Bhubaneswar: With September being observed as critical phase for the state capital, the COVID virus is now gradually spreading its tentacles to government and private offices with large number of employees being recorded positive on a daily basis.
As per the information provided by Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), the city until now has seen more than 250 cases being reported from various government offices. While 27 were found positive in Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT), 25 were of SBI Main Branch, 15 in Odisha Hydro Power Corporation, nine in State Assembly, six in Odisha State Housing Board, five in Odisha Tourism.
Similarly, the Commissionerate Police and Special Intelligence Wing have recorded about 105 cases. Moreover, Lok Seva Bhawan and Kharavela Bhawan have total 35 were reported cases recently while the Tahasil and Sub-Registrar office have a total of 15 cases. Even BMC itself along with BDA has reported 23 cases with one death until so far.
“As the nature of work for government employees calls for field visits and public interaction, contact tracing becomes difficult. Even with contact tracing only nature of infection in a positive person of working at these offices can be found. Preventive measures are always needed keeping at the profile of the Corona virus,” said a senior BMC official.
Moreover, many private undertaking offices and industrial units have also reported clusters of cases recently. For instance, Aditya Birla Fashion at Mancheswar had reported 15 positive cases. Similarly, 30 were reported from Swosti Premium, 10 from Hotel Crown and 30 from IT major Tech Mahindra.
The sudden surge in cases has also put strain on the COVID facilities at the BMC’s disposals. Recent media reports indicated that the civic authority is now even struggling to provide beds to even government employees or the frontline warriors.
One of our officials who was deployed with the BMC tested positive recently. He stays in a rented house in Bhubaneswar and home quarantine for him was not feasible. Thus, we requested the BMC to transfer him to COVID hospital or care centre. However, the authorities instead suggested home isolation and necessary medicines,” said a source from Steel and Mines Department.
However, refuting such claims, a senior BMC official said that despite being informed that certain patients have mild symptoms or even asymptomatic, they are getting anxious and requesting to shift to hospitals which are meant for serious and symptomatic patients.
Meanwhile, requesting people to be more open about their symptoms, BMC Deputy Commissioner of Sanitation said, “As the preventive measures are very sacrosanct to keep the COVID-19 at bay, citizens should also become pro-active in abiding by such measures. If we consider contact tracing as a vital feedback and exercise people should be voluntarily give information to the contact tracing experts in BMC.”