Covid-19: Noida to randomly test people at Delhi borders from today

Noida: From Thursday, the Gautam Budh Nagar administration will test people at random for the coronavirus (Covid-19) disease at all borders of the district, besides from railway stations, bus stands, and Metro stations within the district

Noida: From Thursday, the Gautam Budh Nagar administration will test people at random for the coronavirus (Covid-19) disease at all borders of the district, besides from railway stations, bus stands, and Metro stations within the district.

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The decision comes in the wake of a spurt in Covid-19 cases in the district and the national Capital, as wellas in anticipation of large gatherings in light of the festive season and upcoming panchayat elections in Uttar Pradesh.

The district administration has formed two teams to take samples from people at random at 14 identified border points for a period of seven days, said district magistrate Suhas LY.

Health department officials have been asked to intensify random sampling and testing at all places and “critical” pockets located near the district’s borders with the national Capital. “A few months ago, we found that the rate of the spread of the virus in critical pockets – mostly villages adjoining the Noida-Delhi border – was four times higher than in general areas. Health officials have been asked to increase testing in these areas to assess the nature of the spread of Covid-19 there,” he said.

Police nod for public events

Going by guidelines issued by the central and state governments, prior permission from the local police is mandatory for any public event, the DM added. “The process has been made transparent and hassle-free. Before organising any public gathering, the organisers will have to apply for a permit online. If it is deemed fair by the authorities, permission will be granted instantly. For any private gathering, however, no permission is required,” he said.

There is no limit, however, on the size of the crowd that can attend a public event. “However, maintaining social distancing and following all Covid-19 standard operating protocols (SOPs), are mandatory,” he said.

The DM added that all industrial, commercial and educational establishments, including private and government offices, have been asked to establish and activate help desks for Covid-19, to be tasked with sanitising all persons entering the premises and to take their body temperature, in their premises to keep a close tab on the workers there. “Noida, being an industrial hub, caters to thousands of migrant workers. With these help desks, we will be able to identify persons with influenza-like illness (fever, cough) symptoms,” he said.

37 new cases in GB Nagar district

GB Nagar on Wednesday recorded 37 new Covid-19 cases, pushing the district’s total positive tally to 25,836, according to the state health department’s 24-hr daily bulletin. The number of deaths in the district remained at 91, unchanged from January 5. The active case count in the district was 150.

Delhi on Friday saw 1,254 new cases of Covid-19, pushing its tally so far to 651,227, as per the Delhi government’s 24-hour health bulletin.

Ghaziabad recorded 18 new cases and its death toll remained unchanged from December 29, 2020, at 102. The total case count till date in the district was 27,037 with the active case count at 147.