Several Indians are on board the cruise ship Diamond Princess which has been quarantined off Japan due to the coronavirus outbreak, said the government on Friday. External affairs minister S Jaishankar, however, said that none of the Indians on board have tested positive for the virus.
In a tweet, Jaishankar said, “Many Indian crew & some Indian passengers are onboard the cruise ship #DiamondPrincess quarantined off Japan due to #Coronavirus. None have tested positive, as per the latest information provided by our Embassy @IndianEmbTokyo. We are closely following the developments.”
Many Indian crew & some Indian passengers are onboard the cruise ship #DiamondPrincess quarantined off Japan due to #Coronavirus. None have tested positive, as per the latest information provided by our Embassy @IndianEmbTokyo. We are closely following the developments.
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) February 7, 2020
Japan’s Health Ministry had earlier confirmed that the number of people who tested positive for the novel coronavirus on board the Diamond Princess ship off the coast of Yokohama reached 61. The 61 confirmed patients are from Japan (28); the US (11); Australia and Canada (seven); China (three); and the UK, New Zealand, Taiwan, Philippines, Argentina (one), according to the authorities.
Earlier in the day, the external affairs minister had informed the Rajya Sabha that an estimated 80 Indian students are still living in the coronavirus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan, adding that 70 of them chose to stay behind at the time of the evacuation operation.
The Diamond Princess, owned by Miami-based Carnival Corp, was placed on a two-week quarantine on arriving at Yokohama on Monday after a man who disembarked in Hong Kong was diagnosed with the virus.
About 3,700 people are aboard the Diamond Princess, which usually has a crew of 1,100 and a passenger capacity of 2,670.
The new coronavirus that emerged in a Chinese market at the end of last year has killed more than 630 people and spread around the world. The latest figures from China show there are over 30,000 people infected in the country.
