North East Rising

Nagaland, September 20: An outbreak of scrub typhus, a bacterial disease, has claimed the lives of five people in Nagaland’s Noklak district bordering Myanmar, officials said.

More than 600 others tested positive for the disease but recovered after treatment. Scrub typhus, also known as bush typhus, spreads to people through bites of larval mites. The symptoms include fever, headache and body ache

The district’s Sub-Divisional Officer (Civil), C. Phuniang, said Noklak has had to grapple with the disease in the past too, although there had been no scientific study on the whys. “People recover if treated in time. Unfortunately, five people died probably because they were ignorant about the disease,” he stated.

Doctors and other healthcare workers in the district have been trying to create awareness on a large scale to contain the spread of the disease. “Doctors have advised people to visit a hospital in case they have the symptoms. The hospitals are well-equipped with testing kits,” Mr Phuniang said.

Apart from the novel coronavirus, which has killed 911 people in the region, vector-borne diseases such as malaria and Japanese encephalitis have accounted for 53 lives in Assam so far.

Animals have also fallen victim to “exotic” diseases. While more than 17,000 pigs have died in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Meghalaya due to the African swine fever, milk yield has suffered after the viral lumpy skin disease in cattle in Assam.

Pest attacks have hit farmers too. Five types of beetles have damaged standing crops on large swathes across the Siang River belt in Arunachal Pradesh. Fall armyworms, inchworms and a strange species of grasshoppers affected paddy and maize crops in other parts of the Northeast.

Meghalaya, September 19: The schools in Meghalaya will partially reopen from September 21 after being closed since March 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The state education minister Lahkmen Rymbui said that schools will open for students of class 9 to 12. No regular classes or classroom sessions will be held but students can get their doubts cleared by the teachers. He also said that the guidelines for reopening of schools have been issues on Thursday.

Rambus said that the state government has rationalized the school curriculum for this academic year and the year following this. As per the government guidelines, regular classroom activities in schools, colleges and other educational institutions will remain closed till September 30.

The suggestions from the Ministry of Home Affairs, which emphasised on easing restrictions in areas outside containment areas across the country have also been taken into consideration.

Students who are willing to attend the teacher-student counselling would have to get written consent from their parents or guardians before visiting the educational institutions.  Schools have been asked to develop individual micro-planning relating to flexibility in school timings, timings of student’s visit and uniform.

The schools in Meghalaya have been directed to continue teaching in the online mode to the students to maintain the Continuous Learning Plan(CLP) and to allow a 50 per cent attendance to teaching and non-teaching staff.

Nagaland, September 19: The Nagaland Government has released a standard operating procedure (SOP) for a partial reopening of schools for class 9 to 12 on a voluntary basis. Schools in the state have remained shut since March 2020 due to COVID-19 outbreak.

In continuation of this Office Order of even number dated 31st of August 2020, and consequent to issue of SOPs dated 8th September 2020 by MoHFW, Go! for a partial reopening of schools in Nagaland for students of Classes 9 to 12 on a voluntary basis for taking guidance from their teachers in the context of COVID-19, and for the skill or entrepreneurship training institutions/centres and the preventive measures required to be taken for containing the spread of COVD-19 in these institutions/centres; the following activities in schools, colleges, educational, coaching and training institutions/centres will be permitted with effect from 21st September 2020 in the State, subject to strict adherence to the Standard Operating Procedures annexed to this Order:

A) Up to 50% of teaching and non-teaching staff may be permitted to be called to the schools at a time for online teaching/ tele-counselling and related work, in areas outside the Containment Zones only, subject to strict adherence to the SOP enclosed as Annexure-A.

B) Students of classes 9 to 12 may be permitted to visit their schools, in areas outside the Containment Zones only, on a voluntary basis, for taking guidance from their teachers subject to the written consent of their parents/ guardians, and strict adherence to all the provisions in the SOP enclosed as Annexure-A.

C) Skill or Entrepreneurship training will be permitted in National Skill Training Institutes, Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs), Short term training centres registered with National Skill Development Corporation or State Skill Development Missions or other Ministries of Government of India subject to strict adherence to the SOP enclosed as Annexure-B.

National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development (NIESBUD), Indian Institute of Entrepreneurship (11E) and their training providers will also be permitted as per the aforesaid enclosed SOP.

Aizawl, September 19: The Mizoram government on Thursday has extended partial lockdown in Aizawl Municipal Corporation (AMC) for another three days till Sunday to facilitate tracing of people, who came in contact with COVID 19 positive patients, health minister Dr R. Lalthanganliana said.

The decision was made at the meeting of important officials, leaders of churches and Central Young Mizo Association (CYMA), he sud. “There are many backlogs as far as to contact tracing in Aizawl city concerned. So, in order to facilitate and expedite the process of contact tracing and collection of samples from people, who came in contact with positive patients, the partial lockdown in AMC area extended till Sunday” he said.

All the backlog samples, which have been already collected, would also be tested during the extended lockdown. According to the health minister, sample testing for Covid-19 has begun at Zoram Medical College (ZMC) with the help of RT-PCR machines since April 7.

The state government started Covid-19 testing at Lunglei civil hospital in the southern pan of the tate using TrueNat machine from June 12. He added that TrueNat machines are being installed in 10 districts barring Aizawl.

Meanwhile, an official of the state health department said that a total of 15,812 samples were collected in AMC area during the partial lockdown which began on September 11.

Of the 13812 samples, 5.751 have been tested and results declared, he said. So far, 125 people have been diagnosed with Covid-19 in AMC area during a weeklong partial lockdown by Mizoram Government, he added.