24-hr lockdown in Shillong on Saturday

Shillong will go into lockdown on Saturday, with markets, offices, commercial establishments and public transport shut for 24 hours, as a preventive measure to check the spread of Covid-19, officials said. The order, however, will not be applicable to security forces and medical teams on duty, she said.

"All public transport will stay off the roads and operations will remain suspended at markets and commercial establishments. Assembly of five or more people in public areas has also been prohibited," East Khasi Hills District Magistrate M W Nongbri said. The lockdown order has been issued to ensure social distancing, in line with the advisories issued by the health department, she insisted.

Nongbri said the order will come into force from midnight. Tourist spots across the state have been shut and inbound visitors mandatorily asked to observe self-quarantine for two weeks.

Local authorities in other districts have been asked by the government to issue shutdown orders on weekly markets until further orders. Churches and mosques, too, have been asked to also shut their doors at least till March 31 to avoid mass gatherings, a senior home department official said.

Meghalaya has not recorded any Covid-19 case so far. PTI JOP RMS RMS

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