Minister Pijush Hazarika calls for increasing swab collection points in Tezpur

OUR CORRESPONDENT

TEZPUR: Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Pijush Hazarika visited the Zonal Health Screening Centre set up by Sonitpur district administration in Tezpur University on Tuesday and reviewed the facilities available at the centre along with Tezpur MP Pallab Lochan Das, MLAs Padma Hazarika and Ashok Singhal. He was accompanied by Deputy Commissioner Manvendra Pratap Singh, CEO of Zilla Parishad, Diganta Baishya, Superintendent of Police MugdhaJyoti Dev Mahanta and other senior officials of the district and police administrations.

Reviewing the registration and swab collection procedures, the Minister asked the Deputy Commissioner to increase the number of swab collection points in Tezpur University to four and recruit at least 15 new laboratory technicians to be present at the counters round-the-clock. He also directed the SP to strictly enforce social distancing in various places such as inside the screening venue, the quarantine camps and while boarding and alighting of passengers. He also directed the Transport department officials to work in close coordination with the police and magistrates for smooth transportation to and from quarantine centres. Moreover, he asked the SP to deploy an officer not below the rank of DSP at the Zonal Health Screening Centre at all times.

In order to ease the load at the Zonal Health Screening Centre in Tezpur, the Minister issued directions that from Tuesday onwards persons belonging to Udalguri and Biswanath districts be sent directly to their respective districts where they would be registered, screened, tested and quarantined.

Moreover, expressing concern at several senior government medical practitioners and other healthcare workers with health concerns and comorbidities having to work in Zonal Screening Centres/ COVID care centres, the Minister asked the Deputy Commissioner and Joint Director, Health Services to submit a list of all such persons so that steps could be taken to place them in tertiary health centres where they did not have to directly deal with COVID positive patients. The Minister appealed to all Health department personnel not to proceed on leave without prior approval of the Health department.