7 youths quarantined on mango tree after returning from Chennai

March 29:In a rarest of rare incident, seven youths at Bhangdi village in West Bengal’s Purulia district are living on the branches of a mango tree outside their village since the last five days. These seven youths, all of them migrant workers, have been living on the tree ever since they returned from Chennai at a time when COVID-19 infections in the country are on the rise. After doctors asked them to stay under home quarantine, villagers made arrangements on the mango tree homes were too crowded for safe quarantine.

Bamboo sticks have been used to tie wooden cots to the branches, about 8-10 feet from the ground. Each cot is covered by a plastic sheet and a mosquito net. The tree also has lights and plug points where the youths can charge their phones. They have been given masks too. The youths climb down only to relieve themselves, wash their clothes and when food is served thrice a day.

The villagers said that as soon as they had learnt that the seven, working as construction labourers in Chennai, would be returning on March 22, they had begun worrying how to make their quarantine a success. It was then that this idea of tree-top quarantine centre struck them. Most of them have one or two rooms in their mud houses where five to six family members share space, so it’s not possible to keep the home returned youths isolated. Family members of the seven youth have supported the villagers. The youths have been given separate utensils. Their family members bring food to them three times a day.