Apprehension grips Diphupar after detection of Covid-19

Our Correspondent

Kohima, Aug. 7 (EMN): In what may be termed as negligence on the part of the government authorities in implementing necessary actions following the detection of seven persons for Covid-19 on August 1 from Diphupar village in Dimapur, there seemed to be social unrest amongst the people in the village.

Fearing community transmission, the Diphupar village-level vigilance and monitoring cell for Covid-19 (VLVMC) informed Eastern Mirror that they contacted the medical room and the DC over the phone highlighting their grievances but did not receive any response.

With their first plea went unheard, they wrote a letter to the chief medical officer (CMO), Dimapur, on August 4 to implement Covid-19 SOP for enforcement of containment zones, contact tracing and other clinical interventions to contain the spread of the virus in the village of more than 16,500 population, it was claimed.

"We have written an appeal letter to the CMO and the same was submitted to the EAC and DC which was written on August 4, but so far no follow-up actions have been taken," said VLVMC official.

"Our villagers are panicking and social unrest has started," he added.

According to the VLVMC, the authority had initiated some necessary measures to curb the spread of infection in the aftermath of the two persons being detected with Covid-19 on July 30. It was informed that contact tracing was initiated while some areas surrounding the residents of the infected two persons were sealed and public movement restricted.

The people of Diphupar were astounded after seven persons from the village were confirmed for Covid-19 on August 1.

Diphupar village, which is commonly referred to as the mini-Nagaland, had set up as many as nine community quarantine centres within its jurisdiction comprising about 23 communities in a bid to ease the burden of the government to tackle the novel coronavirus pandemic.

However, Diphupar was dismayed over the negligence on the part of the government, who allegedly turned a deaf ear to their plea when the village needs the interventions of the concerned authorities the most.

So far, nine positive cases of Covid-19 have been detected in Diphupar including seven staff of Christian Institute of Health Sciences and Health Research (CIHSR), Dimapur, and two individuals, who are residents of the village.

With no response from the authority concerned, VLVMC members have started identifying those individuals who have come into close contact with the Covid-19 patients. The villagers were also said to be co-operating with VLVMC members in the contact tracing process over the phone.