Meghalaya shuts down ahead of PM Modi's Janata curfew

Meghalaya observed a complete shutdown on Saturday (March 21), a day ahead of the nationwide ‘Janata curfew’ proposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a bid to combat COVID-19.

Meanwhile, the Inner-Line Permit (ILP) regime states sealed their borders to prevent “outsiders” from entering the region.

Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram, and Manipur have stopped issuing ILP in order to restrain outsiders from visiting these states. People from other Indian states need to receive an ILP to enter these states.

All north-eastern states have also sealed their respective international borders.

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma said the shutdown was called to observe ‘Coronavirus Awareness Day’ and make people aware of their responsibilities in preventing the spread of the virus in the state.

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Apart from that, all tourist spots in Meghalaya, Assam, and a few other states have been closed. Religious gatherings have also been prevented with famous destinations like the Kamakhya temple in Assam closing its doors for devotees.

All government offices, financial institutions, markets, and public places remained closed, and people in general remained indoors in Meghalaya on Saturday (March 21).

Vehicles stayed off the roads on National Highways 40 and 44, which are the busiest roads and lifelines for Mizoram, Tripura, parts of Manipur, and southern Assam.

Sangma urged citizens to utilise the time on their hands and observe Saturday as the ‘Coronavirus Awareness Day’ to understand and prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the state by playing their part as individuals, families, a locality, and society at large.

“I urge all citizens to take precautionary steps by staying indoors, practising social distancing, and maintaining good hygiene. Let’s not panic but prepare. Let’s stop #coronavirus in #Meghalaya. Small precautionary steps go a long way in ensuring we keep the spread of the virus at bay. You can, we can!” said Sangma in Twitter uploading an awareness video.

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The government has also appealed to the people who have arrived from other states to dial toll free number 108 and inform officials about their arrival.

Meghalaya chief secretary MS Rao said hospitals are keeping track of the travel history of individuals. More than 3,000 people have entered Meghalaya over the past few days. Five people who were screened for COVID-19 have tested negative.

The Meghalaya government has shut down all educational institutions in the state.

Meanwhile, the elections in Assam’s Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR), which were supposed to be held on April 4, have been postponed. The elections for panchayats and urban local bodies in Arunachal Pradesh have been put on hold temporarily by the state election commission.

Assam health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the state has four accredited centres for coronavirus testing – Guwahati Medical College Hospital, Jorhat Medical College Hospital, Regional Medical Research Centre, Dibrugarh, and Silchar Medical College and Hospital.

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“So far, Assam does not have any positive cases. We are upgrading our vigilance and infrastructure. We are trying to prepare with a futuristic approach,” Sarma said on Saturday after visiting facilities in Guwahati, Dibrugarh, and Jorhat.

The health minister also told the media that the government has decided to provide an assistance of USD 2,000 each to people from Assam stranded in foreign countries, subject to conditions. However, employees and students studying in foreign countries are exempt under this benefit.

“A total of 16,508 passengers have been screened at different airports in Assam. Apart from that, 62,870 preliminary medical tests have been conducted; 1,003 persons are under home quarantine,” Sarma informed the media on Friday. On the other hand, 41 persons have been kept in isolation units in different medical colleges and hospitals of Assam.

“All the 57 samples from Assam have been tested negative for coronavirus,” he added.

In Assam, 108 temples, including the Kamakhya temple, have decided to shut their gates to pilgrims and visitors as a precautionary measure. The daily pujas, however, will take place in the temples.

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In Manipur, the government has ordered the closure of the ‘Ima’ markets across the state, including the three well-known Ima markets and a temporary market in Imphal, from March 21 to 25.

Apart from Assam, the other centres for coronavirus testing in the region are the NEIGRI of Health and Medical Sciences in Shillong (Meghalaya), JN Institute of Medical Sciences Hospital, Imphal-East, and Regional Institute of Medical Sciences, Imphal (Manipur), and Government Medical College, Agartala (Tripura).

Samples of the suspected cases in Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, and Nagaland are being sent to the nearest centres in these states.

In Tripura, a total of 132 persons who were kept in quarantine as potential cases, tested negative.

The state government is reportedly opting for a complete lockdown to avoid social gathering for at least three days, since stage-II of the COVID-19 is picking up quickly.

On Friday (March 20), the state Budget session was also cut short keeping this in mind.

In this regard, the Bihu committees in Guwahati decided to cancel all the cultural programmes in the upcoming Bohag Bihu celebration, which starts mid-April, the Assamese new year. The decision was taken by a collective group of 26 Bihu committees.

“Life of humans is more important. We have cancelled all the cultural programmes to avoid mass gathering. Only the rituals will be observed. We should take care of the health of the citizens as well as the artistes. When the situation improves for such events, we will think of it,” said Kailash Sarma, one of office bearers of the Bihu committee.

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The COVID-19 pandemic also resulted in all international flights to Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport at Guwahati as well as some domestic flights to Assam being cancelled for the next week.

Druk Airways also cancelled its international flight from Paro and Singapore, via Guwahati, from March 21 to 29, an Airport Authority of India spokesperson said.

On the domestic route, Spicejet has suspended all four of its flights to the state from March 24 to March 30.

The flights cancelled are SG 3745/3748, SG 3319/3319, both Kolkata-Dibrugarh-Guwahati, and SG 3747/3746 and SG 3320/3320, both Guwahati-Dibrugarh-Kolkata.

However, no other flight to the state has been cancelled.

(With inputs from Samir K Purkayastha)