of the country, Assam has not fully witnessed the spike of positive cases till now.
The chief minister, therefore, asked the DCs to enforce the protective guards to help their respective districts to check the spike in positive cases. Sonowal also asked the DCs to ramp up testing and adopt the test, track and treat protocol. He said that along with the micro containment zones helping to contain the local transmission, timely testing would help to manage infection effectively and clinically.
Sonowal said that inoculation drives in all the districts should be intensified for all the eligible beneficiaries. At the same time, Sonowal asked the DCs to use their men and machineries to speed up the testing. He said that besides important locations like railway stations, airports, other places of concentration where people generally converge should be identified for the testing facilities.
Sonowal also asked the joint directors to go vigorously on contact tracing and try to achieve the target of at least one lakh testing per day across the state.
Sonowal also asked the DCs to strengthen their existing infrastructures like Covid Care Centres, isolation beds, oxygen cylinders to face any exigency.
Sonowal also asked the DCs to take the help of the popular personalities in their respective districts to generate awareness among the masses and encourage them to take vaccines and go for testing. He also reiterated on the need of following Covid appropriate behaviour to check the transmission.
Stating that Assam performed exceedingly well in the Covid management during the first wave, Sonowal requested all the frontline workers to render their services this time as well to make Assam a model state in the Covid care management.
The meeting was attended by chief secretary Jishnu Baruah, additional chief secretary Paban Kumar Borthakur, principal secretary (health and family welfare) Samir Kumar Sinha, principal secretary (home and political) Neeraj Verma and other senior officials of the government.