Indians from Wuhan not being brought to Bengaluru: Health Department

The state health department on Wednesday clarified that there is no official communication to shift passengers — who were brought back from China in the wake of coronavirus outbreak and who are isolated in Delhi — to Bengaluru.

On February 1, India flew 324 Indians from China’s Wuhan back home and on February 2, 323 more were brought. In all, 647 people including seven Maldivians and one Bangladeshi were admitted to two quarantine facilities set up by the army in Manesar, Gurugram, and the Indo Tibetan Border Police in Chhawla area in Delhi. Among them, seven were shifted to Safdarjung and AIIMS hospitals too.

“All these passengers have already been tested twice and have all been found negative for Covid-19 (Corona Virus Disease 2019). The number of people belonging to Karnataka is not known. They will be quarantined for the 28-day period as per protocol and then sent back,” said Dr Prakash Kumar, Joint Director, Communicable Diseases, Department of Health and Family Welfare.

The clarification came after members of the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike claimed passengers will be brought to Bengaluru. “KRV misinformed that passengers will be shifted to a BSF camp near Bengaluru. We issued a clarification to them,” said an official of the health department. KRV president Narayan Gowda could not be reached for comment. As on Wednesday, 208 people were under home isolation in the state and six had completed 28 days of observation. A total of 129 samples have tested negative and reports of two samples are awaited.