Start random testing in all districts at the earliest: Bihar CM

At a high-level meeting he chaired here to review the coronavirus situation, Kumar also directed senior officials led by the Chief Secretary to ensure that Standard Operating Procedures were followed at all quarantine centers.

With COVID 19 having spread far and wide in Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday ordered that random testing be started across all districts at the earliest in order to get a clearer idea of the extent of the outbreak besides instilling a sense of security among the people.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar during a meeting on agricultural input grant, at 1, Anne Marg, in Patna. (Santosh Kumar/ Hindustan Times)

At a high-level meeting he chaired here to review the coronavirus situation, Kumar also directed senior officials led by the Chief Secretary to ensure that Standard Operating Procedures were followed at all quarantine centers which have been set up to contain the large number of migrant workers who have been returning on board special trains.

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He also gave strict instructions that the quarantine centres at the Panchayat levels must be equipped with facilities at par with block level ones so that migrant workers who were being lodged there for a 21-day period from the date of their arrival faced no inconveniences.

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The Chief Minister also said that random testing should be started at all districts as soon as possible as it would help in more effectively checking the spread of coronavirus and instill a sense of security in the minds of the people.

Till date, the dreaded coronavirus has spread to 32 out of 38 districts in the state and the number of confirmed cases in Bihar till date is close to 550, including five deaths.

The Chief Minister also called for ensuring adequate supply, at all districts, of Truenat kits small, chip- based, battery-operated machines which can be handled with minimal training and after being widely in use for detecting TB cases, have been approved by the ICMR for conducting COVID 19 screenings.

He also reiterated the need for breaking the chain of infection through constantly supervised contact tracing and strengthening of the infrastructure available at hospitals.