Taking note of the risk of spreading Coronavirus through public transport, Tangkhul Co-ordination Forum on Covid-19 (TCFC) has appealed to all Imphal returnees to get themselves voluntarily tested for the virus.
There has been a growing concern among the public over the possible transmission of the contagion ever since all passenger services including inter-district, inter-village and town taxi resumed normal operations on 16 October last.
According to a source from TCFC, the forum is constrained to make the appeal for all travellers, especially those returning from Imphal to voluntarily undergo rapid antigen test so as to minimise chances of transmitting the disease among the public.
It informed that the test service could be availed at the cost of Rs 750 per person from the district’s RAT Centre at Bakshi Ground, Dungrei.
“As the government has lifted most of the restrictions on public movement through a series of progressive unlocks, it is now difficult to continue such restrictions on our own here,” the source noted.
“In spite of the high risk of transmitting and spreading the infection among the passengers, it is now impossible to make testing mandatory for all passengers arriving at Ukhrul,” it said.
Expressing helplessness over the prevailing scenario, it cautioned that if any asymptomatic passenger fails to get tested, then these people can spread the infection to many others in the community. “This is a major concern for everyone,” the source rued.
The problems associated with community transmission is that it is not possible to identify or trace the carriers, unless they show any symptoms and come forward for testing voluntarily.
Meanwhile, the forum informed that all flight returnees from outside the state would be provided with free testing facility at the RAT centre.
