China hit by coronavirus: Evacuations process has begun: MEA

New Delhi: With more than 100 people dead in China due to the Coronavirus and the infection showing no signs of letting up, India has begun preparations to evacuate Indians, mostly students, stuck in Wuhan, the epicentre of the viral outbreak, even as the Union Health Minister on Tuesday said there is no confirmed case in the country so far.

India has also increased the number of airports from seven to 20 to do thermal screening of passengers for possible exposure to the deadly novel Coronavirus infection and made four more laboratories functional other than NIV-Pune for testing samples as part of its efforts to detect and check the spread of the virus.

As the deadly virus continued to spread in various provinces in China, Indian students, hailing from various states including Gujarat, have expressed their desire to return.

Novel coronavirus is a large family of viruses that causes illnesses ranging from common cold to acute respiratory syndromes, but the virus that has so far killed 106 people and affected over 4,000 in China is a novel strain and has not been seen before.

A28-year-old Mohali resident, who returned from China recently, has been admitted to the isolation ward of PGIMER in Chandigarh after showing novel coronavirus-like symptoms, an official said on Tuesday.