1 more COVID Case in Assam's Karimganj District, State total Rises to 42

Silchar, April 30, 2020:

One more positive case of the COVID-19 has been detected in Assam's Karimganj district, taking the total tally of cases to 42. This is the fifth case that has been detected today in Assam.

Assam Health and Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who tweeted about the development, has informed that the person from Karimganj is a secondary contact of a Nizamuddin Markaz attendee.

As of now, the state has 12 active cases as 29 patients have already been discharged and 1 patient, a 65-year-old man from Hailakandi district, has died.

After the detection of 4 cases in Bongaigaon, Sarma has announced that the Bongaigaon district will be declared a red-zone after 4 from the district tested ‘positive for the COVID-19, taking the tally of cases to 5.

Surprisingly, none of the patients have any contact history with COVID patients, nor are they attendees of the Tablighi Jamaat gathering. The patients have been recognized as Anupam Thakuria of Chaparakata, Dipak Mallik of Abhayapuri Amguri second part, Babita Basfor of Swahid Bedi, and Neena Mallik of Railway Colony.

Sarma said that the containment zone with a radius of 3 kms will be declared in the localities where the cases were found. Further, he announced that the entire district will be declared as a ‘red zone’ due to the rising number of cases.

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Himanta Biswa Sarma said that a ‘special investigation’ must be carried out into these cases, as they do not have any contact-history with patients. “We cannot call it community transmission, but this is the first time that such cases have been detected which cannot be pinpointed”, Sarma said.

“Slowly, till tomorrow, we will come to know if they met someone, or were in contact with outsiders; we will come to know about that tomorrow.

In the same breath, Sarma further added that the number of cases will continue to rise in the state. “We are ready. Till vaccine and medicine is not there, you cannot stop the number of cases from rising. However, the thing is, how to lessen the cases.”

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