Google India on March 12 confirmed that one of its employee working at the Bengaluru office has been diagnosed with coronavirus (COVID-19) infection, following which the company asked its staff to work from home as a precautionary measure for the day.
“We can confirm that an employee from our Bengaluru office has been diagnosed with COVID-19. They were in one of our Bengaluru offices for a few hours before developing any symptoms,” a Google spokesperson said.
As per a PTI report, the 26-year-old employee had returned from Greece in the first week of March.
The employee has been put under quarantine and his condition is stable as of now, local media reports stated.
The spokesperson added that the company has asked colleagues who were in close contact with the employee to quarantine themselves and monitor their health.
“We have taken and will continue to take all necessary precautionary measures, following the advice of public health officials, as we prioritise everyone’s health and safety.”
The Bengaluru office is among the oldest facilities of the company in India and houses hundreds of engineering staff.
In the past few days, employees of various IT firms like Mindtree and Dell have tested positive for coronavirus.
Following such cases, several companies are now asking employees to work from home, and use technologies like telepresence and video conferencing to ensure business continuity.
More than 1,30,000 cases of the novel coronavirus have been recorded in 116 countries and territories, killing at least 4,900 people.
Indian authorities have confirmed 75 cases of the virus and one death across the country.
A 76-year-old man, who hailed from Karnataka state, died of the coronavirus on Tuesday but his test results were made available on Thursday.
The man had returned from Saudi Arabia on February 29 after a month-long visit.
(With input from agencies)