Assam: ULFA (I) to Observe 1-Minute Silence for COVID-19 Victims on its Foundation Day

Guwahati, April 5, 2020:

Instead of celebrating it's Foundation Day on April 7 as usual, the non-talks faction of Assam, the United Liberation Front of Axom (ULFA) on the occasion will pay its tribute to the victims of the pandemic coronavirus. The insurgent group has appealed the people of the State to observe a 1-minute silence for the people who have so far lost their battle with the deadly virus.

Further, via a video, the separatists have also urged the people not to celebrate the Bohag Bihu and the Assamese New Year, in light of the virus that has killed tens of thousands worldwide.

This declaration has been made against the backdrop of the peace talks between the ULFA and the Centre. Bihu has been earmarked as a time for reaching an amicable solution by the Assam administration, with several called being issued to Commander Paresh Baruah to join the talks.

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At the same time, the cases of coronavirus continue to surge across the State, with several detections made over the last few days.

A person from Cachar in Assam, who attended the religious congregation at Delhi's Nizamuddin Markaz, tested positive yesterday as well, taking the number of total infected persons to 26.

Assam Health & Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma took to his Twitter handle to share the information late on Saturday night. "Alert ~ one more #Covid_19 positive case from Cachar District has been confirmed, taking the total number in Assam to 26. This patient is also related to #NizamuddinMarkaz event in Delhi. Update at 11.15pm / April 4," Sarma tweeted.

COVID-19 cases continue to rise in Assam after the Nizamuddin Markaz was declared as the "hotspot" in India. Except one COVID-19 patient in Assam, all the 25 cases are linked to this hotspot. It took just a few days for the number to increase from zero to 26 in the northeastern state.

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The Health Minister on Saturday, while addressing a press conference said, “Yesterday, there were no cases, but several cases were detected in the evening, and in total, 5 more cases have been detected. Of the 5 new cases, 4 have connections to the Nizamuddin Dargah episode.”

Another case was detected Bamunigaon Boko Chaygaon Model Hospital. Mofizuddin 34, who was in quarantine. He was also a Nizamuddin Markaz Tabligh attendee. Locals intimated the Government about the case and later was shifted to the Mahendra Mohan Chandra Hospital (MMCH) in Guwahati for treatment, Sarma said.

In Marigaon, Jamia Khatun who was quarantined at Sarusajai after her husband tested positive earlier, also tested positive later and is being treated in Sonapur now. Ashraf Ali from South Salmara got tested voluntarily after attending the Jamaat meet and was shifted to the MMCH after his result showed positive.

ALSO READ: Assam: One More COVID-19 Positive Case Reported in Cachar, Total Number Swells to 26

Babul Ali from North Lakhimpur became the first patient from Assam to test COVID-19 positive at the Dibrugarh ICMR facility. “Came to know that Babul Ali had participated in the Jamaat, locals had informed us via the 104 helpline,” Sarma informed. Subsequently, he has been kept in an isolation bed of the Lakhimpur Civil Hospital. Earlier, a man from Arunachal Pradesh’s Tezu had tested positive for the contagion at the facility.

1,529 samples have been tested for the coronavirus as of Saturday. Out of these, 1,308 samples have been declared as negative. 25 are positive, and 196 results awaited.

It may be mentioned here that the Delhi-based headquarter of Tablighi Jamaat, an evangelical Muslim sect, in Delhi’s Nizamuddin area emerged as the new hotspot for coronavirus infection, after hundreds of cases surfaced, thereby posing as a threat across the country.

Meanwhile, according to the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, India has a total of 2784 active cases of COVID-19. 212 people have been either discharged or have recovered from the illness and so far 75 people have died of the virus.

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