Punjab Deras told to limit religious gatherings

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 18

While the state government is gearing up to launch a door-to-door awareness campaign from Thursday, Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Wednesday appealed to religious organisations and dera heads to keep gatherings under 50 in support of the government’s efforts to check the spread of Covid-19.

The Chief Minister, after a series of review meetings with health and other officials, said while Punjab, with one confirmed case, was so far safe, it could not afford to be complacent in the face of the spread of coronavirus globally.

The government was mulling to give bail to those convicted of minor offences and parole to those who had spent considerable time in jail, said Capt Amarinder, pointing out that the Supreme Court had talked about decongesting the prisons. The final decision would, however, depend on the courts. Advocate-General Atul Nanda was taking up the matter with the Chief Justice of the Punjab & Haryana High Court, he added.

Strict monitoring was being conducted of all those arriving from high-risk countries and so far, 116 suspected cases had been tested, he added.

The Chief Minister said his government was also ready to look into providing mid-day meals to students at homes or, alternatively, putting money into their accounts, although no such request had been received so far. He urged the elderly to take extra precautions and also appreciated the hard work of the doctors and other medical staff.