Bargarh to deploy teachers on Cov duty

Bhubaneswar: The Bargarh administration in western Odisha has decided to assign one teacher per 1,000 people for surveillance of Covid cases and monitoring of the vaccination drive in the district.
Chief district medical and public health officer Arun Patra on Tuesday said that in view of rising cases and shortage of manpower, teachers would be called in to help. “Earlier panchayat representatives were helping in such work.But after rural polls were announced, they would not be available now,” he said.
The State Election Commission on Tuesday announced the three-tier panchayat elections will be held in five phases from February 16.
Citing decision taken at the district magistrate level, Patra wrote to district education officer Mitrabhanu Kachhap to allot Covid duty to school teachers.
As per the plan, the teachers will be allotted an area where they go from house to house and interact with people daily to identify those with suspected symptoms, encourage and guide them to get tested at a nearest testing centre. For Covid positive people, they will discuss their health status, supply them Covid (medicine) kits and apprise the health authorities if needed. They would also identify people who have not been vaccinated.
In the first two waves, teachers in various districts had helped in managing Covid care centres and surveillance of influenza-like illness and severe acute respiratory illness. Other districts too are planning to use teachers for Covid care. “Presently we haven’t included any school teachers for Covid-19 activities but if required as the cases go up further, we may consider to include them,” said Tapiram Majhi, project director, District Rural Development Agency, Jharsuguda.
Teachers resented the move. “We are into online teaching. Very soon most of us will also be assigned election duty. The government should consider deploying employees from other departments,” said a teacher in Bargarh.
Bhubaneswar: The Bargarh administration in western Odisha has decided to assign one teacher per 1,000 people for surveillance of Covid cases and monitoring of the vaccination drive in the district.
Chief district medical and public health officer Arun Patra on Tuesday said that in view of rising cases and shortage of manpower, teachers would be called in to help. “Earlier panchayat representatives were helping in such work. But after rural polls were announced, they would not be available now,” he said.
The State Election Commission on Tuesday announced the three-tier panchayat elections will be held in five phases from February 16.
Citing decision taken at the district magistrate level, Patra wrote to district education officer Mitrabhanu Kachhap to allot Covid duty to school teachers.
As per the plan, the teachers will be allotted an area where they go from house to house and interact with people daily to identify those with suspected symptoms, encourage and guide them to get tested at a nearest testing centre. For Covid positive people, they will discuss their health status, supply them Covid (medicine) kits and apprise the health authorities if needed. They would also identify people who have not been vaccinated.
In the first two waves, teachers in various districts had helped in managing Covid care centres and surveillance of influenza-like illness and severe acute respiratory illness. Other districts too are planning to use teachers for Covid care. “Presently we haven’t included any school teachers for Covid-19 activities but if required as the cases go up further, we may consider to include them,” said Tapiram Majhi, project director, District Rural Development Agency, Jharsuguda.
Teachers resented the move. “We are into online teaching. Very soon most of us will also be assigned election duty. The government should consider deploying employees from other departments,” said a teacher in Bargarh.