Bihar: 96 migrant workers test Covid positive

PATNA:

PATNA:

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Around 96 migrant workers who recently returned to the state have so far tested positive for novel coronavirus, as 16 more cases were reported Saturday, taking the overall tally of cases to 595 across 37 of Bihar’s 38 districts.

Muzaffarpur was the 37th district of Bihar the virus had extended its footprints to, after three migrant workers there tested positive for the virus from the Mushahari block quarantine centre on Saturday.

The three people who tested positive from Mushahari blocks of Muzaffarpur district were all males, aged 14, 22 and 31, said Sanjay Kumar, Bihar’s principal secretary, health. “We are ascertaining their further infection trail,” tweeted Kumar.

Arwal reported three cases, Nalanda, Munger, Begusarai two each, while Siwan, Sheikhpura, Vaishali and Bhojpur reported one case each on Saturday.

On Saturday, health secretary Lokesh Kumar Singh said 96 people from outside the state had tested positive during random testing of migrant workers, who came to the state after May 3.

Kumar had earlier on May 4 said, “Going by our experience over the past 10 days, almost 60% to 70% of the tested samples, which came positive, were of people who came from outside the state.”

Bihar had then reported 374 positive cases between April 23 and May 3. Kumar’s statement then meant that at least 224 of these cases were attributed to the migrant workers, thereby implying that 42% of the state’s Covid-19 case burden then — 528 till May 4 — was due to the migrants.

Prior to the 14-day lockdown 3.0, which commenced from May 4, around 1.80 lakh migrant workers had already reached the state.

Around 78,706 migrant workers from outside the state had reached Bihar by 69 special trains operated so far since the first such train reached here from Jaipur (Rajasthan) on May 2.

Twelve trains carrying 14,245 migrant workers reached Bihar on Saturday. Fourteen other trains, carrying 17,054 workers, were lined up for Sunday, said Anupam Kumar, secretary, information and public relations department.

Bihar expects to operate around 137 special trains during lockdown 3.0. They would ferry around 1,55,423 passengers, said Pratyaya Amrit, principal secretary, disaster management department, also the state nodal officer to coordinate the evacuation of people from Bihar stranded outside the state.

Meanwhile, the Patna district magistrate, Kumar Ravi, on Saturday notified 16 containment zones in the state capital. He, along with the senior superintendent of police, Updendra Sharma, also visited the barracks of Bihar Military Police (BMP)-14 after five of its jawans tested positive late Friday evening. He advised them to maintain social distancing, proper hygiene and sanitation, use of sanitisers and handwash, and be aware about the precautions that needed to be taken against the virus.

The DM also advised officials to make arrangements for comprehensive screening of the BMP jawans there. He also ordered barricading of an LPG godown, adjoining the barracks.

Eighteen patients had recovered on Saturday, taking the number of recoveries to 51 in the last 24 hours. A total of 318 patients had recovered so far in the state, with a case recovery rate of 49%. Five people, affected by the virus, have died so far.

Munger topped with 104 of Bihar’s 595 Covid-19 cases across 36 districts. It was followed by Buxar (56), Rohtas (54), Patna (52), Nalanda (38), Siwan (33), Kaimur (31), Madhubani (24), Bhojpur (19), Gopalganj (18), Begusarai (16), Aurangabad, Bhagalpur (14 each), Katihar (12), West Champaran (11), East Champaran (10), Darbhanga (9), Saran, Arwal (8 each), Samastipur (7), Gaya, Sitamarhi (6 each), Jehanabad, Nawada (5 each), Lakhisarai, Banka, Vaishali (4 each), Sheohar, Muzaffarpur (3 each), Madhepura, Araria, Purnea, Saharsa, Sheikhpura (2 each), Kishanganj, Supaul, Khagaria (1 each).