Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat and three cabinet colleagues subjected themselves to self-quarantine coming in contact with State Tourism Minister Satpal Maharaj in a meeting, who has tested positive for Coronavirus.
Satpal Maharaj, his wife, and 21 others among the members of his family, staff, and his followers staying within the same household have tested positive, a politician said.
Swab samples of all ministers and officials who attended the cupboard meeting during which Satpal Maharaj participated were taken for testing on Monday, a politician said.
The state health department said there was no need for those that attended Friday's meeting to isolate themselves, going by the Centre's guidelines.
"The ministers and officials fall under the category of low-risk contacts as they weren't in close contact with Satpal Maharaj. they will function during a normal way and there's no got to quarantine them," state Health Secretary Amit Negi was quoted as saying.
But CM Rawat and therefore the three of his cabinet ministers — Harak Singh Rawat, Madan Kaushik, and Subodh Uniyal —to remain in self-quarantine as a precautionary measure, a politician at the Chief Minister's Office said.
"Whether or not they resume normal day-to-day functions during a few days will depend upon what their test reports say," he reportedly said.
Dehradun District Magistrate Ashish Shrivastava said swab samples of all ministers and officials who took part within the meeting are taken.
"We have received an inventory of all ministers, officials, and employees who were directly or indirectly a part of the meeting. Their samples have also been taken for testing. people that came in touch with them also are being traced " he was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, Minister of State for education Dhan Singh Rawat condemned has asked police to require stringent action against a social media post describing him because the state's "acting chief minister". The ruling BJP also condemns the rumor about the appointment of an acting chief minister as opposition-sponsored propaganda.
Dhan Singh Rawat further assures that the CM operating a virtual office through video conferencing while being in quarantine.
After Satpal Maharaj's wife Amrita Rawat had tested positive for the infection it had been found that his two sons, daughters-in-law and a one-and-a-half-year-old grandson also under the bout of the virus.
Amrita Rawat was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Rishikesh on Sunday morning.
Satpal Maharaj and a few other members of the family too are kept there, an AIIMS official said.