233 Nanded pilgrims among 268 cases detected in Punjab on Saturday

The state’s tally has now raced up to 977, of which 597 infections made it to the list in the last three days alone

There is no slowdown in the surge of Covid-19 cases in Punjab as 267 cases were reported on Saturday, of which 241 are Hazur Sahib pilgrims. The state’s tally has now raced up to 977, of which 596 cases made it to the list in the last three days. For the first time on Saturday, the state saw an addition of more than 200 and it was the third straight day when a three-digit number of patients was recorded, most of them Hazur Sahib pilgrims.

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Hoshiarpur was the worst-hit on Saturday as the district saw a nearly seven-fold increase in infections with 72 patients, 69 of them Hazur Sahib pilgrims. The district tally went up from 11 to 83 in a day. Civil surgeon Jasbir Singh said 157 Nanded pilgrims had been quarantined at two centres.

Amritsar recorded 57 fresh cases and all are Nanded pilgrims, taking the district’s tally to 208.

Bathinda recorded 33 cases on Saturday and all of them are Hazur Sahib pilgrims.

Gurdaspur tally took a sharp spike on Saturday with death, and 24 positive cases, all Nanded-returnees. A kidney patient from Qadian who was undergoing treatment in Chandigarh was also found positive.

Ludhiana recorded 23 infections on Saturday, of which 17 were Hazur Sahib pilgrims, taking the district’s tally to 122.

In Moga, 22 people, including four ASHA workers engaged in door-to-door survey, were found positive for the virus on Saturday and 17 of them have Nanded link. A man who had returned from Dubai two months ago was also found positive.

Jalandhar recorded 15 fresh cases, including a Hazur Sahib pilgrim, on Saturday, taking district’s tally to 120. Health officials said 14 patients were close contacts of those who have already tested positive.

Also, five Nanded pilgrims were found positive in SBS Nagar, Four in Sangrur, three in Mansa, two in Barnala and one in Kaputhala.

Muktsar’s Saturday tally was three, including two health workers, while the third patient is a combine harvester operator who had returned from Rajasthan recently.

Two people, including a 27-year-old woman from Kharar, were found positive in Mohali district. The administration has traced the woman’s 11 immediate contacts, including husband and neighbours. Patiala also recorded one infection in the district.

(With inputs from Bathinda, Patiala and Mohali)