New Delhi The Union government has asked the over 250,000 gram panchayatsto play an active role to rein in the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), said people aware of the development.
The panchayts have been asked to identify those who might have come in contact with Tabligi Jamaat members, who took part in an international congregation in Delhi’s Nizamuddin between March 13 and 15 and then fanned out across the country. The building, where the gathering was held, has become a hot spot of coronavirus infections in India.
The government has begun aggressively tracing people with contact history to the participants at the Jamaat congregation, who have tested Covid-19 positive to date.
While states have been put on high alert, gram panchayats have been asked to step up monitoring and report anyone who could have come in contact with the Jamaat participants.
“These elected representatives are the first point of contact for villagers because they are familiar with the specific problems of each household. It has been decided to use state and central funds to engage these representatives to fight the crisis,” said an official on condition of anonymity.
Gram panchayats in each state have been given specific tasks such as creating awareness and monitoring of home quarantining, said a functionary aware of the developments.
There are over 250,000 gram panchayats across the country, according to the Union ministry of Panchayati Raj. Each gram panchayat consists of a village or a group of villages divided into smaller units called wards.
“Tracing people with any contact or travel history has become an imperative as a large number of people have moved across states after attending the Jamaat meet. Preventing the spread of the virus to rural and semi-urban areas is critical. We are urging the gram panchayats to report cases as well as keep a strict vigil over those who are in quarantine. In many villages, there are community quarantine facilities,” said the official quoted above.
For instance, in Jharkhand, gram panchayats have been asked to disseminate awareness through wall paintings and set up isolation wards to treat migrants.
In the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, anganwadi workers have been supplying food to 41 children and six pregnant women.
While in eastern Uttar Pradesh’s Gorakhpur district, gram panchayats have been pressed into service to reach out to the Mahadalit communities such as Musahars and Vantangiyas.
In West Bengal, gram panchayat members are involved in making and distributing of personal protective equipment (PPE) such as sanitisers and masks. Mobile vehicles under community area development programme are being used to sell fresh vegetables, fruits and fish to the villagers.