Friday, March 29, 2024

Uttarakhand: Entry of Nepalese citizens restricted as state records 6,054 new COVID cases

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By PTI
PITHORAGARH: Entry of people from Nepal into India through the border bridges connecting the two countries in Champawat and Pithoragarh districts has been restricted following the resurgence of COVID cases, officials said on Wednesday.

The administrations of the two border districts have made it mandatory for people coming to India from Nepal for daily marketing through the border bridges to bring their corona negative test reports not older than 72 hours with them, an official in Tanakpur in Champawat said.

There are more than half a dozen border bridges in the two districts through which  a large number of Nepalese citizens visit the Indian markets daily.

“We have advised every Nepalese citizen wanting to enter India to bring corona negative report not older than 72 hours with them without which they will not be permitted to enter,” said Himanshu Kaphaltia, SDM of Tanakpur sub division of Champawat district.

People from Nepal routinely come to the Indian markets through the bridges to buy essentials and meet their relatives living on this side of the border but with the steep surge in COVID-19 cases, it was felt necessary to impose the restrictions, he said.

An officer of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) posted at Dharchula Man Singh said several Nepalese citizens have been asked to returned from the border as they did not have the mandatory negative RT-PCR report with them.

SSB is the designated force to guard the open Indian fronts with Nepal.

The state recorded the highest single-day spike of 6,054 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, taking the tally to 1,68,616, while 108 deaths pushed the toll to 2,417.

Dehradun district accounted for the maximum number of 2,329 cases, followed by Haridwar, which reported 1,178 cases, Udham Singh Nagar 849, Nainital 665, Chamoli 175,Pauri 174 Champawat 153, Almora 140, Bageshwar 128 and Tehri 109, a state health department bulletin here said.

There are 45,383 active COVID-19 cases in the state, while 1,17,221 have recovered, it said.

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