Gurugram man linked to Jamaat gathering is Covid-19 positive

While the four residents include a 45-year-old man from Sun City who had travelled to Bombay, his 70-year-old father and two 22-year-old private hospital nurses from Jharsa, the 38-year-old is one of the 25 people confirmed to have attended a Tablighi Jamaat congregation in March in Delhi.

A 38-year-old man from old Gurugram was among the five people who tested positive for coronavirus disease (Covid-19) on Thursday. The total active cases in the city has now reached 15, of whom nine have recovered and are in home quarantine for 14 days.

Residents of Hewo apartments, Sec 15, Gurugram, welcome Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) workers to spray disinfectant and sanitize the locality. (Parveen Kumar /HT Photo)

While the four residents include a 45-year-old man from Sun City who had travelled to Bombay, his 70-year-old father and two 22-year-old private hospital nurses from Jharsa, the 38-year-old is one of the 25 people confirmed to have attended a Tablighi Jamaat congregation in March in Delhi.

The Tablighi Jamaat religious group is now feared to be driving the outbreak in the country. The country’s overall number of confirmed cases crossed the 2,000-mark, also soaring by a record number. The national surge too was largely driven by Tablighi Jamaat-linked infections from states such as Tamil Nadu, where all 75 new infections were linked.

In all, about 9,000 members of the Islamic group have been quarantined or are being sought out to be isolated after they attended events at the Delhi building that is believed to have turned into a hotbed of the infection this month.

Haryana’s health minister Anil Vij on Wednesday, had said at least 524 people who attended the congregation were traced in Haryana, which has formed a special task force with 500 personnel for this task.

On Thursday, police said 22 of 25 identified persons were sent to a quarantine facility in Sector 9. Two persons are yet to be traced, the police said.

Police commissioner Muhammad Akil on Thursday saidareas in which the suspected people live have also been sealed.

It could not be confirmed from the health department if disinfection of these areas, in old Gurugram, had started Thursday.

Dr Jaswant Singh Punia, chief medical officer, said, “We have taken samples of those identified by the police and sent them for testing to Pandit Bhagwat Dayal Sharma PG Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS) in Rohtak. They will be kept in the quarantine facility in Sector 9 for 14 days. Police teams have been deployed so identified persons do not leave the centre. The police personnel have been provided with safety kits (eye gear, masks, gloves and overalls) to prevent infection.”

District sealed

“Gurugram borders connecting Jhajjar, Rewari, Delhi, Nuh and Palwal are no longer open for people except for those supplying essential commodities or those with medical emergency. We are even checking the ambulances plying near the borders to ensure no affected person takes advantage of the situation,” Akil said.

33 test negative

According to the CMO, 27 persons from Pataudi and six from Dhankot, who were put under quarantine at the Sector 9 facility, tested negative for Covid-19 on Thursday. “We are taking precaution to avoid community transmission,” Punia said.