E-Paper
Manipur government to extend lockdown till June 30
Manipur CM has cited the extension of the lockdown restrictions as a preventive measure that would help save people’s lives from the raging viral outbreak.
The Manipur government has decided to extend the lockdown restrictions, which were imposed on March 25 to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak, till June 30, chief minister N. Biren Singh announced at a press conference on Sunday.
He cited the extension of the lockdown restrictions as a preventive measure that would help save people’s lives from the raging viral outbreak.
The CM announced that micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), agriculture and horticulture-related activities and work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) have been exempted from the prevailing lockdown restrictions. However, he urged the public to maintain social distancing norms and also strictly follow the advisories and protocols laid down by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoH&FW)
Singh said a 100-bed dedicated Covid-19 facility would be set up in Imphal within 10 days to ensure general patients could undergo treatment at the state-run Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS).
“The daily Covid-19 testing capacity at RIMS and the Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences (JNIMS) has been increased to 1,000. Thermal scanning facility has been installed at Bir Tikendrajit International Airport in Imphal,” he added.
The CM said that chief medical officers of districts have been instructed to recruit volunteers and trained nurses because of the medical emergency. Manipur has also increased the number of institutional and community quarantine facilities to accommodate the stranded people who are returning to the state amid the easing of lockdown restrictions.
The CM said 28,149 stranded people have come back to the state to date.
Singh that the state consultative committee for Covid-19 is holding a weekly meeting to take stock of the situation and chalk out plans to prevent the pandemic. A joint panel has also been formed that comprises members from several civil society organisations to create mass awareness about the viral outbreak among the people. Leaflets have been published in 24 tribal dialects to create awareness about Covid-19, he added.
