Telangana: All 1,200 Tablighi Jamaat attendees to be screened, says State Health Minister

Telangana Health Minister Etela Rajender on Wednesday informed that as many as 1,200 people from the state had attended Tablighi Jamaat gathering in Delhi and the State government will screen all of them for COVID-19.

The Health Minister said that Telangana reported its first COVID-19 case on March 2. Since then, the authorities have quarantined 26,000 people, of whom only 31 positive cases were found. He said that the State was expected to be free from the virus, but since some people attended the Tablighi Jamaat event, many more have tested positive for Coronavirus. 

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"Around 1,200 people from Telangana had attended Tablighi Jamaat gathering in Delhi's Hazrat Nizamuddin, some of them were found COVID-19 positive, six of them died. In the last three days, only those who had gone to Delhi for Markaz have tested positive for COVID-19. We are screening all those who attended the gathering. We have traced more than 700 people. We are isolating them and providing them treatment," Etela Rajender told mews agency ANI.

Telangana Public Health and Family Welfare Department said that 15 people who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi in March have been diagnosed with Coronavirus Telangana. Their relatives have also tested positive. The department said that currently, there are 77 active COVID-19 positive cases in the state.

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15 positive cases among Nizamuddin Markaz attendees

Telangana government reported 15 new COVID-19 positive cases on Tuesday, March 31 -- all of who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Markaz Nizamuddin in Delhi. Telangana Health Minister, E Rajender, said that these people are undergoing treatment at different hospitals in the state. 

This came a day after the Telangana government informed that six people from the state had died of coronavirus infection after their return from the Tablighi Jamaat congregation.

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(With inputs from ANI)