People at corona disaster relief camps in Bihar to get facilities given at time of flood: Nitish

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday said people staying in disaster relief camps within the state during coronavirus prompted lockdown will get utensils, clothes, milk and other facilities like that given at the time of flood. In addition to providing quality food at the camps to daily wage earners, cart vendors, rickshaw pullers and other needy persons, the government will give them other amenities as given in the flood relief camps, Kumar said in an official release.

Kumar gave a direction to this effect at a high level meeting to review measures taken to contain spread of COVID-19 in Bihar. Chief Secretary Deepak Kumar and a host of other senior officials were present during the meeting.

Faced with floods frequently, the state government has laid down rules for comfortable stay of victims of inundation in relief camps set up at the time of the calamity. The chief minister took stock of the door-to-door screening campaign for the infection, distribution of Rs 1,000 to ration card holding families and wheat procurement.

Kumar instructed officials to increase the number of relief camps in different parts of the state as per requirement. The CM assured those stranded outside the state that they need not worry about their relatives back home as the state government is taking proper care of the people.

Over 50 state-funded camps are functioning in Delhi, Mumbai and other parts of the country for migrants held up during nationwide lockdown. The door-to-door screening on the pattern of pulse polio campaign is underway in the virus affected districts, he said, adding 1386 people had symptoms of general disease like cold, cough and fever out of 36.14 lakh households surveyed so far under the drive.

The screening drive should be extended to other parts of the state, Kumar told the officials. The CM said figures related to COVID-19 suggest that enforcement of lockdown has helped a lot in containing the spread of infection besides protecting citizens from other diseases.

Kumar gave directions to expedite the wheat procurement through PACS (Primary Agriculture Cooperative Society) so that farmers can get handsome price for their produce. He also asked officials to provide Rs 1000 assistance and other facilities to those whose applications for ration cards have been found valid during the verification.

Kumar appealed to the people to be alert and beware of those spreading rumours related to the virus on social media. The social media cell of Bihar police is not only keeping a tab on rumour-mongers but is also taking action against them.

The CM said a diligent obedience of social distancing will help overcome challenges of coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile, the CM expressed grief at death of a ASHA worker from snake bite in course of door-to-door campaign to indentify virus infectants in Nawada district and gave an instruction to pay Rs 4 lakh ex gratia to the victim's family.

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