Panaji: The policy think tank of government of India, Niti Aayog in a its report on ‘Mitigation and management of Covid’ stated that Goa was one of the first states in the country to put in place random resting protocols to check people for Covid-19 symtoms.
“Testing kiosks were set up in various places, including borders and in industrial estates,” it stated.
It maybe recalled that Goa had been under strict lockdown which helped it to achieve green zone on May 17. However, the re-opening of borders had led to a spike in cases in the state. Random testing was carried out at borders at even within the state including airports and railway stations that helped detect cases and contract tracing.
Further, the state’s standard operating procedures (SOPs) was in line with the Centre’s guidelines that for routine Covid surveillance, RT-PCR, CBNAAT or rapid antigen tests may be conducted.
The report by the government think tank was released by NITI Aayog Member Dr VK Paul, CEO Amitabh Kant and Additional SecretaryDrRakesh Sarwal.
“While there is much to be gained by learning from global practices for tackling the pandemic, it is equally important to take note of practices that are grounded in our realities. Instead of expecting every state to reinvent the wheel, dissemination of such practices allows them to learn from each other and help find solutions to common problems,” wrote NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant in the foreword.
