Assam Chief Minister SarbanandaSonowal on Wednesday directed the Kokrajhar and Dhubri district administrations to ensure proper screening of people entering the state through Srirampur and Chagolia-Boxirhat gates along the border with West Bengal to check the spread of COVID-19.The chief minister visited a screening camp adjacent to Srirampur gate at Gossaigaon Sub-Division in Kokrajhar to review the measures taken to screen the movement of people from across the inter-state boundary."The civil and police administration should jointly keep a tab on every entry point of districts to ensure that nobody can enter Assam without going through COVID-19 screening protocols", he said.The chief minister also asked the police to keep a strict surveillance on some reported vulnerable points to thwart any design of unauthorised movement from the neighbouring state.Dhubri Deputy Commissioner Anantlal Gyani apprised the chief minister about the existence of 15 such vulnerable points where CRPF, police personnel and village defence parties have been deployed for round the clock surveillance.The district administration has set up a quarantine centre at an area adjacent to Chagolia Gate with all facilities to quarantine around one thousand people.Kokrajhar Deputy Commissioner Partha Pratim Mazumdar apprised Sonowal that the district administration has ensured constant monitoring along the Sonkosh river to prevent people from sneaking into the state by swimming across the river.He also said that adequate arrangements have been made to screen the health status of drivers, handymen and others coming to the state through Srirampur Gate and maintained that strict instruction has been given to ensure that nobody can enter the state without going through mandatory screening.The chief minister later told reporters that the state government during the third phase of extended lockdown has directed all deputy commissioners to enforce the lockdown by following all advisories given by the Union Health Ministry.The state government has taken steps to bring back the people of Assam stranded in different places of the country and all the departments in the state have been working to ensure health check-ups at all inter-state entry points of the state, he added.
