As many as 11 people recovered from Covid-19 in Dhanbad on Saturday, the weekend bringing good tidings to the coal capital that saw a spurt in patients over the last 10 days, logging 50 active cases because of which the Jamadoba Colliery of Tata Steel and the Directorate General of Mines Safety (DGMS) had to be closed.

All the 11 patients, seven of them women, were released on Saturday from the Covid-19 Hospital of Dhanbad bringing down the number of active cases in the district to 39.Dhanbad deputy commissioner Amit Kumar said, "Test reports of 11 people who were discharged today (Saturday) were found negative. They have been asked to stay quarantined at home for 14 days.”

Nodal officer of the hospital Dr Alok Vishwakarma, who was present while the patients were being released, advised them to wear masks, follow all rules of home quarantine and social distancing and take nutritious food.

Dhanbad district saw a sudden rise in the number of Covid cases after a primary health centre in-charge in Nirsa, seven of his family members and five others who had come in contact with them tested positive on June 23.

An officer of the Jamadoba Colliery admitted to Tata Main Hospital also tested positive on June 25 leading to the temporary closure of the colliery from the next day.

This apart, 34 others of Jamadoba, including some employees of Tata Steel’s Jharia division and their family members, subsequently tested Covid positive after rigorous contact tracing.

Then, two DGMS officers of the rank of deputy director, who had visited the colliery for inspection, also tested positive along with the mother of one of them.

The DGMS office had to be closed for two days to undertake sanitisation and disinfection.Seeing the alarming rise in the number of Covid cases, Dhanbad deputy commissioner Amit Kumar issued a series of instructions on June 28 to prevent the further spread of infection.

He asked health officials to step up monitoring and ensure a strict ban on spitting in public places, besides restricting the consumption of liquor, paan, gutka and other tobacco products in public places.He also restricted movement of people between 9pm and 5am and issued orders capping attendance at marriage functions and social gatherings at 50 people, and at funerals at 20 people.He issued a separate set of guidelines for shops.

“Mandatory social distancing between the shop owner and customers, and also between customers, will have to be maintained. Shops have to be sanitised regularly and shopkeepers will have to wear gloves,” Kumar said.