Gadchiroli’s 3 from Azerbaijan test negative

Nagpur/Chandrapur/Yavatmal: Twenty-eight persons, including three Azerbaijan nationals who are currently in Gadchiroli, were tested negative for novel coronavirus (Covid-19) infection on Thursday. Their samples were sent to the lab at Indira Gandhi Government Medical College and Hospital (IGGMCH or Mayo) from across Vidarbha and other parts of Central India.
Out of the 28 swab samples, 21 were from Amravati, two from Nagpur GMCH, three from Gadchiroli, one from Akola and one from Buldhana.
In Nagpur, no fresh case was reported while suspects from the city and several places were reported at the government colleges.
Authorities in Chandrapur heaved a sigh of relief after a passenger, who had come in contact with positive patients in some other state, was alighted from a train coming from Hyderabad and taken to GMCH there on Wednesday evening. His swabs were sent to Mayo lab. He is yet to be discharged.
There was panic after reports emerged that three Azerbaijan nationals have developed symptoms while their stay in Gadchiroli. Report about a flyer who was advised home quarantine from this district too is awaited.
In Yavatmal, no new admission at the isolation ward of GMCH was reported. District collector MD Singh said there are seven patients including the three positive at the GMCH Yavatmal isolation ward. Among the four suspects, two have no symptoms while the other two have symptoms.
Their swabs were sent to Mayo on Wednesday and the report is awaited. Singh said 127 persons are in the home quarantine across the district and special teams are deployed to keep a watch on their movements.
The condition of the positive patients is stable and they are recovering speedily. In Pusad, three elderly women who returned from Nepal after a tour have been asked to remain under home quarantine though they have no symptoms of coronavirus.
The three nationals from Azerbaijan were among the 21 home quarantined at Gadchiroli after they developed some symptoms.
Amravati district collector Shailesh Naval said that 24 throat swab samples sent for examination till Wednesday were found negative while reports are awaited for 11. He said citizens returning from abroad are being checked and advised to subject themselves to home quarantine.
In the Chandrapur case, the suspected coronavirus patient had travelled with the positive patients in train. Three more foreign returned, including a UK and two Philippines travellers, were home quarantined.
The suspected patient was alighted from the train on Wednesday evening after health authorities in Hyderabad informed that two others travelling with him have been tested positive for Covid-19. “This suspect patient had breathing difficulty and was treated for the same in isolation ward. His samples were urgently sent to Nagpur for testing the same night. The test result came negative,” said civil surgeon Dr ND Rathod.
He informed that the patient has not been discharged and is still being treated at Chandrapur GMCH.
Health administration has so far tested seven suspected patients of coronavirus in Chandrapur and all of them have been found negative.
Dr Rathod informed that with addition of three new foreign returns among the quarantined people, a total of 47 foreign returned people are currently under home quarantine and strict observation.