Even as all the Opposition parties including BJP, Left and the Congress hailed Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for her “impressive performance” in containing the proliferation of the dreaded virus, the State, reported its first corona-infected death with a 57-year-old Railway employee from Dum Dum succumbing to his ailments late on Monday noon. At least three other relatives of the victim, including his wife and mother, were under observation at a different hospital of Kolkata, Health Department sources.
Though any foreign travel history of the victim was still not established as his wife said that they had not visited any corona-affected country in the recent past, authorities were trying to find out whether his infection had anything to do with his US-based son.
The relatives of the victim said he had recently back travelled back from Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh by Pune-Howrah Azad Hind Express wondering whether he had contacted the disease while travelling in train.
“If he did not pick it up from his son or if his son had not visited India in the past couple of months then he could be the first such patient who contacted the virus from the community,” a Government official said.
There are seven more Corona-infected patients undergoing treatment at the Beleghata ID Hospital, sources said adding no new infection was reported on Monday.
Meanwhile, even as the urban parts of the State went into a complete lockdown the opposition leaders of Bengal on Monday hailed the Chief Minister for her “impressive performance” in containing the outbreak.