Law enforcing agencies in Tripura failed to prevent 30 patients, who fled from a COVID Care Centre (CCC) here late on Wednesday night, from leaving the State.
Their mobile phone locations were detected at different places outside the State, officials said here on Friday.
Around 65 youths who had come from various States to appear for interviews for recruitment in the paramilitary Tripura State Rifles (TSR) underwent COVID-19 test. Forty of them tested positive and were shifted to the CCC at Arundhutinagar.
Thirty inmates subsequently broke a window at the back of the building, scaled the boundary wall and escaped, West Tripura district magistrate Shailesh Yadav told newsmen earlier.
Despite the law enforcing agencies, including the Railway Protection Force (RPF) and the Government Railway Police (GRP), being put on alert, the patients managed to flee the State. Officials said they hail from five States, 14 from Bihar alone. The States were informed of the incident.
A senior police official said a probe was on to check if security lapses were responsible for their escape.
