MANDALAY-Government returned over 200 monks back from India via two chartered planes in the evening of April 22nd and have already been placed under Quarantine for 21 days at the Sitagu International Buddhist Academy in Sagaing Region.

Those monks, including nuns and laypersons, were stuck due to COVID-19 in India.

Since the beginning of April 23rd, the Ministry of Health and Sports have been testing swabs from the returnees to check whether they have COVID-19 or not.

“As India faces the pandemic COVID-19 outbreak, schools closed and Myanmar monks have difficulties in accommodation problems. So, the Sitagu Sayadaw planned to take them back from India. Initially, the plan was to bring back all monks studying in India and Sri Lanka collectively, there are over 300 monks in India. So we first returned home the monks back from India,” said Dr Thu Nan Ra from Sitagu International Buddhist Academy.

Plans are underway to donate the robes and US$250each for monks after completing the Quarantine period.