Maharashtra appoints nodal authority for movement of stranded people

The Maharashtra government on Thursday issued a notification designating all the district collectors as the nodal authority for the movement of stranded people into or outside the state and also within the state.

The nodal authorities shall register the names of the people stranded within their districts and submit the detailed list to the collectors of the districts, where they desire to travel. The group of stranded persons will have to carry the copy of the letter given by the nodal authority.

For the inter-state movement, the sending and receiving states and union territories shall consult each other and mutually agree to their movement by road and its schedule, the notification said.

"No movement shall be permitted into or outside Maharashtra unless the group of stranded persons has obtained a letter from the appropriate district collector or the director of the state disaster management," it said.

"Persons desiring to move shall be screened and only those who don't show COVID-19 symptoms will be allowed to proceed. The letter of the district and state shall clearly mention that the persons have been screened and are found to be asymptomatic," it added.

All the persons, who wish to travel by making their own arrangement, can proceed on the basis of the letter of the sending and receiving states and districts.

The vehicles to be used or deployed for transport will carry a transit pass issued by the sending state or the district authority. The pass will be for a fixed route with specific validity along with names of the travelling persons.

The vehicles and buses used for transport shall be sanitized before and after use and social distancing norms shall be followed in the seating arrangements, the notification said.

On the arrival at their destinations, the people shall be assessed by the local health authorities and kept in home quarantine unless they require institutional quarantine. They would be kept under watch with frequent health check-ups.

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They will be encouraged to use Aarogya Setu app, through which their health status can be monitored and tracked.

The notification said that Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue) Nitin Kareer and Principal Secretary Woman and Child Welfare, Idzes Kundan, along with Director of state Disaster Management, Abhay Yawalkar, will coordinate the movement of stranded people.

People can e-mail at [e-mail] and call 022-22027990 and 022-22023039 for assistance.

The notification has been issued as per the guidelines of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) regarding the movement of stranded migrant workers, pilgrims, tourist students and others in different parts of the state.

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has asked the authorities to ensure implementation of the standard operating procedure (SOP) with care.