BONGAIGAON, ASSAM:
Following the Assam state government's ban on inter-district mobility in order to successfully combat the novel coronavirus pandemic, a vicious gang of COVID-19 protocol violators has come to the surface.
It has come to light that a passenger bus in Assam's Bongaigaon district has been charging passengers double the fee, despite the fact that the state is facing an acute humanitarian crisis and people are struggling financially.
The news of this incident had been brought to the light following an investigation carried out by the Assam Police. Passengers at Bongaigaon were charged a double fare which is in violation of COVID-19 protocols.
During the inter-district travel restriction, some bus owners were violating COVID restrictions and operating a profitable business by taking advantage of the COVID crisis.
The Boitamari police in Bongaigaon began a search and identified the star bus number AS-17-C-4986. The bus was on its way from Dhuburi to Guwahati.
The bus carried a total of 42 passengers, and the fare was more than 1000 rupees per person. The bus was traveling without the administration's approval and had a reserve banner on it.
In the state, some people were operating bus services using forged documents.
Meanwhile, the Assam government has warned of total lockdown in as many as seven districts of the state beginning June 23rd, according to Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, if COVID cases continue to increase.
As of Sunday, 20 June 2021, Assam registered 1,775 new cases of the deadly viral infection taking the overall caseload in the country to 4,82,505. The active cases in the state now stand at 32,207. Assam reported 30 cases of COVID-19 induced fatalities in the last 24 hours, taking the overall tally of death count in the state to 4,208. Yesterday's recovery rate stood at 92.17 percent while the positivity rate stood at 2.27 percent.
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