Uttarakhand: Covid-19 cases surge as stranded migrant workers return

State health officials are worried about the spike after 13 Covid-19 positive cases were reported from the hilly districts of Almora (3), Bageshwar (2), Chamoli (1), Pauri Garhwal (4), and Uttarkashi (3).

The coronavirus disease (Covid-19) positive cases are rising for the first time in the remote hilly districts of Uttarakhand, as stranded migrant workers have started returning home amid the easing of lockdown restrictions.

Migrants from Uttarkashi undergo thermal screening as they arrive at Chinyalisour by government buses during a government-imposed nationwide lockdown as a preventive measure against the coronavirus, in Uttarkashi on May 9. (ANI)

State health officials are worried about the spike after 13 Covid-19 positive cases were reported from the hilly districts of Almora (3), Bageshwar (2), Chamoli (1), Pauri Garhwal (4), and Uttarkashi (3).

On Tuesday, Bageshwar and Chamoli districts reported their first cases of the viral outbreak.

Uttarakhand authorities have collected 15,503 swab samples to date, of which 1,443 were collected from the state’s nine hilly districts.

Dr. SK Gupta, director, state medical and health department, said the trend has become a matter of concern.

“We cannot stop people from returning to their native places during this pandemic. However, we’re trying to adopt new strategies such as bringing about a change in the testing pattern and putting in place a more effective mechanism for migrant returnees to be kept under institutional quarantine,” said Dr. Gupta.

In the past week, testing has gradually increased in the state, and pool testing also started in a few places. On May 17, 575 samples were tested, and 792 and 754 were tested on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.

“Pool testing helps to increase the number of samples tested during a day. We’re looking at a sample size between 1,200 and 1,500 for a daily pool testing,” Dr. Gupta added.

Under pool testing, all the samples of people in a certain batch are tested together. If the result comes negative, then it means none of the people has contracted SARS-CoV-2, which causes Covid-19. But, if the result turns out to be positive, then all the people of that batch are required to undergo individual tests.

“If a person tests Covid-19 positive during pool testing, then more attention needs to be paid through contact tracing and conducting more tests on the other people that the infected person came in contact with,” said the senior health official.

Over the past 48 hours, more Covid-19 positive cases have been reported from the hilly districts such as Uttarkashi, Almora, Chamoli, Bageshwar, and Pauri Garhwal.

Earlier, Covid-19 positive cases were mostly restricted to the four main plain districts of Dehradun, Haridwar, Udham Singh Nagar, and Nainital.

Uttarakhand has reported 120 Covid-19 positive cases till Wednesday, an increase of nine cases from the previous day.