The Assam government has decided to transfer $2,000 to residents of the State who have been stranded abroad for a month and unable to return home due to the global shutdown following the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
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The financial assistance is not for NRIs or people who have been working or studying for a substantial period of time and have houses or hostels to stay in.
“We will be notifying an email ID tomorrow (Saturday) for Assamese people stranded because of shutdown of communication due to the pandemic. We will transfer $2,000 to their accounts if they went abroad in the last 30 days according to the date of stamping in their passports,” Assam’s Finance and Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Friday.
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“This is for tourists and people who went for training, workshops or seminars and short-term assignments and not for those who have been living abroad permanently or for more than 30 days. If they remain stranded for a longer period of time, we will deal with the situation accordingly,” he said.
Mr Sarma also said the State government will help the stranded people if their visa or passport expires. “We will take up such cases with the embassy concerned,” he added.
Hand-stamping
The Finance Minister said all passengers arriving at airports, railway stations and bus stations across the State from outside would be stamped on the hand from March 22. The stamp on the hand of such incoming passengers will read: “Assam needs social distancing. I volunteer to be home quarantined up to...”
He justified the move as a necessity so that people who might be symptomatic do not spread the virus.
Other measures include instructions to railways and operators of public and private commercial vehicles to carry as many passengers as there are seats. “Buses violating this rule will be confiscated,” he said.
Markets under watch
Mr Sarma also said that municipal officials have been asked to assess the major markets and shopping malls so that they do not accommodate more than a specified number of people calculated on the basis of floor space.
“Shopkeepers and traders have been asked to decide the number of people they can entertain at a time and provide them soap or sanitiser before dealing with them. If not, we will be forced to close their establishments,” he said.
Till date, 79,378 people have been screened at airports and railway and bus stations in Assam, all of whom have tested negative for COVID-19 at four special labs across the State. Besides, 41 people have been kept in isolation wards of hospitals while 1,003 were advised home quarantine. Of these 1003 people, 164 have come out of quarantine after 28 days at home.
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“We hope people will cooperate with all the measures being undertaken for their own good. From tomorrow (Saturday), 50% of government employees will be attending office on rotation. This will not apply to health, electricity, water supply and other essential services,” Mr. Sarma said.
The shutdown order of educational institutions, gyms, beauty parlours, libraries, museums and other public facilities that attract large crowds is in place till March 31. But officials said it could be extended till the first week of April.
