23 linked to a firm test positive; FIR registered
EMPLOYEES OF THE FIRM ALLEGEDLY HID THEIR TRAVEL HISTORY AND HAVE BEEN BOOKED
FOR NEGLIGENCE
nNOIDA: On Sunday, six more persons were found positive for Covid-19 in Gautam Budh Nagar who had direct or indirect link with a security and fire safety solutions company in Sector 135 where 22 people were infected. After district officials informed the police that some of the company employees hid their foreign travel history, an FIR was registered against it for negligence.
The total number of cases in the district is now 32.
The infection is thought to have come about after a Briton visited the firm, Ceasefire Industries Pvt Ltd, in the third week of March for an audit and met its managing director. Ever since the first confirmed case — that of the managing director’s wife — was brought to the notice of the authorities last Tuesday, they began an intensive contact tracing exercise.
The newly identified patients are a 19-year-old woman employee of the company who stays in a rented apartment in Sector 27, a 34-year-old employee of the company and his brother and sister-in law, both 35-yearsold, and a 31-year-old employee from Bismoli village in Dadri. The sixth person is a 42-year-old employee and a resident of Hazratpur Wajidpur village in Dadri.
The initial report of the 34-year-old man had come negative but the health officials decided to test him again as his mother and wife were found positive. “He was quarantined and tested again because we had our doubts. His current report has confirmed him positive,” said a senior health department official.
The new patients were isolated at the Government Institute of Medical Sciences (GIMS) and they were said to be stable.
On Saturday, the district chief medical officer had ordered an FIR against the company the managing director had a travelled to the UK and the Briton had violated their quarantine period that allegedly led to the spread of the virus.
Administration officials are going to seal the whole area where the newly identified patients live in Dadri and sector 27. The residential society in sector 137 was sanitised when the man’s wife and mother were found positive for the virus.
“More reports are awaited from the same exercise,” said Dr Anurag Bhargava, district chief medical officer (CMO).
He wrote to the Expressway police station that appropriate legal action should be taken under the Uttar Pradesh Epidemic COVID-19 Act 2020.
Following this, station house officer Yogesh Malik said they have registered a case under section 45 (Punishment of offences committed within India), 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and 270 (Malignant act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) of the Indian Penal Code.