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8 UK returnees detected with new COVID-19 strain in Maharashtra: State Health Minister Rajesh Tope

Meanwhile, Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray held a meeting with officials on the health of the eight patients and then decided to request the Centre to make quarantine of passengers returning to India from the UK, Middle East and South Africa mandatory.

8 UK returnees detected with new COVID-19 strain in Maharashtra: State Health Minister Rajesh Tope
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As many as eight returnees to Maharashtra from the UK have been found to be infected with the new COVID-19 variant health minister Rajesh Tope said on Monday, January 4.

Out of the total cases, five are from Mumbai, while there is one each in Thane, Pune and Mira Bhayander he said, adding contacts of all the COVID-19 patients with the UK strain are being traced.

Out of 4,000 returnees from the UK, 43 people have tested positive for COVID-19, out of which eight have the new variant, Tope said, citing results of their swab samples. The protocol to treat them is different and they have been isolated from the other COVID-19 patients, he added.

While addressing the media, Tope said, "Asymptomatic patients have been advised 14-day strict quarantine while those with compromised immunity such as (people with) diabetes and high blood pressure, among others, 21 days of quarantine, said the state health minister. The government has decided to treat the patients with symptoms till they get cured. We need to strictly follow COVID-19-appropriate behaviour such as frequently washing hands, use of masks and avoiding crowded places.”

Moreover, the Mumbai civic body said it has traced 40 close contacts of the five patients, and all 40 have tested negative. The COVID-19 cases in the state are seeing a decline, with the emergence of the new strain that spreads faster, the CM has asked the municipal commissioners in Mumbai, Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) and Pune to remain more vigilant in the wake of the new development.

Meanwhile, Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray held a meeting with officials on the health of the eight patients and then decided to request the Centre to make quarantine of passengers returning to India from the UK, Middle East and South Africa mandatory.

The decision came after it was discovered that people returning from the UK are taking flights to airports outside of Maharashtra. "It has been brought to the notice of the government that due to strict quarantine rules for UK returnees in Maharashtra, people returning from the UK are taking flights to airports outside the state. Later they travel to Mumbai to avoid quarantine," the chief minister's office said in a statement.        

The new coronavirus variant found in the UK is said to 70 per cent more infectious than the first one.

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