The spread of Coronavirus in the neighbouring states of Assam and West Bengal is on the rise with Assam reporting 1,018 new cases on Sunday while West Bengal saw 2,278 new cases just today.
Assam and West Bengal states in India are located along the southern borders of Bhutan, making the rising numbers there a cause of concern for Bhutanese Authorities and border surveillance teams.
According to Johns Hopkins University, Assam total confirmed cases has reached to 23,999 with 57 deaths. 16,203 patients have recovered so far. And in West Bengal, the total number of cases has climbed to 42,487 with 1300 patients recovering so far. The number of deaths spiked to 36 today, taking the total number of fatalities to more than 1,100.
However, despite the soaring number of cases in the bordering states, Bhutanese Authorities continue to intercept individuals entering the country through informal channels and in breach of current health safety protocols.
The Prime Minister’s Office yesterday, through a press statement urged all Bhutanese to direct family members or relatives returning from other countries to relevant authorities to ensure proper procedures for entry. The government said they had to conduct several COVID -19 tests and contact tracing from villagers to the staffs of National Referral Hospital in Thimphu after two individuals entered the country illegally in Samtse.
The man who entered Thongzom village in Samtse in May had travelled with his wife to the National Referral Hospital while the other man came had come in contact with 8 people after he visited two houses in Yoeseltse Gewog. All tests on primary suspects and contacts came negative so far.
Sangay Chezom
