Assam News

Quarantined people should adhere to protocol: Himanta Biswas Sarma

State Health, Education and Finance Minister Himanta Biswas Sarma on Saturday visited

Sentinel Digital Desk

A CORRESPONDENT

GAURISAGAR: State Health, Education and Finance Minister Himanta Biswas Sarma on Saturday visited Sibsagar Civil Hospital, Joysagar. During his visit, the minister interacted with the doctors and health workers and also inspected the treatment procedure of the COVID-19 patients admitted at the Sivasagar Civil Hospital.

The minister was accompanied by Assam Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Jogen Mohan, Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Pijush Hazarika, Jorhat Lok Sabha MP Tapon Kumar Gogoi, Tezpur Lok Sabha MP Pallab Lochan Das, Sivasagar Deputy Commissioner Lakhinandan Gogoi and other senior officials of the district administration.

Earlier, on Friday night, the Health Minister chaired a review meeting with senior officials of the Health, Police, PWD and Education departments on COVID-19 situation in the district.

The meeting was held at the Sukafa conference hall of the Deputy Commissioner's office.

After the meeting, interacting with the media, the Health Minister said there was no need to panic even if 21 COVID-19 patients were presently undergoing treatment in the district.

He said among the 21 patients, nine were from Charaideo district and the rest were from Sivasagar district. He also said all these patients were not symptomatic and they were from quarantine centres. He also said they would shortly be released from hospital and could go home within 2-3 days.

Sarma also said around 3,000 people of the district returned from other States after the Centre relaxed travelling restrictions. He said after completion of institutional quarantine, most of these returnees had gone for home quarantine. He said that among them only 300 persons were presently under facility quarantine. He exuded confidence that all of them would be released from facility quarantine within the next 2-3 days.

He said on an average around 100 people were returning to Sivasagar by rail, air and by road. He said if the average was maintained, the district administration would have no problem in managing the returnees. He lauded the district civil and police administration in tackling the situation. He stressed the fact that if the quarantine facility of these returnees was maintained strictly, social contamination could be curbed. He also requested all the quarantined persons to strictly adhere to the norms and protocol so that social contamination did not take place. The Health Minister also said that the schools and colleges in the State would re-open only after the State registered zero COVID-19 cases and there would be no quarantine centres.

The review meeting was attended by Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Pijush Hazarika, Rajya Sabha MP Kamakhya Prasad Tasa, Jorhat Lok Sabha MP Tapon Kumar Gogoi, Tezpur Lok Sabha MP Pallab Lochan Das, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Jogen Mohan, MLA Thowra Kushal Dowari, Nazira MLA Debabrata Saikia, Sonari MLA Nabanita Handique, Sivasagar Deputy Commissioner Lakhinandan Gogoi and other officials of the district administration and Health, Police, PWD, PHE, Education departments.