Kumbh Mela 2021: 65 healthcare personnel test positive for COVID-19

Rishikesh: Sixty-five healthcare personnel, including doctors, deployed on Kumbh duty have tested positive for COVID-19.

All of the affected healthcare workers have been kept in isolation, news agency PTI quoted officials saying.

A total of 751 healthcare personnel - 336 doctors and 415 nurses and paramedics - had been deployed in the Kumbh Mela area after being vaccinated. The Kumbh Mela area is spread over 641 hectares.

Apart from Delhi, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and other states, Telangana also has issued guidelines for the people returning from Kumbh. The Director of Public Health said all those who attended Kumbh Mela held from April 1 to April 17 should quarantine and maintain physical distance from family members for 14 days. 

They should wear masks even while at home, the Director said.

Those with symptoms like cold, cough, throat pain or headache should immediately get tested at nearest government COVID-19 test centres, which are providing free testing services.

People can dial 104 for any clarifications, said a statement from the Director`s office.

The Health Department has issued the advisory amid reports that several people who attended Kumbh Mela may have got infected by the virus.

Telangana is witnessing a massive surge in Covid cases. The state on Thursday saw 6,206 new cases and 29 deaths, the highest single-day fatalities since the pandemic broke out last year.

(With inputs from news agency PTI)

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