Government offices in Assam reopen after 28 days, attendance limited

Prabin Kalita | TNN | Apr 22, 2020, 09:40 IST

Deserted look of Ganeshguri flyover

GUWAHATI: After 28 days of lockdown imposed to check the spread of Covid-19, the offices of the Assam government finally reopened on Tuesday.
Employees were seen wearing face masks, walking in queues maintaining safe distance and washing their hands with soaps and sanitizers before entering their respective workplaces in the morning. Each one of them had to wear their identity cards.
But turnout in all the offices, including the state secretariat, was small following the 33% attendance norm for Grade 3 and 4 employees.
Commissioner and secretary of the secretariat administration department, M Angamuthu, in an order issued on Tuesday stated that the attendance of staff of all categories in the offices of ministers, advisors, commissioners and secretaries will also be limited up to 33% and on a rooster basis. The order further said those who are stranded in another district since the lockdown started may not be asked to attend office till May 3.
Chief adviser of Sadou Asom Karmachari Parishad Basab Kalita said, “Only those working in Guwahati had the bus services and even in the city, some had to walk two to three kilometers to reach the bus stop. We have requested the government to allow the employees to use their private vehicles. Let the employee using his own vehicle be allowed to commute for coming to office and only on the days allotted to him.”
The Covid-19 lockdown guidelines do not allow use of private vehicles. Chief secretary Sanjay Kumar Krishna on Monday said all government offices and PSUs will have to provide transportation and no private vehicle would be allowed.
State transport minister Chandra Mohan Patowary directed that the transport department, in accordance with the orders of the ministry of road, transport and highways, to treat the validity of fitness, permit (all types), driving license, registration or any other documents whose extension of validity could not or not likely to be processed due to the Covid-19 national lockdown, and which have expired since February 1, 2020 or would expire by June 30, 2020 to be valid till June 30, 2020.