Difficult time for state as migrants arrive: Himanta

GUWAHATI: Assam health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday said the state had stepped into the most difficult time after its citizens stranded in different states started arriving. Fourteen of these migrants have tested positive so far since May 5.
"We have stepped into the most difficult time but we have been able to take care of these people in hospitals, who have tested positive immediately on their arrival," Himanta said.
"The Government of India has told all states to bring back their citizens who are stranded in other states. This will be bring danger for the home states, but at the same time we cannot stop our own people them from coming. We cannot let them die in other states. We have to take the risk... we have no option," Himanta said.
The state opened its border on May 2 for its people to return on their own arrangement and since then thousands have crossed over its borders, a majority from within the northeast. However, the trend shows that the positive cases are found only in those returning from outside the region.
The 14 positive cases with travel histories include a mother accompanying her 12-year-old son having cancer from Mumbai in an ambulance, along with another woman to Jorhat. The two women tested positive for Covid-19 on Saturday, which took the total positive cases in the state to 62. The young boy tested negative and is asymptomatic. His cousin brother, who had travelled in the same ambulance also tested negative, but one of the two drivers of the ambulance tested positive.
Prior to Saturday, on May 5, one person in Kokrajhar who had come from Cooch Behar in West Bengal, tested positive and was the first such case with travel history after the borders were opened. He was detected immediately on arrival and sent to isolation. The biggest group of 10 people with travel history who tested positive on May 5, 7 and 8 are among the passengers from a bus from Ajmer Sharif in Rajasthan. Also, one person with travel history from Siliguri in West Bengal tested positive in Guwahati on May 8.
Himanta on Sunday said in a tweet that samples of 71 residents of Regional Dental College Hostel have tested negative, including those of two doctors, who were working with a Covid-19-positive dental student in triage section of screening area of Guwahati Medical College and Hospital.