Odisha Channel Bureau
BHUBANESWAR: Odisha crossed the 5,000 mark of COVID-19 cases with the highest ever single day spike of 304 cases on June 21, taking the State’s total to 5,160.
Of the 304 new cases, 272 were detected in quarantine centres across the State and remaining 32 were local contacts, the State government said.
Of the total number of positive cases, 3,534 have recovered so far, while 1,607 are active cases undergoing treatment at different COVID-19 hospitals.
A total of 19 persons who were tested positive for COVID-19 have died till date – 14 due to the virus and five due to other ailments, according to officials.
The first case was detected on March 15 when an Odia youth who returned from overseas tested positive for COVID-19. The number of cases kept rising with people with travel history testing positive for the disease in the following days.
The Odisha Cabinet had on March 13 declared COVID-19 as a ‘disaster’ for the State under the provisions of Disaster Management Act, 2005 to adequately empower public officials to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus outbreak.
When the number of COVID-19 positive cases increased to three in the State by March 30, the Odisha government had announced that all the expenses relating to the treatment of any person testing positive for coronavirus in the State would be borne by the government.
The government’s stand remains unchanged since then and anyone the COVID-19 patients are being provided free treatment in
Wasting no time to prepare the health care infrastructure to cope with the emerging crisis, the State administration, in association with private medical colleges and hospitals, set up two COVID-19 hospitals in the capital city of Bhubaneswar and another at Cuttack.
The number of exclusive COVID-19 hospitals has since increased to 35 covering all the 30 districts of the State. These hospitals have a total capacity of 5,547 beds and 342 ICU beds.
The State government is also in the process of setting up COVID Care Homes in all the 6,798 gram panchayats across the State to accommodate 10 to 20 persons with symptoms of cold, cough and fever in each home.
Anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 during the stay in these homes will be shifted to the nearest COVID-19 hospitals, according to the government.
The State has also launched a special drive to identify anyone with symptoms of cold and arrange testing samples of those having such symptoms.
While running temporary medical centres in every gram panchayat to ensure quarantine of the Odia migrant workers returning from other States, the administration has also decided to set up of ward level committees in both urban and rural areas to monitor the COVID-19 situation.
