FAQ: Your 14 queries on 23 Delhi containment zones answered

More than 20 areas have been declared as containment zones.

At least 23 areas in Delhi have been declared containment zones and put under a hard lockdown to stop the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19). Here’s a primer on what to expect in these areas.

North MCD workers sanitise a locality in Model Town area to contain the spread of coronavirus, during the ongoing nationwide lockdown, in New Delhi. (PTI)

What does this mean?

If the area where you stay is part of a containment zone, it means that you are not allowed to step outside your house.

There is a nationwide lockdown anyway…

Yes, but it does not ban anyone from stepping out to buy vegetables, grocery items, medicines and other essentials.

Then how to get essential supplies?

Do not panic. The local administration has tied up with Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs) and market associations to provide door-to-door supply of essential items. Areas where such associations are not active, civic volunteers will be roped in.

Will any shop stay open?

Nothing, including banks, will be open. Even if you need medicines, it is to be delivered to you.

Who is allowed to enter or leave a containment zone?

No one other than officials of the local administration, police, health officials and municipality workers. Serious medical cases will be exempt, but after due verification. Entry and exit of every person, including those from enforcement agencies, will be registered in the records. Media will not be allowed to enter these places, but journalists and others involved in essential services staying in these areas will be allowed to go their workplaces. But they have to undergo screening for Covid-19 symptoms each time they enter or exit a containment zone.

How long will it continue in Delhi?

The containment plans will stay in place “till the potential threat of Covid-19 is not ruled out” in these areas.

How do I know if my house falls in a containment zone?

The local administration has issued a list of these areas. Additionally, it is informing residents using public address systems. If your house falls in a containment zone, all entry and exit points in that area have been cordoned off or sealed by now. And still, if you step out unknowingly, you will be stopped by the police and informed about the lockdown.

What do I expect during this time?

There could be multiple screening by health officials, police and civic bodies. People living in containment zones are put under surveillance to track if any person has developed the symptoms of Covid-19 (fever, sore throat ,etc.).

How large is a containment area?

It can be as small as one lane in a residential colony or it can be a wider area comprising an entire ward or more. The size of a containment zone is directly proportional to the population density of the cluster in question and the scale of the outbreak.

My area has been declared a containment zone. Does it mean I live in a Covid-19 hot spot?

Not necessarily. While all hot spots are turned into containment zones, all containment zones are not always hot spots. Some lanes and neighbourhoods can be declared containment zones even if there is a single case of Covid-19. A hot spot is an area where multiple cases emerge from a locality (Examples: Nizamuddin Markaz and Nand Nagri).

What is the difference between a hot spot and a containment zone?

A hot spot is a potential threat area identified by authorities after multiple cases emerge from that place. Following this, a containment strategy is devised to prevent further spread of the infection and to break the transmission chain. Under this strategy, a containment zone is declared. A containment strategy is also adopted when contact tracing of a Covid-19 positive case is unsuccessful (that means when authorities are not able to find the clear source of infection --- travel history or contact with a positive case --- of a patient).

What about cleanliness in a containment zone?

Sanitizing the area declared under the containment plan is a top priority for the local municipal corporation. It disinfects every nook and corner of the declared area multiple times a day.

What happens if one violates the rules?

The person may be warned at the first instance. But violators can be booked under various sections of Disaster Management Act, 2005, as well as the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, and provisions of the Indian Penal Code. The punishment can be jail sentence up to two years and/or a fine decided by the enforcing agencies.

Which are the 23 containment zones in Delhi?

1. Entire affected street near Gandhi Park, Malviya Nagar, New Delhi

2. Entire affected street of Gali No 6 , L 1 Sangam Vihar, New Delhi

3. Shahajahanabad society, plot no 1, Sector 11, Dwarka

4. Dinpur Village

5. Markaz Masjid and Nizamuddin Basti

6. Nizamuddin West (G and D block) areas

7. B Block Jhangirpuri

8. H. No 141 to H. No 180, Gali no. 14, Kalyanpuri, Delhi

9. Mansara Apartments , Vasundhara Enclave, Delhi

10.3 Galis of Khichirpur, including Gali containing H. No. 5/387 Khichirpur, Delhi

11. Gali No 9, Pandav Nagar, Delhi 110092.

12. Vardhaman Apartments, Mayur Vihar Phase I, Extension, Delhi

13. Mayurdhwaj Apartments , I P Extension, Patparganj, Delhi

14. Gali no. 4, from H. No. J- 3/115 ( Nagar Dairy) to H. No. J- 3/108( towards Anar wali Masjid Chowk), Kishan Kunj Extension, Delhi

15. Gali No. 4, from H. No J- 3/101 to H. No. J - 3/107 Krishan Kunj Extension, Delhi

16. Gali No. 5, A Block ( From H No. A- 176 to A-189), West Vinod Nagar, Delhi 110092

17. J & K , L and H pockets, Dilshad Garden

18. G, H, J, Blocks old, Seemapuri

19. F- 70 to 90 block, Dilshad Colony

20. Pratap Khand , Jhilmil Colony

21. Shastri Market and JJ cluster, South Moti Bagh

22. Bengali Market, Babar Road, Todarmal Road, Babar lane and school lane

23. Sadar area