Man tests positive for new coronavirus strain in U'khand; first case in state

He will remain there for at least 28 days, Dikshit said.

A man here has tested positive for the new strain of the coronavirus and this the first such case in Uttarakhand, a health official said on Friday.

He had come in contact with five of his relatives who had recently returned to Dehradun from the UK, District Nodal Officer for COVID Rajeev Dikshit said.

Strangely, his relatives have all tested negative for the new strain, but they are COVID-19 positive, he said, adding that the man, in his forties, has never been to Britain.

Their primary and secondary contacts are being traced and their samples are being taken, Dikshit said.

In total seven samples were sent for genome sequencing to the National Centre for Disease Control in Delhi and only the man's sample has tested positive for the new strain of the coronavirus. The result came on Thursday, he said.

The samples of the man's five relatives tested negative for the new strain and the result of the seventh sample, which was taken from one of their contacts, is awaited, Dikshit said.

The man has been kept in isolation at a COVID care centre in the city. He will remain there for at least 28 days, Dikshit said. The new strain of the coronavirus was detected in the UK last year and it has a high transmissibility.