Ambulance driver bringing back Tripura patients from Chennai tests positive

Agartala, April 30

An ambulance driver, who brought back patients stranded in Chennai, has tested positive for COVID-19, senior minister Ratan Lal Nath said on Thursday.

Five persons from Udaipur town in Gomati district and Baikhora in South Tripura district had gone to Chennai for treatment, but got stuck after the lockdown was imposed. They hired an ambulance and the driver drove them over 3,200 km to reach Udaipur town on April 27.

“They were screened at Churabari on the Assam-Tripura border and were allowed to enter the state since they showed no symptoms. The driver was allowed to return as his pass was valid till April 28,” Nath told reporters at the secretariat.

“The swab samples of the driver and five passengers were collected for COVID-19 tests. The report of the sample of the driver, who is from Tamil Nadu, came in positive,” he added.

The reports of the swab samples of the other five persons were negative, Nath said.

The driver was located in Siliguri in West Bengal earlier in the day, he said. The five persons are now undergoing quarantine in Udaipur, the minister added.

“Though the reports of the five persons has come in negative, their samples will be tested again for reconfirmation. Their 14-day quarantine is not over yet. So, we shall test them again. Having no symptom doesn’t mean one isn’t infected by the virus,” he said.

The government is also trying to find out if anyone other than the passengers came in contact with the driver, Nath added.

The minister said about 40,000 people from Tripura were now stranded in various parts of the country, but so far only 6,000 have registered themselves with the state helpline to return home.

“It is a tough task to bring all of them back to the state as there is a huge risk in allowing them to enter. Our government is providing all kinds of help to the stranded people,” he said.

Tripura would soon start rapid testing for COVID-19, Nath said, appealing to people not to panic. He also urged people of the state not to conceal any Covid-like symptoms and report to the authorities.

Tripura reported two COVID-19 cases and both patients have recovered. At present, 307 persons are under surveillance in the state, including 231 in home isolation and 75 in quarantine centres. So far, only 4,613 persons have been tested. PTI