A journalist, who was present at the press conference where Kamal Nath annouced his resignation as Madhya Pradesh chief minister on March 20, has tested positive for Coronavirus, sources in the state's COVID-19 task force told Outlook.
The said journalist's daughter had earlier tested positive for COVID-19, the first confirmed case in Bhopal. However, the journalist, sources say, continued attending to work and public functions at a time when the state was in the miuddle of a political chaos. The journalist is also related to a local Congress leader.
He had attended Nath's press conference on March 20 and interacted with several mediapersons and Congress leaders at the Chief Minister's House on Shamla Hills. An estimated 200 people were present at Nath's briefing.
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There are unsubstantiated reports of the journalist also meeting a key advisor to Nath during the press conference. However, it is not clear yet whether the advisor, or Nath himself, have gone into self-quarantine as per the protocol to prevent the spread of deadly virus.
An official with the Integrated Disease Surveillance Program (IDSP) in Bhopal told Outlook that mediapersons and political leaders present at the conference, even those who may not have come in direct contact of the said journalist, will now be advised to self-quarantine.
The IDSP is in the process of drawing out a list of people present at Nath's press conference so that these individuals can be visited by health experts to check if any of them showed symptoms of coronavirus.
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"Swab samples will be taken from any individual, who displays symptoms and we will continue to monitor the others as well," a source familiar with the development told Outlook.
