Villagers panic as Bangladeshi man swims across river to seek COVID-19 treatment in India

GUWAHATI: Villagers around Indo-Bangla border panicked as a Bangladeshi man swam across a river to seek COVID-19 treatment in India.

The incident took place at Mubarakpur nearly four km away from Karimganj town where the border is unfenced.

“The person had fever, didn’t look too well and was speaking incoherently. He was claiming that he was suffering from Covid-19 and crossed the river to seek treatment in India,” informed Deputy Inspector General JC Nayak, BSF spokesperson based at Silchar.

He said that since the person said he had coronavirus villagers were afraid to approach him but they informed the authorities in time. The man was then carried away to the Bangladeshi side after two boats arrived from there at around 9 am.

The low level of water in Kushiyara river made it possible for the Bangladeshi man to swim across the river.

Meanwhile, two woman from Bangladesh who had travelled to Tripura have tested positive for COVID-19.

Reports claim the women from Dhaka and Brahmanbaria had tested positive for the virus and that they had visited the state recently.

Some 11 close contacts of the women have been identified and full vigil is being kept at the border to prevent infiltration.

Meanwhile, in an exemplary step, the police in North Tripura and the adjoining Karimganj district of Assam have jointly decided to increase round-the-clock vigil along the boundary between the two States to prevent any kind of inter-State movement. The Border Security Force also extended its full cooperation along the international border with Bangladesh to prevent illegal infiltration.

The BSF is also collaborating with the district police to seal the international border with Bangladesh. This portion of the border is considered sensitive as on the other side lies Shyllet district of Bangladesh and a large number of people from the district resides abroad, especially in London, which is one of the global coronavirus hotspot at present.

Also Read: Tripura police filed a case against lockdown violators under NDM Act-2009

Also Watch: Sellers take advantage of helplessness of panic stricken citizens by overpricing commodities