Manipur on Tuesday recorded the first positive novel coronavirus case in the Northeast, prompting the state government to direct its 16 district administrations to impose a curfew to check the spread of Covid-19.
A 23-year-old student from Thangmeiband Lourung Purel in Imphal West, who had returned from London recently, tested positive for the coronavirus.
She is undergoing treatment in the isolation ward at Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal East. Her condition is stated to be stable.
She landed in Delhi on March 19 and reached Imphal from Calcutta via Agartala by an Air Asia flight on March 21. After reaching home, she went into home quarantine. However, as Covid-19 symptoms became visible on Monday, she was taken to JNIMS for testing. Her family members have been shifted to a government quarantine centre.
Director of health services Dr K. Rajo issued a press release on Tuesday confirming the positive case and appealing to anybody who came in contact with her during the return flight to inform the authorities and start self-quarantine immediately until further instructions.
As soon as the report was widely shared on social media, a wave of panic gripped the people.
The district magistrates have promulgated curfew in their respective districts prohibiting any person from moving outside their residences until further orders. The combined impact of the lockdown and curfew led to all streets and highways sporting a desolate look. No vehicle was seen plying except those of essential service providers. All markets and business establishments remained closed.
Health minister L. Jayantakumar said in a video message that the government was taking all possible steps to control the spread of Covid-19. He appealed to the people not to panic and instead cut down on gatherings.
Chief minister N. Biren Singh also appealed to the people in a video message to stay at home at least for five or six days.
He also urged students and others who have returned from other states or abroad to declare their travel history to health officials and get themselves tested voluntarily so that the spread of the pandemic could be contained and save people’s lives.
Tripura contacts: The Tripura health department has identified 11 high-risk contacts who came in contact with the girl on the flight.
The girl had returned to Inpmhal via Maharaja Bir Bikram Airport in Agartala.
An Airports Authority of India official said, “Around 72 passengers landed at Agartala, including one who sat beside her. However, she didn’t disembark in Agartala. She came from Delhi to Calcutta and then to Imphal via Agartala. We have already collected details of the passengers, including contact numbers, who deplaned at Agartala and sent them to the health department.”
State nodal officer for coronavirus Dr Deep Debbarma said in the evening that “11 high-risk contacts” have been identified. “We are keeping them under surveillance. Their test reports will arrive by tomorrow evening,” he said.
Chief secretary Manoj Kumar said they have been kept in home quarantine. However, not all of the 72 passengers who deplaned at Agartala are equally risk-prone. “We are categorising them as high-risk prone and low-risk prone. While the high-risk group has been traced, we have identified some of the low-risk passengers and suggested that they stay in home quarantine. We are in the process of identifying others and closely monitoring the situation,” he said.
Additional reporting by Tanmoy Chakraborty in Agartala
