Meghalaya sends 90 samples for COVID-19 test, awaits report

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaApril 14, 2020

Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Tuesday informed that as many as 90 samples were collected and sent for tests after a senior doctor of Bethany Hospital was tested postive for COVID-19, the first case recorded in the state. 

“Within 18 hours (after the first case was reported), we have collected 90 samples and we are waiting for the results of the tests,” Sangma told reporters after a cabinet meeting here.

Sangma said over 200 primary contacts, who have had directly met and interacted with the COVID-19 patient, have been established. 

According to him, most of these primary contacts are from Shillong city and few from Nongpoh in Ri Bhoi district. 

He further said that the government has also gone down to establish the secondary contacts. 

Stating that more tests will be conducted, the CM said, “We have also asked the Assam government to support us in the testing so that we can have more tests conducted every day.”

Also Read| Meghalaya records first case of COVID-19, doctor tested positive

“Our basic strategy will really be identify, isolation and testing…the process is going to follow for few days till we are able to zero down and close the loop of any kind of transmission that is possibly there,” he added.

The chief minister also said that the entire corona task force of the state have sprung into action immediately after the positive case was reported yesterday. 

“We had a meeting yesterday with the officers and discussed about the plan of action ahead,” he informed. 

He said the particular institute have been instructed to completely shut and its staffs have been asked to quarantine.

The state government has asked all citizens who had visited the Bethany hospital in Shillong on or after March 22 to voluntarily register with the government. 

Also Read|Meghalaya govt decides to extend lockdown till April 30

Meanwhile, the health department has suspected that the first COVID-19 patient and senior doctor of Bethany Hospital with no travel history might have contracted the contagious from his son-in-law who is a pilot. 

In a letter to Union health and family welfare ministry, State’s Commissioner & Secretary in-charge Heath & Family Welfare Sampath Kumar informed that the pilot had travelled from New York to New Delhi on March 15 and on March 17, he travelled from New Delhi to Manipur’s Imphal.

He flew back to to Delhi on March 20 and on March 24, he had again travelled from Delhi to Shillong.

“He was placed under home quarantine after registering himself from March 24 to April 7 last,” Kumar said. 

He informed that the state surveillance team visited the pilot during the quarantine period.

Meanwhile, the state Health Department has taken all containment measures after the senior staff from the Bethany Hospital tested COVID-19 positive at North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS).

Kumar said the patient’s COVID-19 positive status was also confirmed by NIV, Pune.

He said the state Health department has started contact tracking of the patient and had restricted movement of people within the vicinity as per containment protocol of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.