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Alarm in navy after 26 test positive at Mumbai facility
These cases have been traced to a single sailor who tested positive for Covid-19 11 days ago. All the sailors live in the same residential complex.
In the single largest case of Indian military personnel being infected with the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), the navy on Saturday said 26 sailors from a key naval base in Mumbai have been placed under isolation after testing positive for Covid-19.
The sailors from INS Angre — a logistics and administrative support base under the Western Naval Command — are being monitored at the navy’s premier hospital INHS Asvini. These cases have been traced to a single sailor who tested positive for Covid-19 11 days ago. All the sailors live in the same residential complex. They are all in their 20s, except the oldest who is 47.
“The detection of these Covid-19 cases is a result of meticulous contact tracing and aggressive screening/testing carried out by the Western Naval Command after one sailor tested positive on April 7 (he is among the 26). All these sailors continue to remain asymptomatic,” navy spokesperson Commander Vivek Madhwal said.
The first Indian sailor to test positive on April 7 contracted the disease from a retired sailor who was infected by his son who came to Mumbai from the US, a naval officer said on condition of anonymity. The navy hasn’t had any Covid-19 case on board any of its warships, submarines or air stations so far. INS Angre is under lockdown to prevent the spread of infection.
The spokesperson said stringent quarantine and safety protocols have been enforced for personnel and their families at INS Angre, with door-to-door screening being undertaken for identification of more cases, if any.
The navy said it remained fully combat-ready and also prepared to participate in the national mission to fight the pandemic.
In a recent address to naval personnel, navy chief Admiral Karambir Singh stressed it was vital to ensure that operational assets such as warships remained free of the virus.
Meanwhile, the army confirmed that a lady officer posted at the Military Hospital, Dehradun, has tested positive for the disease and the necessary contact tracing was being done.
