142 QUARANTINED IN BANGA, SECTION 144 IMPOSED IN 13 VILLAGES; AMARINDER SEEKS CENTRAL AID
PUNJAB’S FIRST COVID-19 DEATH Those isolated at home in three districts are the ones who came in touch with Banga septuagenarian; contact tracing on
: One-forty two people were home-quarantined on Friday in SBS Nagar, Hoshiarpur and Jalandhar districts as they came in contact with the 70-yearold male coronavirus patient who died in Banga two days before.
Punjab’s first coronavirus case and India’s fourth, the Banga resident returned from Germany via Italy a fortnight ago and died in a hospital after he complained of chest pain.
Among those who came in contact with him are 18 members of his family and relatives.
They include six persons from a family of Moranwali village in Hoshiarpur: A 70-year-old man, his wife, son, and three grandchildren, who were admitted to the Hoshiarpur civil hospital on Thursday. The health officials have taken samples of the 14 family members on Friday and the results are awaited.
‘THOSE WITH SYMPTOMS TO BE ISOLATED’
Banga sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) Gautam Jain said: “We have kept 56 persons in quarantine and are tracing others who contacted the victim to keep them under surveillance as per health department’s instructions. We have informed officials in other districts about people who came in contact with the deceased.”
Health officials said they were keeping a close watch on 90 people and conducting medical check-ups. Those developing coronavirus symptoms will be isolated. Isolation wards with a capacity to deal with 3,000 patients are being set up, they added.
After the Banga man’s sample was tested positive, the district administration on Thursday sealed his village, Pathlawa, which has a population of 3,000.
SBS Nagar deputy commissioner Vinay Bublani said, “We are also tracing the people who met the deceased at Holla Mohalla in Anandpur Sahib.”
On Friday evening, the DC imposed Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) that restricts the gathering of five or more persons in seven villages — Mehla Gehla, Ladhana Ucha, Ladhana Jhikka, Gobindpur, Paddi Mathwali, Attari and Rampur.
Hoshiarpur deputy commissioner Apneet Riyiat imposed Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) in six villages — Moranwali, Imme Jatta, Posi, Nurpur Jatta, Suni and Binjo of Garshankar sub-division till March 31.
‘PEOPLE BEING MADE AWARE OF THE GRAVITY OF SITUATION’
Pathlawa sarpanch Harpal Singh said people are being made aware about the gravity of the situation. “We are staying in our homes and are maintaining contact through phone. If we require anything, we are calling the administration. People went to fields to fetch fodder for their animals,” he added.
In Hoshiarpur district, 44 people were home quarantined at Moranwali, Dhada Kalan, Bhajlan, Maula Wahadpur, Rourki Khas, Basiala, Malkowal and Saila Kalan villages in the district, said senior medical officer
Dr Rabhbir Singh.
These villages are located near Pathlawa.
In Jalandhar, eight persons, including doctors, paramedical and other staff working in a private hospital and civil hospital, were home quarantined as they came in contact with the 70-yearold deceased when he went for treatment on March 17. Jalandhar civil surgeon Dr Gurinder Kaur said rooms of the private hospital have been sealed.