Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an acute infectious respiratory disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). Most people infected with the COVID-19 virus experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without requiring special treatment, the disease presentation is more likely to be severe in older people, and those with underlying medical problems like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, etc.
Purpose of the advisory
Migrant workers from peri-urban and rural parts of the country who migrate to large cities constitute a sizeable segment of urban population across the country. During outbreak of a communicable disease or social distancing measures as being undertaken for COVID-19 Pandemic, such populations tend to return back to their homes. In such a scenario, the resultant congregations of migrant workers in bus stations/State borders may make them susceptible to COVID-19 infection. Further such exposed individuals may later become infected and carry this infection to far flung rural localities. Also it would be difficult to track them and their contacts. Hence this advisory.
Advisory
1. Advisory by Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA)
The migrant workers will remain at their regular place of work/local residence within the city. They will not be evacuated (sic evicted) either by their employer/landlord. Action to this effect and to address other related issues will be taken by local administration as per advisories being issued by Ministry of Home Affairs.
2. Health actions at place of congregation of migrant workers
As some of the migrant workers have already moved in groups and either reached their destination or are on their way, the health actions would be based on the locations where the migrant workers are currently located.
2.1 Migrant workers who are in the cities of their local residence
2.2 Migrant workers who are on their way and are yet to reach their destination city/village
2.3 Migrant workers who have reached their destination
* In facility quarantine, quarantine period shall be extended if a positive case is detected during the 14 days of quarantine. This extension of quarantine shall be applicable for all who were in close contact with the positive case and will be effective for 14 days since last close contact with the positive case, subject to the fact that there had been no intermingling with the person tested positive and his close contacts with other quarantined population. (Otherwise the extension of quarantine period shall be applicable to all quarantined persons).