New Delhi: An Army doctor, involved in the force’s operation against the Covid-19 pandemic, has tested positive for the novel coronavirus, while a colleague of his, who was exhibiting symptoms, has tested negative.
Army sources told ThePrint that the doctor, a lieutenant colonel-rank officer, had not travelled abroad, but was a visitor to quarantine centres being run by the Army.
“He has been visiting all the places where there are quarantine centres, including the one operated by the Army in Manesar, and the one in Narela which comes under the Delhi government,” a source said.
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ThePrint had reported on 3 April that an Army medical team was deployed at the Narela camp, the first time the force was sent to a civil centre set up to handle coronavirus cases.
However, sources said the doctor did not seem to have any direct contact with any Covid-positive patient. Contact-tracing is still being done according to protocol.
The doctor has now been moved to the Base Hospital for treatment. His immediate colleagues and family have been put under quarantine according to protocol, sources said.
The office block he works at has been sanitised and locked until 19 April, while the building he was staying at in the Delhi Cantonment has been put under lockdown.
Previous cases
On 29 March, an Army doctor holding a colonel rank, posted with the Command Hospital in Kolkata, and a Junior Commissioned Officer posted in Dehradun had tested positive for Covid-19.
A jawan who had earlier tested positive for the coronavirus in Ladakh has now recovered.
The coronavirus outbreak has been a major concern for all three services — Army, Air Force and Navy — which have issued their respective protocols to ensure that the virus does not spread among the ranks.
Also read: Army to set up isolation facilities for 16,000 people as India steps up Covid-19 testing