Delhi L-G for vans with essential items in housing areas

 Delhi may soon have mobile vans with essential commodities and medical items stationed in residential areas as Lt. Governor Anil Baijal has asked officials to explore its possibility to limit the people's need to visit markets.

Baijal on Thursday chaired a meeting at Raj Niwas to review the preparedness to contain coronavirus. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Cabinet Ministers Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain, and other officials attended the meeting.

At the meeting, according to the Raj Niwas, it was agreed that all activities would be segregated into essential and non-essential. "All non-essential activities shall remain suspended. But all employees should be available for work from home through telephone and online," it said.

Thermal screening has been made mandatory at public places, likes malls, courts, offices, hotels, hospitals and residential complexes. "Efforts should be made for thermal scanning of every person at public spaces," it said.

The L-G also made mandatory reporting of suspect cases at helpline number and picking up of them by CATs Ambulances. He also directed stoppage of breath analyser tests by the traffic police.

It was also decided that permission for home isolation be granted only after stamping on hand and on undertaking do's and dont's notified by government.

"Neighbours of all home quarantined people be informed for active vigilance. RWA office-bearers and neighbours may be informed about the persons under home isolation in that residential complex. A workable mechanism to make the neighbours/people aware may be devised," Baijal said.

Public awareness for mandatory reporting of any breach by home quarantined person should also be done. It also ordered filing of FIR "for violation of conditions by home wuarantined person under section 188 of IPC as prescribed under Regulation 18 of the Delhi Epidemic Diseases, COVID-19 Regulations, 2020 issued by the Health & Family Department."

The Raj Niwas said the private sector would be advised to allow employees to work from home, wherever possiblem and called for waiver of tax for hotel rooms for isolated persons, anf penalty for spitting in public places.

It also advised people to practice social distancing and avoid unnecessary travel by people, particularly senior citizens, pregnant women, and person affected with hypertension or diabetes or respiratory diseases.

He ordered disinfection of all shopping malls daily and provision hand sanitizers at main entrances and shops. "Entry should be allowed only after cleaning of hands with sanitisers," it said. IANS