The government is on overdrive as it attempts to set up COVID care centres in the State. It is now requisitioning GTDC properties, primary health centres, government colleges that will act as temporary COVID care centres for asymptomatic patients, and is also planning to also use major stadiums and indoor sports complexes for the same. This moves comes in the wake of the number of COVID-19 cases rising, and the novel coronavirus spreading across the State. There are now two containment centres and the cases have increased from areas beyond these zones. It is expected that the numbers will rise in the coming days, and that the government will require as many centres as possible to house those who test positive. It has one hospital where the symptomatic patients are being treated, and while the asymptomatic patients are being sent to the care centres.
It is clear that the government was not prepared for the rise in positive cases. During the long lockdown, when it should have been setting up the facilities for the eventual rise in cases, the government was found to be constantly reminding the people that Goa was a green zone as it had no active cases. It was also clear, even at that point of time, that this green zone would not be a permanent. The Chief Minister now says that the government won’t hesitate to set up a covid care centre in each constituency if the need arises. Why now? Wasn’t a situation when cases would increase been visualised during the weeks when Goa was in lockdown?
We were all aware that the lockdown was not to stop the spread of the virus, but to delay the spread and the time was to be used by the authorities to prepare for the day when the cases would rise. Is is apparent that the government didn’t utilise this time as it was meant too. The least that should have been done during the past weeks was identify these structures that could be used as care centres or quarantine centres, and be in readiness to equip them if needed. This would have saved a lot of time and also shown that the governemnt was prepared for any eventuality.
Now, the government is also facing other issues in setting up these centres. There are objections from the people in the vicinity of these identified properties and institutions who fear that the virus could spread if there is a care centre in their neighbourhood, with even local polticians questioning the use of the facilites as Covid care centres.Though the Health Minister has said the public sentiment is important to the government and the people will be taken into confdence, there appears to be a communication gap between the government and the people in this respect. Why between the government and the people? One of the two deputy chief minister’s, Chandrakant (Babu) Kavlekar, has said no to a COVID care centre in a government college in his constituency. If Goa is to have a seamless COVID-19 plan in place for the coming days, then the misundersandings must be ironed out quickly.
The people too should understand that these centres will not be hospitals where symptomatic patients will be treated by doctors. These will be centres where asymptomatic patients, who do not require treatment but are COVID-19 positive, will remain in quarantine, until such time that their test reports show them to be negative. Medical experts have even suggested that the asymptomatic can be quarantined at home, with some strict monitoring of their health parametres. If the medical fraternity is this confident that asymptomatic patients do not need specialised treatment, then where is the scare? In the current crisis, opposition to the centres will not serve any productive purpose.
