Bihar’s death toll rises to 13, Covid-19 cases up to 2,574

Bihar reported 13th death on Sunday, even as the Covid-19 positive cases continued to rise in the state. While the count of positive cases peaked to 2,511, the highest number of positive cases in last 24 hours was reported from Katihar, from where a sizeable chunk of population migrate to different parts of the country in search of work.

Since the arrival of migrant labourers in the state by train on May 3, 1,599 of them have tested positive for Covid-19, of which the highest of 392 has been from those who returned from Delhi. The migrants now account for 63.67% of the state’s total Covid-19 cases, said a health department official, adding till Sunday 63,741 samples had been tested.

Health department officials said the 60-year-old person from Majhauli in Siwan, who breathed his last at the NMCH on Sunday morning, was admitted to the hospital on May 22 after he complained of cough, fever and breathing problem.

Nodal officer NMCH, Dr Ajay Kumar Sinha, said the patient had a medical history of chronic pulmonary disease, diabetes and renal failure.

Another doctor of NMCH, Dr Mukul Kumar, said the patient was referred from sadar hospital, Siwan after he complained of breathing problem. “His condition was poor when he was brought to the NMCH for treatment, which further deteriorated on Sunday morning, after which he died. He had come to his village in Siwan from Kolkata on May 20,” he said.

Dr Kumar said four persons, including a one-month-old baby were discharged after they tested negative. So far, 702 people have recovered in Bihar.

Health secretary Lokesh Kumar Singh said the person from Siwan, who died at NMCH had tested positive on TrueNat machine, however, the officials were getting the confirmatory test done.

He said the 12th death of a person from Saran was reported on Saturday after he died at the PMCH. “However, the confirmation of his testing positive came on Sunday,” he added.

Of the 11 deaths earlier, two deaths each were reported from Patna, Khagaria and Vaishali, besides 1 each from Munger, Rohtas, Begusarai, East Champaran and Sitamarhi.

Health department officials in a press briefing here on Sunday said altogether 180 people had tested positive in last 24 hours. In Katihar, 38 positive cases were found, while 26 was reported from Barsoi, Kursela (8), one each from Masahi, Katihar Sadar, Ahmedabad and Bhimnagar.

In Banka 13 tested positive, Rohtas (11), Begusarai (9), which included a 28-year-old male prisoner of Begusarai district jail, Purnia (7), 6 each in Munger and Bhagalpur, 4 in Samastipur, 3 each in Kaimur, Shiekhpura, Gopalganj and Madhubani, 2 each in Aurangabad, Nalanda and Khagaria besides 1 each in Arwal, Jehanabad, Nawada, Jamui and Lakhisarai.

Meanwhile, Begusarai jail superintendent Brijesh Singh Mehta said the patient has not been identified yet. “After a computer operator was found positive a few days back, as a precautionary measure we kept those prisoners in a separate quarantine centre, who came in contact with him and later their swab samples were sent for test,” he said.

IPRD secretary Anupam Kumar, in his briefing said that till May 23, 11.72 lakh migrants had arrived in state by 805 trains. “On Sunday, another 1.73 lakh people came by 105 trains and in next 3-4 days, another 7.85 lakh migrants will reach Bihar by 476 trains. On Monday, 1.93 lakh migrants will reach state by 118 trains,” he said.

He said till date 133 disaster relief camps were running in the state in which 45,000 people were staying whereas the number of block quarantine centres had gone up to 15,036 in which 10.56 lakh migrants were putting up.