Residents seal village entry points to keep Covid at bay

Balwant Garg

Tribune News Service

Faridkot, April 1

As the fear of the coronavirus continues to grow, residents of Bahamanwala village, 15 km from here, have set up checkpoints and banned the entry of outsiders in the village.

“As people are defying the curfew orders and we don’t know how long the situation will prevail, we have put barricades at all entry and exit points of the village so that no one can enter,” said Nirmal Singh, sarpanch of the village.

“Though this is not an official checkpoint, we have sealed our village with the makeshift naka and signboards saying the entry of visitors is prohibited as a precaution against the coronavirus. All youngsters in the village are helping us check the unwarranted entry into the village,” he said.

“Before allowing anyone to enter, we are collecting all details of an individual, his or her relatives in Bahamanwala and from where he or she comes. We are using masks and sanitisers for the safety of residents in the village. These masks are mandatory for every person who gets permission to enter the village,” said the sarpanch.

He added that as people were not taking the prohibitory orders seriously, they were forced to put up these nakas at all four entries and exit points of the village. They did not want others to visit the village until the situation got normal.

“Apart from preventing outsiders from entering the village, these nakas are helping us restrain the movement of our villagers as well. We will allow residents of the village to go outside in only emergency situation,” said the sarpanch.

Deputy Commissioner Kumar Saurabh Raj said, “There is nothing wrong if residents of a village use their own ways to restrain the movement of people in this time of crisis. When there is no cure, prevention with strict restrictions is the only available option.”