BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra has been admitted to a hospital with symptoms of COVID-19, sources said. According to reports, he has been admitted to the Medanta hospital in Gurugram, hospital sources said on Thursday.
The BJP leader has shown symptoms of COVID-19, a source said. Patra is one of the most outspoken spokespersons of the party and is seen debating during prime time shows on various news channels.
He is also very active on social media and has over 4.4 lakh followers on the microblogging site Twitter. He posted several tweets on Thursday as well.
Patra, a surgeon by profession, had unsuccessfully contested the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from Puri. He had to face defeat at the hands of the BJD candidate Pinaki Misra.
Earlier last week, Congress spokesperson Sanjay Jha was tested positive for the contagious coronavirus. Jha shared the information on twitter saying he has quarantined himself at his Mumbai residence.
“I have tested positive for COVID-19. As I am asymptomatic, I am in home quarantine for the next 10-12 days. Please don’t underestimate transmission risks, we are all vulnerable. Do take care all,” he tweeted.
Politicians cutting across the party lines had wished him well.
“Wish you a speedy recovery, Sanjay. if there’s anything at all that I can help with do let me know,” wrote Shiv Sena leader Priyanka Chaturvedi while responding to his twitter post.
Meanwhile, the number of coronavirus positive cases rose to 1,58,333 in the country. So far 4,531 people have lost their lives because of the deadly disease. The country has been registering new cases in excess of 6,000 daily for the past six days.
However, the Union Health Ministry said that there have been “multiple gains” from the lockdown and the most important of them is that it has “decelerated the pace” of the spread of COVID-19,
Estimates made by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation showed that a large number of deaths and cases have been averted, the ministry said in a statement.
At the same time, during the lockdown period, development of COVID-19 specific health infrastructure, capacity development of human resources through online training modules and webinars, increased testing capacity, development of diagnostics, drug trials, and vaccine research were achieved, it said.
