Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain said on Tuesday (March 31) that 24 people have been found Coronavirus positive in the Nizamuddin Markaz that has turned into ground zero of the new cases spiraling out of control following an ijtima in mid-March.
Giving details of the case reported in Nizamuddin, Jain said that the government is not certain of the number but it is estimated that 1500-1700 people had assembled at the Markaz building in Delhi.
The health minister said that 1,033 people have been evacuated so far of which 334 have been sent to hospital and 700 have been sent to a quarantine centre. Jain said that 24 cases have been found to be positive for Coronavirus.
The Markaz, also known as Banglewali Masjid, is a six-storey building complex that can house up to 2,000 people. It shares its wall with the Nizamuddin police station and is adjacent to the famous shrine of Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya. Starting March 13, there was meeting held with people from Kashmir to Andaman Islands attending it, besides Saudis, Thais, Indonesians.
Reports said that as many as six people who attended the meeting died in Telangana after their return due to COVID-19.
News agency IANS, citing Delhi Police sources, said that with the assistance of the health department around 800 people have been shifted from the Markaz building in Nizaumuddin to hospitals. Around 300 people are yet to be evacuated.
Intense sanitization is underway in the Nizamuddin basti area. The Jawaharlal Nehru stadium is also being prepared as a contingency plan for creating capacity for isolation.
