Chairman of the Board of Administrators for the Siliguri Municipal Corporation (SMC), Asok Bhattacharya, has tested positive for Covid-19.

The sample was collected for the second time, and after he was admitted in a private hospital with several symptoms, including pneumonia, chest pain and fever yesterday.

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Mr Bhattacharya, 72, is still undergoing treatment in Neotia Getwel Healthcare Centre. It may be mentioned here that the Darjeeling district magistrate has already asked private hospitals to ready isolation wards to treat their patients if they test positive for Covid-19.

The former Siliguri mayor had fallen ill on 13 June and his swab tested negative last Sunday, but he felt uneasy yesterday, while doctors advised him to get admitted in hospital for the treatment of pneumonia.

“Mr Bhattacharya is still in our institution and under our care,” said Ruma Banerjee, the Vice-president of Neotia Getwel Healthcare Centre.

Following the development, officials of the administration and the health department are in a fix as they scramble to identify several people who came in close contact with the veteran CPI-M leader and Siliguri MLA.

Commissioner of the SMC, Sonam Wangdi Bhutia, immediately ordered closure of the SMC for three days from tomorrow so that the SMC premises could be thoroughly sanitised. However, emergency services like health, electricity, water supply and conservancy would remain operational.

“The SMC health team has started working to identify a large number of people who came in primary contact with Asok Bhattacharya in the last seven days and will take steps as per the Covid protocols,” Mr Bhutia said.

According to official sources, family members of Mr Bhattacharya, SMC staff and officials, members of the Board of Administrators, leaders who met him at the Darjeeling district CPIM office, and several others, including the common people, reporters, doctors, paramedical and nursing staff, who came in close contact with him should opt for home isolation.

“I think people who met him are educated and conscious about Covid-19. I appeal to the people to inform the deputy chief medical officer of health of Darjeeling district and follow his instructions and go for home quarantine,” said Dr Susanta Roy, the Officer on Special Duty for Covid19 in north Bengal.

“If they report to us, it will help us identify them easily. If they suppress the same, it would create problems for others, including his/her family members,” Dr Roy said.

“As per the health protocols, Mr Bhattacharya’s house has been identified as a containment zone,” said ward co-oordinator Ranjan Sarkar, who is also the Darjeeling district Trinamul Congress president. Health officials have also asked the member of the Board of Administrators for Health, Sankar Ghosh, who always accompanied Mr Bhattacharya in carrying out Covidmanagement work in SMC areas, to remain in home isolation.

“As I was in close contact with Asok Da over the last few days until his admission in the hospital yesterday, I decided to go for home quarantine. I am waiting for the Covid test report,” Mr Ghosh said, adding, “I am in trouble as my five-year-old son is also at home, while my wife, a working woman, is in Kolkata.”

According to him, maintaining distance with his son would be a problem as he does not understand what the pandemic is all about.