Mongolian delegation member found Covid-19 positive, isolated at Bodh Gaya
A member of the 23-member delegation from Mongolia, which visited Bodh Gaya in Bihar a couple of days ago, has been found Covid-19 positive
A member of the 23-member delegation from Mongolia, which visited Bodh Gaya in Bihar a couple of days ago, has been found Covid-19 positive. While the Mongolian delegation member has been isolated at Bodh Gaya, the 20 other locals with whom he is believed to have come into contact during the two-day stay in the holy city, have also got been tested for RTPCR by the local administration.
An RT-PCR test of the delegation was done when it arrived. While 22 members of the delegation were found negative, one person is reported to be positive.
“He was found asymptomatic in the test. But we are trying again to get done another test. His sample has been collected for this purpose. At present, he is in isolation and will be there for another 10 days,” Abhishek Kumar Singh, DM, Gaya and the Bodh Gaya Temple Management Committee (BTMC) chairman, said.
A Parliamentary delegation from Mongolia led by the State Great Hural (Parliament) of Mongolia, Gombojav Zandanshatar was on a four-day visit to the country since December 1 and on Thursday (December 2) the delegation arrived in Bodh Gaya in a special aircraft to visit the sites related to Lord Buddha. During the two-day stay, the delegation visited the Mongolian temple and the famous Dungeshwari hills where Lord Buddha had meditated for seven years before attaining enlightenment. And before leaving Bodh Gaya on Friday (December 3), the Mongolian delegation visited Mahabodhi temple, the UNESCO World Heritage Site at the holy city and prayed at the Garbha Griha at the temple and also under the Bodhi tree where Lord Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment.
BTMC secretary N Dorje could not be contacted to comment.
Meanwhile, some tour planners, hoteliers and guides at Bodh Gaya have expressed concern over the current situation. “We are worried whether the Mongolian delegation member has been carrying Omicron. Being in the security, he must have accompanied the delegation everywhere and must have interacted with many at Mongolian temple, Dungeshwari hill and Mahabodhi,” a tour planner at Bodh Gaya who did not want to get quoted, said.
