Delhi: Wife of COVID-19 patient returns to shelter home without being quarantined

In a shocking instance, wife of a man who tested positive for COVID-19 and was admitted to a hospital, returned to the shelter home near All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), where the two were staying, without undergoing the mandatory quarantine being a close contact.

Speaking about the same, Rachna Malik, Chairperson of Givers for a Cause, an NGO which is looking after people staying at the shelter homes near AIIMS, said: "A 35-year-old-man who was staying with his wife at one of the shelter homes near AIIMS, had been waiting to get his dialysis done. However, he was told by hospitals to get a COVID-19 test report before being allowed for the dialysis. He was tested positive of coronavirus. Immediately after the test confirmed COVID-19, he was admitted to Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital (LNJP)."

However, Malik further said, though the man was sent to the hospital, his wife returned to the shelter home. "After he was admitted in LNJP, his wife returned to the night shelter housing about 119 people. She has not yet been kept in a quarantine facility," she said.

Meanwhile, the in-charge of the night shelter told : "I am present in this shelter 24x7 but so far I have not witnessed any COVID-19 positive case."

The incident comes to light at a time when the number of coronavirus cases in the country is continuously increasing. As per the latest update by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of coronavirus cases in the country stands at 85,940 including 30,153 recovered/migrated and 2,752 deaths.

( With inputs from ANI )