Last year this time, when the COVID case load was low and the virus transmission was not widespread, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) was in the forefront in identifying micro-containment zones, tracing contacts and keeping up a general surveillance on the spread in every area. Provisions and food supply were also being arranged to the needy families with the help of other departments such as police, medical and health and voluntary bodies.
But, during this second wave when everything has gone haywire with exponential rise in cases, patients besieging hospitals for beds and treatment, and attendants running frantically for essential medicines and oxygen, the giant civic body is missing in action.
When the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is earning praise for bending the curve with proactive measures, GHMC seemed to have given up whatever it had done last year, content only with a mere household fever survey.
“We have been instructed to take up fever surveys and pass on the COVID kits to those with symptoms by the government a few days ago,” said senior officials, unwilling to be identified, on Wednesday. It means the civic body with a health and sanitation wing of its own and having sufficient personnel and machinery to keep an effective tracing and surveillance plan on the vulnerable spots is not pressing all the levers at its command to bring the transmission under control despite highest cases being here.
“GHMC should be in the forefront in any medical emergency and it is well geared to tackle communicable diseases. Its personnel are aware of every lane, every market and activity in the twin cities. We have presence in every slum and our vehicles move around everywhere. This can be used to convey COVID safety protocols and track health status in an area,” explained a former chief medical and health officer.
“In case of dengue or malaria outbreak, the entire neighbourhood usually comes under our protective envelope, so it is not rocket science, we can do the same even now, if the work is decentralised,” the doctor added. Other officials, pleading anonymity, pointed out that GHMC could make use of its vast network of community halls and sports complexes to set up temporary testing and isolation centres after identifying those in need and this would go a long way in breaking the transmission chain.
“Testing, tracking and isolation continue to be critical factors in containing the pandemic. It will also help curb serious cases flooding hospitals. Issuing medicines to those with symptoms without testing is not enough. Some of them could be spreading the infection,” testified a senior health official.
Senior officials affirmed that with each circle having a medical and health officer, resources could be pooled with the neighbouring district medical and health officials to have a robust containment strategy instead of the current top down approach. Also, an elected body with ward-wise public representatives could help in controlling the community spread with more proactive approach on its own rather than await directions from above, is their contention.