In a bid to prevent the widespread of novel coronavirus, the Arunachal Pradesh government temporarily banned the entry of foreigners in the state. The move came days after Sikkim banned issuing of Inner Line Permits to the foreigners.
As precautionary measures, the state government decided not to issue Protected Area Permits (PAPs) to foreigners to check the spread of coronavirus, officials said on March 8th, 2020.
The Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar directed all PAP issuing authorities to suspend the issue of permits till further orders.
“It is learnt that Covid-19 positive cases have been detected in India and the numbers have been increasing. It is also learnt that the spread of the coronavirus in India is primarily from visitors who had a history of travelling abroad recently or through tourists who have visited India,” the government order said.
A high alert has also been sounded across Assam to prevent the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus (COVID-19) after the reports emerged that an American citizen, who visited the state before flying to Bhutan, has tested positive for coronavirus.
The 76-year-old US national had come to Assam on February 21st, 2020 with his 59-year-old partner and had travelled to several places before flying to Bhutan from the LGBI Airport in Guwahati on March 2nd, 2020.
The virus that first emerged in China in December last year has spread to 97 countries and has infected 102,180 people, according to the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus tracker. More than 3,500 people have been killed due to the virus so far.
Photo credit: BloombergQuint
