This story is from May 6, 2020

Covid-free Amreli in a fix over Surat migrants’ influx

Covid-free Amreli in a fix over Surat migrants’ influx
Cops on the vigil at checkpost in Amreli district
Rajkot: With the state government permitting migrant diamond workers in Surat to return to their native in Saurashtra and North Gujarat districts, Amreli, which has been Covid-free till now, is in tenterhooks.
The district administration, which is already struggling with lack of adequate medical and screening facilities to fight the pandemic, expects nearly 1.5 lakh people in the next 15 to 20 days.
Around 500-600 people are being caught entering the district daily, of whom only around 150 have legal passes to enter the district.
Already more than one lakh people have entered the district in the last one and half months.
Sans private medical facility unlike bigger cities, Amreli has a combined capacity of 6,000 beds ready for Covid patients, but this will now be ramped up to 10,000 beds now. There are total 12 government physicians in the entire district.
Even though Surat district administration has assured that migrants will be allowed to travel only after medical verification, Amreli authorities don’t want to take any chances.
Talking with TOI, Amreli district collector Aayush Oak said, “We are expecting nearly 1.5 lakh people to enter the district in two three weeks’ time. People coming in with valid passes will be put under home quarantine from the check post itself, but anybody found with the slightest symptoms will be sent to the quarantine facility. Those caught entering illegally will of course be sent to the quarantine facility.”

“We are trying our best to prevent spread of infection as the busloads will arrive from the red zone. We have limited resources, and amid al constraints we will have to work to our fullest capacity to accommodate everybody with valid passes,” Oak added.
While the migrants want to return to the safety of their hometown, the administration is getting jittery at the prospect of handling the huge influx from Covid-battered Surat. The administration, meanwhile, is preparing to handle 3,000 people per day though the number of migrants seeking entry into the district far exceeds its calculations.
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About the Author
Nimesh Khakhariya

Nimesh Khakhariya is an assistant editor with Times Of India.

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