Millions of migrant workers especially in informal-sectors have been left jobless/homeless after lockdown due to COVID-pandemic. They are returning to their villages. This is happening across Asia/Africa. The two main reasons of reverse migration – Lack of resources (food/money) to sustain due to unemployment and Unavailability of safe lock-down spaces to maintain social distancing in over-cluttered urban-slums. Governments consider reverse-migration as potential threat for community-transmission. Communities living in dense/confined slums are bigger threat with risk of imploding within themselves and also dying of starvation. We see ‘Reverse-migration’ as opportunity to develop ‘Safe-ways’ solution. There are 48 highways in India for travelling between A, B and C cities to smaller towns/villages. Similarly there are 6-10 such highways in Uganda/Rwanda. Over 90% of migrant workers use these highways to travel.
ZMQ proposes to setup Safe Check Points (Smart Screening & End Point Facilities) on highways as Vector Safeway. We propose to pilot this in India (Delhi-Mewat), Uganda (Kampala-Jinja) and Rwanda (Kigali-Nyagatare). Proposed highways will have Screening Centers at every 25 kms for:
1. Screening: Using low cost Screening tools – Mobile tools, Symptomatic App, Pulse Oxymeters, Thermal screening tool etc;
2. Tagging-Travellers: With symptomatic classification using NFC-technology with essential data;
3. Wellness-Center: With basic facilities for hand-washing, food & refreshment, quarantine-facilities and other emergency referrals (converting existing PHCs/CHCs for hospitalization/quarantine relief centers).
Proposed solution is for safe travel of migrant workers back to their homes and villages. It will have other components of diagnostics, case finding, tracking, referral, treatment and prevention. It is a holistic COVID-19 solution to manage safe travel of migrant communities by minimizing risks of community transmission. It comprises of:
A. Screening:
1. Low-cost Screening-tools like Mobile, Symptomatic App, Pulse Oxymeters, Thermal Screening Tools;
2. Continuous Screening at every 25-Kms;
3. Establish other facilities at Screening Points;
B.Tagging-Travellers:
1. Tagging each travel from Origin-to-End-of-Journey using NFC-technology;
2. Information of individuals kept anonymous;
3. Classification of different symptomatic cases from Safe, Mild-Symptoms to High-Risk;
4. NFC-tag also used as integrated Health-Card, Travel-Pass, Wallet.
C. Wellness/Health Center Connect:
1. Each Safe-Check point serves as refreshment-place, Hand-Washing
2. Travel-Instructions, social-distancing advises, Safe Travel is allowed to Green-Card-holders;
3. Quarantine-Facilities created in villages for people with mild symptoms;
4. Emergency Referrals done for people with severe-conditions to PHC/CHC with 5-10 beds hospitals;
5. Testing facilities at PHC/DMC (Designated-Microscopy-Centres for TB).
D. Wallet-Subsidy:
1. Using Government-Schemes to support poor-wage-earners with RFID (NF cards or tokens) to store virtual-money for travel-route,
2. Quarantine-Facilities are created in villages for people with mild-symptoms;
3. Emergency-Referrals done for people with severe-conditions to PHC/CHC with 5-10 beds hospitals;