The Manipur government as a preventive measure against coronavirus (COVID-19), has decided to abolish biometric attendance in all state offices.
Chief minister N Biren Singh said this on Thursday adding the government is closely monitoring the situation and taking all precautionary measures to counter coronavirus.
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The chief minister said the health department has already undertaken preventive measures since January 18 and that there are no cases of coronavirus in the state so far.
Singh said screening of visitors was conducted at the entry points of the state at Moreh, Behiang, Sinzawl, Tusom, Kamjong, Mao gate and Jiribam besides the international airport at Imphal.
“So far, a total of 121,629 persons, including 68,180 air passengers, have been screened at Imphal Airport and other entry points,” he said.
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The chief minister said out of 12 samples collected, 10 samples turned out to be negative while the report for the remaining two is still awaited.
Altogether 352 people, who came back to the state, were kept under surveillance by the state health authority, he said.
The state authority will also start issuing forms to visitors at the state’s entry points including those along the India-Myanmar border.
An isolation ward consisting eight beds with four ventilators was set up at the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) and a similar ward with six beds and one ventilator was created at Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences (JNIMS) for any emergencies.
He said a control room has started functioning 24×7 with the toll-free number 0385-2411668 and appealed to the people not to panic over coronavirus.
Singh also appealed the people to undertake basic self preventive measures such as washing hands regularly, using masks, avoiding mass gatherings, covering mouth while coughing and sneezing etc.
An official of the health department also gave a detailed presentation about the preparedness of COVID-19 in the state during the press conference.