First coronavirus case in the country reported from Kerala

Aditi Tandon
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, January 29 

The first confirmed case of novel coronavirus in India was reported in Kerala on Thursday. 

The patient is a student at Wuhan University, China. 

“The patient has tested positive for Novel Coronavirus and is in isolation in the hospital,” according to the Health Ministry. 

The patient is stable and is being closely monitored.

The sample of the student, who had returned from China recently, was confirmed positive by the National Institute of Virology, Pune.

The Health Ministry will share more details of the case later today.

Several people across the country are under observation for suspected exposure to the virus. 

At least 27 persons are under observation in Maharashtra and as a precautionary measure 10 of them have been quarantined—six at Kasturba Hospital in Mumbai, three at Pune’s Naidu Hospital and another at a hospital in Nanded.

Novel coronavirus belongs to the coronavirus family that causes illnesses ranging from the common cold to acute respiratory syndromes. 

The cause of the virus is not known yet and WHO is working with China to detect the source of infection.

Also Read:

• Coronavirus outbreak: IndiGo, Air India suspend most of China-bound flights
• Mohali man tests negative for coronavirus
• Wuhan to build 1,300-bed hospital within 10 days to battle coronavirus
  

  ---