8 more COVID-19 cases in Assam, total 13, all linked to Markaz

Guwahati: Eight more cases of coronavirus have been detected in Assam, taking the state’s total to 13 so far, informed state health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday night. All the cases participated in the Tablighi Jamaat gathering at Nizamuddin Markaz in New Delhi earlier last month. The reports came from a COVID testing lab in Jorhat.

Taking to Twitter, Sarma said, “Alert ~ 8 more #COVID19 positive cases in Assam, taking the total to 13. All eight new cases are of people who also participated in #TablighiJamaat congregation at #NizamuddinMarkaz. Update at 9 pm / April 1.”

This comes a day after the first COVID-19 case was reported in Assam. Md Jamaluddin, a 52-year-old resident of Karimganj, tested positive for the virus. He too was a participant at the Nizamuddin Markaz. He is being treated at Silchar Medical College.

Earlier in the day, the minister informed that four new cases had been confirmed at Gauhati Medical College & Hospital.

They were identified as Md Arshad Ali (19) from Nalbari district, Md Hazarat Ali (60) from Jagiroad, Md Nuruddin (55) from Jagiroad, Md Janab Ali (46) from Jagiroad.

Sarma said that unlike HIV cases where the patient’s name is not revealed, the names of COVID-19 patients are being released so that anyone who came in contact with them can come forward and get themselves tested.

The Assam government got a list of 547 people from the Centre for being in and around the Nizamuddin Markaz hotspot in March during a religious congregation. The health minister informed that of these 134 are not suspected prima facie, and 68 people haven’t come back to the state, which leaves roughly about 347 people in the state.

So far, 230 of these have been identified and located, and the state is working on contacting the others.