Govt identifies 9,000 Tablighi Jamaat workers and their contacts, places them in quarantine

The Union Home Ministry on Thursday asserted that it has identified 9,000 Tablighi Jamaat workers and their contacts, and have placed them in quarantine. Addressing a joint press conference, the Home Ministry Joint Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava clarified that out of these 9000 people, 1306 are foreigners and the rest are Indians.

Speaking on the Tablighi Jamaat of Nizamuddin Markaz, she said that there are 2,000 workers in Delhi and 250 foreigners. A total of 1800 people have been quarantined and 334 admitted for treatment. She added that investigation is going on on the matter

Adding to this Health Ministry official Luv Agarwal said, "About 400 COVID-19 positive cases found whose epidemiological linkage can be traced to Tablighi Jamaat cluster." He added that 328 new positive cases of COVID-19 has been reported and 12 new deaths since April 1.

Speaking on the doctors working during this crisis, he said that cases of doctors on duty testing COVID-19 positive are limited, adding that it is important to follow infection prevention control at hospitals. Agarwal added that orders have been placed for procurement of over 1.5 crore personal protective equipment (PPEs) and supply has already started. "Domestic indigenous manufacturing of N-95 masks has been stepped up," he added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi outlined that the common goal for the country is to ensure minimum loss of life from the deadly coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. Interacting with the chief ministers of all the states via video conferencing to discuss measures to combat COVID-19, PM Modi asserted that in the next few weeks, testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine should remain the areas of focus.

He highlighted the necessity of maintaining the supply of essential medical products, availability of raw material for the manufacture of medicines and medical equipment. The PM said it is necessary to ensure the availability of separate, dedicated hospital facilities for COVID-19 patients. To increase the availability of doctors, he asked the states to tap into the resource pool of AYUSH doctors, organize online training and utilize para-medical staff, NCC and NSS volunteers.