GUWAHATI, April 9 – While around 75,000 people will complete their mandatory quarantine of 14 days tonight and are likely to be released tomorrow if they do not show any negative symptom, one more person has tested positive for COVID-19 in Dhubri district, taking the total number positive cases in Assam to 29.
He has been identified as 35-year-old Rahimuddin of Bilasipara. He was in touch with Dhubri’s earlier COVID-19 positive patient who had travelled to Nizamuddin.
Meanwhile, the condition of Hailakandi’s Faizul Haque Barbhuiya, who tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday, was stated to be “alarming”.
Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said while other parameters of the 65-year-old patient from Hailakandi are stable, his oxygen saturation was decreasing.
Barbhuiya, who has a travel history to Saudi Arabia and Nizamuddin Markaz, was being shifted to ICU of Silchar Medical College Hospital for better monitoring.
However, on the positive side, four to five of the total 28 patients were stated to be improving.
“We are hopeful that about four-five COVID-19 patients will be discharged in a day or two. Doctors have indicated that it could be possible to discharge them, but we will know for sure later,” Sarma said.
He said health workers were screening the 75,000 people whose quarantine period will end tonight.
“These are mostly people who were working outside and had returned just before the lockdown. If they do not show any negative symptom by tonight, they will be released tomorrow,” Sarma said, adding that it would be a big relief for the government.
The minister today visited Srirampur on the Assam-Bengal border where around 600 Assam citizens were stuck as they were in transit the day lockdown was imposed. They completed their 14-day quarantine today.
“We’re initiating the process to send them back homes after check-up. I visited and enquired about their health with my colleagues,” he said.
On the people who visited Nizamuddin, the minister said around 10-15 were still untraced.
“We are going to initiate stern action against those. In fact, a case is also being filed against the patient from Dhubri. Without disclosing his travel history, he had visited several hospitals before testing positive, risking the lives of doctors and other patients. Because of him, we had to quarantine many doctors and nurses,” Sarma said.
Meanwhile, official sources said any move by the State government to ease the norms of lockdown will be guided by the Central government’s decision.
“The State government is not going to take any decision on its own. The Prime Minister is consulting experts and all state governments. The Central government decision is likely to be announced on April 12 or 13, after which the State will take a call. We will have to balance the health concerns as well as socioeconomic needs,” the sources said.
