Law Kumar Mishra
Patna, April 18
Apprehending the “situation may turn grim”, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday evening appealed to the migrant workers from Bihar to return immediately before the situation worsens.
He said the number of Corona patients would rise further. Today, 9000 people were tested positive.
Nitish Kumar who chaired the meeting of the Crisis Management group at CM secretariat said any delay by the migrants in coming back to Bihar would create more problems for them. He assured jobs for them in their villages and said since trains and buses movement was on, they should come immediately.
The Chief Minister said quarantine centres would be opened at sub-divisional levels to facilitate migrants’ stay.
Nitish said from 9 pm to 5 am, night curfew would be imposed all over the state. Shops, commercial establishments, both private and government offices have been directed to shut by 5 pm.
All educational institutions, coaching institutes will remain closed till May 15 and no examinations would be conducted till then
Free masks would be distributed in both urban and rural areas through the panchayati raj and urban development departments.
Places of worship would be closed till May 15 and there would be no Ram Navami celebrations in public.
About shortage of oxygen cylinders and ventilators, he claimed Centre has assured uninterrupted supply. Two officials of the industries department who met the manufacturers at Bokaro and Jamshedpur have been informed six trucks with cylinders would reach here on Monday .
About shortage of Remdesivir shortage, Chief Minister admitted crisis and said with the manufacturers doubling the production, problem would ease soon.
Fifty doctors and six para medical staff from DRDO would be reaching Bihar on Monday to run the 500 bed Covid dedicated hospital opened in the ESIC hospital premises.
In neighbouring Jharkhand too, Chief Minister Hemant Soren announced imposition of night curfew, closure of all educational institutions and heavy fines for refusal to use Masks.