A notice pasted on a barricade put up at the entrance of a tiny village in Tripura declares that no one would be allowed to enter without washing his/her hands with soap and water.

A bucket of water, a mug and a bar of soap have been kept in front of the barricade, which will be lifted only after the person seeking to enter the village thoroughly cleans his/her hands.

The rule applies to outsiders as well as villagers.

“We have named it Lockdown Barricade,” said Samir Kalai, an elderly villager of Bairagi Para, showing the bamboo barricade to reporters.

“This is the way we are trying to contain the novel coronavirus outbreak.” Bairagi Para in Mohanpur subdivision of West Tripura district is about 60km from Agartala and is inhabited by around 1,000 tribals.

“We are aware of the danger of coronavirus. So, a few days back, we convened a meeting of the elders of the village and decided that we must erect a barricade at the entry point. We also decided to keep a bucket of water, a mug and soap for washing hands. Without washing hands, nobody is allowed to enter,” Kalai said.

These days, people also need permission from elders to go out of the village, he said.

Tripura had declared a shutdown on March 23, a day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the 21-day lockdown in the entire country.

“We generally do not allow outsiders. They need to obtain permission from village heads to enter Bairagi Para,” Kalai said.

The initiative was appreciated by district magistrate Sandeep Namdeo Mahatme.

“The level of awareness is generally high in Tripura. People here know why they need to maintain social distancing and wash their hands. This initiative is appreciable,” he said.

Tripura nodal officer for Covid-19, Dr Deep Debbarma, said over 948 persons with recent travel history or preliminary symptoms of the disease were under home quarantine but no one had tested positive yet.