JAJPUR: With eight new Covid-19 cases reported on Saturday, Jajpur’s coronavirus tally has climbed up to 48, surpassing Bhubaneswar as the biggest hotspot of Odisha. Three of the cases were reported from Bari block, all of whom had returned from West Bengal. They were asymptomatic and had completed the mandatory 14-day home quarantine. Five other cases were reported from Binjharpur and Jajpur blocks, all with travel history to Kolkata.
They too, were asymptomatic and under home quarantine. On April 20, all were shifted to institutional quarantine after the State Government mandated that all West Bengal returnees should be housed in the Covid-care centres. Their swab samples were sent for test which came out positive. On Friday, four persons of the district were detected positive for Covid-19.
With cases spiking, Collector Ranjan Kumar Das placed Talakaipara, Upper Kaipara, Kalamatia and Jorakula under Kalamatia panchayat of Bari block; Kalyanpur, Samalpur, Rudrapur, Kanhupur and Mahasara under Kalyanpur panchayat of Binjharpur block; and Suninda and Nathasahi under Nathasahi panchayat of Jajpur block under containment zone category. Shutdown here will continue till May 16.
This apart, there are 21 other villages under eight panchayats which are under containment. As many as five of the total 10 blocks of the district are now coronavirus affected. They are Jajpur, Dasarathapur, Korei, Bari and Rasulpur blocks. Dasarathapur block accounts for 21 positive cases, the highest in the district. All have been reported from Katikata area and of them, 16 are contact cases.
As per official records, the district has 47 active cases with one recovery. The first case of Covid-19 was reported from Jajpur on April 3 after a person of Brahmabarada village under Rasulpur block with links to Tablighi Jamaat in New Delhi was tested positive. The district administration has declared 11 villages in Bari, Binjharpur and Jajpur blocks as containment zones after the eight cases were reported.