China to reopen borders, scrap quarantine for international travellers from Jan 8
Beijing (PTI): Days after it faced nationwide anti-government protests against its stringent zero-Covid policy, China in a major shift of its coronavirus response policies has announced that it will scrap quarantine for international travellers from January 8 as it reopens its borders and comes out of international isolation after nearly three years.
The National Health Commission (NHC) on Monday announced that COVID-19 management will be downgraded from Class A to B from next month, in the same category as less-severe diseases, such as Dengue fever.
China will cancel inbound quarantine for international arrivals starting from January 8, 2023, it said.
Previously passengers coming from abroad had to mandatorily stay in over two weeks of quarantine in government accommodations, which was gradually reduced to five days with three days' of observation.
These announcements come at a time when the country is grappling with a sudden spurt in coronavirus infections fuelled by the Omicron variant after the Xi Jinping regime relaxed its stringent zero-Covid policy earlier this month following a wave of anti-government protests.
Officials argue that the Omicron variant was not as lethal as the Delta strain, which caused massive casualties all over the world.
COVID-19 has been managed as a top category 'A' infectious disease since 2020, putting it at par with bubonic plague and cholera, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.
Under Chinese laws, authorities must impose the toughest restrictions such as quarantine and isolation of the infected and their close contacts, and lockdowns to contain those diseases.
At the border, the infected must be isolated and those who might be infected quarantined, depending on the incubation period.
The NHC also stopped announcing daily Covid cases from Sunday.
The novel coronavirus first emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019 before it turned into a pandemic.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Chhattisgarh journalist murder: Main accused Suresh Chandrakar nabbed from Hyderabad
Bijapur (PTI): Suresh Chandrakar, the prime accused in the murder of a journalist in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district, has been arrested from Hyderabad by a Special Investigation Team (SIT), police said on Monday.
The accused, a contractor by profession, was absconding since the murder of journalist Mukesh Chandrakar came to light on January 3, they said.
The SIT, constituted to conduct the probe into the murder case, rounded up Suresh Chandrakar from Hyderabad late Sunday night, Inspector General of Police (Bastar Range) Sundarraj P told PTI.
The accused was brought to Bijapur on Monday morning and his interrogation was underway, the official said.
Suresh Chandrakar's brothers Ritesh Chandrakar and Dinesh Chandrakar and supervisor Mahendra Ramteke have already been arrested in the case, he said.
Mukesh Chandrakar (33), a freelance journalist, went missing on January 1. His body was found on January 3 in a septic tank on a property owned by Suresh Chandrakar at Chattanpara Basti in Bijapur town, police earlier said.
The deceased worked as a freelance journalist for the NDTV news channel and also ran a YouTube channel, 'Bastar Junction', which has some 1.59 lakh subscribers.
A news report highlighting alleged corruption in a road construction work in Bijapur, that was shown on NDTV on December 25, is being discussed as the motive behind Mukesh Chandrakar's murder.
The said construction work was linked to contractor Suresh Chandrakar.
Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma had claimed that Suresh Chandrakar was a Congress leader. The opposition party, however, claimed the accused joined the ruling BJP recently.
Authorities have initiated action against the accused's illegal properties and encroachments. A construction yard built by Suresh Chandrakar after usurping forest land along the Bijapur-Gangaloor Road has been razed, local officials had said.
Police have also started the process to freeze the bank accounts of Suresh Chandrakar and other accused. So far, three accounts of Suresh Chandrakar have been put on hold.
Mukesh Chandrakar had played a crucial role in the release of CoBRA commando Rakeshwar Singh Manhas from Maoist captivity in April 2021 following the Takalguda Naxal ambush in Bijapur in which 22 security personnel were martyred.
The Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA) is a specialised jungle warfare unit of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).
Members of the Mahar community on Sunday took out a candle march here to condemn the journalist's murder and demanded capital punishment for the accused.
On Saturday, journalists held a protest at the Raipur Press Club, demanding strict action against the accused.
