SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad Oct 21: Two Covid-19 patients of West Bengal were caught while entering Dhanbad on the Jharkhand- West Bengal border at Panchet, around 52 km away from the district headquarters, according to an official of the health department.
District Nodal Officer of Covid control campaign, Dr Rajkumar Singh, said that both the infected persons were coming to Dhanbad to meet their relatives. While getting tested at the border, they came out positive and were duly admitted to the Covid care centre of Shahid Nirmal Mahto Medical College Hospital (SNMMCH).
The infected people were identified as residents of Adra and Purulia districts.
“After their test reports came positive, both the infected people requested to be released and that they would get treated in a hospital in Bengal but owing to Covid protocol we admitted them to SNMMCH,” said Dr Singh.
This arrest of infected persons remains significant as the first Covid case of Dhanbad had come from West Bengal on April 8, 2020 in Chirkunda. After that, the District Disaster Management (DDM) had deployed a team to conduct tests on whoever entered Dhanbad from West Bengal.
He said he can claim Dhanbad is now Covid case-free district. For the last 12 days, not a single case has surfaced. “For checking the influx of infected cases, we have intensified testing at entry points of districts from other states,” he added.
Health department officials said besides Maithon, Panchet, Chirkunda on the border of Bengal, six teams are roaming in the city to conduct testing. Passengers of trains and buses at Dhanbad railway station and Bartand Bus Stand are being screened round the clock. The RT PCR facility has been installed at Sadar hospital besides the medical college hospital, and a report is being given in eight to 10 hours.
“Till late night on Wednesday a total 3,204 people were tested in Dhanbad and all came negative,” said Dr Rajkumar Singh.
