Assam: Cachar DC opts not to take leave for marriage amid COVID-19 fight

Guwahati: Cachar district Deputy Commissioner Keerthi Jalli who is leading the fight against the novel coronavirus in the region has chosen not to take a leave even for a day for her marriage. Instead, the DC's husband flew in for the wedding that was held in the DC's bungalow in Silchar.

Jalli, a 2013 batch IAS officer, told her family and friends that she could not go home to Hyderabad to tie the nuptial knot due to the ongoing crisis period. The DC told her family members that she would instead prefer to marry at the official bungalow in Silchar.

She told media that she could not think of taking a leave as the number of cases in her district is very high, and around 100 positive cases are still being reported on a daily basis.

Jalli's family members respected her decision and the Pune-based groom, Aditya Shashikant, flew in to Silchar well in advance following which he was quarantined in accordance with the COVID-19 protocol.

Her family, friends, and well-wishers from Indian and abroad participated in the wedding, held on Wednesday, an Assam government holiday, through the Zoom video app.

The DC's parents also could not attend as they are both recovering from the novel coronavirus after testing positive for the virus. Her younger sister, however, stood by her side as she got wed.

Interestingly, Jalli's family and friends who were watching on via the Zoom app, dressed up in full regalia as if they were present at the venue.

At the actual venue, only a few colleagues and friends from her District Cachar and neighbouring Hailakandi, where she was posted earlier till May, came to attend.

Keeping with the existing COVID protocol, all of the guests were given staggered timings and at no point of time, more than 20 people were present at her bungalow. Many of them were invited on the pretext of there being a 'Ganesh Puja' at the DC's residence, and were surprised when the found out about the wedding.

Resuming her duties on Thursday, a day after the marriage, the DC she visited the Silchar Medical College Hospital to take stock of hospital infrastructure.

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