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In Uttarakhand, three weddings spark a chain of Covid-19 cases

Hindustan Times, Dehradun | BySuparna Roy| Edited by Sabir Hussain
Jul 14, 2020 04:42 PM IST

The spurt in Covid-19 cases in the state have forced authorities to clamp lockdown in three areas of Kumaon division for three days.

Three weddings spread across Dehradun, Udham Singh Nagar and Tehri Garhwal districts of Uttarakhand that led to a sudden spurt in Covid-19 cases in the state have forced authorities to clamp lockdown in three areas of Kumaon division for three days.

In Tehri Garhwal district, over 40 people have been quarantined after a driver who was part of a marriage procession tested positive for Covid-19 on Monday.

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“The marriage procession was going to Anjanisain area of the district from Punjab on Monday when our officials at the district border took samples of everyone as a precautionary measure. We are conducting the tests through the True-Nat machine so that results can be declared the same day. After taking the samples, we asked the people to wait till the results are declared, but they said they were getting late for the auspicious time for the wedding and they left,” said Mangesh Ghidiyal, district magistrate of Tehri Garhwal district

Later, the driver tested positive after which all members of the bride and groom’s family were quarantined.

“Rigorous contact tracing is still underway in the district. Those who attended the wedding will be monitored closely. As per the latest guidelines, people coming to the state for a wedding or short stay need not be quarantined, but must follow all norms of social distancing. However, the risk always remains because in a wedding, the family members meet a lot of people,” the district magistrate.

Over 70 cases have been reported from Udham Singh Nagar district over Sunday and Monday with most cases being traced back to a wedding that took place in Kashipur.

Due to the increasing cases, a lockdown has been imposed in three urban local bodies of US Nagar district. After Kashipur, the lockdown was imposed in Rudrapur and Bazpur for the next three days from Monday night. On Tuesday, the lockdown in Kashipur was extended till July 17

“Lockdown has been imposed for three days in the urban area of Rudrapur from Monday night. Bazpur urban and rural area both will be under lockdown for next three days,” said Neeraj Khairwal, district magistrate, US Nagar.

Earlier, Omaxe colony in Rudrapur was declared a containment zone on Sunday as some persons were tested Covid-19 infected but on Monday evening district administration imposed a complete lockdown in urban areas of Rudrapur. No business or commercial activities apart from essential services are allowed in these areas.

Apart from this, a doctor, an employee of the government hospital in Rudrapur and his wife tested positive on Sunday, officials said.

Traders in the Bazpur had been demanding a lockdown to curb Covid-19 after some traders also tested positive for the virus.

Earlier, additional superintendent of police (ASP) Devendra Pincha inspected barriers set up on route along Uttar Pradesh border and instructed police staff to keep vigil strictly and let not to cross the border who have no valid pass, said an official.

In Dehradun, days after a groom tested positive for Covid-19, the bride and 15 other wedding guests tested positive for the virus on Sunday.

“After the groom tested positive on July 8, the bride and 15 other people who were wedding guests had been quarantined and tested. They all tested positive on Sunday. We are expecting that more people who attended are likely to test positive as they were close contacts of those infected,” said Dr. Rajiv Dixit, nodal surveillance officer for Covid-19 in Dehradun district.

Under the latest guidelines of Unlock 2.0, the state government had said that asymptomatic bride/groom and their relatives traveling from high load Covid-19 infected cities shall be exempted from being quarantined. However, they shall not be permitted to visit any public places, except the banquet hall or community hall concerned.

Asymptomatic persons traveling to the state for a maximum period of three-days will be exempted from quarantine.

Uttarakhand has so far reported 3, 608 Covid-19 cases out of which with 2,856 people have recovered .

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