The Health Department on Monday collected samples of six Coronavirus suspects from Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) and seven suspects from Mahatma Gandhi Memorial (MGM) Hospital in Jamshedpur, a press communiqué from the National Health Mission (NHM) said. Besides, samples of three more suspects — two from Palamu and one from Bokaro — were collected on Monday.
The number of people under observation for Coronavirus in Jharkhand rose to 450 on Monday from 414 on Saturday. However, no positive cases were reported. Out of the 450 people, mostly travelers, 128 have passed the quarantine period of 28 days and not shown any symptoms of viral infection, health officials said on Monday.
The Government has by now collected samples of 77 Coronavirus suspects here and 61 of them have come out negative. However, the results of 16 more samples sent for lab tests are awaited, and the officials here have their fingers crossed. Jharkhand is surrounded by Bihar, Odisha and West Bengal, and all three States have reported positive cases of COVID-19 in the past one week.
The lethal virus by Monday evening infected nearly 3.5 lakh people across the globe and claimed more than 15,000 lives. In India, the number of patients infected by Coronavirus increased to 470 by the time this report was filed. The death toll in India was nine by the time this report was filed. The virus was first reported in China, and within a few months, it wreaked havoc in European countries, especially Italy and Spain. Doctors fear that if the virus reaches a level of community spread in India, it may claim several thousand lives and prove to be catastrophic.
On Wednesday, the State Government issued a circular prohibiting the use of biometric attendance in all Government offices across Jharkhand amid Novel Coronavirus fear – a precautionary measure taken in a bid to prevent the virus from spreading in the tribal State. And by Sunday evening, it asked all Government employees to work from home.