Janata Curfew: Markets shut, vehicles off roads as people stay

Markets were shut and vehicles were off the roads as crores of people in Assam stayed indoors on Sunday in response to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Janata Curfew' call in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The 14-hour voluntary curfew began at 7 am, but people in the state stopped venturing out since Saturday night.

In a tweet, Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said, "I am joining the #JantaCurfew and staying at home today. Led by the guiding force of PM @narendramodi Ji, we are ready to fight COVID-19. Together, we can defeat #Coronavirus." The prime minister's appeal of the voluntary self- quarantine exempted essential services, but many of the pharmacies too pulled down their shutters in the state. In Guwahati, people stayed indoors and all markets and commercial establishments were shut, amid gloomy weather.

The districts also witnessed a similar picture with empty national highways and closed markets as people largely remained at their homes. A few two-wheelers and private cars were seen on the roads in the morning, primarily out to collect essential items such as milk and bread.

The state breathed a sigh of relief with the second test of the sample of a four-and-a-half-year-old girl turning out to be negative, hours after she tested positive. Altogether over 1.72 lakh people were screened across Assam till March 21 in wake of the pandemic, the Health and Family Welfare Department said.

In its daily bulletin, the department said that 26,094 passengers were screened at the six airports in the state. While 7,181 travelers were screened at the three land ports -- Darranga (Baksa), Mankachar (South Salmara) and Sutarkandi (Karimganj), 1,38,919 persons were screened at other places such as rail stations and bus stands.