GUWAHATI: In the wake of spike in COVID-19 cases without travel history at community level in certain parts of Guwahati city, state Health Department has suggested the Kamrup Metropolitan District administration to declare ward-wise lockdown in those areas apart from declaring containment zones.
Health Minister, Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday informed that a meeting at the Chief Minister’s level t night would take a final decision in this regard. He said seven wards of the city – Ward Nos. 2,3, 4., 5, 10,15 and 16 had become cause of worry because of community level transmission occurring in these areas.
Meanwhile, health department will set up 31 COVID screening centres cum makeshift hospitals in addition of Guwahati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) and Mohendra Mohan Choudhury (MMC) Hospital, equipped with doctors, nurses and ambulances, in all the wards in Guwahati city to encourage voluntary COVID testing at community level for earlier detection of COVID-19 positive cases.
“We are going to set up a modern testing machines approved by the ICMR in all these 33 screening centres so hat swab test results can be given instantly unlike RT-PCR tests where results are given in three days. This particular machine can carry out 30-40 tests a day,” the Health Minister said.
These 31 screening centres will be inclusive of 10 such centres which have already been functioning in the city since June 15.
The Minister informed that the 12 screening centres including GMCH and MMC, which have been operating in the city since June 15, have generated good response from public as average 400-500 persons have volunteered to undertake COVID tests.
“Since June 15 over 5000 swab samples collected in those centres have been tested and results over 3000 tests have found 144 COVID positive cases without out travel history,” the minister informed.
Apprehending that there will be further increase in the number of COVID-19 patients in Guwahati, the state Health Department will convert two big quarantine centres at Sarusajai Stadium and Khanapara Veterinary Ground to COVID care hospital for non-symptomatic patients from July when pressure on the quarantine centres will reduce after arrival of most of the stranded state residents from outside.