East Khasi Hills district, where capital Shillong is located, is under total lockdown. File
With Meghalaya witnessing a nearly five-fold spike in active Covid cases this month, the state government has decided to seek "God's intervention" and appealed to the citizens to participate in a special prayer this Sunday at their homes.
Strict restrictions are in force in the state to control the pandemic situation. East Khasi Hills district, where the capital Shillong is located, is under total lockdown.
The suggestion for the special prayer has come from the state's health minister A L Hek. "As human beings, we will not be able to protect ourselves. We need God's intervention, God's blessings, without him we are nobody. That is why we should have a special prayer," he told reporters in Shillong.
"We have decided that we will have this special prayer this Sunday, May 30, at noon. We request everybody in their homes to pray to the Almighty for protection," Mr Hek said.
The Directorate of Information and Public Relations has been asked to circulate the message among citizens.
Meghalaya today reported 731 new cases and 20 deaths over the past 24 hours. The number of active cases currently stands at 8,025. The state has so far reported 33,835 and 544 deaths due to Covid. Out of these, 445 deaths have taken place in East Khasi Hill district.The daily case count and deaths have spiked exponentially in the second wave of Covid infections in the state. On May 1, Meghalaya had 1,659 active cases. The number has jumped to 8,025 -- nearly a five-fold increase. The number of deaths due to Covid have climbed from 174 on May 1 to 544 now -- a three-fold hike.
According to sources in the state health department, nearly 800 of the 1,100-odd Covid beds in hospitals are currently occupied.
The Meghalaya government has announced a compensation of Rs 50,000 each to the families of people who died of Covid starting April 1 this year.
