Some Indian States Have Sealed Their Borders to Prevent the Spread of Coronavirus

As the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in India rises to 62, Indians are going all out to take precautions that could prevent the spread of the highly contagious COVID-19. While some people are indulging in silly activities like hosting parades where the “evil” coronavirus is modelled into a demon and burnt down, or protecting the idols of temple gods with face masks, some are taking actual steps like screening all international passengers and keeping anyone with symptoms under isolated observation. Now, some Northeastern states, which share their borders with countries like China, Myanmar and Bangladesh are shutting their borders to keep coronavirus away.

While there are several suspected cases of coronavirus in states like Assam, Meghalaya and Manipur, all of them have been quarantined, with no confirmed case coming out yet. However, some states are still going the extra mile given that the number of people infected with COVID-19 continues to increase every day.

Last week, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, which border Bangladesh and China, banned the entry of all foreign visitors and closed their borders. Now, Mizoram and Manipur have also taken similar measures and sealed their borders.

Even though the coronavirus outbreak began in China’s Wuhan city, Myanmar still has no confirmed cases, despite bordering China, while Bangladesh currently has three confirmed cases, but from people who recently travelled to Italy.

Since India’s Northeastern states have a heterogenous population that includes indigenous tribal communities, Indians from other states need an inner line permit (ILP) to enter states like Mizoram, Manipur and Sikkim, while Arunachal Pradesh issues a protected area permit (PAP) to tourists wanting to visit the state. Currently, these states have decided to stop issuing these permits to restrict the movement of tourists. This decision was taken after it was observed that all those who tested positive for coronavirus either had a travel history to countries like China, Italy, Iran and Korea or were in close contact with people who had recently visited countries hit by coronavirus.

At India's Attari-Wagah border in Punjab that divides India and Pakistan, all spectators who come to watch the beating retreat show—a ceremonial display where both India and Pakistan lower their flags amidst soldiers stomping their feet to the tune of patriotic music—have also been banned. The ceremony will continue, but to no spectators.

Meanwhile, other states including Kerala and Delhi which have seen a surge in coronavirus cases in the last week, have called for a total shutdown of schools, cinemas, malls and other public spaces.

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