Five more test positive for coronavirus in Guj, total 44

The number of coronavirus cases in Gujarat increased to 44 on Thursday as five new cases came to light, officials said.

Three persons have died due to the highly contagious disease until now, they said.

From 39 cases on Wednesday,the number of coronavirus cases in Gujarat rose to 44 by Thursday evening, said Jayanti Ravi, Principal Secretary, Health.

One case each was reported in Ahmedabad, Surat, Bhavnagar, Gandhinagar and Rajkot, she told reporters in Gandhinagar.

The highest number of cases, 15, have been detected in Ahmedabad, followed by Vadodara (8), Gandhinagar (7), Surat (7) Rajkot (5) and one each in Kutch and Bhavnagar, she said.

A 70-year-old COVID-19 patient died in Bhavnagar district early Thursday morning.

According to Ravi, he had travelled to Delhi recently, and was also suffering from heart disease, diabetes and hypertension.

As many as 19,567 persons are under 14-day 'home quarantine'.

In a proactive measure to find out suspected cases, the state government has initiated on-site and off-site survey of each and every resident of Gujarat, and 2.21 crore persons have been screened under this massive drive till now.

"We are also gathering their travel history, both in the country and abroad. Till now, we have identified 86 persons having mild symptoms. We are hoping to wrap up the state-wide survey in the next one week," said Ravi, who was accompanied by Director General of Police Shivanand Jha at the press conference.

Jha said that 482 persons were detained during the last 24 hours for roaming outside without any valid reason, defying lockout.

Police will take action against those who violate restrictions on movement, he added.

To reduce crowds at shops and malls, Jha said the police has asked the owners to issue tokens to customers for effective social distancing.