17 linked to Tablighi Jamaat congregation from Himachal
SHIMLA: Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday reported that about 17 persons, 14 of them from Chamba district alone, were part of the religious congregation of the blighi Jamaat held this month in New Delhi's Nizamuddin area. Senior government officials handling the Coronavirus cri- sis confirmed the presence of 17 persons in the congrega- tion which was also attended by preachers from COVID -19 affected countries like Indone- sia, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia.Deputy Commissioner Chamba Vivek Bhatia also informed the state govern- ment authorities at Shimla that the district administration has also traced the contacts of all 14 persons and a general alert has been sounded in the areas like Salooni, Tissa and Churah. None of them, however, had returned to the state as lock- down orders forced them to stay in Delhi. "All these per- sons have been sent to quaran- tine by the Delhi government. They will be kept there for next fourteen says," said additional Chief Secretary (Health) R D Dhiman, who is the state nodal officer for Coronavirus. The other three persons, two are from Paonta Sahib area of Sirmaur and one from Kullu. Both Deputy Commissioners have been told by the govern- ment to take necessary steps. But, the biggest fear is the fact as to how many persons have actually attended the religious congregation from Himachal Pradesh and had returned to their homes without inform-ing the authorities.
Some reports say those having already returned to their homes also hailed from dis- tricts of Una, Mandi and Sir- maur. The medical teams and districts administration are try- ing to identify such persons and families and know if any of them have shown the symptoms of Coronavirus. All three positive case of COVID 19 in Himachal Pradesh were foreign returnees. One of them a Tibetan has died while another have been fully cured and discharged. The final report of 63-year- old woman currently admitted at Dr Rajendra Prasad medical college, Tanda is awaited. Meanwhile, Himachal Pradesh government, on Tuesday extended the lockdown and curfew orders till April 14.
