The Jharkhand government has planned to start an intensive door-to-door testing covering all households in rural areas in each of the over 4,400 panchayats across 24 districts, continuing with chief minister Hemant Soren’s efforts at plugging loopholes in Covid management.

In a letter addressed to all the deputy commissioners by the additional chief secretary (health), Arun Kumar Singh, has directed for constitution of block-level Covid task force but also take help of over one lakh sahiyas, auxiliary nurse midwives and community health officers for conducting an intensive public health survey.

“There should be a block level Covid task force in each of the (260) blocks with BDO or circle officer as its chairperson and in-charge medical officer as its member secretary while child development project officer, concerned police station officer-in-charge, woman surveyor (social welfare department), JSLPS block level program manager, block panchayat raj official, block supply officer, block education extension officer as its member,” the letter informs.

The directive further states that sahiyas, anganbari sevikas and multi-purpose workers (MPWs) should be trained for Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) in addition to providing them adequate home isolation kits, pulse oximeters and thermal scanner and there should be two groups of sahiyas and sevikas in each panchayats, while one group would conduct RAT and other testing, another group would identify the Covid suspects. All the sahiyas, sevikas and ANMs should have been given two doses of vaccines. Testing booths should also be constituted in crowded areas.

The team apart from sending Covid suspects to health centres and home isolations would also create awareness about Covid protocols for home isolations and vaccinations. Community health officers and ANMs would be carrying out telephonic monitoring of the person under home isolation.

There should be at least two ambulances with drivers in each of the blocks and the task force should also ensure that dead bodies are disposed of as per Covid protocol. The task force would have to submit daily reports to the deputy commissioners of the district.

The exercise would be carried out for 10-days from May 25.

Meanwhile, Soren on Monday inaugurated an 80-bed oxygen supported Covid care centre at Ghatotand in Ramgarh in association with Tata Steel Foundation, West Bokaro unit.

The government has also announced to arrange for the wood of those needy persons for the last rites of family members dead due to Covid pandemic.

On Sunday, Jharkhand registered 2,321 positive cases taking the total Covid active load to 36,540, Sunday also saw 48 deaths taking the total casualty to 4,479.