COVID-19 positive cases spiked to 38 in Punjab on Friday and out of these at least 25 cases are directly or indirectly related to the 70-year-old man, who succumbed to coronavirus last week.
The deceased, a resident of Pathlawa village in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district, had arrived from Germany via Italy at Delhi airport on March 7 and proceeded to Punjab on the same day along with two fellow travellers. He was suffering from diabetes and hypertension, and was confirmed positive for COVID-19 on March 18. The deceased and the other two defied the self-quarantine advisory of the government and went ahead with ‘socialising’.
Interactive map of confirmed coronavirus cases in India
The deceased, a Granthi (priest) at a gurdwara in his Pathlawa village, attended ‘Hola Mohalla’ festival in the holy city of Anandpur Sahib between March 8 and 10 and returned to his village. Before being tested positive for the deadly virus, the deceased and his two travel companions reportedly met scores of people and could have widely transmitted the disease.
“Five fresh cases have been reported today [on March 27]. Of the total 38 positive COVID-19 cases, 25 people are family members of the deceased or had come in contact with him. We are making all efforts to trace all those who came in contact with the trio from the time they returned to India. Close to 30 villages have been quarantined in those districts we believe that these people had travelled,” Punjab Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu told The Hindu.
The State Health department said that out of the 5 new cases reported in Punjab on March 27, three patients, who are from Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district are close contacts of a positive case. The other two patients are from Jalandhar and Ludhiana and both are close contacts of a positive case, it added.
Patient cured
Also, the first reported coronavirus patient in Punjab has been cured. The patient, who had returned to Amritsar from Italy, came out to be COVID-19 negative in the latest report after treatment. The male patient was tested positive for the disease earlier this month and was admitted to the Government Medical College and Hospital in Amritsar. “One case admitted in Amritsar has been found negative and is cured,” added the statement.
In Punjab so far, the confirmed COVID-19 cases have been reported from six districts, which include 19 from Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, 6 cases each from Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar and Hoshiarpur, 5 from Jalandhar and one each from Amritsar and Ludhiana.
Police cautioned
Meanwhile, taking suo motu notice of alleged police excesses against women during the curfew, Punjab Women Commission Chairperson Manisha Gulati cautioned the police personnel to be more humane and sensitive in dealing with women. She said the manner in which police manhandled women as being shown in various videos was completely unacceptable.
In the Union Territory of Chandigarh one new case of coronavirus was reported on Monday, taking the total of cases to seven in the city.
Sharing the information on Twitter, UT Adviser Manoj Parida said “Bad news, one new corona positive case in Chandigarh... Dubai returned. Symptoms detection on 15th day. Unusual. Tracing his contacts. All will be quarantined.”
