Meghalaya: 56 more tested COVID-19 positive, tally rises to 702

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaJuly 26, 2020

The state is continuing to witness a huge surge in COVID-19 cases as 56 more persons have contracted the infection on Sunday, taking the total active cases to 562.

With this, over 167 persons have been tested positive for coronavirus during the past three days. The rise in the cases is observed after the state government started to conduct random testing and tracing contacts of positive cases.

Director of Health Services (MI) Dr Aman War told reporters that the 56 new cases include 37 in East Khasi Hills, 9 in Ri Bhoi, 5 in East Jaintia Hills, 3 in West Khasi Hills, 1 in West Jaintia Hills and 1 in North Garo Hills.

In Shillong, he said the 37 cases include 23 BSF troopers of which two are returnees before July 23 while twenty-one others are contacts of positive cases in Umpling, 9 civilians include 4 returnees from Bihar and Assam, three residents of Marbisu are contacts of a staff nurse in NEIGRIHMS, 1 is a contact of Mawpat case and 1 from Laitumkhrah, while 4 armed forces personnel who are returnees.

The 9 cases detected in Ri Bhoi include five armed forces personnel, three returnees from Assam and one is an attendant of a patient at Reid Chest TB hospital.

Dr War informed that a staff nurse at the Pamra-paithlu Public Health Centre was among the five tested positive for the disease in East Jaintia Hills while the four others are contacts of a positive case detected during a random testing conducted in the area.

“We are doing the contact tracing and would also find out how the staff nurse of the PHC had contracted the virus,” he said.

The DHS said the three cases in West Khasi Hills are police personnel who are returnees from Assam and Delhi while the case in North Garo Hills is a staff of the Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeECL) and the case in West Jaintia Hills is a returnee from Assam.

“With fresh cases, the total active cases in the state have increased to 562,” he informed.

East Khasi Hills is the worst hit district as it accounted for 470 active cases of which 270 are BSF troopers, 167 are civilians and 25 are armed forces personnel.

There are 50 cases in Ri Bhoi, 15 in West Garo Hills, 13 in East Jaintia Hills, 10 in West Jaintia Hills, 4 in South West Garo Hills, 2 in South Garo Hills, 2 in North Garo Hills and 1 in East Garo Hills.

Dr War further informed that a total of 41 patients including 39 from BSF and 2 civilians have recovered from the infection on Sunday taking the total recovery in the state to 135.

The state has so far registered a total of 702 positive cases while five have succumbed to the disease.