New Delhi: With the world facing one of the biggest medical emergencies witnessed in recent times, India’s defence ministry has embarked on a no-holds barred fight against the rampage of the novel coronavirus COVID 2019 and has given directions for a 360 degree effort.
Besides implementing preventive steps on a war footing, all its wings including the army, navy and the air force are undertaking pro-active steps to combat the fast spreading disease that has rocked the world.
As part of its effort from all its wings and branches, the Naval Dockyard, Mumbai has designed and developed its own handheld temperature sensor for undertaking screening of large number of personnel at the entry gates of the yard.
Besides reducing the load on the security sentries at the gate, it is a low cost instrument (priced at less than Rs. 1,000) that has thrown up possibilities of being used by health workers and civilians. Since the outbreak, the non-contact thermometers or temperature guns have become scarce in the market.
The dockyard has an average influx of around 20,000 personnel entering its premises every day.
The defence ministry has also mobilized its huge ex-servicemen community to augment the effort of the state and district administration in fighting the virus.
“Rajya Sainik Boards, Zila Sainik Boards are playing a dynamic role in identifying and mobilising maximum ESM (ex-servicemen) volunteers to assist the State and District Administration in performing public outreach activities such as contact tracing, community surveillance, management of quarantine facilities or any such tasks assigned to them,” a ministry release said on Thursday.
Read: India on verge of supply crisis, it can be worse than COVID-19
Several instances can be cited.
In Punjab, about 4,200 ex-servicemen are assisting in data collection from all the villages. The Chhattisgarh government has employed some ex-servicemen to assist the police.
In Andhra Pradesh, all the district collectors have asked for ex-servicemen volunteers. In Uttar Pradesh, all Zila Sainik Kalyan Adhikaris are in touch with the district administration and retired Army Medical Corps personnel have been identified and kept ready.
Sainik rest houses are being readied in Uttarakhand to act as isolation/quarantine centres if the need arises. In Goa, a control room has been established and ex-servicemen have been asked to remain on standby for any assistance to the local administration.
Another remarkable mobilization is that of the National Cadet Corps (NCC), which is the largest uniformed youth organisation of the country and operates under the defence ministry.
The NCC has offered to help the civilian authorities in the country’s fight against COVID 2019 by directing temporary employment of its cadets to augment relief efforts and functioning of various agencies involved in battling the pandemic.
The tasks envisaged for NCC cadets include, manning of helpline/call centres; distribution of relief materials/medicines/ food/essential commodities; community assistance; data management and queue and traffic management.
Only senior cadets of more than 18 years of age will be organised in small cohesive groups of eight to 20. Notably, the NCC is no stranger to such volunteer work and has been contributing to the national cause during natural calamities like floods, cyclone, etc since its inception.
