The Minister of Health, Sriramulu stated on Sunday afternoon that 195 Kannadigas who had been stranded at Dubai, have been flown into Bengaluru International Airport (BIAL), and were undergoing testing for coronavirus.
In a tweet made at 12.07 pm, the Minister wrote: “195 Kannadigas who were in Dubai today have been brought to Bangalore International Airport. Since six of them have symptoms of COVID-19, they have been admitted to the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases Isolation Ward.”
He added that the remaining passengers were taken to Akash Institute of Medical Sciences.
Although the Department of Health and Family Welfare could neither corroborate or deny this statement, owing to a paucity of information, Dr Kailash N, the Medical Superintendent of Akash Institute confirmed that bus-loads of passengers had been arriving at the Institute for the last few hours, and that the Institute had made preparations yesterday to accommodate as many as 250 passengers, based on instructions from the government.
“At the moment, the information we have is that about 175 new passengers have been brought to the Institute and yes, they were in Dubai. Screening is going on at this moment. Six suspected cases have been admitted to Akash at this moment. Three people have been sent so far to RGICD,” he said.
Dr Kailash added that he had been informed by government officials that no further international flights were expected in the near future.
(Published 22 March 2020, 10:30 IST)
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