Covid-19 infections spike at JSW site in Ballari

BALLARI: A spurt in the number of coronavirus infections at JSW Steel’s site, Vijayanagar Works, in Ballari district has prompted concerns about a potential cluster. Ballari has reported 147 positive cases to date, and of these, 86 have been linked to the Jindal site, government officials said. Seventy-six cases have been reported in the past two days.
A similar pattern was noticed at a plant of Jubilant Generics in Nanjangud, Mysuru district, which had reported the state’s first infection cluster.All the patients there have recovered.
Ballari deputy commissioner SS Nakul has instructed Jindal officials to regularly send updates about Covid-19 to employees, apart from taking healthsafety precautions. Over 30,000 people work at the site.
On June 4, a JSW worker tested positive; his mother had travelled to Tamil Nadu. This was the first case. Since then, 86 cases have been detected. Authorities have asked the company to set up a control room to allay fears of employees, create quarantine facilities in their townships, and send samples of suspected patients for testing. Nakul said many employees who worked in the company’s central maintenance department (CMD) and Corex plant had tested positive.
Vinod Nowal, deputy managing director of JSW Steel, has written to the district administration, explaining steps taken by the company to stop the viral spread. “We have ordered our 10,751 workers to stay home from June 12 to 16. This includes 1,793 workers in Ballari, 503 in Sandur, 4,262 from surrounding villages, and 3,207 residents of four townships,” he said. “We have taken all precautions to break the virus chain, following the district administration orders in this regard.”