PUNJAB GOVERNMENT’S BUSES ARRIVING WITH PILGRIMS STRANDED AT NANDED

Bathinda: With the persistent efforts of Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh, the pilgrims stuck at Nanded in Maharashtra are now arriving at Bathinda through a fleet of buses sent by the State Government to bring them back to their homes. 
    These pilgrims started reaching Punjab today 10 am onwards from state border adjoining with Haryana, where they were provided with breakfast and sent to their respective districts after seeking details from them by the state Government officials. 
    Disclosing this here today, the Deputy Commissioner B Srinivasan said that as many as 80 buses of Punjab Roadways, Punbus and PRTC were despatched from Bathinda to Nanded, from where now these buses were arriving back with the pilgrims stranded at Nanded. He said that these pilgrims were provided with breakfast and other basic amenities at Doomwali border, from where they were being further sent to their respective destinations in various districts. He said that administration of their home districts would quarantine them as per the health protocol. He said that the District Administration was being ensured all preventive measures at the time of entry of these buses to state. 
    Thanking Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh for ensuring their return by sending special buses, resident of village Athwal in Gurdaspur district Hari Singh said that he went to Nanded Sahib in the month of March and got stuck there due to lockdown amid COVID-19. He also lauded the arrangements made by the Punjab Government to bring them back in AC buses.
    Meanwhile, SDM Amarinder Singh and Tehsildar Sukhbir Singh Brar, who were present at the entry point, said that the volunteers of Naujwan Welfare Society were helping the district administration in providing food to the pilgrims returning from Nanded. He said that the local pilgrims had been quarantined in the local Meritorious School.
    As many as 64 buses have arrived in Bathinda so far with 2293 passengers including 294 of Amritsar district, 97 of Barnala, 69 of Bathinda, 6 of Faridkot, 13 of Fatehgargh, 30 of Ferozpur, 27 of Fazilka, 382 of Gurdaspur, 85 of Hoshiarpur, 122 of Jalandhar, 42 of Kapurthla, 179 of Ludhiana, 9 of Mansa, 130 of Moga, 57 of Sri Muktsar Sahib, 6 of Pathankot, 68 of Patiala, 31 of Ropar, 11 of Mohali, 200 of Sangrur, 101 of SBS Nagar, 308 of Tantarn and 26 of Chandigargh and others, 
Apart from these, nearly 400 labourers of Bathinda district were brought back by the state Government late last evening and quarantined at Talwandi Sabo. 
    Notably, the Chief Minister had taken up the issue with Centre and his Maharashtra counterpart Udhav Thackeray for safe return of stranded pilgrims at Nanded.