A 24-year-old woman, who returned from London tested positive for coronavirus in Chhattisgarh’s Capital city, making it the first confirmed Covid-19 case in the State on Thursday.
The woman, who studies in London had returned to Raipur via Mumbai on March 15, an official said.
“After she complained of cold and cough, her swab sample was collected for testing on March 17 and it tested positive for the infection late on Wednesday evening,” medical superintendent of AIIMS, Raipur Dr Karan Peepre said.
She and her parents were immediately admitted to AIIMS and kept under observation in the isolation ward, Dr Peepre said, adding that the condition of the woman was stable. The swab samples of her parents were also sent for testing and their reports are awaited, he said.
The reports of confirmation of the first coronavirus case in the state on Thursday morning spread like a wild fire as the entire administration swung into action.
Shops and other establishment in Raipur’s posh locality Samta colony and its neighbourhoods, including Choube Colony and Gudhiyari downed their shutters. The affected family was housing in Samta colony.
According to state health department officials, they were preparing the route map of the affected person as she had reportedly come in contact with more than 70 people in the last four days.
Besides banks, the woman had visited a mall and shopping centre in the city.
sChief Minister Bhupesh Baghel chaired a high-level meeting in the afternoon to take stock of the situation.
Later, the state government imposed Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) of 1973, across the state.
The Section 144 of CrPC is a prohibitory order that restrict the gathering of four or more people in an area. The prohibitory order will be effective in the 167 urban bodies of the state.The state government has taken a number of measures to prevent the spread of novel coronavirus (Cvid-19).
Apart from the orders issued earlier to combat Covid-19, the state government has decided to shut all the malls, chowpaties, markets and fast food centers and street food outlets among others until further notice.
In the urban areas, hostels and rented houses with paying guests are either being vacated or the guests paying guests are being asked not to venture out.
The urban administration and development department has directed all the district collectors, municipal commissioners and CEOs of municipal councils, nagar panchayats to ensure strict compliance of the orders issued in the context.
The plying of inter-state buses had been stopped.
The state government had earlier taken a decision to close educational institutions, swimming pools and libraries as preventive measures to curb the spread of the contagious respiratory infection. .
The Chief Minister and his cabinet colleagues have postponed interacting people until March 31.