Nine Naga employees quarantined based on appearance
Morung Express News
Dimapur | March 21
Ignorance of India’s demography by government officials in Gujarat has landed a group of Naga employees in a quarantine facility in the city of Ahmedabad. With COVID-19 cases and anxiety mounting in equal measure, the working women were reportedly mistaken to be of Chinese origin and placed under observation on March 21.
According to a video circulated on social media, 9 Naga employees - 6 women and 3 men - working at a company in Ahmedabad were picked up and placed in a COVID-19 observation facility in the city.
One of the employees, who made the video clipping, said that they were picked up from their office without any prior intimation. They were then tested for COVID-19 but the result returned negative.
Despite the negative test result, the unnamed woman said that they were still confined in the facility with the medical personnel telling them that the “treatment” will continue the next day as well.
With no flights or trains to return home, the woman said that as Nagas with Mongoloid features, it has become increasingly difficult to live in the city in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are Indian citizens but the locals here have not been able to differentiate (between foreign nationals and people from the north-east region of the country).It’s getting difficult to live here. Discrimination by the locals here based on our looks has become a greater trouble than the corona virus,” the woman said in the video.
Meanwhile, official sources said that the Nagaland government has taken up the matter with the authorities in Gujarat. According to one official, the group were picked up after a complaint from the locals.
“But I think the matter will be resolved soon. The local (Gujarat government) officials have realized they are from Nagaland and not foreign nationals from a COVID-19 affected country,” said the official.
Meanwhile, the Special Police Unit for North-East Region, New Delhi, brought to light occurrences where people hailing from the North-east states residing in Delhi were being taunted as ‘Coronavirus.’ It sent out a message to all DCSPs/District/Units/Battalions in New Delhi directing them to sensitize all subordinate staff working under them. Staff of all police stations may also be directed to keep proper surveillance in their areas and take necessary action against those persons as per law, the notification read.
Update: An earlier version of this article initially reported that the group of Naga employees in the quarantine facility were all working women. It is clarified that the group consisted of 3 men and 6 women and not as initially reported. The article has been subsequently updated to reflect correct information.
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