110 stranded in Cachar leave for their respective districts; Only ASTC buses plying through Meghalaya 

Several people who had traveled to different districts within the state for professional engagement or medical emergency got stranded as the transportation got restricted because of the lockdown. Minister of Health Himanta Biswa Sarma had announced that the government will arrange transportation for those who are stranded. Today, the State government relaxed communication for government busses in the districts in Barak Valley. The additional deputy commissioner of Cachar, Sumit Sattavan informed that 110 stranded individuals in Cachar left for their native places today.

48 people from Hailakandi, 48 from Karimganj and 14 from Dima Hasao left for their respective districts, from the Inter-State Bus Terminus (ISBT) Silchar today. The ADC informed that only those who registered by calling the government of Assam’s helpline number- 104 were allowed to travel today in the ASTC buses. “They were all informed to report at their local police station where the Police officials verified their SMS which was sent to the applicants after a successful registration. From their respective Police stations, they were escorted to the ISBT by Police vans and government recruited vehicles,” informed Sattavan.

He said the administration after meeting SP Cachar Manabendra Dev Ray decided that verification must be conducted at the local police station instead of ISBT. “Otherwise those who do not meet the verification criteria will have to travel all the way back again. Which is why we decided to conduct the verification at the Police station itself,” added Sattavan. On April 26, 2020, ASTC buses will ply between Kamrup, Kamrup Metro and Nagaon districts.

The ADC informed that the Meghalaya government has relaxed its lockdown protocols for ASTC vehicles. “Only ASTC buses can ply through Meghalaya which has sealed its inter-state borders as a measure to fight against Coronavirus. Private vehicles cannot use that road yet as we have not received any guidelines regarding that,” Sattavan informed.