Meghalaya shuts all shops near Guwahati border till July 15

SHILLONG: The Meghalaya government has decided to close down all shops near the Guwahati border from Tuesday till July 15 following a 14-day lockdown announced in the Assam capital to check the spread of the novel coronavirus .


"Government has decided that the locations in Meghalaya bordering Guwahati, i.e, Byrnihat, Jorabat till Khanapara will be under lockdown due to the surge in Covid-19 cases in Assam.

Inter-state movement continues to be restricted," chief minister Conrad K Sangma tweeted on Monday.

Elaborating on the decision, deputy chief minister Prestone Tynsong said, "In view of the prevailing situation, we have decided that all shops, right from Byrnihat up to Rani side along the roadside which is inter-connected with Assam, will remain shut tomorrow (Tuesday) onwards."

Informing that instructions have been issued to the deputy commissioner of Ri Bhoi District in this regard, Tynsong added, "The shops will remain closed till July 15. We leave it to the DC to regulate. This is to ensure safety of citizens from Covid-19 as we know that Assam has locked down the metropolitan area totally. In order to prevent the spread of the infection, we, too, will close down all shops along the highway."

He said inter-state movement would not be allowed till July 15, adding that the restriction may be relaxed or further extended if the need arises. The state government has also decided to continue providing transportation on payment basis to returnees from other parts of the country up to July 15.