Intensive screening, patient counselling: TN govt ramps up measures to combat COVID-19

The Tamil Nadu government issued a slew of new measures on Friday to intensify the state’s efforts against the spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus). This came after a third patient, an MBA student who had arrived from Dublin in Ireland, was diagnosed with the virus.

The guidelines were issued after a high level meeting was chaired by Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami with top officials and ministers to discuss strategies to combat the virus.

Among the new directives given by the Chief Minister are:

1. Hospitals to be set up in all districts with isolation wards.

2. Government doctors to counsel patients who are quarantined in their houses through video calls.

3. Weekly markets to be shut down till March 31.

4. IT parks, micro, small and big industries to adopt work from home policy where possible and reduce workforce at the office premises. They must also spread awareness on prevention measures amongst employees.

5. Large textile shops, jewellery stores and hypermarkets to be shut down from Friday.

6. Grocery shops, pharmacies, restaurants to function normally.

7. Public darshans at big temples to be suspended till March 31. However, prayers and rituals inside premises will continue.

8. Congregations at large churches and mosques to be suspended.

9. Intensive screening processes to be adopted at domestic airports and railway stations.

10. Number of inter-state trains and buses to be cut down drastically.

11. Railway stations, airports, metro rail stations, courts and other public areas where crowds gather to be sprayed with disinfectant three times a day.

The state government had already ordered for the shutdown of government schools and colleges, theatres, malls, parks and other public places where people gather in large crowds. As of Friday, Tamil Nadu has seen three cases of COVID-19, of which one patient was treated and discharged from the Rajiv Gandhi hospital in Chennai.