Coronavirus scare in Noida, two schools shut: What we know so far

india

Updated: Mar 03, 2020 15:16 IST

On Tuesday morning, it was reported that a school in Noida has been shut for the next few days as the children of the Delhi man, who recently tested positive for coronavirus, study there and skipped school on Monday. Another premier school in Noida issued a statement saying it will remain shut until March 9 as a precautionary measure.

“We are sanitising the Shriram Millennium School as a precautionary measure. A few students from the school attended a birthday party hosted by the Coronavirus patient from Delhi on February 28. We have called for a parents’ meeting to spread awareness on the issue so that there is no panic. We are in touch with the school authorities and parents to ensure that all the required precautions are taken by the affected persons,” said Dr Anurag Bhargava, Chief Medical Officer, Gautam Budh Nagar.

A spokesperson for Shriram Millennium School said that a formal statement will be issued later today.

Noida’s Shiv Nadar School was the second one to take the precautionary measure and remain shut until March 9 .

“It has been decided to close Shiv Nadar School until the 9th of March in order to sanitize our spaces and completely remove all scope for the further spread of this virus,” read the official statement from the school.

According to reports, the man from Delhi recently travelled to Italy and was diagnosed for the virus at Delhi’s RML (Dr Ram Manohar Lohia) Hospital.

India on Monday confirmed two positive cases of coronavirus infection - one in the national capital and another in Hyderabad.

“Both the patients had self-reported after they developed symptoms. They tested positive. They are stable and being closely monitored,” Union health minister Harsh Vardhan said.

Hyderabad techie tests positive

The coronavirus patient in Hyderabad, Telangana had a travel history to Dubai, the government said on Monday, adding that both the cases are currently stable.

The 24-year-old man, a software engineer who works in Bengaluru, had worked with people from Hong Kong in Dubai last month where he is suspected to have contracted the virus.

The man reached Bengaluru on around February 20 and later came to Hyderabad in a bus.

Fear grips Rajasthan

There was another report of an Italian man testing positive for the virus, the central government has not confirmed the case yet.

Karnataka admin on alert

Karnataka Health Minister B Sriramulu has said that a medical team is monitoring the health condition of all those people who had stayed with the coronavirus-hit techie who has tested positive. Sriramulu also called a meeting of top officials of his department today.

With the latest developments, the total number of coronavirus cases in the country mount to five. India, earlier, had reported three positive cases of coronavirus - all in Kerala. All three patients recovered from the infection.

Dozen countries under scanner

India is now suspecting emergence of cluster cases of the virus and has stepped up the level of preparedness.

As many as 12 countries are under the scanner for possible spread of the infection. The nations include China, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Italy, Nepal and Iran.

Massive screenings

While over 10 major and more than 50 minor seaports across the country are being screened, as many as 21 major airports are also conducting screenings.

More than 5 lakh people have been screened at the airports while around 10 lakh have been screened at the international borders.

The diagnosis

Samples of suspected infection are tested for Reverse Transcription Polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) which works by amplifying the DNA of the virus to check against the coronavirus sequencing.

Whole-genome sequencing is also done along with the testing of blood samples for the presence of antibodies against coronavirus.

The symptoms

The most common initial symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, a dry cough and shortness of breath - essentially flu-like symptoms.

Coronavirus across the globe

Around 3,000 people have lost their lives in the wake of the virus outbreak in China. Outside China, there have been more than 8,800 cases and 130 deaths, with secondary outbreaks in Iran and northern Italy.

Over 60 countries have confirmed positive cases with Saudi Arabia confirming its first positive case on Tuesday.

Elsewhere, virus cases were reported for the first time in Tunisia and Jordan, and there were 10 new cases in Kuwait, six each in Iraq and Bahrain, four more in Qatar, three in Lebanon, two in Iraq and a second case in Egypt.

Almost all those infected in the Middle East have recently travelled to Iran, or have been in contact with someone who has been there.

In Iran, the number of those infected rose by 523 to 1,501, and the death toll from the virus rose from 54 to 66, according to Arab News.

A team from the World Health Organisation arrived in Tehran on Monday with medical supplies, protective equipment for health care workers and laboratory kits to test nearly 100,000 people.