New Delhi, Apr 9 (IANS): Blaming the Union government, Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel has said that "failure" to stop the inbound flights to the country has led to the spread of coronavirus as the disease has evolved in some other country and travelled to India through "carriers".
Baghel said, "Union government should have stopped all international flights as early as possible and all the inbound passengers should have been mandatorily quarantined. This could have prevented the spread of the virus."
Baghel also hit out at the central government for allowing Tablighi Jamaat event despite prohibitory orders. "If international passengers from hotspots have been stopped, the congregation could also not have happened. I am not giving clean chit to any organisation," said Baghel.
He also alleged that union government did not seek advice of the state governments before announcing the lockdown and now state governments are being reached out for their opinion on lifting the lockdown.
The Prime Minister has again called a meeting of all the chief ministers on April 11.
The State of Chhattisgarh has contained the spread of virus by quarantining all the international passengers and has done 3000 tests, claimed the chief minister, adding that Union Government has been informed about the asymptomatic Covid carrier in the state.
Regarding lifting of interstate travel restrictions, the Chhatisgarh chief minister said that he has written to the Prime Minister about it, which may come up during discussion on April 11.
Baghel wrote to the Prime Minister on April 6 that before allowing interstate travel after the lockdown period is over, the government should make strategy to screen the passengers and put in place a mechanism to filter the coronavirus cases to make sure it does not spread from one place to another.
He wrote, "If flights, rail and surface transport is opened then there is a possibility that infected persons can come to the state and the problem can persist, and the states will have to face problem in containing this virus."