Sikkim announces Rs 5,000 assistance to students stranded

The Sikkim government has announced a one-time assistance of Rs 5,000 to the students who have been stranded outside the state in the wake of the 21-day nationwide lockdown, an official said on Saturday.

The Chief Minister's Office and the education department will monitor the transfer of money to the students who could not return to the state due to the lockdown, Chief Secretary S C Gupta said.

The state government has also decided to provide insurance to all the "frontline warriors" for a period of three months, who have been engaged in containing the COVID-19 outbreak in the state, he said.

Presiding over an emergency meeting of the State Level task force at Samman Bhawan here on Friday, Gupta asked officials of the health departments to ensure that the medial teams and staff working on the frontline should not face any shortage of personal protection equipment (PPE).

The health department must ensure that there is "no shortage" of doctors in healthcare centres at Rangpo and Melli, the two most important check points of Sikkim, for screening of the people, the chief secretary said, adding that at least five medical officers should be appointed at each facility.

No COVID-19 positive case has been detected in the state so far, the official said.

The government urged officials to be vigilant in the state's all-out efforts to prevent the outbreak of the deadly virus, Gupta said, adding that a backup plan has been in place to ensure availability of all essential items for two months.

The government has also permitted the State Bank of Sikkim to allow a three-month moratorium on repayments of all loans, the chief secretary said.

A total of 58 students from Tamil Nadu, who had arrived here recently, have been quarantined at an isolation centre in Assam Lingzey village in East district, Gupta said, adding that they will be provided all the essential items.