Goa CM Pramod Sawant says community transmission may have begun in Goa

'Community transmission' of coronavirus had already begun in Goa, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant admitted on Friday

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Friday admitted that "community transmission" of coronavirus has begun in the state.

"We are getting cases across Goa. At present, when there is transmission all across the state, it has gone from one patient to another. Of course, we will have to say there is community transmission. We have to accept that," Sawant told reporters at a press conference.

He said that the state government has put in place stringent Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). He asserted that Goa is the only state which either tests the persons entering here or sends them to compulsory 14-day home quarantine.

The Goa government had already declared the Mangor Hill area in South Goa's Vasco town and Morlem village in North Goa's Sattari Taluka as containment zones. Also, few other areas have also been sealed after being declared as mini containment zones.

As per the Goa Health Department's bulletin, 44 new cases of COVID-19 were reported on Friday in the state taking the total count to 1,039. The total number of COVID-19 active cases in the state is 667.