4 More Cases From Telangana Sent For Coronavirus Test

Samples of four patients with symptoms of the coronavirus have been sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune for tests, Telangana Minister Etela Rajender said on Friday.

No positive case of the virus has so far been registered in the state, he added. The coronavirus epidemic in China has so far claimed 231 lives and the total number of infections has risen to 9,692.

The Minister said that 15-throat swab samples have been sent so far, out of which, nine turned out to be negative. The results of the two samples are awaited.

"As of now (January 31), Four samples were sent to Pune," he said in a press release.

Rajender further said that the Centre has agreed to the state's request to provide kits to conduct the tests at the state-run Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad and the tests will start in a day or two. He said the state government was also planning to set up a 24-hour call center for public inquiries on the killer disease.

"We are now making special arrangements to send the samples and this results in a delay of many hours. The Centre has said earlier that Hyderabad is well equipped with labs. Therefore, we requested them to provide us with the opportunity to conduct the test here," he further added.