Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren has quarantined himself at his Ranchi residence after a cabinet minister whom he had met recently tested positive for Covid-19, an official statement said on Wednesday.

The chief minister had recently come in contact with drinking and sanitation minister Mithilesh Thakur who has tested positive for Covid-19. Soren has also urged staff members of the chief minister's office to go into home quarantine, it said.

Soren has wished a speedy recovery of Thakur and another Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) MLA Mathura Mahato, who tested positive for the disease on Tuesday, the statement said.

The chief minister's samples are expected to be tested during the day, officials said.

Both Thakur and Mahato have been admitted to the Covid-19 ward of the state-run Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Ranchi and their contacts are being traced, they said.

Thakur is the first minister in Soren's cabinet to have tested positive for Covid-19.

Jharkhand has reported 3,018 Covid-19 cases till Tuesday night, of which, 892 are active and 22 patients have died.