Punjab Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu speaks on pilgrims who returned from Hazur Sahib in Maharashtra's Nanded and several of them tested positive for coronavirus.
Punjab Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu has responded to the development where over a hundred pilgrims who returned from Hazur Sahib in Maharashtra's Nanded tested positive coronavirus saying they were under Maharashtra government's observation and it was their duty to implement centre's guidelines. He said their samplings and tests should've been done there (in Maharashtra) adding had they told us it hasn't been done, then the Punjab government would've sent two teams there.
"The teams would've tested them there and segregated them on its basis. We would have brought there here in separate buses. We would have kept the people who tested positive in isolation and the others in quarantine," Balbir Singh Sidhu said.
Further speaking on the situation, Punjab Health Minister said, "We're testing all pilgrims. We'll be able to control this within few days. We haven't allowed anyone to go home. Those who came to Tarn Taran directly had come after crossing 5-6 states. They weren't stopped on any border and entered Punjab but our government traced them."
In a development that will add additional trouble for the state in curbing the spread of coronavirus, over 500-pilgrims who were tested for possible coronavirus exposure after they returned from Maharashtra's Hazur Sahib in Nanded, 167 of them tested positive, as per reports. Out of 167, close to 149 tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday. There were over 4,000 pilgrims who were stuck in Hazur Sahib in Nanded since March when lockdown was imposed in the country. So far, reports of 577 pilgrims have been received by the concerned authorities out of 3,525 who have returned to Punjab.
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