2-year-old girl tests positive in HP, COVID-19 tally rises to 49

(Eds: Updates number of cases)

Shimla, May 8 () Two persons, including a two-year-old girl, tested positive for novel coronavirus in Himachal Pradesh's Chamba district on Friday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 49, officials said.

Chamba Deputy Commissioner Vivek Bhatia told that the daughter of a driver, who had tested COVID-19 positive on Wednesday, tested positive on Friday.

The DC said she will be admitted to Tanda's Dr Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College (RPGMC) in Kangra for treatment.

The driver from Khad Jota panchayat in Salooni subdivision, had recent travel history to Baddi in Solan district. Samples of all his contacts except that of his daughter tested negative, the DC added.

Earlier in the day, a 42-year-old man tested positive for the coronavirus in Hamirpur district, an official said.

The man from Bijhari town in Bijhri tehsil had returned to Hamirpur from Delhi on April 29, Deputy Commissioner Hairkesh Meena said.

Hamirpur had become coronavirus-free on April 29 after the last two patients in the district tested negative for the infection.

Himachal Pradesh has now eight active cases with three in Chamba, one each in Hamirpur, Mandi, Shimla, Sirmaur and Kangra districts, according to officials.

While 34 people have recovered from the infection, three have died. Four people were shifted to other states for treatment.

The fatalities include a 70-year-old Delhi resident who stayed at a guest house of a factory in Baddi in Solan and died at PGIMER, Chandigarh on April 2. DJI CK