1,305 samples tested for nCov, 1,282 found negative, 20 under process, 3 test positive : Dr Vardhan

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New Delhi : Union Health & Famil Welfare Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan, in a Suo Moto statement in Rajya Sabha on February 7, 2020, on outbreak of Novel Coronavirus (nCov) in China and some other countries and the subsequent steps taken by the Government of India (GoI), said that as on February 6, a total of 31,161 confirmed cases and 636 deaths have been reported in China.

A total of 275 confirmed cases have been reported outside China from 27 countries (including HK, Macao and Taiwan). The number of cases and deaths reported from China is showing an upward trend, Dr Vardhan said. World Health Organization (WHO) has declared this outbreak as a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern” (PHEIC) on January 30, 2020, he said.

Dr Vardhan said that the Coronaviruses are large group of viruses that cause illness in humans and animals. Rarely, animal corona viruses can evolve and infect people and then spread among people such as has been seen with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome(SARS) in 2003 and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in 2014.

As of now 1,305 samples have been tested in India and 1,282 samples were found negative, 20 samples are under process and 3 samples have tested positive, the Minister said.

The GoI has also provided support to other countries in tackling the challenge posed by nCOV disease. ICMR has offered to do testing of samples for other South East Asian Region countries. Testing of samples from Maldives has already been undertaken, he said. Request from Afghanistan for samples testing has been agreed to. ” We have agreed to provide technical assistance to Bhutan in managing this infectious disease and screening of passengers also,” Dr Vardhan said.

China reported an outbreak of Novel Coronavirus on December 31, 2019. The outbreak was initially noticed in a seafood market in Wuhan city in Hubei Province of China in early December, 2019, and in a short span has spread to all the provinces of China, the Health Minister said.

He said that many of the epidemiological parameters such as incubation period, mode of transmission, subclinical infection, period of virus shedding etc. are still being researched. Once a person is exposed to the infection, it may take about 2 weeks to develop the illness.

The main symptoms of novel corona virus disease (2019-nCoV) are fever, cough, and difficulty in breathing. There will be radiological evidence indicative of pneumonia, Dr Vardhan said. In 10% to 20% of cases, disease may become severe enough to require ventilatory support. The case fatality is around 2%, he said.

Human to human transmission has been noticed in the cases of Novel Coronavirus and it spreads through droplets/aerosols in persons having close contact. Public health implications of the reports that the virus has been found in fecal samples of infected patients are being worked out, he said.

In India, three positive cases have been reported so far from Kerala, Dr Vardhan said and added all these cases have travel history from Wuhan, China. They have been isolated and are reported to be clinically stable.

He said that the ever increasing magnitude of this outbreak calls for a concerted effort by not only health but all sectors of Government. Government of India has initiated a series of action to prevent entry of the disease and to contain it. ” I am daily reviewing the situation,” he said. A Group of Ministers has been constituted to monitor the situation. Cabinet Secretary has taken daily reviews with all related Ministries.

The GoI has also taken several other measures to control the risk of novel Corona virus infection spreading to India. First Advisory was issued on January 17, 2020, and as situation is evolving, the travel advisories are accordingly getting revised. In view of a confirmed case in Nepal, the Government has initiated screening in all integrated check posts from Nepal in collaboration with states of UP, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Sikkim, Bihar, Seema Shastra Bal (SSB) and Land Port Authorities, Dr Vardhan said.

In view of the continuing lock down of the Hubei Province in China, the GoI decided to evacuate the Indian students and other professionals working in Wuhan and neighbouring cities in the Hubei Province, Dr Vardhan added. Two Special Air India flights were operated between Delhi and Wuhan on January 31 and February 2020 that brought back 654 passengers that included 647 Indian citizens (including two Indian Embassy officials who were on the ground in Wuhan to coordinate the evacuation operation) and 7 Maldivian nationals, he said, according to a PIB release.