Dimapur CSOs and Empowered Group adopt resolution addressed to State Government
Dimapur, June 12 (MExN): The Empowered Group Dimapur District for COVID-19 held a meeting with several Dimapur based Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) on June 12 at Hotel Saramati to deliberate on issues pertaining to management of COVID-19 and returnees from other states in Dimapur district.
According to official sources, a number of resolutions were adopted during the meeting which will be put up before the State Government.
As per the resolution adopted, there are about 3,300 returnees lodged at various quarantine centres waiting to be tested. This excludes returnees heading to the 10 districts who are in transit quarantine centre. As such, it said that the Government should provide at least 50% of the Truenat machines procured by the State Government and deploy sufficient medical personnel to Dimapur to facilitate and expedite testing for timely release of returnees and to accommodate fresh returnees.
In the event that the government is unable to provide the required testing facilities within a few days, it said that the State Government should follow the guidelines prescribed by ICMR for quarantine – 14 days institutional quarantine to be followed by 14 days home quarantine. “Those non-tested persons who have completed 14 days and above without displaying any symptoms and desirous to go for home quarantine should be allowed to do so, on the condition that they will be tested at a later stage,” it said.
Further, it stated that the BSL 2 lab at CIHSR facility should be made operational as soon as possible and the BSL 3 lab facility at Kohima “should give priority for testing of samples from Dimapur” as Dimapur has retained at least 75 % of all returnees.
According to the resolution, more than 700 persons have overstayed the mandatory 14 days of institutional quarantine ranging from 14 -27 days without swab samples being collected for testing. “Returnees in paid quarantine centres are refusing to pay bills for their stay beyond the mandatory 14 days,” it said while adding that frontline personnel as well as accommodation and logistic arrangements are soon going to be overwhelmed.
“Those returnees presently on paid quarantine beyond the mandatory 14 days quarantine period should be suitably compensated by government,” it stated.
It further pointed out that while the district is struggling with the testing of the Chennai returnees, COVID-19 cases are now being detected even among Haryana returnees. The meeting also noted that testing of returnees from Goa, Rajasthan, Bangalore etc along with those coming by various other modes of transport is yet to be done.
Another issue raised during the meeting was the State Government’s directive making it mandatory for the Chief Secretary to approve the discharge of negative persons. It termed it as a “bureaucratic procedure” at a time when immediate decisions by frontline workers are necessary, and as such, stated that “the frontline workers should be empowered to release/dispatch the returnees if they are found to be COVID-19 negative or completed the mandatory 14 days quarantine without any symptoms.”
Pointing out that the COVID-19 Hospital is already at full occupancy, it stressed on the urgent need for another COVID-19 Hospital in the district to augment the shortage of medical facility, without which “there is no alternative but to send some patients to their respective districts.” It further recommended that the CIHSR be utilized for this purpose.
It meanwhile stated that “the inadvertent dispatch of a COVID-19 positive case to Peren district has been admitted and duly clarified and apologized by concerned authority,” and therefore appealed to the NGOs of Peren district to put the matter to rest.
“Further, we appeal to the Government of Nagaland not to take any disciplinary action against any frontline workers as it was an unintentional mistake and done with no mala fide intention,” it said.
The meeting observed that since the beginning, the State Government knew that 50% of the returnees are Dimapur based and with Peren and Mon, it is 75% of the total returnees which were retained in Dimapur. It was stated that the Government should have given priority in providing resources to Dimapur district including distribution of Truenat machines, BSL-3 lab etc.
