JAIPUR: Three out of four Covid cases in
Dungarpur have a recent travel history to
Maharashtra or Karnataka.
The tribal-dominated area has recorded 560 cases in the last four days and out of those, 370 entered the state a week before Holi either from Maharashtra or Karnataka. Areas such as Aspur, Simalwara and Sagwara have become hotspots in Dungarpur.
Holi in the tribal areas is followed by 8 to 10 day festive season. It is marked by the visit of its citizens from neighbouring states who live for 8-10 days post-Holi before they head back to their workplaces. This Holi, hundreds of tribals entered the state from Maharashtra, which is a major Covid hubs in the country.
Since these visitors are heading back to the respective workplaces, they require negative a RT-PCR test for which they are making a beeline. “During testing, their reports are coming positive. The worry is that they had already spent 5-10 days in their respective villages and have participated in the religious ceremonies,” said Dungarpur collector Suresh Kumar Ola.
Most of these people are from rural areas making the tracing more difficult for the administration. Their presence is also reflecting in other cities like
Udaipur, Chittorgarh and
Banswara.
They have travelled by buses which pass through Dungarpur before going to Udaipur or Jaipur via Chittorgarh. Most of these cases are asymptomatic and the administration, fearing a major spike in cases, has made preparations for institutional quarantine at the village levels.