Bhilwara, the district worst affected by Corona, will be under a strict curfew and shut down from April 3 to 13. The city has been under curfew ever since doctors and other staff at a private city hospital along with the patients they came in contact with tested positive. Total 26 persons have tested positive in Bhilwara and two persons have died. All passes, including media passes, will be suspended during this period.
According to Bhilwara District Collector Rajendra Prasad Bhatt, “The first phase of survey is over we have been very successful. Number of cases is not increasing. Out of the 26 positive in Bhilwara 8 are now positive. All need to stay in discipline only to win this war against COVID19.”
He said barricading has been done and police has been given clear directions to take strict action against people coming out without medical emergency or threat to life. A time table has been drawn to supply food and other essentials to the colonies on a rotational basis. “People can take what they require from the vans that we will be sending out. But they need to observe social distancing. If people do not follow social distancing, then the van will leave and they will get supplies only when the van comes next time according to time table.
Bhatt said that a control room would be functional round the clock. A list of daily wagers has been compiled and they will get food at home. Dry rations will be distributed in kachchi basti areas.
Inter-state borders had been sealed last night after directions from the Ministry of Home. Rajasthan ACS Home Rajeev Swaroop issued a statement that people will be stopped at the border and put in quarantine centres for the next 14 days. For this barricades were put up on the highways at border check points by the police.
However, people returning to Banswara and Dungarpur from Gujarat found a way to get across the barricades and could be seen travelling across hills and mountains to reach their villages. Police force was deployed on these paths too, but the vastness of the areas did not make it a very successful exercise.
Thirteen more persons tested positive in Rajasthan on Monday taking the tally up to 72. Apart from this 7 evacuees from Iran have also tested positive. This takes the cumulative number for the state to 79.
Of these, 10 have tested positive in Ramganj area in the walled city of Jaipur. They include the 70 year old mother and 21 year old son of the person from Ramganj who tested positive. The other 8 are members of the same family. The other three are one each from Bhilwara, Alwar and Jodhpur.
The 40 yr old male from Bhilwara was an OPD patient at Bangar Hospital from where the infection spread.
One person who tested positive in Alwar has a travel history to Philippines.
Health minister Dr Raghu Sharma said, “3.26 crore people from over 78 lakh families have been screened across Rajasthan. Over 28 lakh persons have come for testing to OPDs. Out of the 62 persons who have tested positive, 14 people are now corona negative. Of them 4 have been discharged and 10 are still under observation in quarantine.”
As part of its preparedness efforts, the state government has taken all private hospitals of Jaipur under its control. They have been told to be prepared to hand over the hospitals to the government at a two hour notice.
