New Delhi (NVI): The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) today issued fresh guidelines allowing stranded migrant workers, pilgrims, tourists, and students to go home but with certain conditions.
Issuing a fresh order for the inter-state travel of stranded people, MHA said that the transport for such persons will be arranged by the state governments and will require pre and post Covid-19 screening.
“Due to lockdown, migrant workers, pilgrims, tourists, students and other persons are stranded at different places,” the MHA order signed by Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla read, adding: “All States/UTs should designate nodal authorities and develop standard protocols for receiving and sending such stranded persons. The nodal authorities shall also register the stranded persons within their States/UTs.”
“In case a group of stranded persons wish to move between one State/UT and another State/UT, the sending and receiving States may consult each other and mutually agree to the movement by road,” the order read.
The moving person(s) would be screened and those found asymptomatic would be allowed to proceed, as per the order.
The Home Ministry said that buses shall be used for transport of groups of persons. “The buses will be sanitised and shall follow social distancing norms in seating,” it said.
The States/UTs falling on the transit route will allow the passage of such persons to the receiving States/UTs, it said.
“On arrival, such person(s) would be assessed by the local health authorities, and kept in home quarantine, unless the assessment requires keeping the person(s) in institutional quarantine,” the MHA order read, adding that they would be kept under watch periodic health check-ups.
“For this purpose, such persons would be encouraged to use Aarogya Setu app through which their health can be monitored and tracked,” it said.
The MHA notice comes two days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s interaction with chief ministers to discuss the situation arising out of Covid-19 in the country. In his virtual interaction with CMs, the Prime Minister had asked them to keep their plans or suggestions regarding the Covid exit plan ready, keeping in mind the gravity of the situation in their respective states.
India is currently under an extended lockdown till May 3 to keep coronavirus from spreading that has claimed 1008 lives so far. Several restrictions on the movement of people are in place including freezing bus, train and air services.
