Districts seemed less prepared than capital Ranchi on Day One of the lockdown till March 31, faced by the influx of returning migrants and a climate of hostilit. On Monday, passengers who alighted at Ranchi station faced a tough time to reach districts in the absence of inter-district buses. Many hitchhiked on trucks and ambulances.
Hazaribagh
Sadar SDO Megha Bhardwaj moved on crowded streets urging people to obey the lockdown. Prices of vegetables spiked overnight, tomatoes shooting up from Rs 20 per kg to Rs 40 per kg. Sadar hospital saw long queues of those who returned from cities, forced by kin to go for check-ups and rule out Covid-19.
Koderma
DC Ramesh Gholap on Monday held a news meet on strictly implementing the coronavirus. He said 958 persons had ordered home quarantine and notices pasted on their homes to enable medical teams to monitor them.
He said four check-posts at bordering areas had been made to ensure better screening. Nine rapid response teams were formed headed by civic surgeon Dr Parvati Nag, who would visit villages to educate people on ways to protect themselves from Covid-19. The DC appealed to the people to behave sympathetically with migrants and report anyone with symptoms to the administration. He said a separate flu ward had been created at sadar hospital. He also warned against black-marketing, hoarding of masks and hand sanitizers or selling fake ones. Koderma MP Annapurna Devi, he added, had given them a grant of Rs 15 lakh from her MP fund to fight the virus.
Garhwa
Three dozen people who returned by bus from Chhattisgarh in the last two days tested negative for Covid-19 at the government hospital. Many labourers tried to board ambulances in the absence of buses, whose drivers charged Rs 500 per head. Many walked. SDO Pradeep Kumar urged people on roads to follow the lockdown.
Dumka
SDO Rakesh Kumar warned shopkeepers that no food or vegetables could be sold for more than the market price. A person selling potatoes at inflated rates was held.
Deoghar
The bustling temple town wore a deserted look as DC Nancy Sahay and SP Nagendra Singh warned people not to loiter.
