11 from Tripura who travelled with Manipur COVID-19 patient

Eleven persons, who travelled with the COVID-19 patient of Manipur, were identified as 'high-risk contacts' by the state health department on Tuesday, officials said.

The 23-year-old patient, who tested positive in Imphal after returning from the UK, reached Delhi from London on March 18 and took another flight to Kolkata, where she stayed for a few days with fever and a sore throat. From there she took a flight to Imphal via Agartala on March 21, official sources said.

An Airports Authority of India (AAI) official here said a list of passengers who travelled with the woman from Kolkata to Agartala was handed over to the Tripura government.

We handed over the details of the passengers to the state health department after we came to know that the woman was found to be COVID-19 positive in Imphal," the official said.

State nodal officer for coronavirus Deep Debbarma said 11 high-risk contacts were identified among the passengers who travelled with the woman.

Initially, we have identified 11 persons as high-risk contacts and they have been asked to go on self-quarantine at their respective homes. We expect to get the final test reports by Wednesday evening," he told reporters.

Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar said altogether 72 passengers from the state flew with the woman.

Meanwhile, four persons were arrested in the state during the day on charges of hoarding of essential goods, state food and civil supplies minister Manoj Kanti Deb said.

"We have conducted several raids to check hoarding. Anyone found to be involved in this type of crime would not be spared," he said.