GUWAHATI, May 2: The state government today opened a helpline for stranded people in other states wanting to return and has also decided to allow those in NE states to enter Assam from tomorrow onwards.
However, the state government made a fervent appeal to all such people residing outside not to endure the massive evacuation arrangement and the elaborate screening and quarantine measures being put in place for the returnees if they can defer their return to the state for some time.
People stranded in other NE states, except Sikkim, can enter the state from tomorrow, but will have to follow the screening protocol at the border check posts. �After screening, medical officers at the gate will take a call on whether to put them in home quarantine, facility quarantine or admit in hospital. Night curfew will be imposed in Assam, so all such people will have to travel during day hours. We are also planning to send ASTC buses to the NE state capitals after a few days,� health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said.
For those people stranded in other states, the state government has opened a helpline � 7428159966. Those wanting to return will have to give a missed call in the number, following which a link will be send for filling up an application. People who have already registered through the other helpline � 9615471547 � need not register again as they will get the link automatically.
�Once we get the details we will have a data base, after which the evacuation plan will be made. We may send buses to nearby places, but for far off states, we will have to use trains. We will need time to execute it as it will be a massive exercise. We are not sure how many we will be able to bring,� Sarma said.
The details of the arrangements made by the government will be made known to the people over phone by Assam Police who will handle the operation.
People having their own vehicle can apply for passes at [email protected]. Passes will be mailed to them.
However, once people reach Assam border, they will have to undergo a screening at the Srirampur gate. �The returnees will be issued passes up to one of five centres where elaborate medical screening will be done. The passes will be issued to Kokrajhar SAI complex, Guwahati�s Sarusajai stadium, Tezpur, Jorhat and Silchar. The travellers returning on their own vehicles will have to drive non-stop to their nearest centre.
�The returnees will be registered at the centre. We may keep people in facility quarantine or paid quarantine in hotels for which the government will fix rates. Those who will be sent to home quarantine will be stamped. Through an online portal, all DCs will know instantly the details of people returning to their districts for follow up action,� the health minister said.
