Covid Second wave hits rural Rajasthan; State govt tries to ramp up village health infrastructure

The Ashok Gehlot government to tackle the issue and putting the population through Rapid Antigen Test and handing over basic medicines. (Representative Image)

As the Covid-19 second wave makes inroads to rural India, every second case reported from Rajasthan is from its villages. According to a survey, Rajasthan 26 rural districts accounts for more than half (51,26 per cent) of the states Covid cases 43.01 per cent of the deaths in the week ending May 8, reports the Indian Express.

Around seven lakh people are having ILI (Influenza-like illness) like symptoms among the 7.25 crore population quizzed in a door-to-door survey. In comparison to the first wave that peaked in November last year, these districts surveyed had 45.06 per cent of the cases and 37.5 per cent of the fatalities. Three-fourth of the Rajasthan population lives in rural areas, only seven out of 33 districts are designated as urban areas.

The Ashok Gehlot government to tackle the issue and putting the population through Rapid Antigen Test and handing over basic medicines like paracetamol, zinc sulphate, vitamin c, azithromycin, levocetirizine etc.

Health Minister Raghu Sharma has told the Indian Express that the situation is under control and oxygen cylinders, concentrators are being sent to community health care centres to treat the patients. 350 out of 571 CHC has turned Covid care units.

In Bundi villages 10, 000 people were found with influenza-like symptoms in the past month. Shivaji Ram Meena said there were 12 suspicious deaths recently in Bundi districts Devija Ka Thana panchayat area. Samples here are collected once or twice at the local primary health centre. According to Block Chief Medical Officer, Hindoli, Jagbeer Singh, three deaths that occurred at the district are suspected due to Covid. Three CHCS in the block is testing samples daily while six collect them once or twice a week. RAT kits have not yet reached the district.

Several other districts like the Sawai Madhopur district, villages in the Churu district have also witnessed a sizeable part of the population with the symptoms. The challenges that the districts are facing in tracking, tracing and treating patients are first they are not willing to get tested for the 14-day quarantine protocol and the stigma associated with it and second the testing is irregular. According to Sawai Madhopur DM Rajendra Kishan, where 18,000 to 30, 000 patients had influenza symptoms, it is difficult to convince villagers to take the TAT tests for the fear of ostracization from society.

In Sikar’s Kheerwa village, four deaths have occurred due to Covid-19 last month, said Sub-Divisional Officer Kulraj Meena In Churu district the villagers have taken it upon themselves to buy medicines and distribute among themselves along with “kadha”. Only 60 samples were taken last month for testing out in Jasrasar village of which 40 turned positive said a relative with the sarpanch. Three official Covid related death happened last month among the seven deceased. The positivity rate of other villages in the state is also high.

The Gehlot government has come up with new SOPs for containment and management of the cases in rural areas. Symptomatic cases are treated at the village level while cases with comorbidity or low oxygen saturation were asked to send to higher centres. On May 14, the state CM took to Twitter to announce there were 2.11 lakh active cases and the state is the fourth in the country in terms of active cases.