40 new coronavirus cases in Chhattisgarh

The number of COVID-19 cases in Chhattisgarh increased to 3,065 after 40 more people, including eight Border Security Force (BSF) personnel, tested positive on Friday, a health official said.

52 patients were also discharged from different hospitals following recovery, he said.

Of the new cases, eight were reported from Kanker district, seven from Raipur, six each from Bilaspur and Balrampur districts, five from Dantewada, three each from Bastar and Narayanpur districts and two from Rajnandgaon, he said.

Eight BSF personnel, belonging to different battalions, tested positive for the viral infection in Kanker, Chief Medical and Health Officer of the district Dr Jagjivan Ram Uike told PTI.

They were lodged in a quarantine centre in Antagarh town, he added. The BSF is extensively deployed in Kanker for antinaxal operations.

"With the latest cases, the overall count of infections in the BSF reached 70 in the state. But 28 of them have already recovered," said a BSF official.

A Personal Security Officer (PSO) of a BJP MP and four staff of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) are among the new cases detected in Raipur, the health official said.

The BJP MP and his family have been quarantined at home and their samples have been sent for testing, he added.

Chhattisgarh's COVID-19 figures are as follows: positive cases 3,065, new cases 40, total deaths 14, discharged 2,414, active cases 637, people tested so far 1,77,554.