China border city turns to cash incentive in hunt for Covid-19 source

Officials in Heihe are offering a US$15,500 reward as part of a ‘people’s war’ of prevention and control against latest outbreak

The Delta-driven surge has spread to 20 provinces and regions and put millions of people into lockdown

Reading Time:2 minutes

China reported 43 local cases of Covid-19 on Tuesday in a Delta-driven surge that has spread to 20 provinces and regions. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 2:52pm, 9 Nov 2021Updated: 4:42pm, 9 Nov 2021

Local authorities in a northern Chinese city on the border with Russia are offering a cash reward to anyone who can help trace the source of its Covid-19 outbreak.

Officials in Heihe, Heilongjiang province, said a 100,000 yuan (US$15,500) reward was available as part of a “people’s war” to stamp out one of the country’s largest resurgences of the virus in months.

China reported 43 local cases on Tuesday in a Delta-driven surge that has fanned out to 20 provinces and regions, keeping new case numbers in the double-digits over the past three weeks.

As more countries lift Covid-19 measures, Beijing officials have stuck stubbornly to a zero-Covid strategy that has maintained low infection numbers due to strict border closures, targeted lockdowns and long quarantines.

“In order to uncover the source of this virus outbreak as soon as possible and find out the chain of transmission, it is necessary to wage a people’s war of epidemic prevention and control,” the Heihe city government said in a notice.

Officials said cases of smuggling, illegal hunting and cross-border fishing should be reported immediately, adding that those who have bought imported goods online ought to “immediately sterilise” them and send them for tests.

Select Voice

Choose your listening speed

Get through articles 2x faster

1.25x

250 WPM

Slow

Average

Fast

00:0000:00

1.25x