A doctor in Karnataka, who treated the first patient to die from the novel coronavirus in India, has tested positive for the virus, ANI reported on Tuesday. He had treated the 76-year-old man who died in Kalaburagi district on March 12 following his return from Saudi Arabia. The patient’s samples were tested positive last week after his death.
The 63-year-old doctor and his family have been put in quarantine in their home, Deputy Commissioner of Kalaburagi Sharat B told ANI. “He will be sent to an isolation ward later on Tuesday,” he added. He is the second new case of COVID-19 reported in Karnataka, which now has a total of 10 confirmed cases.
India recorded its third death from the global pandemic on Tuesday after a patient died in Maharashtra. India has instructed states to impose a lockdown of schools, colleges, gyms and swimming pools. After a meeting of a Group of Ministers, the government advised that people avoid non-essential travel and employees of private companies work from home. These measures are an attempt to enforce distance between people, a proven way to slow pandemics.
The novel coronavirus has infected at least 175,536 people, and killed 7,007 worldwide, according to an estimate from Johns Hopkins University, which is tracking cases reported by the World Health Organization and additional sources. China has the highest number of fatalities at 3,213, followed by Italy with 2,158 deaths and almost 28,000 cases.
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