Italians visited 6 Raj districts, came in contact with 215

Jaipur, March 4 (IANS) Rajasthan Health Minister Raghu Sharma said in the Assembly, here on Wednesday, around 215 people came in contact with the 23-member Italian tourists' group, suspected to be coronavirus carriers, which visited six districts between February 21 and February 29.

Of the 93 samples collected from these people, 51 had tested negative and 42 reports were awaited, he said.

Sharing details of the Italian group's travel in Rajasthan, Sharma said they, including the Italian who tested positive for coronavirus, arrived at New Delhi airport on February 21 from Italy and reached Mandawa (Jhunjhunu) Hotel Castle by bus the same day. On February 22, they reached Ganjakesari Hotel Bikaner, stayed at Rangmahal Hotel in Jaisalmer on February 23-24, Dal Hotel Jonpark, Jodhpur, on February 25, Hotel Trident Udaipur on February 26-28 and Hotel Ramada, here, on February 28.

On February 28, the patient was admitted to Fortis Hospital, Jaipur, due to health issues. He was examined on February 29 after being admitted to the isolation ward of SMS Hospital on suspicion of coronavirus infection. But he tested negative, the Minister said. However, in the seocnd examination he tested positive, Sharma added.

Even the Institute of Virology, Pune, report confirmed the case of coronavirus. His wife's samples, which tested positive at the Jaipur lab on Tuesday, has been sent to Pune for cross-verification, according to the Minister.

Samples of people who came in contact with these Italian travellers have also been collected and sent for testing. Of the 59 people who came in contact with them, 39 samples have been collected from Jhunjhunu, one each from Jodhpur and Udaipur, and samples of six staff of the Jaipur hotel. All these samples have been sent to SMS Hospital.

At Fortis, the Italian man came in contact with 35 people. Of this, 9 samples have been collected along with 37 samples from SMS Hospital.

In Bikaner, they came in contact with 44 people. But no one has been tested. Of the six people he came in contact in Udaipur, one has been tested. In Jaisalmer, he came in contact with 14 people, but no one has been tested.

The Minister said the nodal officers of Udaipur, Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Jhunjhunu, Jodhpur and Jaipur districts, which the Italians visited, had been instructed to collect samples and also arrange for their isolation.