14 villagers quarantined after a Covid patient violated home isolation in Khanna village

The patient was discharged on the basis of the new policy of the Ministry of health and family welfare which stated that mild and moderate cases can be allowed to go home 10 days of the onset of symptoms and no testing is required prior to discharge

A day after a 46-year-old Covid-19 patient of Kishangarh village in Khanna was booked for violating the home isolation order, as many as 14 persons who came in contact with him have been quarantined.

They had come in contact with the patient while presenting a siropa to him on his return. He had told them that he had been cured. (HT FILE)

Though the patient had not been tested negative when he was sent home from the civil hospital on the night of May 17, he lied to the villagers that he had been cured.

According to Khanna senior medical officer Dr Rajinder Gulati, the patient was discharged on the basis of the new policy of Ministry of health and family welfare which stated that mild and moderate cases can be allowed to go home 10 days of the onset of symptoms and no testing is required prior to discharge.

The Kishangarh patient had tested positive on May 8 and had spent 10 days at the civil hospital. As he remained asymptomatic, the hospital authorities decided to discharge him. He was told to stay in home isolation for at least a week.

Gulati added that such patients are discharged only if the family members or relatives give proper undertaking that the patient will remain in home isolation and will not step out of house. “We also remain in contact with the care taker of the patient for supplying medicine. So, proper procedure is followed before discharging the patient. It is the negligence of the patient that he had stepped out of home,” he said.

PATIENT WAS ‘HONOURED’ BY VILLAGERS

On Thursday, some photos of the patient getting honoured by villagers surfaced on social media. In the picture, there were around 10 persons standing with the patient as he accepted a ‘Siropa’ from them. Following this, the Khanna Sadar police registered a case under Sections 188 (disobedience to the orders duly promulgated by public servant) and 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 51 of the Disaster Management Act.

Inspector Jaspal Singh, Sadar Khanna station house officer, said that when the patient returned to his village, he had lied to the villagers that he had been cured. “Now, 14 villagers who came in contact with the patient have been quarantined,” he said.

He added that the patient has been given warning and he has also promised that he will not step out of his house now.