The district administration has mobilised more than 300 volunteers to visit the COVID-19 containment zones in the district and check people for symptoms associated with the infection.
The volunteers have been tasked with conducting the COVID-census to ascertain whether people exhibiting mild symptoms were getting tested for COVID-19.
Officials said that many people who contract the coronavirus delay treatment as they feel that the symptoms associated with the infection were mild, and that they would recover without treatment.
“As a result, many people undergo severe lung damage, which could have been prevented if they had received treatment right away,” they said.
District Collector J. Innocent Divya said the exercise would be carried out over a period of six days starting from May 13. Each of the volunteers would visit around 25 houses in the containment zones and check for symptoms. The volunteers have been instructed to maintain personal distancing as well as wear masks while visiting the homes. Residents above the age of 45 would also be asked if they have been inoculated against COVID-19.
The volunteers would then report to medical officers from the Health Department.
