Second case surfaces in Hry, Gurugram man tests positive

With one more coronavirus case surfacing in Gurugram, the number of Covid-19 patients rose to two in Haryana on Wednesday.

According to official information, a 44-year male resident of sector 50, Gurugram, who returned from London on March 7, has tested positive for coronavirus.

The patient has been undergoing treatment at the Safdarjung hospital, Delhi, since March 9. A National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) team has also collected eight samples from his family.

According to the health department, his wife is a suspected case as she has also been confirmed positive by NCDC, though the final report from National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, is awaited.

Their contacts — two children, three maids, one cook, and one driver — are under home quarantine to prevent contamination.

The state’s first coronavirus case had come to light on Monday when a 29-year-old woman, a resident of Gurugram, who had returned from Malaysia and Indonesia a few days ago, was tested positive for Covid-19.

DECONGESTION OF HOSPITALS

In view of the virus outbreak, the state government is also contemplating steps to further check crowding at all possible places. To begin with, the government would order decongesting of hospitals in a day or two by deferring surgeries which could be postponed.

Besides, it has also been decided to treat all chronic patients on monthly basis instead of fortnightly and they would be given medicines accordingly.

The government, which has already prohibited all religious, political, cultural and social gatherings above 200 persons, is also likely to order limiting of gatherings of up to 50 people only.

22 RESULTS AWAITED

Meanwhile, according to official bulletin of the health department, as many as 3,632 persons had been put under surveillance in Haryana so far. Of them, 3,589 were kept at home. Of the 43 people hospitalised, 31 had been discharged and 12 were still in hospitals.

The total samples sent to NIV, Pune, were 91, of which 68 had been found to be negative and 22 results were awaited.

EXAMS PUT OFF TILL MARCH 31

Meanwhile, the state government has ordered postponing all examinations of Classes 1 to 8 till March 31. The exams of some of these classes had begun on Tuesday (March 17) and of the remaining classes were scheduled to start from Thursday (March 19).

State health minister Anil Vij announced on Wednesday to put off indefinitely ‘janata darbar’ at his residence in Ambala, which was held every Saturday and Sunday.