E-Paper
Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar in NRI belt has nearly half of Punjab’s positive cases, making it the state’s Covid-19 hotspot
Deputy commissioner Vinay Bublani says district is hopeful of shedding hotspot tag as no patient has tested positive in past five days
With 45% of the total coronavirus cases in Punjab and nearly 1,000 people quarantined in 15 villages sealed by the health authorities, Shaheed Bhagat Singh (SBS) Nagar, earlier known as Nawanshahr, has emerged as the state’s Covid-19 hotspot.
Coronavirus reached Pathlawa village with the return of a granthi (Sikh preacher) from Germany via Covid-hit Italy, Baldev Singh, 70. He landed in India on March 7 along with his religious teacher who heads a local dera, Gurbachan Singh, and another granthi, Daljinder Singh.
Baldev Singh died after a heart attack at the civil hospital in Banga on March 18 after a brief illness. The next day, the result of his samples were received and it was found that he was suffering from Covid-19. His guru also tested positive and is in the isolation ward at the SBS Nagar civil hospital. But before they were diagnosed with Covid-19, they kept on meeting dera followers and relatives in nearby villages.
UNAWARE, PREACHER KEPT VISITING PEOPLE
Baldev Singh’s death triggered panic in the area and nearly 1,000 residents of 15 villages were quarantined.
Since Baldev had returned via Italy, he had been advised avoid social gatherings for a fortnight but he kept visiting people.
Deputy commissioner Vinay Bublani said till date 361 samples of suspected people have been taken from the 15 villages. Nineteen of them tested positive.
“No patient has tested positive in past the five days. We are hopeful of shedding this tag of being a Covid-19 hotspot,” he said.
SPREAD AND TALLY
Besides Baldev those who tested positive for Covid-19 are his 14 family members, including two-year-old grandson, his guru and fellow granthi and sarpanch of Pathlawa village and the sarpanch’s mother.
As Baldev also visited the houses of his relatives in villages situated in nearby districts of Hoshiarpur and Jalandhar, eight more of his close contacts were found positive.
All three districts of Punjab’s Doaba region comprise the NRI belt.
Nearly 800 residents in the four villages visited by Baldev in the two neighbouring districts have been quarantined.
One of the close contacts of Baldev, Baba Harbhajan Singh, 68, died on March 29.
Baldev is also termed as Punjab’s super-spreader as the total tally of the positive patients from his direct and indirect contacts is 27.
Apart from the 19 cases in SBS Nagar, five from Moranwali village of Hoshiarpur district and four from Virkan village of Phillaur sub-division of Jalandhar district, all from Baldev’s contact, have tested positive for coronavirus.
