NEW DELHI: The West Bengal government’s decision of making institutional quarantine mandatory for migrants returning from five states — Maharashtra, Gujarat, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu — which are worst-hit by Covid-19 received a jolt after the local residents staged large-scale protests at 15 places in past 24 hours.
At many places, demonstrations by locals forced the administration to abandon the plan of using the buildings of the educational institutes as quarantine centres. Migrants from these hot-spot states were kept at bus-stands, crematoriums and under makeshift tents in open fields.
Earlier, West Bengal chief minister announced returnees from the worst-hit states will be to spend 14 days at state-run quarantine centres. Migrants from other states, including those with mild symptoms of coronavirus infection, will be at home quarantine for two weeks.
“Lakhs of migrants are returning Bengal. The state home department gave us an estimate of nearly 17 lakh people stranded in other states. More than 6 lakh people are stranded in the five hot-spot states who are returning Bengal. Since their institutional quarantine has been made mandatory, we have no option left other than using schools and colleges as quarantine centres,’’ said state health department official.
According to records available with the state health department, more than 5 lakh migrants already returned from other states.