Panaji, June 5 (IANS) Following opposition pressure, the Goa government on Friday initiated a probe into how an elderly woman related to a politician was allowed entry into the state by road last week without mandatory coronavirus test.
The woman, who was suffering from breathlessness on Thursday, was shifted from a private hospital to the Goa Medical College near Panaji, where she tested positive.
Before she was admitted to the hospital, she came in contact with several members of the Calangute village panchayat in North Goa, where her son-in-law is an elected member, and also attended a public function, according to a Health Department official.
The case comes at a time when the state, which was coronavirus-free until the first week of May, has witnessed a severe spike in corona cases. The active corona cases in Goa are 109.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant told IANS that the woman’s entry into Goa without testing was possibly a result of “human error”.
“I have spoken to police officiers to ensure there are no such errors henceforth,” Sawant said, ruling out allegations of corruption at the state’s entry points.
Goa Aam Aadmi Party’s Valmiki Naik has alleged that entry to the woman into the state without mandatory test was a “classic case of power culture”.
“It is not human error. It is the power culture and corruption of his party and government that allowed a corona positive lady to enter Goa without test and then go on to socialise in Calangute,” Naik said.
According to Health Secretary Nila Mohanan, efforts are on to contact all persons who met the woman after her return to Goa last week.
–IANS
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