KORBA: Seven persons who had come in contact with Tablighi Jamaat members tested positive for coronavirus in Chhattisgarh's Korba district on Thursday, taking the number of cases in the state to 18, an official said.
All seven had come in contact with 16 Tablighi Jamaat members who were staying at a mosque in Purani Basti area of Katghora town in the district, he said.
The local police had claimed earlier that one of the Jamaat members had attended the organiation's congregation in Delhi last month.
A 16-year-old boy among these Jamaat members tested positive for COVID-19 on April 4, said Korba Collector Kiran Kaushal.
Samples of all those who came in contact with Jamaat members had been sent for testing, she said.
"All seven patients are being shifted to All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Raipur.
Another patient, a 52-year-old man who tested positive last night has already been admitted to AIIMS," the collector added.
The Katghora town, located around 200 km from capital Raipur, has been sealed, she said.
Family members of the infected persons along with over 200 families living in the area have been quarantined, Kaushal informed.
With this, total of 10 COVID-19 cases have been detected in Korba district so far.
Nine out of 18 patients in the state have been discharged from hospitals after recovering from the disease, a health official said.
A religious congregation organised by Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin in Delhi last month has emerged as one of the COVID-19 hotspots in the country.
According to Korba police, one of the 16 members of Jamaat who arrived in Katghora from Maharashtra had attended the congregation.
An FIR has been registered against all 16 for hiding their travel history and not cooperating with health staff for medical screening.