Noida DM invokes Olympic motto, says geographical position challenge in Covid battle

The geography of Gautam Buddh Nagar, adjoining Delhi, poses challenges in the fight against Covid-19, District Magistrate Suhas L Y said Thursday, noting the inconvenience caused to people due to inter-state border regulation. Suhas said this to residents of Noida and Greater Noida in an open letter and invoked the Olympic motto 'Citius, Altius and Fortius' (Latin for 'faster, higher and stronger) to assure that the officials were working hard for them during the pandemic.

Gautam Buddh Nagar has recorded 377 positive cases of the coronavirus, including five deaths, while 266 patients have been discharged, according to official data. The district has multiple containment zones and a major issue has been the sealing of Noida's border with Delhi that prohibits non-essential movement between the two places. According to officials, the decision was taken since large number of Covid-19 cases in Gautam Buddh Nagar were found linked to Delhi.

"Going ahead our geographical location does pose challenges. We do appreciate all local administrations are also trying their best to deal with the specific challenges they have to deal with in their areas. We also do understand some degree of inconvenience that has been caused because of the inter-state border regulation," Suhas wrote. "These decisions are being taken after looking at the epidemiological data, prevailing situation in the neighbouring places and contact tracing of previous Covid positive patients. Therefore the pertinent point to note is, what cost in terms of convenience are we willing to incur for the health of and well-being of community and vice versa," he wrote.

He said the situation is being monitored continuously and appropriate decision will be taken at the state and the district level after taking "both health and livelihood" into consideration. He said the district's integrated control room 18004192211 has handled over 2.23 lakh queries on topics ranging from Covid-19, telemedicine, food, incident reporting, general queries etc. "We will continue to have citizen-centric approach in our public grievance redressal systems," he said. The district administration chief lauded the efforts of the corona warriors.

"Our medical teams, who are real corona warriors, are trying their best to provide great care for Covid patients, the recovery rate of the district being above 70 per cent and most people admitted a fortnight ago have been cured and discharged," he said. He added that there is home quarantine facility for Covid patients who have sufficient space in their homes as per protocol while health camps are also being held to screen people and detect people with symptoms at early stage.

"District's cumulative testing numbers have crossed more than 10,000 and inching towards 5,000 test per million, which is more than twice the national average. Health Department has also stressed on following the Indian Council for Medical Research guidelines by private labs also so that false reports and anomalies can be avoided," Suhas said. The administration chief noted that "no one individual or organisation can claim to be the repository of all wisdom" and that there is always scope for improvement in delivery. He said for that purpose the administration continuously gets the feedback from residents, who are the most valued stakeholders.

"Our team shall strive harder everyday to serve you better. 'Citius, Altius and Fortius'," Suhas, also a world-level para-badminton player, signed off the letter..

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)