BLOs will help Ghaziabad step up surveillance

GHAZIABAD: With the Covid situation worsening with each passing day, Ghaziabad has adopted a more robust system of tracking down suspected patients.

The district administration has roped in over 3,000 block level officers (BLO) to carry out door-to-door surveys to look for any Covid symptoms among the populace and alert the health department if one is found. This way, the administration hopes to screen the entire population of the district.
Officials said that some 3,048 BLOs and 237 supervisors have been pressed into service for this purpose.
"The primary job of the BLOs would be to conduct the door-to-door surveys to look for Covid symptoms among people. The BLOs would make use of electoral rolls in carrying out the survey," said Ajay Shankar Pandey district magistrate of Ghaziabad.
As soon as BLOs come across any person with Covid symptoms, the DM said, the health department will be informed.
"In the meantime, the BLOs will assist such people in getting the required tests done. The BLOs will also create awareness about the pandemic through pamphlets in their respective areas. They are entrusted with the job of also keeping tabs on patients and their contacts under home isolation."
Much before it came up with the idea of roping in BLOs, the Ghaziabad administration had initiated a door-to-door survey and managed to track 826 Covid cases in the city in a month.
"We had initiated the survey a month ago with the help of other agencies, in which few BLOs were involved. Though we had covered 80per cent of the district's population in both urban and rural areas from July 1 to 31, for better results, we have now decided that over 3,000 BLOs should be pressed into service. We will continue with the survey till the situation improves," said Pandey.
In neighbouring Gautam Budh Nagar, the Covid-19 response team is relying on the surveillance teams and increased testing to detect positive cases.
Officials said that more than 1,500 teams are carrying out the special screening drive to track down patients and organise health camps across the district.
"The health camps are accepting all individuals. No questions are being asked and samples are being collected through antigen kits. We are able to trace and track positive patients early on as a result," district magistrate Suhas LY said.
Apart from the surveillance teams, Gautam Budh Nagar has also set up 701 nigrani samitis (monitoring committees) in rural and urban areas.
The office-bearers of the committees can report people with symptoms to the surveillance team.