5 villages near Samrala sealed after Nanded returnees test +ve

The villages include Ghular, Ghugrali, Seh, Tandey and Tosan

The district administration has sealed five villages near Samrala and Machhiwara that have Covid positive Nanded returnees. The villages include Ghular, Ghugrali, Seh, Tandey and Tosan.

Special buses were sent to Takht Shri Hazur Sahib in Nanded, Maharashtra, to bring back Punjab natives. (Gurpreet Singh/HT)

As per Samrala station house officer Sukhwinder Singh Cheema, as many as four patients have tested positive from Ghulal village, whereas two cases have come to fore from Ghungrali village and one each from Seh, Tandey and Tosan. “The step has been taken as a preventive measure to curtail the further spread of the disease to other areas. But people here were wise enough and maintained their distance from the Nanded returnees,” the SHO said.

A 55-year-old Nanded returnee, residing in one the villages, said that the government had made mistake by not testing them on the day of their arrival. “On April 26 when we arrived, they sent us home without taking our samples and the next day, they picked us up from our homes and lodged us in the hospital. This was a lapse on part of the government,” he said.

He further added that their neighbours are now vilifying them and accusing them of spreading the virus even though it is not their fault.

The 22-year-old son of another Nanded returnee from Ghular village near Samrala said that their presence of mind saved them. “On returning, my father locked himself in a room so as to distance himself from the family. The next day, the police and heath department officials picked him up from home and took him to hospital, where he tested positive for Covid-19.” he said, adding that had his father not taken extra precautions, the entire family would have been infected. As many as 13 persons from the villages, who were tested negative, have been lodged in a school.