COVID-19 in Guwahati: 112 Contacts of 'Spanish Garden' Positive Man Identified, 98 Samples Collected

Guwahati, April 6, 2020:

Assam Health and Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, confirming that not a single positive case of the COVID-19 has been detected in Assam in the last 24 hours, added that 98 samples have been collected in connection with the first case in Guwahati. In total, Sarma said, 112 contacts of the 52-year-old man have been identified who came in contact with him in the past month.

Note: It may be mentioned here that in the last 48 hours, only one positive case have been detected -- in Cachar. 

Total tests done in Assam: 2000; 26 detected positive; 1809 detected negative, and165 results are awaited.

112 people have been identified who came in contact with the 52-year old positive case, out of which 98 samples have been collected. Out of those 85, all have tested negative for the virus, Sarma said, adding that 13 results are still being awaited as they are under process in the laboratory.

Sarma said that there is a lingering question as to what the source was which transmitted the virus to the 52-year-old man. The man has a "small" travel history as he had come from Delhi on March 1 and had gone to Shillong for a short duration in the ensuing days, and it is yet to be ascertained from where he had picked up the contagion.

ALSO READ: Assam: 1,074 People Arrested in Lockdown Violation Cases, 4,293 Vehicles Seized

556 sourced by the Central Government -- 275 sourced from local surveillance 831. 50 have not returned and 100 are not related. The "target" was set at 617, said Sarma, adding that and 491 samples have been collected so far, and 128 samples are yet to be related.

Sarma informed that the authorities have held discussions with the leaders of the Markaz who have appealed everyone to come forward and get tested for the COVID-19, and said that they the entire procedure is likely to be wrapped up by the evening.

From tomorrow, the Markaz attendees who come out will be screened, but they will also be punished as here is a provision in the Disaster Management Act under which they will be punished, he said.

Biswa Sarma also said that the people of the state "successfully" partook in the PM Modi-called "diya jalao" challenge, wherein he had asked everyone to turn off electric lights and light diyas, candles, and mobile lights as a show of solidarity

The Assam and Health and Finance Minister said that there had been a dip in power demand by 471 Megawatt, although around 350 MW was initially expected. "Except street light, hospital light, and essential services, almost all lights were shut off", he said, terming the event as a "success" in Assam.

ALSO READ: Assam: FIR against Bengali-Language Newspaper for ‘Fake News’ about COVID-19 Patient

3,941 PPE kits, N95 masks number 36,487 and triple-layer masks number 7,28,022. Sarma further informed that in the evening, 500 more PPE kits will reach the administration.

The Government has said that triple-layer masks should be produced locally, and efforts are on to produce these equipment locally. The NHM will also buy the masks in bulk from producers, he added.

Support Inside Northeast (InsideNE), an independent media platform that focuses on Citizen-centric stories from Northeast India that are surprising, inspiring, cinematic and emotionally relevant.