Coronavirus: Assam closes schools, postpones exams till March 29

On Sunday, the Assam government announced the closure of all educational institutes along with gymnasiums, cinema halls, and swimming pools. The order has been implemented with immediate effect till March 29 due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. According to Assam Chief Secretary, apart from the board examinations, all exams have been cancelled till the specified date. The state machinery has ordered all the deputy commissioners to dissuade any public congregation in their districts. According to the chief secretary, the administrators and municipal establishments have been ordered to keep the market places hygienic and sanitised on a frequent basis to evade the spread of the disease.

Moreover, the Northeast Frontier Railway had been ordered to take required provisions at its facilities, including stations. Quarantine amenities for more than 800 people and isolation centres for more than 100 people have been arranged at varied locations in the state. For the same, two-bedded isolation wards are set up in all district civil hospitals. As of now, the state has two blood-sample testing amenities for COVID-19 in Guwahati and Dibrugarh, while the third one would be active in Jorhat from Monday.

In a demonstration, the health and family welfare department of the state displayed that 1,075 passengers had been screened at six airports so far. Overall 253 travellers from COVID-19-affected countries were quarantined. Eleven blood samples were accumulated and 10 of them have tested negative and the report of one is awaited. More than 10,600 people have been screened so far and 599 people, who came in contact with positive cases, were kept under home observation though no symptoms were found. The border districts of Chirang, Kokrajhar, Baksa, and Udalguri are on observation and the state government has established a control room, which has so far got more than 300 calls.

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