COVID-19: Zonal screening venue set up at Tezpur University

A Correspondent

TEZPUR: In order to contain the spread of COVID-19 and as per directions received from the Department of Health, Government of Assam, the Sonitpur district administration has set up a Zonal Screening Venue at Tezpur Central University, Napaam to screen all people belonging to Udalguri, Sonitpur, Biswanath, Lakhimpur and Dhemaji districts who will be returning from outside the State.

In an order dated May 4, 2020, the District Magistrate under provisions of the Disaster Management Act has requisitioned certain facilities of the district for setting up institutional quarantine centres in the district. The community hall along with the playground of Tezpur University is being used for screening of passengers while the ring road around the playground will be used for parking of vehicles. The Kendriya Vidyalaya situated in the campus will be used for setting up an institutional quarantine facility to accommodate around 250 persons.

Moreover, the Bijit Saikia Indoor Stadium and Polo Field in Tezpur will also be used to set up a 100-bedded institutional quarantine facility. Two quarantine facilities are already operational in Sirajuli and Kusumtola Model Hospitals in the district with a combined strength of around 100 beds.

The State Government has begun initiatives to bring back people of Assam stranded outside the State. Sonitpur district along with Kokrajhar, Guwahati, Silchar and Jorhat have been selected as screening centres zone-wise with Sonitpur being the centre for the five districts falling under the North Assam Zone ie. Udalguri, Sonitpur, Biswanath, Lakhimpur and Dhemaji. Mandatory registration, screening and quarantine for all passengers will be carried out in these centres in a bid to reduce the possibility of community transmission from probable COVID-19 positive patients. People who test negative after 14 days of compulsory quarantine will be allowed to go home.

For people who do not want to avail institutional quarantine, they will be able to book hotels at their own expense and choose to quarantine themselves at such hotels as identified by the district administration.

A meeting involving all senior district administration officials and heads of various government departments was held at the Zonal Screening Venue at Tezpur University on Tuesday where Deputy Commissioner Manvendra Pratap Singh directed all officials to diligently carry out their respective duties in view of the public health emergency.

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