The state of Rajasthan has witnessed its first death due to the Wuhan coronavirus, pushing the national tally of the deceased people from the enigmatic virus to 17. An elderly individual, exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19 was admitted to a hospital in Bhilwara. However, he succumbed to the virus during his treatment. Later, it was revealed in his report that he was tested positive for the novel coronavirus. Two more people who came into his contact have now reported positive for COVID-19.
According to the administration of the Medical College of Bhilwara, a 73-year-old Narayan Singh, who lives in Sabji Mandi, was admitted on Wednesday as a Corona suspect. Narayan Singh had earlier gone to Brajesh Bangad Hospital for getting his kidney dialysis done. The administration claimed that when he was brought to the Medical College, his condition was critical. He subsequently slipped off in coma and later died.
Regarding the death of the coronavirus patient in Bhilwara, the Additional Chief Secretary Health Rohit Kumar Singh said that the patient was suffering from co-morbid conditions such as diabetes, brain stroke and kidney and therefore it would be inappropriate to say that he died from coronavirus. Besides the deceased, his two relatives who have turned positive for the coronavirus are kept in the isolation ward, he said.
Singh, who died of coronavirus was admitted to Brajesh Bangad Hospital on 11 March. A day later, on March 12, 2 doctors of the hospital were found ill and were admitted to the hospital in Jaipur. Both were found infected for COVID-19. Following this incident, all the doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers of the hospital were tested for the virus. So far 16 of them have them tested positive. However, it is unclear whether all of them have contracted the virus from the same elderly individual.
Realising the gravity of the situation, the Rajasthan government has decided to screen the entire Bhilwara town for the novel coronavirus. Bhilwara was one of the first towns in the country where a total lockdown was imposed. Out of the 13.3 lakh people in the town, 6 lakhs have been already screened. All the routes leading to and from Bhilwara have been sealed to stem the spread of the virus.
The total tally of coronavirus patients in India has steadily climbed to 700. Maharashtra is leading the country in the total number of coronavirus cases as its count reaches 135-mark. With the virus already ravaging many of the advanced countries in the west, PM Modi had preemptively announced a total lockdown of the country till April 15 to blunt the spread of the virus and prevent the overburdening of the nation’s public healthcare system.