Former CM Parkash Singh Badal's residence declared macro containment zone

Archit Watts
Tribune News Service
Muktsar, August 24

After 11 more people deployed at the residence of former Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal in Muktsar district tested positive for coronavirus on Monday, the house was declared a macro containment zone.

Notably, earlier, eight persons, including six security personnel, a cook and a telephone operator had tested COVID positive at the residence in Badal village. These included an SP of the Punjab police as well.

Earlier, the Badals' residence was declared a micro containment zone. Now, with the new cases, the total count of COVID positive people at the ex-CM's residence has risen to 19.

Notably, COVID reports of some of Badals' personal staff are still pending.

Dr Paramdeep Sandhu, nodal officer, COVID, Muktsar district, said, "The ex-CM residence is now a macro containment zone as the number of positive people is above 15 there. Earlier, it was a micro containment zone."

A health department official said that the former CM due to his old age was already advised home-isolation. However, both SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal and his wife Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal regularly travelled and held meetings with party activists during the ongoing COVID pandemic. The local health department staff is yet to collect their samples for COVID testing.