Four doctors with flu-like symptoms of the Medical College Hospital have been quarantined in Bankura district. The doctors associated with the plastic surgery unit of the MCH, had visited Bankura on Sunday to attend a leprosy awareness and treatment camp organised by the district’s health administration.

One of them, who was leading the camp, had a travel history to the coronavirus- affected United Kingdom. He returned to the city from London on 12 March. He was taken ill today with coronavirus-like symptoms of mild fever, cough and cold. He wasthen rushed to the government Bankura Sammilani MCH. Considering his travel background, the hospital authorities quarantined him for at least two weeks of observations.

Three other doctors and the driver of the car, in which they were travelling, have also been advised home-quarantine, close to the hospital. “One doctor who had recently visited London was admitted to the quarantine ward in our hospital. The remaining three, along with their driver, were sent for home-quarantine system in a house close to the hospital,” said Dr Parthapratim Pradhan, principal, Bankura MCH.

“The swab sample of the doctor admitted to the quarantine ward will be sent for confirmatory tests to the National Institute of Communicable Disease laboratory at Beliaghata in Kolkata,” Dr Pradhan added. “Four doctors of our hospital visited Bankura yesterday and one of them has been quarantined there,” said Dr I Biswas, superintendent-cum-vice principal of MCH.

On the other hand, five more coronavirus suspects with recent travel background in Germany, Finland, Portugal, Kerala and Bengaluru were admitted to the I D Hospital at Beliaghata today. Nine other suspects who were brought to the hospital on Sunday have been discharged today.

Doctors’ organisations have urged the state government to arrange for an adequate number of personal protection equipments, like medicated N-95 masks, caps, aprons, sanitizers and others, for the medical professionals who are attending to the virus suspects, admitted in the isolation wards of the various state-run hospitals.

“The government must take adequate measures to provide the equipments immediately to the doctors, nurses and other staff who are braving their lives and attending to the suspects in different hospitals,” said Dr Manas Gumta, secretary of the Association of Health Service Doctors.

Dr Gumta alleged that many government hospitals are running out of these essential equipments and even ventilators in isolation wards. Beleghata admits two corona suspects from Uttarpara: The Uttarpara state general hospital on Sunday night transferred two suspected cases of coronavirus to Belaghata hospital in Kolkata. Tuto Bag, 48, who had recently returned home from Mumbai, began suffering from fever, cough and cold on Sunday night, following which Bag was admitted to the Uttarpara state general hospital by his family members.

Iqful Khatun, 19, who had recently returned to her residence from Kanpur, was also admitted to the Uttarpara state hospital with high fever, cold and cough. The doctors suspecting viral infection, promptly shifted both the victims to Beleghata hospital. Initially, ambulances refused to carry both the patients to the hospital.

The Uttarpara civic head Dilip Yadav, after being informed about the patient’s plight, rushed to the Uttarpara hospital on Sunday night and took special initiatives to transfer both the victims to the Beleghata hospital.