Deputy Commissioners must maintain proper coordination with elected representatives of Panchayati Raj.

Institutions and Urban Local Bodies by providing them advance information to them regarding arrival of people from other parts of the State coming back to their native places in their jurisdiction. This was disclosed by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur while holding a video conferencing from Shimla with the Deputy Commissioners, Superintendents of Police and Chief Medical Officers of the State in the wake of coronavirus.

Chief Minister said that the ‘Nigah’ team along with ASHA workers and other health workers must reach out to such families in advance and sensitize them to ensure proper isolation and social distancing of the arriving persons.  He said that they must also ensure that the house has adequate accommodation for maintaining social distancing besides having separate washroom for the arriving persons under home quarantine.

He said that if such facility was not available, panchayats should come forward to provide arrangements for their stay by adopting proper quarantine protocol.

Jai Ram Thakur said that all the persons coming from red zone need to be kept under institutional quarantine and only after testing for COVID-19 after 5-7 days, they should be shifted for home quarantine if they were found negative. He said that the persons coming from orange and green zones should be kept under home quarantine and could be randomly tested.

Chief Minister said that a foolproof mechanism needs to be developed for home quarantine as a single laxity could prove damaging. He said that violation of home quarantine norms should be dealt firmly.

Jai Ram Thakur said that since developmental works have now gradually started in the State, therefore, it must be ensured that workers of PWD, Jal Shakti, Rural Development Departments, and MNREGA must be allowed to work even beyond relaxation in curfew hours so that adequate time could be given for time-bound completion of various developmental works. He said that similarly bankers are also required to work for full office hours especially after the Rs. 20 lakh crore economic package announced by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Therefore, they should also be allowed free movement during the curfew hours, he added.

Chief Secretary Anil Khachi, Director General of Police S.R. Mardi, Additional Chief Secretary Health R.D. Dhiman, Principal Secretaries J.C. Sharma and Onkar Sharma were also present on the occasion.