Palwal administration seals 9 villages after 16 Jamaat attendees test positive; 2,000 cops deployed

The Palwal district administration on Saturday declared nine villages as containment zones and 27 as buffer zones — banning the entry and exit of people in these

The Palwal district administration on Saturday declared nine villages as containment zones and 27 as buffer zones — banning the entry and exit of people in these villages —after 16 Tablighi Jamaat attendees tested Covid-19 positive in Palwal.

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Naresh Narwal, deputy commissioner, said that the 16 Covid-19 positive patients had frequently moved around in the nine villages. Therefore, for the safety of people in and around these villages, their boundaries have been sealed and door-to-door screening and scanning of people initiated.

In a statement released by the administration, nine villages — Kot, Ghurawali, Lakhnaka, Babupur Hathin, Jalalpur, Guraksar, Paharpur, and Uttawar — were named in the containment zone. At least 27 villages share boundaries with these nine villages. As many as 274 people were in contact with the Covid-19 patients who are currently in home quarantine.

Dr Brahmdeep Sandhu, chief medical officer, said in his statement that of the 16 positive patients, 13 are from states like Telangana, Chennai, Bihar, Karnataka, West Bengal and from abroad, Bangladesh. He said that 56 samples of Jamaat attendees had been collected for testing. One patient from Palwal has been discharged.

According to CMO, at least 99 people who attended the Tablighi Jamaat were traced inside a mosque in Hathin villages and are currently admitted in the isolation ward of the government hospital in Nalhar. He said, “Situation is very critical in the district and the citizens should stay at home.”

A 45-member team of Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHAs) and Nurse Midwife (ANMs) has been constituted to conduct screening in every house.

Police is tracking the travel history of these men and are taking help from informers to identify people who attended the Jamaat or come in contact with people who attended the congregation.

Talking to HT, Deepak Gahlawat, superintendent of police, Palwal said, “At least 2,000 policemen have been deployed across these villages to prevent people from moving to other villages and to adjoining districts. This is to ensure the safety of people and to preventing transmission of the virus. The boundaries of the villages hav ebeen barricaded. We are also requesting people to share their travel history and inform us about anyone found with symptoms of Covid-19.”

According to the police, till Saturday 536 people in the district were under surveillance, out of which 71 people completed their 14 days of quarantine and 465 were under home quarantine. To maintain law and order in these villages, seven senior government officials have been appointed as duty magistrate. Narwal on Saturday issued an order that said that all the villages are to be sanitised completely.

Palwal, on Saturday, recorded the highest number of Covid-19 positive cases in a day in the state. As per the state health bulletin, eight new positive cases have been reported from Faridabad, of which are five were at the Jamaat congregation. The Haryana Police has traced at least 524 people, including foreign nationals, who attended the congregation in Delhi’s Nizamuddin area, which has emerged as a Covid-19 hotspot.