BERHAMPUR:  Two under-trial prisoners (UTPs) lodged in Circle jail and an anganwadi worker of Chikiti block were among the 64 persons who tested positive for coronavirus in Ganjam district in the last 24 hours.

Over 15 personnel of Jarada police station (PS) who came in direct contact with the UTPs have been asked to remain under quarantine and another team of cops will take temporary charge of the PS.

The accused were arrested by Jarada police separately on May 3 and 4 for their alleged involvement in a murder case. They were forwarded to a local court which remanded them in judicial custody on June 4.

As per the standard protocol, before being shifted to the jail the UTPs were taken to City Hospital where their swab samples were collected for the Covid-19 test.

Berhampur SP Pinak Mishra informed that the Jarada PS has been disinfected and all staff asked to go for self-isolation. Efforts are underway to find out their source of infection and contact tracing is on.

Circle jail authorities informed that immediately after the two UTPs were brought to the jail, they were quarantined at the isolation ward. The ward was sanitised after the UTPs were shifted to Covid-19 hospital.

However, the district administration is silent on how many City hospital and jail staff came in contact of the two while collecting their samples and providing them food in the isolation ward respectively.

This is the second incident of jail inmate testing positive for coronavirus in the State.

An Anganwadi worker of Badabaranga village under Chikiti block was also found positive on Friday night. Her samples were collected along with those of the other frontline workers at TMCs on June 1.

Since she was asymptomatic, the worker was allowed to go home. She returned to her anganwadi centre the next day and distributed food and eggs to children and pregnant women in the area. Besides, the worker attended two meetings in the block. When her report came out positive, a team of health officials brought the worker to Covid-19 hospital.

A migrant worker who completed his institutional quarantine period and went to his home at Surangi village near Chikiti was also found positive. However, he could not be traced till Saturday.

Meanwhile, the number of positive cases in the district has risen to 597 while 389 patients have recovered from the disease so far. All the 64 positive patients are returnees and many of them were under home quarantine. 

Sources said as of now, 1.5 lakh migrants have returned to the district another 2 lakh are expected to arrive this month. Currently, over 1 lakh returnees are under home isolation.

Collector Vijay Amruta Kulange took to the Twitter to inform that there is no community transmission in Ganjam. He asked sarpanchs to ensure that returnees do not violate home quarantine norms.