Guwahati: In a move that is expected to give a major boost to anti-COVID efforts in Assam, the Government has launched 31 Covid Counselling Centers (CCC) in every ward of Guwahati amid a sharp spike in the number of virus cases in the city.
Assam Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma earlier took to Twitter where he wrote, "We have activated all 31 Covid Counselling Centres in each and every ward of Guwahati Municipal Corporation. I urge citizens of Guwahati to use these facilities and come forward for voluntary testing for Covid-19."
The 31 COVID Counselling Centers in Guwahati are as follows:
Jalukbari Girls HS
Pandu Adarsha HS
Bidyamandir Higher Secondary School
Kamakhya HSS
Durgasarobar Bisyapeeth High School
Ambari HS
Kaliram Baruah Girls HS
Bengali HSS
Uzanbazar Government Girls HS
Pub Guwahati Adarsha HS
Rajgarh Girls HS
Dispur Udayachal HS
Zoo Road Vidyapith HS
Bhaskar Vidyapith HSS
Guwahati Refinery HS
New Guwahati Adarsha HS
Dispur Govt HSS
L O G Hindi HS
Banikanta Memorial Girls HS
Bishnupur Bidyaniketan HS
S B Deurah College
Satgaon HS
Rukmini Balika Bidyalaya
Dakshin Beltola HS
Ganesh Mandir HS School
Bagharbari HS
Tetelia High School
Netaji Subhas Vidyapeeth ME
Dakshin Guwahati HS
Sabitri Bharali HS
WHAT IS A COVID COUNSELLING CENTER?
The stated purpose of these centers is to "combat the rising curve of Covid-19 cases in Guwahati." According to the Government sources, these centers are being opened up to significantly increase the number of tests that are conducted in the city.
A number of facilities have been made available at these unique centres. Apart from swab collection, medical examination, result reporting, shifting of isolation centers, these centers will also focus on "Covid counselling" and the dissemination of information regarding the disease.
At a time when the stigma surrounding the visiting of medical colleges is an all time high due to COVID, these counselling centers have been touted as a way forward to effectively counter the disease by increasing awareness among the citizenry.
Set up in Government places, such as schools, the local-level officials have been tasked with ensuring the smooth operations in these centers.
"Since yesterday, swabs have been collected at the centre. However, operations began in full flow today and we have collected as many as 28 samples so far. The district administration takes updates of the goings-on at the CCC, and we have to keep reporting from time to time", said Bhupati Sarma, the Principal of the Pandu Adarsha High School, one of the CCCs in the city.
Meanwhile, a 14-day lockdown has once again been clamped in the city to arrest the spread of the virus that is spreading at a dramatic pace in the urban agglomeration.