COVID-19: Door-to-door survey in Vizag containment zones to be stricter

Visakhapatnam District Collector V Vinay Chand, IAS, held a high-level meeting with health officers and GVMC authorities at the Collectorate on Wednesday. He said that the fourth round of door-to-door survey in Vizag must be strictly carried out in all apartments and houses that come under the GVMC’s purview. The collector instructed that all houses in the containment zones that have been surveyed must be made note of, and data reports must be submitted on a daily basis. Stating that 6 lakh families currently live in these areas, the collector asked the officials to come up with a detailed plan and cover ten wards every day.

These door-to-door surveys are an attempt to check the health of all citizens, in order to contain coronavirus. Instructions were also given to put special focus on Narsipatnam, Yelamanchili, Padmanabham and Bheemili areas.

Reviewing the progress of all precautionary activities undertaken so far, the District Collector said that fourth round of disinfection protocols must be carried out in all the containment zones of Vizag as well. Instructions were given to the DMHO to appoint ASHA Workers and nurses from rural areas, in case the GVMC is understaffed.

The Vizag Collector said that a solid plan of action must be made by the surveyors a day before they head out for the door-to-door survey. The collector instructed top officials to inspect whether the volunteers are provided with masks and testing kits ahead of their survey runs. All departments were cautioned to carry out this crucial exercise with utmost diligence and stated that action will be taken against those found violating the rules. Instructions were given to test employees for COVID-19 if they exhibit symptoms of the virus. The collector also stated that masks must be procured only from the self-help groups that come under Mission for Elimination of Poverty in Municipal Areas (MEPMA) to supply to the staff.