A sense of fear has been prevailing among the people at Mangaldai in Assam’s Darrang district.
Reason – an interview of Dr Ashyut Baisya, executive director of NHM, Assam telecast in a private news channel on Thursday night has gone viral.
In the interview the higher official of NHM, Assam stated that the two girls of Arunachal Pradesh who were the co passengers of the COVID-19 infected Mizoram man during his air journey from Kolkata had dined at a restaurant near Mangaldai on their way to Tawang.
However, Anupam Deka, one of the owners of the restaurant is confident enough that nothing adverse will happen as both the girls as well as all the staff including himself are safe and asymptomatic till now.
“On Wednesday I came to know about the visit of the Arunachal girls to our restaurant from Anurag Goel, a senior state government official at Dispur. Immediately I had come to know about it, all the 38 restaurant staff including ourselves went home quarantined,” he said.
The girls visited us on March 16 last and already twelve days have elapsed till date.
“There is nothing to worry as both the girls who are under the strict supervision of the State health department have not developed any symptoms,” he added.
“Moreover we all including the staff are doing well inside our homes,” said owner Deka.
“We had never compromised in hygiene of our restaurant and since March 11 we maintained the protocols of virus prevention like compulsory hands sanitization before entering into it. These measures I think has proved effective to keep ourselves save,” Anupam Deka maintained.
Meanwhile talking to Northeast Now on Friday, Dr Jadumani Kataki, chief medical and health officer, Darrang said, “The State has informed the matter on Thursday evening and now our team is searching for the 37 persons on the basis of the list provided by the restaurant management.”
“Locals are already home quarantined and we are also making necessary correspondence to ensure that the persons from other districts too get home quarantined,” he added.
In the same breath he said there is nothing to be worried as both the girls in question are presently well.