Odisha Government Announces 14-day Complete Lockdown In Four High Caseload Districts

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government on Thursday (July 16) announced a 14-day complete lockdown in four districts including Ganjam, Khorha, Cuttack and Jajpur along with entire Rourkela Municipal Corporation area, from 9 pm on Friday to midnight of July 31, said Asit Tripathy, State Chief Secretary. Informing about the decision Mr Tripathy said, “State government has decided to impose a 14-day complete lockdown in these four districts and one Municipal Corporation area after considering the ongoing epidemical survey that shows — two-third of the active and news cases, which accounts for nearly 66 per cent have been reported from these places.”

Also Read: Odisha Deploys 130 Doctors, 37 Officers In Ganjam District To Combat Rising COVID-19 Cases

Aggressive surveillance, testing, contact tracing, isolation and treatment will be done during this period to contain the decease, he added.

According to the state government’s order, during this lockdown, all shops and commercial establishments, offices and institutions shall remain closed and mobility of people is also restricted, with following exemptions — central and state government establishments, utilities and essential services, transport, vegetable, food and grocery, economic and other activities.

Also Read: Over 46,000 ASHAs In Odisha Working Closely With Local Communities To Fight COVID-19

All enforcing authorities to note that these strict restrictions fundamentally relate to movement of people, but not that of goods, the order read.

“Police Commissioner, Collector, ADM, DCP, Sub-Collector, Tahasildar, B.D.O, Municipal Commissioner and Executive Officer of Urban Local Bodies of the above five districts are hereby authorised to take all necessary actions for enforcement and implementation of the aforesaid measures. Local police shall render necessary assistance as and when requisitioned by the aforementioned officers,” the order further read.

Also Read: Odisha’s Fight Against Coronavirus Continues, State Sets Up COVID-Care Homes In All Its 6,798 Gram Panchayats

Any person violating these measures will be liable to be proceeded against in accordance with the provisions of Section 51 to 60 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, besides legal action under Section 1BB of the Indian Penal Code and other legal provisions such as Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, as applicable, Odisha government stated.

Meanwhile, the state health department said Odisha reported 718 COVID-19 cases on Thursday, taking the total number of cases to 16,110 out of which 5,124 cases are active. A total of 369,738 tests were conducted in the state till yesterday.

Also Read: Bhubaneswar Undertakes Sero-Surveillance To Ascertain Extent Of COVID-19 Spread

NDTV – Dettol Banega Swasth India campaign is an extension of the five-year-old Banega Swachh India initiative helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. It aims to spread awareness about critical health issues facing the country. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign highlights the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children to prevent maternal and child mortality, fight malnutrition, stunting, wasting, anaemia and disease prevention through vaccines. Importance of programmes like Public Distribution System (PDS), Mid-day Meal Scheme, POSHAN Abhiyan and the role of Aganwadis and ASHA workers are also covered. Only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and become a Swasth or healthy India. The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene.