Gurdaspur's Qadian block 'containment zone'

Strap: Fresh case reported; reports of 244 Nanded returnees awaited

Tribune News Service

Qadian (Gurdaspur), May 2

Krishna Nagar locality of Qadian block, having a population of 2,000, has been declared a “containment zone” by the Health Department after a man tested positive for Covid.

It is the district’s second “containment zone” after Bhattian village, where three Nanded returnees had tested positive.

Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Ishfaq said he was supervising the security measures taken by the police at both places.

“All rules pertaining to “containment zones” are being followed. Nobody is allowed to leave the areas, barring people with medical emergencies. And, nobody is allowed inside the affected zones,” he said.

On April 23, Vijay Gupta of Krishna Nagar, developed a kidney problem following which he was rushed to a hospital in SAS Nagar. There, he was made to undergo Covid tests, which turned out to be positive. He is recuperating at the SAS Nagar hospital. The Batala police have stepped up vigil on the periphery of Krishna Nagar.

“Samples of all five immediate family members of Vijay Gupta have been taken and sent to a private lab,” said the DC.

Meanwhile, health officials are keeping their fingers crossed as results of the 244 samples are awaited.

“All these samples pertain to people who have returned from Nanded. We have put the hospital staff on alert. Here too, the number may be high. In any case, we have made all arrangements and there is absolutely no reason to panic,” said Civil Surgeon Dr Kishen Chand.

His optimism was not shared by several doctors of the hospital. They claimed that the facilities in the Health Department might collapse if the number of positive cases was on the higher side. In Hoshiarpur today, 32 Nanded returnees tested positive. In Gurdaspur, 244 samples were taken. “Let us hope for the best. The results are expected to arrive tonight,” said a senior doctor.