Meghalaya to open govt offices on April 15, educational institutions to remain closed till April 30

GUWAHATI: Meghalaya cabinet has decided All Government offices to start functioning with full staff strength from the 15th of April while Schools and educational institutions will remain closed till 30th of April 2020.
The cabinet has decided farmers in rural areas will be allowed to resume sowing activities with immediate effect. Strict protocols to be maintained as prescribed from time to time by the health department. The state government in MGNREGA activities will be allowed to resume in respective villages in the State. Wages and the material components to the tune of Rs. 534.6573 crore has been sanctioned and released to the respective Block Development Offices for payment of wages and clearing the materials bills.

Construction works (viz. road construction, etc.) and other allied developmental programs sanctioned by the government in the last financial year is allowed to restart from the 15th of April 2020. The Cabinet also decided to allow the reopening of weekly markets in rural areas from the 15th of April 2020, provided that strict ‘COVID-19’ protocols as prescribed by the health department are adhered to. Private transportation will be allowed to resume from the 15th of April 2020.

The Government will extend financial assistance to all wage earners, daily labourers and petty traders (unregistered daily wage earners) who are out of work during the COVID-19 ‘lockdown’, under the Chief Minister’s Relief Against Wage Loss scheme for daily wage earners at the rate of Rs. 700 per week.

The financial assistance will be transferred directly to the eligible beneficiary’s account. Beneficiaries already registered under Building and Other Construction Workers (BOCW), job card holders under MGNREGA, muster roll workers of government departments, casual and contractual wage workers in government and semi government departments and registered farmers under ‘PM-KISAN’ are not entitled to receive benefits under the scheme

The Cabinet also discussed about the fate of citizens from Meghalaya both students and working citizens, numbering about 2192 individuals in total, who are staying at different parts of the country. Most of them had expressed their desire to come back to the State.

Taking into account the safety of people in the State and the safety of the stranded citizens themselves, the Cabinet after a thorough discussion has decided to request the stranded citizens to refrain from travelling back home until the end of April 2020.