The Assam Congress on Saturday asked chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal to take all parties into confidence in Dispur’s fight to check Covid-19 pandemic and to convene an all-party meeting on the matter soon.

Rajya Sabha MP and PCC president Ripun Bora, in a letter to Sonowal, said at least 25 people were infected by coronavirus in the state till Saturday evening and the number was increasing daily.

“To contain the outbreak of the disease, a 21-day lockdown was enforced on March 24 midnight. This has hit business and agricultural and may also affect the supply of food grain. To combat the crisis, we have requested the chief minister to take all the political parties into confidence in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic,” Bora said.

He urged Sonowal to call an all-party meeting while maintaining social distancing or through video conferencing. “We all are with the government. The government cannot fight alone. We will fight it collectively. It is not a time for politics,” Bora said.

The Congress leader alleged that relief materials and food grain provided by the government have not been received by most people in the state.

“Relief distribution is a priority. Only 10 per cent people have got the government relief,” he said.

Bora said Assam does not have enough cold storage to store raw vegetables.

“Due to closure of markets during the lockdown, the farmers are going through a difficult time as they have not been able to sell vegetables and food grain. On the one hand, people are finding it hard to purchase vegetables, while on the other the farmers are unable to find buyers. So I urge the government to buy vegetables and other agricultural products directly from the farmers,” Bora said.

Leader of the Opposition Debabrata Saikia, in a video released on Saturday, requested people to maintain social distancing till April 14 and urged all to fight against the coronavirus collectively.

“People who travelled out of Assam last month should inform the government and voluntarily come out for medical observation to contain the outbreak of the disease. People should stay home and obey the guidelines provided by the government,” he said.