SHILLONG, Aug 13 - Active cases of COVID-19 have risen to 640 after 14 more people tested positive in the past 24 hours in Meghalaya.
State Health Minister AL Hek said that among the 14 new cases, 11 are from East Khasi Hills district, two from West Garo Hills district and one from North Garo Hills district.
Among the 11 districts of the State, East Khasi Hills has the highest number of active cases (436), followed by West Garo Hills district (84) and Ri-Bhoi district (83).
Till date, 547 patients have recovered from the infection. Moreover, 42,706 samples have been sent for testing, out of which 41,097 tested negative and the reports of 416 samples are awaited. Meanwhile, African Swine Fever (ASF) has been confirmed as the cause of death of 24 pigs out of 73 deaths reported across the State. The samples of the remaining pigs have been sent for further analysis.
Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong said 23 villages across four districts � East Khasi Hills, East Jaintia Hills, West Khasi Hills and Ri-Bhoi � have reported such deaths.
�We will declare all the places where such deaths of pigs have occurred, as containment zones. People residing in these areas will also be barred from slaughtering pigs and consuming pork,� Tynsong said.
The Meghalaya Animal Husbandry and Veterinary department will issue a notification in this regard soon. �Steps are being taken to contain the disease,� he added.
Meanwhile, the State Government has also discussed the plight of street hawkers and decided to identify a dedicated area for them.
