Even most advanced countries were not prepared for Covid-19 pandemic — Rio

Our Reporter
Dimapur, May 30 (EMN): Countries across the world, including advanced countries, were not prepared for the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. They were falling short of physicians, healthcare workers, sanitation workers, and medicine. These countries also stressed on only prevention.

This statement was made by Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio during his visit to the quarantine centre at Ganeshnagar in Dimapur May 29. He said that the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) were created to handle the situation when returnees arrive.

“But what the government faced was far greater than what they planned. The authorities also planned that all the returnees would be kept in Kohima and Dimapur and then be sent to their districts only after testing.

“After getting clearance from the Health ministry and the ICMR, the government set up the BSL-3 lab in Kohima. Only 90 tests can be conducted in a day, while only 50 samples can be tested in pool or collective tests at a time, and nine times collectively.

“Thereafter, if one group is negative then the plan was to send that group straight to the district but due to technical problems till yesterday (May 28), pool tests could not be done,” he said.

The chief minister said if the returnees show symptoms, all of them will be kept in Dimapur and tested. But those without symptoms would be sent to their districts. Those positive cases would be treated in Dimapur, he said.

The chief minister explained that asymptomatic patients would be segregated in quarantines. He observed that the returnees in the age group 20-40 with good immune system might be able to withstand the infection and by second and third test, they would probably come out negative.

Rio said that the mortality rate is only about 3% globally. About 70% to 80% of those infected are being cured. In India as well as other countries, he said, even symptomatic patients were being sent to home quarantines.

The chief minister appealed to the colonies and villages to allow home quarantines as current restrictions by some of them in the form of not allowing home quarantines, will result in the need to keeping people together. And this, he said, will have the infection spreading to more people if they are kept together. He urged the leaders to educate the public regarding home quarantines.

Rio recalled an incident that happened during a meeting of the government: They came to know that the Tuensang returnees had left Kohima and had already reached Mokokchung and even the government officials at the meeting started an argument on hearing the news.

The chief minister assured that the government is trying its best. He informed that the government had no knowledge about the Tuensang incident on that particular day as it happened when the government itself was in a meeting. Nonetheless, he said it also happened because of loopholes in the management.

Rio mentioned that the instructions were very clear from the beginning that all the returnees should be sent to their respective districts with proper arrangement. He informed that the journey should start early in the morning so that the returnees reach their destination before dark.

Rio said both he and the chief secretary of Nagaland, Temjen Toy, have given clarifications regarding the Tuensang issue and about the management failure. He informed that the cabinet will be meeting on coming Monday (June 1), adding they will be reviewing the SOP and new guideline be issued on how to go about in the best way possible.

Civil society, individuals, organisations and people in social media have raised issues, but this is the time to fight the coronavirus unitedly, he said.
The chief minister has assured that an inquiry would be conducted into the mismanagement. He clarified that there was a communication gap and management failure.