india

Updated: Apr 02, 2020 19:31 IST

Two of the five patients who had tested positive for coronavirus in Goa have now tested negative in a subsequent test and are likely to be discharged from hospital and sent to a quarantine facility if their confirmatory test on Friday are also negative.

There have been no fresh cases in Goa for the third day in a row.

“Primary test for two patients out of five positive cases have tested negative, However, we are waiting for the second test that will be done in a gap of 24 hours as per guidelines. This encourages us to take corrective measures to ensure safety of citizens…,” Health Minister Vishwajit Rane said adding that the patients will continue at the special Covid Hospital and will be tested again and if they test negative will be discharged but will remain in quarantine.

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The news comes on a day when 48 samples that were sent to the National Institute of Virology in Pune tested negative.

“All the 48 samples sent to NIV, Pune have been reported negative,” Rane said.

Four of the five who had tested positive, had returned from abroad, while a fifth is the brother of one of the four.

Earlier Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said the state will be in the ‘safe zone’ if there were no new cases reported in the next few days and further until April 14 when the lockdown is scheduled to end.

“We sent 48 samples to Pune and 7 samples were tested locally. No quarantined patients are showing signs and symptoms. If the above samples are negative, then Goa is in a safe zone. Quarantined patients are checked day to day for signs and symptoms,” Sawant said.

Goa has quarantined around 160 people who had either returned from outside the state or had been in contact with persons who are suspected to have contacted the disease.