The number of confirmed positive coronavirus (Covid-19) cases in India has climbed to 28. This includes one Delhi patient who passed on the virus to six of his relatives in Agra; one patient in Telangana; and one Italian tourist visiting Jaipur who passed on the infection to his wife and 14 compatriots as well as their Indian driver.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan confirmed this on Wednesday at a press conference in New Delhi.
The three patients from Kerala, who tested positive, have recovered fully.
Sources in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said that all patients are stable and are being monitored. The Delhi patient is in isolation at Safdarjung Hospital. The Italians, who had been quarantined at an Indo-Tibetan Police Force facility in West Delhi, are also being shifted to Safdarjung Hospital.
Doctors in the hospital said that two wards of respiratory medicine were being cleared to create the isolation facility and currently there are close to 25 patients in isolation at the hospital.
“Every suspect will be isolated and every contact quarantined as of today,” said a senior Health Ministry official.
Health Ministry officials said that the Italian tourists had visited six districts in Rajasthan and then toured parts of Uttar Pradesh before reaching Delhi. Contact tracing of every one they had came in touch with is on.
Harsh Vardhan also said that four scientists from the Indian Council of Medical Research are being sent to Iran to help set up a medical laboratory.
“We are also in talks with the Iranian government to help test Indians for Covid-19 before any evacuation is attempted,” he said.
Cluster-based approach
The Minister also discussed the cluster-based approach for tracing, and said that all houses within a 3-km radius of all positive cases are being checked for symptoms coronavirus symptoms like cough, cold, fever and shortness of breath.