WHAT ARE COVID-19 HOTSPOTS AND CONTAINMENT ZONES?
According to the definition of the Health Ministry, an area that has 10 or more infected cases, is termed as a cluster. If any region witnesses the development of multiple clusters like this, and has the possibility of further spread, then it is called a hotspot. However, given the current scenario of COVID-19, an area with as little one infected person can also be marked as a hotspot, depending on the chance of spread in that area.
Once an area has been declared a hotspot, the authorities have the right to limit people’s movement in that area and declare it as a containment zone. Geographical areas shut to control an outbreak is known as containment zones. The District Magistrate takes the decision about these zones to keep track of the local transmission of a disease and restrict contagion. In a containment zone, the authorities take care of the essential supplies while the houses in it are sanitised properly. So far, several pockets in the city have been declared containment zones, including parts of Nizamuddin, Dilshad Garden, Vasundhara Enclave, Kalyanpuri, Pandav Nagar, Krishan Kunj, Khichripur, Malviya Nagar, Sangam Vihar and Patparganj.
ALL ABOUT ‘OPERATION SHIELD’
According to the statements of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, currently, there are 21 containment zones in the national capital. ‘Operation SHIELD’ will be carried out in these zones. The full form of SHIELD is:
S-Sealing of the immediate area after marking an area as a containment zone
H-Home quarantine of everyone living in the area
I-Isolating and tracking people who have been the first and second contacts of the infected persons
E-Essential supplies delivered at the doorstep,
L-Local sanitisation and disinfection
D-Door-to-door checking, to isolate and test people experiencing COVID-19 symptoms