GB Nagar health officials asked to chalk out plan to control Covid-19 surge

The nodal officer appointed by the state government to take stock of the Covid-19 containment measures in Gautam Budh Nagar district on Tuesday asked the district

The nodal officer appointed by the state government to take stock of the Covid-19 containment measures in Gautam Budh Nagar district on Tuesday asked the district officials to focus on bringing down the rate at which the infections are rising since June 1.

HT Image

According to the district’s health department data, out of the 1,038 cases of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) reported till June 15, as many as 615 cases were reported since June 1 alone. As the cases surge, the district also has the highest number of cases compared to other districts in the state. A total of 14,598 Covid-19 cases have been reported in Uttar Pradesh so far.

Appointed by chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday, Dr Jiledar Rawat, a neonatal surgeon at King George’s Medical University (KGMU), Lucknow, has been assigned to accelerate and monitor efforts by the health department in breaking the chain of infection and combatting the coronavirus spread in Gautam Budh Nagar.

During a meeting with district health officials on Tuesday, Dr Rawat directed them to identify the major factors contributing to the recent spike in the number of infections. “He has also asked us to analyse the surge in positive cases and identify the areas, where infections are increasing at higher rates. He also discussed the control measures taken in the containment zones. Dr Rawat will soon submit his report to the superior officers in the matter,” Dr Deepak Ohri, chief medical officer (CMO), Gautam Budh Nagar.

The district has as many as 163 category 1 containment zones and 123 category 2 containment zones. Of these, 30 areas were declared containment zones in June. Areas in containment zone category 1 have one positive case and a perimeter of over 400 metres, while category 2 containment zones have more than one positive case and a 1km perimeter.

The CMO added that Dr Rawat has asked all the health officials to focus on systematic surveillance system and speed up the setting up of required infrastructure to tackle the rising numbers. “He also took stock of the surveillance system and management of different Covid-dedicated government and private hospitals in the district. We also gave him a comprehensive report on Covid-19 cases in the district,” said Dr Ohri.

Apart from Gautam Budh Nagar, the chief minister has appointed nodal officers to monitor Covid-19 cases in as many as 10 other districts in the state, including Ghaziabad, Agra, Meerut, Kanpur City, Aligarh, Moradabad, Firozabad, Bulandshahr, Jhansi and Basti.

Meanwhile, the CMO also said all the suspected Covid-19 patients in the GB Nagar will be tested in laboratories in the district itself even if they are not permanent residents here. “As per the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) protocol, even the persons belonging to other districts and states will not be prohibited from being tested for Covid-19 here,” he said.