Nearly 300 citizens, including students and migrant workers, who were stranded in different Northeast states, have entered Meghalaya on Tuesday after going through mandatory medical screening at the various entry points along the inter-state boundary with neighbouring Assam.
“On the first day, 284 returnees have entered the state through the four designated checkpoints at Ratacherra in East Jaintia Hills, Byrnihat in Ri Bhoi, Dainadubi in North Garo Hills and Tikrikilla in West Garo Hills district, which are being manned by the police, magistrates, doctors and other health officials round-the-clock,” Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong told reporters in his daily briefing.
“All of them came on their own arrangement of transportation, and not a single case of persons having symptoms was reported when they entered into the state. All of them have been released to their respective villages and they have to go for 14 days quarantine,” he said.
Almost 3,000 stranded people within the Northeast have registered with the government.
The second batch of stranded people may reach by midnight or Wednesday, and the third batch will come through government’s arranged transportation.
Meanwhile, students and working people stranded in other states, who returned from areas categorized as COVID-19 ‘hotspot’ and ‘red zone’ have been asked to go for 28 days quarantine.
Registration is on for over 8000 stranded persons from the state outside the Northeast.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Conrad Sangma said that all those who have come back to the state have to undergo strict home quarantine along with all their family members as a safety measure for 14 days, during which time they would be provided with rations by the state government.
Stating that “very strict protocols” were being followed in regard to the entry of people into the state, Sangma said, “We are also ensuring that every individual that is coming in will be screened and If anybody shows any kind of symptoms, then obviously testing will be done. If they are having symptoms then we will place them in Corona Care Centers or in isolation centers. And if they’re not showing any symptom, then we are prescribing home quarantine”.
“The entire house will have to be quarantined and the family members also have to stay inside the house for 14 days. We as a government will be supporting them with supplies of necessary essential commodities for that time. I would like to urge and appeal to the citizens of our state and also to the headmen of different localities and different villages that these people are our own,” the chief minister said.
“I appeal to all of you that when these people come in, let us come together as a society and let us take care of the situation. It will be important that we should not be scared. But it’s also important that we should be careful,” he added.
