Migrants Headache: Bengal, Surat Returnees Behind Odisha’s Corona Spike!

Bhubaneswar: Wednesday saw four Surat returnees aged 26, 30, 32 and 47 testing positive for COVID-19, which has now spread to Jagatsinghpur.

With these, nine Surat-returned have so far tested positive for the virus. Among them, four belong to Ganjam, as many to Jagatsinghpur and one to Cuttack’s Tigiria.

With around 5000 migrant workers having arrived in Ganjam alone, there is every possibility of more corona positive cases being detected in Odisha, whose affected tally now stands at 185.

According to official sources, around 3 lakh migrants have registered to return to Ganjam. There could be thousands of unregistered migrants who might be on their way back. The Odisha government on Monday  deputed five OAS officers to assist the district administration to handle the problems arising out of return of natives from other states.

Also Read: Another Surat Returnee Tests Corona Positive As Ganjam Awaits ‘Huge Influx’ Of Migrants

The huge influx and bus accidents involving migrants also prompted the Odisha government to restrict their inter-state movement to trains.

Odisha now seems to have another problem to deal with after the West Bengal link to COVID cases, which is continuing to trouble the state. A 60-year-old Kolkata returnee in Kendrapada tested corona positive on Wednesday.

Also Read: Odisha Govt Urges Bengal Returnees To Voluntarily Come Forward For COVID-19 Testing

Nearly 75 positive patients in the state have travel history to West Bengal with many having returned from Burrbazar in Kolkata. These cases are mostly confined to Jajpur, Balasore and Bhadrak, the three Red Zones in Odisha.