Genesis of India’s biggest hot spot
On Mar 29, six from Jamaat headquarters were confirmed with Covid-19; the next day, the number grew to 24
nNEWDELHI: On March 25 as Indians woke up to the first day of a threeweek lockdown to stave off the Covid-19 epidemic, disease surveillance officials in the national capital had just begun uncovering a problem that would soon turn into an epidemiological headache spanning 19 states: hundreds of members of a religious sect may have already taken the infection to far reaches of the country, sharing flights, buses, trains and community events even before the country could be shut down.
Tips about an infection hotspot at the Tablighi Jamaat’s Nizamuddin headquarters began trickling in to the Delhi Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) office that week, leading the district surveillance officer (DSO) to dispatch a team on March 26. Six people were found with symptoms at the building, isolated and sent for testing.
On March 29, the six were confirmed as having Covid-19. A day later, the number grew to 24. The reports of the 441 people from the Markaz suspected to have the disease are still awaited.
IMPORTED INFECTION? The origin of the infection in the sect possibly goes back to February 27, when 16,000 members began a congregation at the Sri Petaling mosque in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Over four days, hundreds of worshippers prayed shoulder-to-shoulder inside a mosque complex similar to the one in Nizamuddin, while some guests posted selfies as they shared food, social posts from the event would later show.
Among the attendees were those from China and South Korea -- two countries with high rates of coronavirus infections at the time.
Two weeks later, Malaysia’s cases grew to nearly 670 -- 500 of these had been at the congregation, known as an Ijtema. As the foreign attendees headed back home, Brunei confirmed 50 cases linked to the gathering, Singapore identified five, Cambodia 13 and Thailand at least two.
Around the same time, in midmarch, Indonesia cancelled a Tablighi Jamaat Ijtema, but not before thousands had already gathered on the Sulawei islands.
Over the past three days, 1,548 people have been evacuated from the Tablighi Jamaat’s Markaz building in Nizamuddin n n n
In India, officials are now drawing connections to cases in these countries. According to immigration data accessed by HT, at least 227 foreigners were among the estimated 8,000 who had been at the Nizamuddin headquarters in March – overlapping with other visitors in the sixstorey, hostel-like facility with common cooking and dining facilities. The foreigners included people from Malaysia and Indonesia (where large crowds had already gathered) and China, where infections had by then been widespread.
A significant number of the n
March 13: Seminars or conferences of more than 200 people banned in the city
March 16: A fresh order issued, banning any events — religious, academic, political, social, cultural, personal and so on, involving more than 50 people. March 19: This order was revised, and the Delhi government prohibited any congregation of more than 20 people in the city.
March 21: The government increased the restrictions, imposing a ban on any gathering of more than five people
March 22: The Delhi Police imposed Section 144 across the city, banning gatherings of four or more persons — the first time the section was imposed across the city.
March 23: Police wrote to the mosque management to shut down the mosque. The mosque authorities claim that around 1,500 people left the mosque. The police, however, say another group of around 1,500 preachers arrived at the mosque on March 23 evening.
international arrivals took place around March 10, according to officials in the Delhi Police. It wasn’t until later that the Indian government made quarantine mandatory for arrivals from China (March 13) and banned flights from Malaysia (March 17).
Some of the people who arrived, either with the infection or were subsequently infected at the building in Nizamuddin, began travelling before the outbreak turned into a serious crisis for India. It is these people whose illness would later connect back to the building in Nizamuddin as disease surveillance officers in
January 17: Mandatory medical screening of passengers arriving in Delhi airpor t from China. Soon, 12 more countries were brought under the mandatory medica l screening
March 3: Medical screening made mandatory fo r all passengers arriving from abroad.
March 7: Section so f Delhi airport segregated for passengers coming in from listed countries.
March 13: APHO [Airport Health Organization] issues an adviso ry dividing all arriving passengers arriving from abroad into three categories depending on symptoms. n Passengers from China, South Korea, France, Italy, Iran, Spain and Germany to be put under mandatory quarantine
March 17: Complete ban on flight from Philippines, Afghanistan and Malaysia.
March 18: UAE ,O man, Kuwait and Qatar brought under the category of countries, passengers from which require mandatory quarantine. n Countries under the EFTA and EU, UK and Turkey were also brought under complete flight ban.
March 22: Al l international flights to India suspended. March 25: All domestic flight operations suspended.
several states started separately sounding out their Delhi counterparts.
THE INDONESIAN GROUP
The most important alert came from Telangana, where officials found 10 Indonesians who boarded the Andhra Pradesh Sampark Kranti in Delhi on March 13 to arrive at Ramagundam in Telangana the next day.
From there, they group went to Karimnagar in autorickshaws, took part in an Ijtema a day later and spent nights at a local madarsa. Around March 16, some of their local associates noticed
their symptoms – bringing to light what would be the earliest confirmed case linked to the Tablighi Jamaat’s Delhi centre.
According to a health official aware of the contact tracing, the alerts were sent to the Delhi IDSP between March 20 and 24.
“Our surveillance officers went to the Nizamuddin area last week to investigate after we received reports from several states that the people who tested positive there had a history of travel to the area. That’s when we discovered that there were so many people living in the compound and started screening them for symptoms,” said an official from Delhi IDSP cell.
Another alert was sent from neighbouring Andhra Pradesh around the same time when a 52-year-old man tested positive; he had been at the Delhi building.
In all, six of the approximately 12 people linked to the Tablighi Jamaat have succumbed to the infection in Hyderabad.
“It was rigorous contact tracing exercise conducted by the Telangana government for a section of cases reported in their state that led to the zeroing-in on the infection source in Delhi. It was followed up here and the cluster was discovered,” said the official cited above, asking not to be named.
KASHMIRI PREACHER
The second alert came from Kashmir. On March 25, a 65-yearold preacher who tested positive for Covid-19 succumbed to his illness in Srinagar. When health department officials worked back his travel history, they found that he had left the Tablighi building on March 9 after staying there for two days.
The man then went to Deoband (March 9-11) – a town considered as being historically linked to the Jamaat – before travelling to Samba (March 12-16) and finally reaching Srinagar, where he was based and was known as a prominent Islamic preacher.
According to officials, it was his reputation as a prominent preacher that came to attention when he died, triggering alerts that were sent to Delhi as well as Uttar Pradesh.
ANDAMAN ISLANDS
On March 24, a day before the domestic flight ban kicked in, a man in his late 20s reached Port Blair and started showing symptoms for the disease. He tested positive on Sunday, triggering the contact-tracing exercise that placed him at the building in Nizamuddin a week ago.
Routinely, officials alert their counterparts in other states if the contact-tracing determines that a Covid-19 patient was in close vicinity to others.
According to disease surveillance official, he took a flight with a stopover at Kolkata. At least one other person who was with him on the flight has also tested positive.
National Helpline (Toll free) 1075 +91-11-23978046
Delhi 24x7 control room
Report suspected cases
Queries on harassment
E-passes for essential services
Person violating quarantine
Anxiety over disease
From 10 am to 1:30 pm
From 2pm to 5pm
Psychological help for Students
South Delhi (SDMC)
North Delhi
East Delhi (EDMC)
Frequently Asked Questions
Here is what you can or cannot do during the national lockdown in view of the Covid-19 pandemic
There is a power cut in my house, what can I do? You can complain to the discom. Electricity, water etc are essential services.
9811746265
9899991274, 8826635511, 9717675196
9811892424, 9899032914, 9599678947
1800-11-8004 155-305 155-304 155-303
My local pharmacy is shut. Can I call for medicines?
Yes. E-commerce websites selling medicines are in service
I have run out of pet food. Can I get them delivered? Yes. You can order pet food through e-commerce websites.
The Animal Welfare Board has also issued an advisory to local authorities that street animals be fed regularly.
I need a new pair of headphones. Can I order it?
No. Only shops selling essential commodities are allowed to remain open
I need physiotherapy, can I go?
Yes. Medical facilities are part of essential service.
I don’t own a car, what do I do in case of emergency?
In case of a medical emergency, you can call an ambulance.
Can my domestic help come home?
There is no direction to stop their movement . Many residents and resident welfare associations have voluntarily asked domestic helps not to come. But it might be difficult for them to travel, given the lack of public transport.
I have no vegetables at home. Can I order them online?
Yes. The supply of all essential commodities will continue on e-commerce websites
National helpline email ID
ncov2019@gov.in n
ncov2019@gmail.com n 011-2230-7145/0012/0036
112
011-23469526
1031 & 9873743727 (Whatsapp) 011-25066674 or office of district magistrate concerned
Can I order food from restaurants?
Yes. Food delivery has been marked as an essential service and it will continue. However, options might be limited as many restaurants are closed for dining in and delivery