NE NEWS SERVICE
GANDHINAGAR, APRIL 7
The number of coronavirus cases in Gujarat jumped to 165 on Tuesday, with 19 more people testing positive for the viral infection in the state, an official said.
A series of measures taken by the Gujarat Govt to ensure the provision of essential items and services during lockdown.#IndiaFightsCorona #GujaratFightsCovid19 pic.twitter.com/UasFBhxGgV
— CMO Gujarat (@CMOGuj) April 7, 2020
Out of 19 new cases, 13 have been reported from Ahmedabad, three from Patan, and one each from Bhavnagar, Anand and Sabarkantha, Principal Secretary (Health) Jayanti Ravi said.
Anand and Sabarkantha districts reported their first cases on Tuesday. With this, coronavirus cases have now been reported from 17 districts out of the total 33 in the state.
This #WorldHealthDay, let us also ensure we follow practices like social distancing which will protect our own lives as well as the lives of others. May this day also inspire us towards focusing on personal fitness through the year, which would help improve our overall health.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 7, 2020
Ahmedabad has reported the maximum cases at 77, followed by Surat- 19, Bhavnagar-14, Gandhinagar-13, Vadodara- 12, Rajkot-10, Patan-five, Porbandar-three, Kutch, Mehsana, and Gir Somnath- two each, and Chhota Udepur, Anand, Sabarkantha, Jamnagar, and Morbi- one each.
અમદાવાદ મ્યુનિસિપલ કોર્પોરેશન દ્વારા આજથી કોરોના વાયરસ પ્રભાવિત વિસ્તારોમાં વિશેષ ડ્રોનથી દવા છંટકાવની કામગીરી શરુ. #AmdavadFightsCorona#AmdavadAMC@MoHFW_GUJARAT @GujHFWDept pic.twitter.com/FUDxZmiKbq
— Amdavad Municipal Corporation (@AmdavadAMC) April 7, 2020
Out of 130 active patients, four are on ventilator support and in critical condition, while the condition of the remaining 126 is stable, the official said. Twelve people have so far died, while 23 have been discharged after recovery, she said.
All the new cases are locally transmitted, taking the total number of such cases to 100, she said. While 33 patients have foreign travel history, 32 others have inter-state travel history. As many as 3,040 tests have been conducted at laboratories in Gujarat so far. Of these, 298 tests were conducted in the last 24 hours and the results of 40 are pending. Total of 11,286 patients are placed under quarantine, out of whom 10,133 are in-home quarantine, 935 in government facilities, and 218 in private facilities.
कोरोना संकट से निपटने के लिये पूरी तरह तैयार है गुजरात: CM रूपानी
स्वास्थ्य सुविधाओ के लिये बजेट में कोई कमी नहीं: CM रुपानीGujarat Fully Prepared to Tackle Corona Crisis: CM Rupani Talks to DD (Hindi)
See Exclusive Interview: https://t.co/33awlzbJHd@DDNewsHindi @DDNewslive
— DD News Gujarati (@DDNewsGujarati) April 7, 2020
Govt ropes in private companies to manufacture PPE, N95 masks
The Gujarat government has roped in state-based private companies to manufacture personal protective equipment and N95 masks required by health staff who are at the forefront of the battle against coronavirus.
ઇન્ટેન્સિવ સર્વેલન્સ અને એનહાન્સ્ડ ટેસ્ટિંગના ભાગરૂપે, મ્યુનિસિપલ કોર્પોરેશન દ્વારા આજે સવારે અમદાવાદમાં કોરોના મોબાઇલ પરીક્ષણ વાન શરૂ કરવામાં આવી છે.
7 ઝોન માટે 7 વાન
દરેક વાનમાં એક સર્વેલન્સ ટીમ થર્મલ ગન સાથે અને સેમ્પલ સંગ્રહ માટે એક ટેસ્ટીંગ ટીમ રહેશે.#AmdavadFightsCorona pic.twitter.com/9l2wph7W5f
— Amdavad Municipal Corporation (@AmdavadAMC) April 7, 2020
A private company from the state has already manufactured low-cost ventilators and will be supplying them soon to government-run hospitals, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said a few days back.
The state government feels it will be better prepared to fight the disease if local manufacturers provide such vital equipment, chief minister’s secretary Ashwani Kumar said.
‘Chief Minister Rupani has called upon industries of the state for local production of items essential to tackle the viral infection,’ Kumar said.
First Covid-19 patient cured and discharged from Bhavnagar hospital today. @CMOGuj @GujHFWDept @pkumarias @JayantiRavi @JpShivahare @InfoGujarat @mahiti_bvn pic.twitter.com/FC92HwYpYw
— Collector & District Magistrate, Bhavnagar (@Collectorbhav) April 7, 2020
As part of the initiative, the Rajkot-based Jyoti CNC has started production of ventilators after getting necessary approvals, he said.
“Two other companies -Arvind Mills in Ahmedabad and Sure Safety in Vadodara – will soon start production of personal protective equipment (PPE),” he said.
The state government got technology transferred from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur for N95 masks, he said, adding that Ahmedabad-based Cellulose Products will manufacture 25,000 such masks per day.
ભાવનગર જીલ્લાના મોટા ખુંટવડા પોલીસ સ્ટેશન દ્વારા ધ સ્કૂલ ઓફ સાયન્સ સારદીકા નાં સૌજન્યથી પોલીસ સ્ટેશન સેનેટરાઈઝ કરવામાં આવેલ તેમજ આજુબાજુના 30 જેટલા ગામડાઓ સેનેટરાઈઝ કરવાની તેમજ આ ગામડાઓમાં ઘરે ઘરે માસ્ક વિતરણ ની કામગીરી શરૂ કરવામાં આવેલ છે#CoronaLockdown @AddlCP_ABAD @mha pic.twitter.com/y3w3AfCuMg
— Bhavnagar Police (@SPBhavnagar) April 7, 2020
Both the PPE and N95 masks are very useful in protecting the medical staff who are on the frontline of the fight against coronavirus, the official said.
Rupani recently announced that private company Jyoti CNC has developed low-cost ventilators and it will provide 1,000 such machines to the state-run hospitals soon.
ભાવનગર પોલીસ દ્વારા શહેરના અલગ અલગ વિસ્તારોમા પેટ્રોલિંગ કરવામાં આવેલ. @mansukhmandviya @jitu_vaghani @vibhavaridave @dgpgujarat @AddlCP_ABAD @mha pic.twitter.com/QKYQewGLXf
— Bhavnagar Police (@SPBhavnagar) April 7, 2020
‘When we have the talent and the industry which can produce equipment required to fight the coronavirus, we should encourage local production,’ he had said.
Gujarat MLAs, ministers to take 30 pc pay cut for one year
All the Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs) in Gujarat and ministers in the BJP government in the state would take a 30 percent salary cut for a year to fund the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
The decision was taken by the Gujarat government hours after the Union cabinet decided to cut 30 percent salary of all MPs for one year, and divert MPLAD funds for two years to add financial muscle to the anti-coronavirus fight.
The decision of 30 percent pay cut for MLAs and ministers for a year was taken by Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani during a core committee meeting convened in the evening, said a government release.
હિંમતનગર ગ્રામ્ય પોલીસ સ્ટેશનના ઈલોલ આઉટ પોસ્ટ ખાતે પોલીસ અને જાગૃત નાગરીકો દ્વારા #Corona વાયરસ અંગે રસ્તા પર ચિત્ર બનાવી અવેરનેસ ફેલાવવાની કામગીરી કરેલ છે. @CMOGuj @GujaratPolice @dgpgujarat @Shamsher_IPS @DrLavina_IPS @hit_dhandhalya @vishal__rayka #COVID2019india pic.twitter.com/pBCTPi8oe0
— Sabarkantha Police (@SPSabarkantha) April 7, 2020
The committee, consisting of ministers, has been set up to tackle the coronavirus crisis.
The money saved through this measure will be used in the fight against coronavirus, said the release.
The state has a 182-member assembly.
જિલ્લા વહીવટી તંત્ર દ્વારા સ્વૈચ્છિક સંસ્થાઓના સહયોગથી જરૂરિયાત વાળા લોકોને ફૂડ પેકેટ , ખીચડી , થેપલા તથા રાશન કિટ નું વિતરણ કરવાની કામગીરી કરવામાં આવી .@CMOGuj @pkumarias @GujHFWDept @JayantiRavi @hareets @JpShivahare @nirala_kk pic.twitter.com/9mK9F14EVa
— Ahmedabad Collector (@CollectorAhd) April 7, 2020
Similarly, MLA Local Area Development grant of Rs 1.50 crore allotted to each legislator will be exclusively utilised to fight coronavirus for one year (ending March 31, 2021), it added.
So far, Gujarat has registered 146 COVID-19 cases and 12 deaths related to the viral disease.
AMC gaffe leads to ‘corona stigma’ for Delhi man’s kin
Rais Khan Pathan, a member of the Delhi Waqf Board who resides in the national capital, alleged that a red “home quarantine” sticker was put up outside his Ahmedabad residence on 1 April by the city’s civic body “by mistake”.
He says that even though he tested negative for the novel coronavirus, his wife and daughter, who live in Ahmedabad, are being discriminated against and have been isolated by the neighbours, after the sticker sparked fear in the locality.
તારીખ ૮ /૪ /૨૦૨૦ થી તારીખ ૧૪/ ૪/૨૦૨૦ સુધીના સખત નિયંત્રણો દરમિયાન ખાસ ઈમરજન્સી માટે વહીવટી તંત્રની આપના વોર્ડની ટીમનો સંપર્ક કરવા વિનંતી. આપને શક્ય તમામ મદદ ઘેર બેઠા જ પૂરી પાડવામાં આવશે.
— DEO & Collector Kheda (@collectorkheda) April 7, 2020
Khan said, “The sticker indicated that I have coronavirus but I have gotten myself tested from AIIMS, where I got a negative result.”
Hundreds of people with a history of travel or having contact with someone who has traveled abroad, were identified by the municipal body in March and these red “home quarantine” stickers were put outside their houses, to take precautions against the spread of the virus.
The sticker, with the name and address of the person identified, mentions the time period for which the family has to stay in isolation. It reads, “Don’t speak/meet to people from this house. This house is under quarantine.”
આજરોજ નરોડા પોલીસ સ્ટેશન દ્વારા વિસ્તારમાં લોકડોઉનનું પાલન અસરકારક રીતે થાય તે માટે ફલેગ માર્ચ કરવામાં આવ્યુ.#AhmedabadPolice#AmdavadFightsCorona pic.twitter.com/ZZ1TVUXNNg
— Ahmedabad Police અમદાવાદ પોલીસ (@AhmedabadPolice) April 7, 2020
Rais Khan has been living in Delhi for the last five years and has not traveled anywhere outside the city in the last six months, not even to his hometown in Ahmedabad. Then why was a sticker put outside his home?
Khan lives in Delhi’s Nizamuddin area, which is now being monitored by Delhi Police after many who attended a religious gathering were found to be positive for COVID-19. Many of these people, who had attended the Markaz Jamaat event, had also traveled to Gujarat and are currently being traced and tested by the state government.
Because Khan lives in Nizamuddin area and his permanent address is registered in Ahmedabad, he too was identified as someone who may have come in contact with someone from the religious gathering. Hence, the civic body workers went to his house on 1 April and put up the red stickers.
Amdavad Municipal Corporation (AMC) Commissioner, Vijay Nehra said, “We have not put up any sticker declaring anyone as coronavirus positive. It is put up to identify and monitor those who need to be home quarantine for 14 days.”
Nehra added, “The sticker was put because the family did not divulge the information that Pathan was not in Ahmedabad. The moment Pathan got in touch with us and said he lives in Delhi, we removed the stickers.”
“We continue to take all steps to prevent the outbreak of coronavirus. We are reaching out to all contacts of positive cases. We are working closely with the community to seek cooperation and prevent the spread of the disease,” he said.
However, Rais Khan’s wife, Mahejabeen, who was in the house when the health workers had come to paste the stickers said, “We repeatedly told them that Rais Khan does not live in Ahmedabad. We also told them that he has been living in Delhi for the last 5 years and has not visited Ahmedabad in the past few months. They did not listen to us and said they had orders from above.”
“Even after the stickers were removed, our neighbours have isolated us. They tell my daughter that our family is coronavirus positive and nobody should talk to us. They have all distanced themselves from our family.” – Mahejabeen
