'Don't panic, learn to live with COVID-19 till cure is found' | Komkar Dolum

A CORRESPONDENT

ITANAGAR: Capital Deputy Commissioner Komkar Dolum on Wednesday said that the people should learn to live along with the pandemic til a permanent cure is found to coronavirus.

Addressing media persons on the recently detected two positive cases of the working staff from Lekhi State Quarantine Facility (SQF), Dolum said that if needed the administration will surely take the call on declaring a containment zone and also lockdown in the capital city in the future.

Dolum also informed that the entire primary and secondary contacts of the two staffs have been traced out.

He further said that 114 primary contacts of the two staffers working in the store and others in the thermal screening section respectively have been collected; of which 34 tested negative and results of 80 are awaited.

"One of the staffers had 53 secondary contacts; among which swab samples of 33 have been collected while that of remaining 20 will be done within today," he said informing that swap samples of 25 other persons have been also collected from the second staff's secondary contacts.

He added that after the results of 20 secondary results and 80 primary contacts are received, the district administration will take a decision as to whether there is a need for complete district lockdown and declaring the area as a containment zone.

The administration can't just jump into declaring capital lockdown at this stage, he added.

The DC also said that two of the staffers could have been infected due to carelessness of maintaining physical distance, washing hands and not wearing facemasks as there is probability of infection from their respective work areas.

He requested the public not to believe in fake news doing rounds in the social media and also not to share any names of the detected COVID-19-positive patients. If someone is found to be doing so, the administration will take serious action against such person, he added.

He also made it clear that the working staff in the SQF at Lekhi will have to follow the home as well institutional quarantine.

Meanwhile, District Medical Officer (DMO) Dr M Perme requested the public not to panic. He also said that the primary contact of the two staff has been reported negative.

"Though the family members of both staffs have been tested negative, the Department will again test them after five days," he said, adding that the 'Antibody test' and the 'RT-PCR' will be done to all the primary and secondary contacts.

Also Watch: CPI(M) Protests against Fuel Price Hike in Naharkatia