A day after chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat announced cancellation of forthcoming adventure and wellness summits in the state in view of coronavirus scare, the state government on Friday told the assembly that there has been not a single confirmed coronavirus case in Uttarakhand.
Urban development minister Madan Kaushik told the House that 30,000 people have been examined at 17 locations so far but no one was found infected with the virus. A total of 241 isolation wards have been set up in the state and doctors have been given the training required to handle any crisis situation, the minister added.
Earlier, the state government had announced to postpone its adventure summit, which was scheduled to start in Ramnagar from March 20, as well as a wellness summit, which was to be held in Dehradun from April 17. “I have spoken to district magistrates and chief medical officers. Our teams are on high alert,” CM Rawat told mediapersons when queried about the state’s preparedness in view of the virus threat.
Meanwhile, the state tourism department has begun preparations for the Char Dham Yatra commencing from April 26. The department is planning a health check-up of all pilgrims who will come for the yatra. “Though it will be a tough task, we cannot take any chances. He added that scanning of the pilgrims would be done so that any suspected patient can be isolated from the crowd. “For the purpose, teams of doctors will be deployed at different key locations on the Char Dham route,” said Maharaj.
