Members of the coffee house staff who came in contact with him have also been quarantined. (Representational)

The iconic Indian Coffee House in Shimla has been closed till further orders after one of its employees skipped Covid-19 testing and quarantine after returning from Delhi in an unauthorised manner on Saturday, an official said.

The manager of the Indian Coffee House asked the employee to get himself quarantined and tested for the novel coronavirus before joining duty, but he allegedly refused to do so. The police were informed and subsequently, the employee was institutionally quarantined and an FIR was also registered against him, the official said.

His samples have been sent for Covud-19 testing.

The employee reached Shimla from Delhi in an unauthorised manner by dodging police at the Parwanoo barrier. After reaching Himachal Pradesh, he boarded a Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) bus to reach Shimla, the official added.

Members of the coffee house staff who came in contact with him have also been quarantined.

The Indian Coffee House, located in the heart of Shimla city, has hosted several personalities and prominent leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who visited it in 2017.

Meanwhile, 40 more people, including two army jawans, tested positive for coronavirus in state, taking the caseload to 1,458. Sixteen cases were reported from Solan, seven each from Kangra and Una, five from Sirmaur, two from Shimla and one each from Kullu, Hamirpur and Mandi, Additional Chief Secretary (Health) R D Dhiman said.

Nineteen patients recovered from the infection in the last 24 hours, he said, adding the virus has so far claimed 10 lives in state. A total of 1,030 people have recovered and 15 migrated out of the state, according to an official data. The number of active COVID-19 cases in the state now stands at 401, Dhiman said.