Citizenship mandatory for swab collection

Rajbiraj, August 3

After the trend of registering false details increased among the COVID-suspects at the time of swab collection, Saptari District Health Office has made it mandatory to produce citizenship certificate or any other ID card for swab collection.

Around a dozen people, who had their swabs collected by registering false names and addresses, tested positive for the virus and health officials had a hard time tracing them. The District Health Office has made an ID card mandatory for swab collection.

District Health Office Chief Duniyalal Yadav said his office was having a hard time after 12 people with false names and addresses tested positive for the virus.

“We have traced 10 people after a long search and two are still out of contact,”

Yadav added. He said most of the people providing false personal details were drug addicts.

Gajendra Narayan Singh Hospital acting Chief Dr Ranjit Kumar Jha said the new provision would save time and resources.

He expressed hope that the ID card provision for swab collection would resolve the problem.

Meanwhile, COVID cases are spiking in Saptari. Twenty-seven had tested positive for the virus last night while seven tested positive for the disease today.

The district has recorded 532 COVID cases so far.

With COVID spreading in the community, Saptari DAO has enforced prohibitory order in Rajbiraj for an indefinite period. All local levels have closed down all services except essential ones in the district. With COVID cases surging, the DAO has decided to enact prohibitory order throughout the district beginning tomorrow.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on August 4, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.