Covid-19: Rajasthan spends Rs 2,440 on each person in quarantine centres

The Rajasthan government has set a daily limit of Rs 2,440 to be spent on each person in the state-run Covid-19 quarantine centres, according to an order of the disaster management department to district administrations.

As on Wednesday, there were 23,437 people in government quarantine facilities across the state that began functioning from March 23. In Jaipur, out of 54 centres, 14 were running and with 1,643 inmates. Meanwhile, the number of Covid-19 patients in the state has reached 1,935, with Jaipur alone accounting for 737 cases.

Under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, the state’s chief secretary is the chairman of the state executive committee (SEC) but on March 15, the government delegated the powers to the additional chief secretary (ACS), medical and health department. Under these powers, the ACS became the nodal authority for determining the number of centres and duration of stay in them.

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The order which was issued some time earlier but became public on Thursday, said the maximum expense per person per day could be Rs 2,440. Payments will be made on actual or this limit, whichever was less.

According to the order, Rs 600 is to be spent on food and beverages. This includes Rs 100 on breakfast, Rs 180 each on lunch and dinner, Rs 80 on water and Rs 60 on tea and snacks. The expenditure on linen and laundry is capped at Rs 60.

The expenditure also includes Rs 500 on food for staff deputed at the quarantine centres and Rs 600 for personal protective equipment (PPE) kit for health care workers.

Rohit Kumar Singh, additional chief secretary, medical and health department, said part of the amount is for the quarantine centres themselves.

“Technically, expenses on guards, PPE for health workers and food for staff can’t be counted as expenses per person.”

The officer said Rs 2,440 was the upper limit set by the disaster management department. “There may be lesser expenditure at some places,” Singh said.

A sum of Rs 550 is to be spent on cleaning and disinfection. The break-up includes Rs 50 for cleaner, Rs 50 for ward boy, Rs 70 for sanitizer, Rs 300 for N-95 mask, Rs 50 for triple-layer mask and Rs 30 for hypochlorite solution.

An amount of Rs 100 has been earmarked for spraying machine and Rs 30 for a guard.