12 new coronavirus cases in Indore; MP tally reaches 98

Twelve more coronavirus patients have been found in Indore, taking the total number of such cases in Madhya Pradesh to 98, an official said on Thursday.

Of the total cases in the state, 77 per cent are from Indore, he said.

The 12 new patients include an 80-year-old woman and three from a family whose nine members earlier tested positive for coronavirus, an official of the Government Mahatma Gandhi Memorial college in Indore said.

Out of the total 98 coronavirus cases in the state, 75 have been reported from Indore, eight from Jabalpur, six from Ujjain, four from Bhopal, two each in Shivpuri and Gwalior and one from Khargone, health department official said.

Indore, which is an industrial hub, is the worst affected by coronavirus in the state.

Majority of COVID-19 patients in Indore have no travel history and they contracted the infection at the local level, the official said.

However, the health department has denied that the pandemic has entered the community transmission phase in Indore.

"The current situation of coronavirus in the city cannot be termed as community transmission stage. So far, majority of the affected persons are relatives or acquaintances who got the infection after coming in contact with each other, Indores chief medical and health officer (CMHO) Dr Pravin Jadia said.

The moment health department officials come to know about any coronavirus patient, they immediately try to find people who came in contact with the person and shift them to a quarantine facility, he said.

Since the outbreak of coronavirus infection in Indore, more than 600 people have been quarantined as a preventive measure.

Curfew has been imposed in Indore since March 25 after the coronavirus cases were detected in the city.

Six patients have so far died in the state, including three from Indore, two from Ujjain and one from Khargone, the official added.