6 Tablighi Jamaat attendees test positive for COVID-19 in UP's Maharajganj

Six persons who attended Tablighi Jamaat event recently at Delhi's Nizamuddin, have been tested positive for COVID-19 here, said an official on Saturday.

While as many as 35 people who were close contacts of six infected persons have also been quarantined.

"Six Tablighi Jamaat attendees have tested positive for coronavirus in Maharajganj district. We have received test reports of 17 out of 21 attendees who are placed under quarantine," said Ujjawal Kumar, Maharajganj District Magistrate.

"35 close contacts of the 6 positive cases have also been quarantined," he added.

Moreover, the four villages from where the six people belong to are being sanitised and movement of people in these villages have been completely restricted to contain the spread of coronavirus, Kumar said.

The Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi has emerged as a hotspot for COVID-19 after several positive cases across India were linked to the gathering, including deaths in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana.

According to the Union Health Ministry and Family Welfare's latest bulletin, 174 people have tested positive for the lethal infection in Uttar Pradesh, including 19 cured and discharged and 2 deaths.