Mumbai: The Maharashtra government raised an alarm as COVID-19 cases rose to 24 in Islampur city of the sugarcane-rich Sangli district in western Maharashtra.
What is worrying is that 12 people, who were confirmed to have contacted the virus on Friday, are from a single extended family. Some members of this family had returned from Saudi Arabia and later tested positive for the virus.
Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, along with Minister of Water Resources Jayant Patil, is expected to hold a dialogue with Sangli district collector Abhijit Chaudhari on Saturday to take stock of the situation.
Patil, who is the Sangli district guardian minister, said the patients in Islampur are being treated in Miraj Hospital. "The district administration has been asked to cordon off the area and close the borders of Islampur city," he added.
Four members of the family came back from Saudi Arabia on March 13. They tested positive on March 23. Thereafter, the district administration and health department kept 34 persons, who met those four persons, in isolation wards. Of those 34, five were later detected coronavirus positive.
On Mach 26, two more people connected to the same family and one from the adjoining Wadgaon in Kolhapur district were detected positive. The women from Wadgaon in Kolhapur district were staying with that family, informed district civil surgeon CS Salunkhe.
Dr Salunkhe said that all 24 coronavirus positive patients are stable, and they are on ventilators. Sangli district collector Abhijit Chaudhari and Dr Salunkhe said there is no need to panic as all 24 patients are under observation.
