Chief Minister Shri Prem Singh Tamang (Golay) chaired a high-level meeting of the State Task Force for Covid-19 prevention here at Samman Bhawan today. The meeting was convened to take stock of the preparedness of the State, and to come up with immediate measures to provide relief to the people in the wake of the 21-day lock down throughout the country to contain Covid-19 pandemic.

After thorough deliberation, Chief Minister Shri P.S Tamang announced several economic package to provide immediate relief to the economically weaker section of the Sikkimese population.

Click on Know More to learn about the packages.

HCM gave clear instructions to the medical staff and the police personnel about strict monitoring of the movement of the people. The hard work, dedication and the seriousness in which the frontline workers are performing their duties during this adverse situation are commendable.  HCM also visited the quarantine center of Rangpo and inspected it. HCM expressed heartfelt gratitude towards the frontline workers and also assured that they will not face any financial crunch while performing their duty as the government will be providing and extending all the possible help to them. HCM gave clear instructions to SP East and SDM Rangpo that they should not allow anyone to leave and enter Sikkim during this lockdown and follow the safety protocol at all times. HCM re-iterated that the general public should take this lockdown seriously and follow social distancing and self-isolation at all times. The Government shall leave no stone unturned or compromise with the safety of our people.

HCM chairs a meeting with the Block Development Officers through Video Conferencing to take stock of the COVID-19 Preparedness in the various blocks of Sikkim

A video conference meeting was chaired by the Hon'ble Chief Minister with the Chief Medical Officers(CMOs) and District Medical Superintendent(DMS) of all districts. During the conference, HCM took stock of Health care facility status and preparedness about COVID-19 in all districts from District Hospitals to the level of PHSC. HCM enquired about the basic facilities including medical supplies, Personal Protective Equipments(PPE) and manpower status of various Primary Health Centres(PHCs), PHSCs, CHCs and District Hospitals. The medical teams communicated and listed out the difficulties faced by their respective areas. HCM immediately asked and instructed the Principal Secretary(Health) to look into the matter and resolve it. HCM also asked the Chief Medical Officers and District Medical Superintendents to maintain sufficient stock of medicines and directed them that common people should not face difficulties in obtaining necessary health care facilities and services. 

Hon'ble Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha) Shri. Indra Hang Subba has contributed Rs. 1 crore from MPLADS fund to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund towards the fight against COVID-19.

HCM called on the Hon'ble Governor, Shri Ganga Prasad at Raj Bhawan and apprised him regarding the preparedness and actions taken to address the challenges being faced due to the global crisis of COVID-19. HCM also informed him about the kind gesture of people and organizations who have contributed generously to the Chief Minister's Disaster Relief Fund, for which a web portal has also been created:- cmdrf.sikkim.gov.in
HCM further informed that various NGOs, Civil Society Organizations, Associations, etc. have also come forward in contributing relief materials for the cause. 

HCM attended the Video Conference called on by the Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji with regard to the COVID-19 outbreak. The Chief Ministers from all the states of India were also part of the conference.

The Hon'ble Prime Minister gave strict guidelines to the head of all the states to tackle the recent outbreak of the disease in the country. He advised all the Chief Ministers to observe lockdown in their respective states and ensure that people are following it. Further, he also directed the head of the States to look after the facilities and make sure there is no shortage of essential commodities.

The Hon'ble Chief Minister chaired a high-level meeting  to take stock of the relief materials being distributed by the concerned authorities and also check on the law and order situation in the state. During the meeting, he gave clear instructions to the concerned departments for delivering the relief materials to the beneficiaries, instructing them to make sure that commodities like rice reach them within the next 48 hours. He requested the MLA's to make sure that there is a swift transfer of relief materials from the godowns to the fair price shops and ordered for the immediate disbursement of relief materials without fail. The Hon’ble Chief Minister advised the concerned authorities to distribute the relief materials through the tokens issued by the District Collectors and not directly through trucks to avoid overcrowding as this may defeat the purpose of social distancing.

During the meeting, stock of the current situation of COVID-19 in the state, law and order and actions were taken. Deliberations on various scenarios that can transpire post lockdown were also given. The Heads of the departments are frequently conducting meetings regarding COVID-19 along with officials who have been working tirelessly and visiting various areas in the state.
As informed by Minister Health and Health department, Rapid Testing Kit shall be acquired, which is one of the quickest ways to check for COVID-19 infection. We are working on establishing a testing lab in the state at the earliest. Various topics about students and people stranded outside the state wishing to come back, distribution of relief materials and other issues concerning different areas of the state were discussed at large.  Further,  all the generous contributions made towards the Chief Minister's Relief Fund were acknowledged. HCM appeal to everyone to donate through the web portal cmdrf.sikkim.gov.in.

The Hon'ble Chief Minister participated in the video conference with the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri. Narendra Modi where he was accompanied by Home Minister Shri. Amit Shah, Defence Minister Shri. Rajnath Singh, Health Minister Dr. Harshvardhan and Chief Ministers of all the states. During the video conference it was agreed that all the states will follow the guidelines and decisions of the central government on COVID-19 lockdown and post lockdown situations. Till date 950 students of Sikkim stranded outside has been provided with financial assistance of Rs. 5000 per students. Similarly, patients who are obtaining medical treatment outside Sikkim are also provided with financial assistance by the government.  HCM acknowledges the efforts of Transport Department providing all goods including fuel required for the security forces in the international border.The Government will be holding a cabinet on Tuesday, 14th April 2020 for taking further decision on the challenges being faced because of the COVID 19.

The Hon'ble Chief Minister Shri Prem Singh Tamang (Golay) convened a press conference today to share the decisions taken in the Cabinet Meeting.

Under the directions of the Hon'ble Chief Minister, the Government of Sikkim is providing a financial assistant of Rs. 30, 000/-to the patients stranded outside the state of Sikkim due to the lockdown.

The Government of Sikkim under the directions of the Hon'ble Chief Minister has issued an Office Memorandum for provding assistance to the SIkkimese people stranded outside the state of Sikkim.

The Government of Sikkim under the directions of the Hon'ble Chief Minister is providing a financial assistance of Rs. 5, 000/- per students stranded outside the state of Sikkim.

Message of gratitude from the students stranded outside the state

Hon'ble Chief Minister chaired an emergency meeting to take stock of the situation in the wake of rise in the cases of Covid-19 in other parts of the country, and to assess the level of preparedness and the reports with regard to the compliance of lockdown guidelines in the State after the recent relaxations implemented from 20th April.