Odisha Minister of Textile and Handicrafts, Padmini Dian, on Thursday said she has tested positive for COVID-19, and was undergoing home isolation.
Ms. Dian is the third Minister in the State to have contracted the disease. Earlier, Higher Education Minister Arun Kumar Sahoo, and Labour Minister Susant Singh were diagnosed with the infection.
“I undertook sample tests after developing mild fever and came to know that I have contracted COVID-19 on Thursday morning. I am curretly undergoing home isolation,” the Kotpad MLA told PTI over phone.
She requested people who have come in contact with her recently to isolate themselves and undertake the test.
More than a dozen legislators in the State have so far contracted the infection.
In July, BJP MLA from Nilgiri, Sukanta Kumar Nayak, became the first legislator in the coastal state to test positive for the disease.
Two Lok Sabha MPs — BJP’s Suresh Pujari from Bargarh and BJD’s Manjulata Mandal from Bhadrak — were diagnosed with the disease last month.
Leader of Opposition and senior BJP leader Pradipta Kumar Naik has appealed to all MLAs and MPs to strictly adhere to COVID-19 protocols during the course of their work.
“The MLAs and MPs should take necessary precautions to guard against COVID-19 as people might need their help, in the midst of the pandemic and floods,” he said.
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