GUWAHATI: In view of a large number of people returning to Assam in view of easing of lockdown restrictions, the state government has constituted zonal screening centre discharge boards in five locations to advise release, or otherwise from institutional quarantine at zonal screening locations, of all returnees.
The locations are Kokrajhar, Guwahati, Tezpur, Jorhat and Silchar.
For Guwahati, the zonal screening discharge board comprises additional deputy commissioner, Kamrup; deputy secretary, health and family welfare department; joint director, health services, Kamrup (Metro); consultant, National Health Mission and district surveillance officer (DSO), Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP), Kamrup (Metro).
The Kokrajhar zonal screening discharge board comprises, deputy commissioner, Kokrajhar or his representative not below the rank of ADC; deputy secretary, health department, BTAD; joint director, health services, Kokrajhar and DSO, IDSP, Kokrajhar.
For Sonitpur, Jorhat and Cachar, the zonal screening discharge boards has been constituted with the deputy commissioner concerned or his representative not below the rank of additional deputy commissioner; head of department of community medicine or his representative not below the rank of associate professor, of the respective medical college, joint director, health services of concerned district and DSO, IDSP of the concerned district.
“The concerned DCs shall issue specific orders in this regard. The committee has to meet on a daily basis and communicate its decision to all concerned for immediate follow up action,” a notification by the state health department here, stated.
The committee shall see to it that swab is drawn for sample testing upon arrival of all persons – symptomatic and asymptomatic – from all zones (red, orange or green) outside Assam.
The persons have to be sent to quarantine facility maintained by the government or paid quarantine. If a person tests positive, then he/she will be sent to an isolation facility for COVID treatment as per protocol.
If the person tests negative, then the zonal discharge board would take a call on the basis of he/she being symptomatic or asymptomatic.
Symptomatic persons would be kept in facility quarantine for 14 days at the zonal location as per protocol before tests are conducted on them while asymptomatic persons will be sent to home quarantine for 14 days in their home districts under strict surveillance.
The respective deputy commissioners, SPs, DSOs, SSOs (IDSP), state level Assam COVID Discharge Board would be intimated thereafter for strict surveillance.