Journalism of Courage
With a surge in Covid-19 cases due to an increasing number of returnees, the Bihar government has now revised its strategy to quarantine migrants through a three-layer plan for quarantine — at the block, panchayat and village level — depending on the risk of infection.
During the first phase of the lockdown, migrants were kept at panchayat quarantine centres. The government later began hosting migrants in quarantine centres at block headquarters from May 1.
Trends of the last three weeks have suggested the highest risk among migrants coming from Delhi, followed by Ahmedabad, Surat and Pune. Of 1,872 cases reported till Thursday noon, about 1,000 were from high-risk towns.
Migrants from high risk towns have been lodged at block level quarantine centres to ensure fast isolation and treatment.
Principal Secretary (Disaster Management) Pratyaya Amrit said, “We are following A,B and C categories (block, panchayat and villages). People coming from UP, MP, Rajasthan and Haryana (except some towns) are kept in schools at panchayat. Migrants with very mild and least threat are put in village centres.” Amrit said the government may further revise its strategy depending on trends of samples being tested. He said the government was aware of the “not so successful” experience of village quarantine centres.
Meanwhile, a 30-year-old migrant, who had returned to Bihar from Delhi on May 18 and was reportedly frustrated at being lodged in quarantine centres, hanged himself from a window grill at a quarantine centre in Hajipur. Officials said he had tested positive for Covid.
