Kerala declares Coronavirus as 'state calamity' after three people test positive

Kerala government on Monday declared the Coronavirus as a 'state calamity'. Health Minister K K Shailaja said on the advise of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan it has been decided to declare the epidemic as a "state calamity". The move was to take all necessary steps to ensure that the outbreak is effectively controlled, she told reporters on Monday night. 

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A 'state calamity'

The decision was taken hours after the third Coronavirus infection in India was confirmed. All three cases have been confirmed in Kerala, with the latest being a medical student. The patient is being kept in isolation in a ward at Kanhangad district hospital in Kasaragod.

Shailaja further told reporters, "Till date, 2,239 people, who traveled from Corona affected countries have been identified and placed under surveillance in the state, out of which 2155 are under home isolation and 84 have been admitted to isolation facilities."

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The fatal virus broke out in Wuhan in January and has claimed more than 425 deaths. Over 20,000 people with Coronavirus have already been confirmed in the country and the virus has spread to multiple countries across the globe. Multiple countries have started evacuating their citizens from the country, and have decided to restrict the entry of foreigners returning from China in their country. 

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The World Health Organization (WHO) declared coronavirus as a 'global public health emergency'. Director-General of WHO, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, "The vast majority of cases outside China have a travel history to Wuhan, or contact with someone with a travel history to Wuhan. We don’t know what sort of damage this 2019nCoV virus could do if it were to spread in a country with a weaker health system. We must act now to help countries prepare for that possibility. For all of these reasons, I am declaring a public health emergency of international concern over the global outbreak of 2019nCoV."

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