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177k people in Delhi’s 242 containment zones screened, antigen tests from Thursday
While the Union ministry of home affairs (MHA) on Sunday gave the city’s 11 DMs a week to finish the process, Delhi government reports accessed by HT revealed that the survey is likely to be completed by Thursday.
More than 177,000 people in Delhi’s 242 containment zones were screened for Covid-like symptoms by the 11 district administrations in the Capital between Sunday and Tuesday, senior government officials said.
The survey was initiated by all district magistrates (DMs) immediately after Union home minister Amit Shah on Sunday directed the Delhi government to start house-to-house screening in all the containment zones to ensure proper contact tracing. The screenings will also help administrations identify more symptomatic persons in these hotspots, and avoid fresh Covid clusters emerging.
While the Union ministry of home affairs (MHA) on Sunday gave the city’s 11 DMs a week to finish the process, Delhi government reports accessed by HT revealed that the survey is likely to be completed by Thursday.
As per the reports, on Sunday, when the directions were issued, around 20,000 people were screened. On Monday, this was scaled up to cover around 75,000 more persons in containment zones and, on Tuesday, over 82,000 more people were surveyed. The aim of the survey is to cover 230,466 people living in the 247 containment zones of Delhi currently. The survey report for Wednesday was not submitted to the government till this report was filed.
For the survey, DMs roped in Asha [Accredited Social Health Activist] workers, auxiliary nurse midwife, and government school teachers aged below 50, among others, an official said.
As per the Delhi government, as of Wednesday, Delhi has 47,102 cases of Covid-19, including 17,457 recoveries and 1,904 deaths.
The Delhi government on Wednesday evening updated the number of containment zones in the city to 247.
In a first, Delhi will also start using rapid antigen detection kits in every district from Thursday, a senior government official said. The screenings will now help district authorities determine who needs an RT-PCR test, and who should get an antigen detection tests.
“The rapid tests will be conducted in a mixed manner — some symptomatic patients, some mild and some asymptomatic — depending on the proximity of the person to a Covid-positive patient,” said the senior government official, choosing to stay anonymous.
The 11 districts will start with 50,000 antigen tests across the city from Thursday. As many as 169 centres have been set up in and around the containment zones, for people to get themselves tested, the above quoted government official said.
The scaling up of testing across the city comes after the MHA on Monday said testing would be tripled in Delhi by Saturday. Accordingly, the government directed all 11 districts to collect a minimum of 1,000 samples a day. Despite the order, on Tuesday, 8,856 samples were collected across all districts and the DMs were once again asked to ramp up testing. With the start of the rapid antigen testing from Thursday, the scale is projected to go up manifold.
The Capital’s Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal chaired a meeting on Wednesday, where he asked the Delhi government’s advisory committee for measures to make containment strategies more effective, and to recommend more mitigation strategies.
Baijal also suggested the panel come up with measures for psycho-social care of front line workers, strategies to ramp up intensive medical care expeditiously, and review projections for Delhi based on worldwide trends.
To ensure all containment strategies are enforced through a single chain of command, the Delhi government also issued an order designating all DMs the administrative heads of their respective districts. This means that now everyone from deputy commissioners of police (DCPs), deputy commissioners of the civic bodies, and heads of all hospitals will have to report to the DM, irrespective of their seniority and position.
Following the move, Delhi Police commissioner SN Shrivastava issued an order asking all police officers “to ensure strict lockdown within the containment zones”.
“The perimeter security/access control be strictly enforced. The entry/exit be completely sealed except for essential commodities/services. There should be regular mobile patrolling. Drone surveillance and announcement be done,” the order read.
Southwest DM Rahul Singh said he held a meeting with all departments under his jurisdiction on Wednesday.
“It has been decided that all dispensaries in the district shall function as single point of contact for all Covid-related issues. Tests will be conducted at all dispensaries. Thursday onwards, antigen and RT-PCR tests will both be available at all dispensaries for everyone. Sample will be collected at these dispensaries, and a report will be conveyed as soon as it is received from labs,” Singh said.
West DM Neha Bansal said: “In adherence to directions issued by the Union home minister, a screening drive was initiated, and that has covered all households in the containment zones. We shall start conducting rapid tests from Thursday on residents using the new antigen kits. Other than that, we have also scaled up RT-PCR tests in the district. More than 1,800 RT-PCR tests were conducted under the district’s jurisdiction on Wednesday.”
Of the 247 containment zones in the city, North Delhi revenue district has the most with 36, followed by 34 in the South district. Northeast Delhi, despite being the district with the highest population density in the city, has just three containment zones, government records showed.
