COVID-19: Pondy Health Department comes in for praise

: Puducherry has presently been

testing 400 samples per lakh of population for detecting COVID-19 and the health department's measures to contain the spread of the infection were laudable, Collector T Arun said.

Talking to reporters, the official said, "We tested 102 and now it had shot upto 400 perlakhof population."

He said the Union territory government was taking meticulous care in enabling the guest workers leave for their native places keeping in line with the guidelines of the Home Ministry. "Not all applying for the departure from here to other states will be permitted. Only those who are really stranded and had emergency causes were permitted to leave for their native states," he said.

 

So far, 700 people have been helped to leave for their respective states and there were also cases of people going to Mizoram, their native State. Around 5,000 workers had applied for permission to proceed to their native places, Arun said.

A nodal officer has been appointed by the territorial government to process the applications of guest workers. "We are careful in ensuring good coordination between Puducherry administration and other state governments and Collectors so that there would be no problem for those proceeding to their native places," the Collector said.

He said Arumbathapuram village near here has been brought under containment zone and this was the sixth such zone so labelled as a resident of the village working in a private firm had tested positive for coronavirus.

Senior Superintendent of Police Rahul Alwal, who was also present, said the Police Welfare Society had set apart Rs 25,000 as an assistance to any policeman affected by the COVID-19.