Published on April 5, 2020
AHMEDABAD: Gujarat’s Covid-19 positive cases count reached to 122 on Sunday morning with addition of 14 new cases in past 12 hours. Ahmedabad reported eight of the cases – all suspected to have direct or indirect connection with the Markaz event at Nizamuddin in Delhi, said state health department officials.
Gujarat also recorded one more death, taking the total death count to 11.
Jayanti Ravi, principal secretary (health & family welfare), said that the 61-year-old woman, who succumbed to the Covid-19 infection at Mission Hospital in Surat, had earlier come to the same hospital on March 28. “The doctors had recommended her immediate hospitalization. However, she refused. She was brought back on April 4 in critical condition where chances of her survival were slim,” she said.
“We urge all to pay heed to the medical advice – come forward if you have any symptoms associated with Covid-19 coupled with domestic or international travel history or contact with any known Covid-19 positive person. It would not only save you but the community at large,” added Ravi.
Out of 14 new cases, 8 are recorded from Ahmedabad, followed by two each from Surat and Bhavnagar and one each from Vadodara and Chhota Udepur. The tribal district in eastern belt of Gujarat has recorded the first case, said health department officials.
Ravi said that all eight cases from Ahmedabad are directly or indirectly associated with the Markaz at Nizamuddin, Delhi. “Active contact tracing and identification of all the persons who have returned from Markaz is being done in Gujarat in association with state police. We have appealed to the community to provide all details for quicker identification and treatment of possible Covid-19 cases,” she said.
The health department officials said that out of eight, five persons have travel history to Delhi. Ahmedabad is already declared a national hotspot for the Covid-19 cases.
With the new cases, now the district-wise Covid-19 positive cases count includes 53 in Ahmedabad, 15 in Surat, 13 in Gandhinagar, 11 in Bhavnagar, 10 each in Vadodara and Rajkot, 3 in Porbandar, 2 in Gir Somnath, one each in Kutch, Mehsana, Panchmahal, Patan and Chhota Udepur.
Likewise, Ahmedabad so far has recorded 5 deaths, followed by two each in Surat and Bhavnagar and one each in Vadodara and Panchmahal.
In the past two days, the state has ramped up the testing for Covid-19 – compared to 1,944 tests as on Friday morning, by Sunday morning Gujarat had tested 2,354 – adding 410 in a matter of 48 hours. Majority of the testing is conducted in urban centres such as Ahmedabad and Surat.
Ravi said that out of total positive cases, the exercise is on to identify the source and also tracking all the persons who have come in contact with them. “Nine cases are such where the direct link is not established. However, they are the cases from the areas with higher concentration of Covid-19 cases,” she said.
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