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Hyderabad: The Telangana government on Thursday decided to identify all those who came from abroad after March 1 and place them under home quarantine to contain the spread of Covid-19.
As part of the additional precautionary measures, the state government also asked places of worship of all faiths to stop gathering of devotees.
Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao announced new measures as eight Indonesians who were on a visit to the state tested positive.
A group of 10 Indonesians had travelled from Delhi to Ramagundam by train and from there reached Karimnagar by road to attend a religious programme.
KCR said out of 14 Covid-19 positive cases reported so far in the state, only five had landed at Hyderabad Airport while others landed in other places in the country and entered the state by train or bus.
He said all those who came from abroad after March 1 should voluntarily report to local authorities in the districts to undergo home quarantine.
He announced that officials in every village and town will gather information about those who returned from other countries. All of them will be home quarantined under the supervision of the local authorities and if they showed suspected symptoms of Coronavirus they will be shifted to hospitals.
The Chief Minister said all those reaching Hyderabad Airport will be screened and quarantined, irrespective of the country they are coming from.
He said 18 check posts were being opened on the borders with Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh to identify the people coming from abroad.
KCR appealed to heads of temples, mosques, churches and other places of worship not to allow gathering of devotees. He thanked Muslim clerics for offering all assistance in this regard and for scaling down the celebrations of 'Shab-e-Meraj' on March 22.
The Chief minister announced that there will be no public celebration of Telugu New Year 'Ugadi'. He said the government will arrange live telecast of 'panchangnam' or reading of the almanac for the next year by priests. He also announced cancellation of Ramnavmi celebrations.
KCR said all educational institutions, cinema halls, parks, clubs, pubs, bars, museums, and gyms will be closed till March 31.
Stating that the state needs tough measures to contain the spread of Covid-19, the Chief Minister also announced sealing of function halls to prevent weddings after March 31. For weddings scheduled before March 31, the number of guests should be restricted.
KCR said shops, super markets and shopping malls would not be shut to ensure that there is no shortage of essential commodities. He, however, asked the shops and malls to prevent public gathering.
