Shillong- Strict containment measures have been imposed by the government of Meghalaya on Wednesday which will come into effect from May 1 at 5:00 am till May 10 at 5:00 am in the town of Tura, Jowai, and Shillong. This decision was made keeping in mind the current COVID-19 pandemic situation in the state.
The Meghalaya chief minister Conrad K Sangma, in a video conference with the deputy commissioners of the state, discussed the prevailing COVID-19 situation in the state and made a few decisions in regard to the same.
The highlights from the COVID-19 appropriate decisions made by the state government are as follows:
1. Large gathering, be it public, political, or religious is strictly prohibited with the exception of gatherings for funeral and wedding in which the attendees have to strictly adhere to the COVID-19 protocols as laid out by the state government.
2. Non-essential government employees have been encouraged to work from home.
3. A strict prohibition has been imposed on sporting activities.
4. All educational institutes to remain shut from May 1 to May 10.
5. Inter and intra-district travel to Jowai, Shillong, and Tura has been restricted and permission for emergency travels will have to be requested from the respective district commissioners.
6. Only essential shops to be opened. The timing will be decided by the district administration.
7. Respective DC's to fix the timings for construction activities, including shops dealing in hardware, electricals, mobiles.
8. Banks, telegraph, and banking posts are permitted to remain open.
9. Essential government offices to remain open as per regulations by the personnel department.
10. Movement will be allowed based on pass issued for agriculture and veterinary activities, students, teachers, staff transporting essential items, accredited press personnel both print and electronic media, persons engaged in construction activities, domestic workers, fire and emergency services, FCI, information and public relations department.
11. DC's are strictly authorized to restrict weekly markets and border hats depending on the situation. International Borders Trade across the state has been canceled.
12. The residents of Meghalaya returning to the state will be allowed to enter.
13. The movement of private vehicles have been strictly restricted
The government announced that there will be no shortages of essential commodities in the state, and also warned the traders that strict action will be taken if they take undue advantage of the pandemic situation.
The government also insisted the people remain calm in the face of such a humanitarian crisis and avoid panic buying.
Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong said that the containment restriction is just like lockdown and urged people to take action to curb the spread of the deadly infectious disease at any cost. "The government has taken these decisions after thorough discussion and getting inputs from different district administration authorities. Effective 5 am on May 1 to 5 am on May 10, containment measures, not lockdown, will be enforced in places that have seen a spike in COVID-19 cases, namely Shillong (urban agglomeration), Jowai and Tura," deputy CM Tynsong added.
Meghalaya, as of Tuesday, reported 147 fresh cases of the novel coronavirus taking the cases of the active caseload in the state to 1,456. Four COVID-19 induced fatalities have been reported from the state taking the total death toll to 165. The total number of cases of coronavirus in the state now amounts to 16,271. Read more
Meanwhile, India yet again smashes its own previous record of the single-day highest spike in the cases of the novel coronavirus on Tuesday as it reported 3,60,960 fresh cases, the highest ever single-day spike recorded globally. In the last 24 hours, 3,293 fresh cases of COVID-induced fatalities were reported taking the total death toll of the country to 2.01 lakhs. Yesterday's surge in the cases of the novel coronavirus takes the total tally of the country's caseload to 1.79 crores while the active cases amount to 29.71 lakhs. Over 3 lakh COVID-19 cases have been reported in India for the seventh straight day, making it the second-worst coronavirus-affected country in the world. Read more