Bhubaneswar: With the killer coronavirus fast spreading its wings in the country, the Odisha government Monday announced that all COVID-19 patients would get free treatment.
State government’s spokesperson (COVID-19 management) Subroto Bagchi said COVID-19 hospitals being developed with the help of private players will be operated by the state government and patients will be provided treatment, food and shelter—all free.
Similarly, the government is also providing cooked food to destitute and helpless people in Gram Panchayats and urban areas. Besides, temporary health camps have been opened for those who returned to the state earlier where they can stay in quarantine.
He said the state government has taken steps to provide all out assistance to Odia persons stranded in different states. A 20-line call centre in the capital city has been made operational round the clock. The call centre has so far received nearly 4,700 calls, including 200 calls from groups having 100 plus persons. 1.2 lakh workers are stranded in states like Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, West Bengal and Telangana.
Nodal officers are in regular contact with authorities of different states. Labour and ESI secretary Anu Garg said the government has ordered to provide assistance to workers of other states stranded in Odisha and treat them as our guests. Camps along with food have been started for such people. She said, about 18,000 labourers have been sheltered in 252 temporary camps. A 24 hour helpline -18003456703 is functioning to facilitate these people.
Police DG Abhay said about 1500 cases have been registered and 1400 people have been arrested in the state for different violations of regulations and guidelines related to COVID-19 till now.