Nine of 10 COVID-19 positive persons in Andaman had attended Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi

Deputy Director Heath and Nodal Officer in Andaman and Nicobar, COVID-19 Abhijit Roy, on Tuesday informed that nine out of the 10 people who tested positive for coronavirus in the Islands had attended a Tablighi Jamaat event at the Jamaat's headquarters in Delhi's Nizamuddin.

"Nine out of the 10 people who have tested positive for coronavirus in Andaman and Nicobar had attended Tablighi Jamaat event at Markaz Nizamuddin in Delhi. The wife of one of these people later tested positive," said the nodal officer.

The designated laboratory for COVID-19 in Andaman and Nicobar, RMRC-ICMR, Dollygunj has tested 33 likely COVID-19 cases on March 29, out of which only one was found positive, said the Union Territory administration.

The total number of cases found positive in the Union Territory stands at 10 out of 99 samples tested to date.

Earlier, Chetan Sanghi, Chief Secretary of Andaman and Nicobar Islands had urged people to not panic or believe rumours. He assured them doorstep delivery of groceries and medicines amid total lockdown in the Union Territory.

In a bid to contain COVID-19 spread, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called a 21-day nationwide lockdown which started from March 25. He urged people to stay home and maintain social distancing to prevent the transmission of coronavirus.

Meanwhile, the death toll in India due to COVID-19 has risen to 32 and the number of total coronavirus cases reached 1,251 on Monday. There are 1,117 active cases in the country, as per the Union Health Ministry data.