Adherence to lockdown keep Daman and Diu coronavirus free

Daman and Diu districts of Union Territory of Dra and Nagar Haveli have t reported any COVID-19 case so far, and ministration has attributed this to strict implementation of lockdown orders and commitment of 'corona warriors'.

re are nearly 2.5 lakh industrial workers in Daman and Diu, which are also quite popular among tourists, Union Territory's ministrator Praful Patel said on Sunday.

Despite bordering Gujarat and being close to Maharashtra, two of worst affected states, Daman and Diu have remained free of viral disease so far because public followed lockdown guidelines, he said.

While Dra and Nagar Haveli has reported 19 COVID-19 cases, re has been case so far in Daman and Diu.

"We have mand to achieve this success because our 'corona warriors' worked with full commitment. We succeeded in making people here to lockdown for 75 days. We mand to have zero cases in Daman and Diu because people followed lockdown with full commitment," Patel said.

However, authorities remain alert as Union Territory lies close to Gujarat and Maharashtra. According to data provided by health department of Union Territory, as many as 17,965 samples have been tested so far for COVID-19, including 12,130 in Dra and Nagar Haveli, 4,723 in Daman and 1,112 in Diu.

Of se, 19 samples from Dra and Nagar Haveli have so far tested positive for coronavirus, but ne from Daman and Diu, a health official said, ding that results of 1,039 samples are awaited.

As many as 6,026 people, including 3,444 in Dra and Nagar Haveli, 977 in Daman, and 1,605 in Diu, were kept under quarantine and completed mandatory period, he said.

As of w, 2,290 people are still under quarantine, official ded. "We have collected samples of people with travel history, those showing symptoms, and also random samples as per Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) guidelines," Union Territory's programme officer for communicable diseases Meghal Shah said.

"Travels were restricted during lockdown, and we screened and collected samples of each and every person travelling to Daman, Diu or Silvassa. w, with lockdown being eased, people can enter border through checkpost only with a valid e-pass," he said.