139 new cases push COVID-19 tally of Andamans to 1,764; death toll mounts to 21

COVID-19 caselo of Andaman and Nicobar Islands rose to 1,764 on Wednesday as 139 more people tested positive for infection, while one more fatality pushed its coronavirus death toll to 21, a health official said. All new cases were detected during contact tracing, he said.

fresh infections have pushed number of active cases in Union territory to 994, official said. Forty more people have been cured of disease, taking total number of recoveries in islands to 749, he said. A total of 67,828 tests per million have been conducted so far, official said.

Meanwhile, 27 crew members of inter-island passenger ship 'M V Coral Queen' have tested positive for infection, sources at Directorate of Shipping Services said. ship h left Port Blair for Little Andaman on July 30 and h returned next day. However, all passengers and crew members have been quarantined on ship anchored off coast since n, y said.

ir samples were collected on August 3 and results returned on Wednesday, sources said. Sanjay Kumar, secretary of local unit of Sailors' Union of India, has demanded that Directorate of Shipping Services provide medical kits to crew members of all ships operating in region.

He said 53 crew members and 10 passengers aboard 'M V Nancovery' that h sailed from Chennai to Port Blair last month, h tested positive for COVID-19. ting that passengers and crew members of 'M V Nancovery' have been home quarantined and some mitted to hospitals, Kumar appealed to islanders to avoid travelling by ships for time being.