AGARTALA, June 11 - As many as 31 new COVID-19 positive cases were confirmed in Tripura last night.
Out of 1,375 samples tested on Wednesday, a total of 31 people were found positive and all of them have travel history, Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb said in a Facebook post, adding that 17 patients are from West district, eight from Sepahijala, one from Dhalai, two from Unakoti and three from Gomati district.
Among the 17 positive cases in West district, around 12 have been reported from Mandhai, a tribal-dominated block under the Jirania subdivision. All the patients had returned home from Chennai in a Special Shramik train during the lockdown.
With the latest development, altogether 898 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Tripura so far. The active cases stand at 658. So far, 239 persons have been discharged after recovery and one person has died.
According to reports available, a sizeable number of returnees from Chennai, Maharashtra, Delhi, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh have tested COVID-19 positive after their arrival. The maximum number of 300 cases has been reported from among those who had returned from Chennai.
A lot of people still stranded in different States have not been able to return home due to suspension of the train service through the hilly track of Assam. More people are likely to return once the train service is restored.
The train service has been suspended for the past one week following massive landslips between Maibong and Lumding. Although restoration works have been undertaken by the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR), the track is yet to become operational again.
Earlier, the Chief Minister said in a tweet: �Happy to share that 46 COVID-19 patients have been released on Wednesday from Bhagat Singh Covid Care Centre after their test results came negative� He appreciated the efforts of the healthcare staff and hoped that the other patients would also recover soon.
The Tripura Health Department has tested 40,028 swab samples so far. A total of 776 persons have been lodged in facility quarantine centres and 11,798 persons have been home-quarantined till Wednesday.
