Govt. asks states/UTs to launch contact tracing of Tablighi Jamaat participants on war footing

New Delhi, April 1 (PTI): The Centre on Wednesday asked the states and Union Territories to launch on a “war footing” the contact tracing of all participants of the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi’s Nizamuddin, which has emerged as the coronavirus hotspot.

In a video conference with chief secretaries and DGPs of all states and Union Territories (UTs), Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba also asked them to take action against foreigners, who have participated in the missionary activities of the Tablighi Jamaat, for violation of visa conditions.

During the meeting, the states and UTs were sensitised about the intensive contact tracing of Tablighi Jamat participants as this has increased the risk of containment efforts of COVID-19 in the country.

“The states were asked to complete the contact tracing process on a war footing,” an official statement said.

The chief secretaries and DGPs were told that it has been found that foreigners who had participated in the Tablighi Jamaat had violated visa conditions.

“The states were asked to initiate action for violation of visa conditions against the foreigners and the organisers of the event,” the statement said.

More than 2,300 Tablighi Jamaat activists were found to be living at the organisation’s headquarters at Nizamuddin Markaz and they were evicted from the premises in last three days.

As many as 617 of them were hospitalised for showing Covid-19 symptoms, while the rest were placed under quarantine.

The Ministry of Home Affairs had on Tuesday said as on March 21, approximately 824 foreigners, were staying at Tablighi Jamaat branches in different parts of the country.

Out of them, 216 were staying at Nizamuddin Markaz. Most of these foreigners came to India on tourist visa, which prohibits involvement of any religious activities.

One person each from Jammu and Kashmir and Telangana, who succumbed to the infection, had also attended the congregation.

It is estimated that several hundred Indians, who attended the congregation of the Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin in March had returned to their respective states and UTs — about 20 — raising fear that they could be the potential carrier of the infection.

Gauba also asked the states to implement the PM Garib Kalyan Yojana within next week. Under the scheme, the central government plans to disburse INR 27,500 crore to beneficiaries through banks.

“This will involve large cash transfer to beneficiaries. It should be organised in a staggered manner to ensure social distancing,” the statement said.

The meeting noted that lockdown is being implemented effectively all over the country.

The states were also asked to ensure that intra-state movement of goods is allowed without any hindrance while maintaining social distancing.

The manufacturing of essential goods should be ensured. It should also be ensured that the supply chains of such goods are maintained, the statement added.

5 trains thousands of passengers under scanner over travelling with Tablighi Jamaat participants

Railways is scrambling to provide information regarding thousands of passengers who travelled on five trains with people who participated in the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi, many of whom have tested positive.

All these trains began from Delhi between March 13 and March 19 – the Duronto Express to Guntur in Andhra Pradesh, the Grand Trunk Express to Chennai, the Tamil Nadu Express to Chennai, New Delhi-Ranchi Rajdhani Express and the AP Sampark Kranti Express.

While there are yet no definite numbers with the railways on the actual number of people who could have come in contact with the participants of this event, sources say that each train carried around 1000-1200 passengers and other staff members which could put them all at risk.

State officials said that the railways is providing lists of passengers to the district authorities which are being compared to the list of participants of the event to ensure contact tracing.

Of the contacts being traced, one is the case of 10 Indonesians who took the AP Sampark Kranti Express back to Karimnagar district after the event on March 13, and subsequently reported positive for coronavirus.

Around 60 passengers who travelled on the New Delhi-Ranchi Rajdhani Express in the same B1 coach as a Malaysian woman who tested positive for the virus, believed to be part of the Nizamuddin Tablighi cluster, are under the scanner with the district authorities scrambling to find their whereabouts.

The woman who travelled on the train on March 16 with 23 others tested positive and is Jharkhands first confirmed case of Covid-19.

According to inputs from states, two people who attended the congregation and later tested positive travelled by the Duronto on March 18 in the S8 coach along with two companions , two of them travelled by the Grand Trunk Express in the S3 coach with two minors, while a couple of others took the Tamil Nadu Express.

What is making the contact tracing of these individuals a herculean task for both the railway and district authorities is the fact that they moved around freely at that time as it was before any restrictions were imposed.

Both Hazrat Nizamuddin stations and the New Delhi railway station are one of the busiest railway stations in the country.

While Hazrat Nizamuddin station in Delhi, sees 56 long-distance trains departing every day and 130 trains from other sources halt here, 62 trains originate and 76 trains halt at the New Delhi railway station every day.

While the former has a footfall of about two lakh every day, the latter has a daily footfall of around 5 lakh.