By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR/NEW DELHI: A day after Union PNG-Steel Minister Dharmendra Pradhan requesting Chief Ministers of various States, where Odia people have been stranded following COVID-19 lockdown to wave off road and service taxes, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik during video conferencing with Prime Minister Narendra Modi today sought a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) by the Central Government for return of people stranded across the country to their native places.
Odisha Government’s Media Adviser Manas Mangaraj said Chief Minister also discussed with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on taking care of stranded workers by respective States, apart from increasing COVID-19 testing capacity.
During the meeting, PM Modi said that the impact of coronavirus will remain visible in the coming months. He highlighted the importance for states to enforce guidelines strictly in the hotspots i.e. the red zone areas. He stated that the efforts of the states should be directed towards converting the red zones into orange and thereafter to green zones.
Prime Minister also urged Chief Ministers to factor in the changes in weather – advent of summer and monsoon – and the illnesses that can potentially come in this season, while strategizing ahead.
