3 min readHyderabadMar 4, 2020 02:14 PM IST
First published on: Mar 4, 2020 at 01:36 PM IST
Policemen outside the Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad, Tuesday. (Source: PTI)
Two new suspected novel coronavirus cases have been reported in Hyderabad. Two persons were tested positive in the first round of testing at Gandhi Hospital and their samples have been sent for the second round of testing to National Institute of Virology, Pune.
Officials at Telangana Health, Medical, and Family Welfare Department said after one person who returned from Dubai via Bengaluru tested positive on Sunday, 47 persons were tested at Gandhi Hospital on March 3. “45 samples were found to be negative. Two samples are being sent to NIV, Pune for further testing. The report is expected by Thursday. Both are being kept in isolation at Gandhi Hospital. One case travel history to Italy while the second case is a contact case of the first positive case. 45 persons who tested negative were discharged and advised strict home isolation for 14 days. The single positive case is stable,” a statement said.
Officials said that of the two new suspected cases, one person travelled to Italy recently on business. The second person travelled with the 24-year-old techie who tested positive on Sunday.
The Telangana government has scaled up prevention measures in the wake of new cases of coronavirus. Hundreds of municipal and sanitation workers have been pressed into service across Hyderabad to conduct fumigation.
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While the IT company where the infected person works has sent home all its staff, managers at other IT companies also requested their staff to opt for work from home until further instructions. One company issued an advisory to work from home as their office was located to the building where one of the employees tested positive. The advisory also asked its employees to use hand sanitisers and avoid touching objects in any common area.
“Please use the stairs instead of elevators while leaving office. We take the health concerns of our employees seriously,” the advisory stated.
Meanwhile, a techie from Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh was admitted to the Kakinada Government Hospital with suspected symptoms of coronavirus. He had recently returned from South Korea and went to his native place last week. He was suffering from cough and high fever and got himself admitted to the hospital, where he has been kept under isolated observation. His blood samples are being sent to Gandhi Hospital at Hyderabad for testing.
The number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in India rose to 28 on Tuesday, including 16 Italians. Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan said 27,000 people have been placed under community surveillance.
Policemen outside the Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad, Tuesday. (Source: PTI)
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