Seven clusters identified in Noida to ramp up screening

NOIDA: The district administration and the health department have identified seven clusters in the city that have reported a number of Covid-19 cases and planned intensive surveillance and sanitisation drives for those areas.
Medical camps have been set up at these places to encourage everyone to visit doctors who screen residents for influenza-like illness (ILI) symptoms. Officials said that a separate health strategy has been formulated for the the seven areas to ensure that a Khoda-like situation can be avoided in Noida.

Khoda, in Ghaziabad, has emerged as a cluster reporting around 30 Covid-19 cases so far.
In Noida, the seven areas are four JJ Colony clusters (sectors 5, 8, 9 and 10) Mamura near Sector 66, Harola near Sector 5 and Nagla Charandas in Phase 2 of Noida.
The list, however, does not include Sector 30 and Nithari in Sector 31, both of which have reported a number of cases. Most of the cases in these two places have been traced to healthcare workers.
“The challenge in these seven areas is that social distancing is very difficult. It is also why the cases are increasing. The only solution is early identification. That is why, we will set up health camps so that doctors can check everyone and we can identify as many people as possible. Early detection helps in better treatment and reduces the mortality rate ,” said district magistrate Suhas LY.
He added that the administration is also talking to NGOs that can partner with doctors from private hospitals for the health camps and awareness campaigns in these areas.
Several NGOs involved with food distribution are in contact with the administration and want to get involved with other work in these areas, officials said. “We are asking them to help set up health camps in some of the hotspots and rural clusters. We will provide PPE and other safety gear, along with training for screening and testing, before setting up the camps,” said Suhas LY.
The strategy is to ramp up health camps in the worst affected hotspots and screen everyone on the spot, officials said.
The strategy to intensify screening and surveillance will be followed in rural clusters as well where social distancing is again a challenge.
In the city, some of the other areas with high number of Covid-19 cases are sectors 12, 19 and 30, Nithari in Sector 31, Nat Mandiya and Bisrakh.