3 foreign nationals test Covid positive in Mathura

Mathura: Even as concerns over the highly transmissible Covid variant Omicron detected abroad soar, three foreign nationals, including two women, are among the five people who tested positive for Covid-19 in Vrindavan in the last 48 hours.

Their samples have been sent for genome sequencing to determine the variant of the virus.

Nodal in-charge of the rapid response team Dr Bhudev said the foreign nationals from Lithuania, Spain and Switzerland tested positive for coronavirus in the RT-PCR tests conducted prior to their scheduled departure to their native countries.

Only one of them — a woman from Lithuania — was fully vaccinated.

All of them are Krishna devotees who were staying at the Girdhar Dham in Vrindavan and had come to India on a



tourist visa.

The other two Covid positive patients are locals.

Dr Bhudev said that Girdhar Dham, where 16 people were staying, has been declared a containment zone.

A total of 44 people who came in contact with these Covid positive patients have also been tested for the virus and their reports are awaited.

Health officials said the woman from Lithuania is 30 years old, the Spanish is a 44-year-old woman and the Swiss national is a 47-year-old male. Their condition is stable and they have been isolated in the ashram.

District Magistrate Navneet Singh Chahal said testing of the foreign nationals, who come from countries identified as ‘at risk’, will be done as a precautionary measure.