Goa govt to issue new SOP for hotels amid tourist season, says state health minister

The govt is in the process of issuing guidelines for hotels, which will make it mandatory for them to reserve one room as an isolation room on their property, Goa health minister Vishwajit Rane told reporters after meeting CM Pramod Sawant.

The Goa government is drawing up a new standard operating procedure (SOP) for hotels amid the ongoing tourist season, state health minister Vishwajit Rane said on Wednesday.

Tourists relax at a cafe on Baga beach in Goa (REUTERS/File Photo)

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Rane said that coastal state will not seal its borders to keep out tourists.

“We are in the process of issuing guidelines for hotels, which will make it mandatory for them to reserve one room as an isolation room on their property,” the minister said.

Any guest who tests positive for coronavirus, but is asymptomatic, can be put up in the isolation room on hotel premises, he said.

Rane further said that constant monitoring of patients in home isolation has brought down the Covid-19 mortality rate in the state.

“We don’t get patients in a breathless stage any more, as we are monitoring their health in home isolation,” he said.

Referring to Aam Aadmi Party leader Raghav Chadha’s statement about poor health infrastructure in Goa, Rane offered a tour of the state-run Goa Medical College and Hospital to show the robust infrastructure put in place by the Goa government.