Morung Express News
Mokokchung | June 5
While cases are decreasing for the 3rd week in the country, Mokokchung district recorded the highest number of COVID-19 positive cases in Nagaland on June 5 with 164 cases, cumulative of last four days of test results. Mokokchung has 231 active cases and has recorded 19 deaths. According to official statistics, out of the 164 positive cases more than fifty percent of the cases belong to the age group of 15-45 years.
“The new variant of COVID-19 is mutating and it is more infectious and it has created havoc all over India. When the virus itself is virulent and we as a community do not observe COVID appropriate behavior it will lead to an explosion of the COVID cases,” commented Mokokchung District Vector Borne Officer (DVBO) Dr Tiasunep.
A resident of a particular village in Mokokchung informed The Morung Express about how the late detection of a single positive case led to ten more cases. The resident, who wished to remain unnamed, said that a person had mild symptoms but was reluctant to get himself tested as he was scared. The person, while sick, reportedly attended a meeting which led to the consequent spread.
“It is very difficult to tame the people especially in rural areas. There is no social distancing, we do not put masks while visiting neighbors and friends and many of the elderly are scared of the test and the vaccine due to misinformation,” said the same resident.
An official who works with the vaccination branch commented that the response for vaccination is high for the 18-44 years and the department is now trying to reach the rural parts of Mokokchung by the end of June. “The refusal rate for vaccination is quite high especially in the rural areas, so we will have to wait and see how the turn out will be,” he said.
Another young informant narrated a case about how four of his friends were tested COVID-19 positive in a ward in Mokokchung.
“There is, sort of, a ritual among the neighborhood friends where we would meet up every night after dinner at one place and we play online games together. This also happens during the day time. We don’t usually use mask or social distance while we hang out,” he said.
“I was tested negative, but my friends were tested positive. This episode has shown me a great lesson and I would want others, like us, to stay home and not roam about playing ML and PUBG without maintaining any SOPs,” he added.
“When people come out for shopping, they wear masks and the shop keepers follow COVID appropriate behavior, but once they are home, they go for home visitations and chit- chat without wearing masks,” said Mokokchung Deputy Commissioner, Limawabang Jamir.
“We are continuously doing our best to control the spread but in spite of all that we are doing, there is still a lack of realization by the community. Each and every individual should know that this is a collective fight. It is not just the government or the task force but each and every individual should ensure that he/she is equally responsible to try to bring down the spread,” the DC added.
