People entering Meghalaya from four states that are seeing an upswing in Covid-19 cases must undergo RT-PCR tests, Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said today.
“We are making it mandatory for them to do the RT-PCR tests and so this notification also has come out,” Sangma said while speaking to reporters after the Budget Session.
The notification he was referring to also allowed all those who have documentary proof of having received two doses of Covid-19 vaccine to be exempted from testing at state entry points.
Entrants from Maharashtra, Kerala, Punjab and Karnataka must take an RT-PCR test (or CBNAAT or TruNAT), within three days of entering Meghalaya or at the entry point. The Rapid Antigen Test will not be an option for people from these four states.
Yesterday Sangma and other chief ministers of the country held a video conference with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Sangma said that the Prime Minister was very particular and stressed to keep watch on the travel aspect in the spread of the coronavirus.
The CM said that Meghalaya has tried not to let its guard down even as cases have come down sharply since the end of 2020.
“We have continued testing when lots of states had stopped. We will continue that same process and we will continue to create more awareness among the people,” Sangma added.
He appealed to Meghalayans not to take Covid protocols lightly even though vaccination is underway.
According to him, the registration process for entrants at the checkpoint in Umling, Ri-Bhoi, will help in the contact tracing and also keep track of the tourists who are coming in.
The Chief Minister also said that Meghalaya is better prepared for a second wave of Covid-19 infections, if it comes.
“We feel that we are better prepared in terms of infrastructure. The people are also more mentality prepared as compared to last time,” Sangma added.
