From Our Correspondent
GUWAHATI: Assam Health and Family Welfare Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has urged the state government employees to help at least five poor/needy families of their choice after they receive the salary this month.
“This way, about 25 lakh poor families will be helped. It will be the best way to celebrate Rongali Bihu amid this crisis situation as there will be no celebration of Bihu this year,” the health minister said.
Himanta added that despite state’s economy being affected due to the ongoing lockdown, the state government has still decided to release full salary to its employees.
“Economy of the state is not in a normal state and there has been hardly any revenue generation of late because of the lockdown. Still, the government has decided to give full salary to its employees on April 9-10 unlike many other states in the country where government employees salary has been cut up to 50 per cent because of the emergency situation,” Himanta said.
The minister also said the state government would utilise about Rs 60 crore that would be collected through voluntary donation of one day’s salary by its employees to build one of the five coronavirus treatment hospitals that are coming up in the state in next three months.
Meanwhile, Assam government has decided to provide a health insurance cover of Rs 50 lakh to driver and staff of 108 Ambulance Service and staff of 104 call centres in the state.
The state government has also decided to provide additional payment of Rs 1,000 to the drivers and staff of 108 Ambulance Service in the state for a three-month period.
The doctors and nurses in Assam, who have been treating COVID-19 patients in the state since March 31, will be quarantined for 14 days from April 7 next in Vivanta by Taj Hotel here at the cost of the state government.
They have been engaged in Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Mohendra Mohan Choudhury (MMC) Hospital and Sonapur District Hospital, which have been converted to exclusive centres for treatment of novel coronavirus patients.