Tribune News Service

Amritsar, March 16

Demanding their release, patients, who have been kept under observation at the quarantine centre, and family members said basic amenities and food provided to them were of poor quality.

The patients demanded that they should be quarantined at their homes as they were feeling harassed. Lucky, who had returned from Spain a month ago, said, “My brother had arrived from Spain in an early morning flight on Monday. He is scheduled to get married on April 2. Now if he is not released from the quarantine centre till March 31, how will manage he manage things in the remaining two days?” Lucky said the hygiene level at the quarantine centre was not up to the mark.

An elderly woman, who had been at the quarantine center, said, “Our families are worried and visit us daily to enquire our well being.” She complained that there were not proper arrangements at the center for the quarantined facility.

Surprisingly, quarantined persons managed to come to the entrance gate of the centre and interact with the media and their relatives. Sensing the alarming situation, Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Sandeep Rishi and other officials rushed to the place. The ADC managed to pacify the quarantined persons and their families. Rishi said the administration was following the guidelines issued by the government in view of the coronavirus threat.

He said the quarantined persons, doctors and others who were attending them were being served same quality of food. Later, the Health Department circulated pictures of washrooms and other facilities at the centre to counter the allegation of poor hygienic. At present, the centre houses 13 persons, who had arrived from various countries.