COVID-19: Bengal govt offers work on rotation for staff, free rice
In view of the coronavirus outbreak, state government employees in West Bengal will now be working on a rotational basis, said Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday. She said rice distributed via PDS for ₹2 per kg will now be available for free for the next six months.
In view of the coronavirus outbreak, state government employees in West Bengal will now be working on a rotational basis, said Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday (March 20).
The chief minister also requested the central government to immediately send more medical kits to the state to help combat the COVID-19 outbreak. “State government employees will work in rotation,” she told a press conference in Kolkata.
Banerjee said rice distributed via PDS for ₹2 per kg will now be available for free for the next six months. She said her government is also creating a state emergency relief fund to collect aid from those who wish to donate for the cause.
Meanwhile, the state reported its second case on Friday after a resident of Kolkata’s Ballugunje area, who had a recent travel history to the UK, tested positive, said officials.
Related news: TMC’s Rajya Sabha MP self-quarantines amid coronavirus scare
The man, who is in early 20s, had returned on March 13 and was admitted to the Beliaghata ID Hospital in the city on March 19 with COVID-19 symptoms.
The total number of cases in the country rose to 195 on Friday after 22 fresh cases were reported from various parts of the country, according to the Union Health Ministry.
(With inputs from agencies)