Team Herald:
SANGUEM: The little-known Mugoli ward of Uguem village panchayat and Sanguem town woke up to the news of first Corona virus case being detected in Sanguem on Friday, June 5.
If you enjoyed reading this article, you can help support our journalism by adding OHeraldo as a preferred source.
The news soon spread like wild fire in the taluka and went viral on social media. A few hours later, the news was confirmed by the local MLA Prasad Gaonkar who went on record to confirm that a 45-year-old man from Sanguem had tested positive for COVID-19.
Gaonkar informed that immediately after getting the news of the detection of the first positive case in Sanguem, he got in touch with the Health Minister Vishwajit Rane and urged for all precautionary measures through local health officials.
The patient incidentally is an employee of the Health Department and worked at the Vasco Health Centre where he reportedly contracted the virus while dealing with the patients from Mangor Hill.
He has since been shifted to the designated COVID hospital by the authorities.
As a precautionary measure, the family members of the patient and some of his neghbours with whom the patient reportedly came in contact with during the last few days; were directed to remain indoors till further instructions.
In the meantime, the Health authorities at Sanguem PHC took swab samples of eleven people from Mugoli village, of which nine are family members of the COVID-19 positive patient and two are his close neighbours.
However, citizens from Sanguem have questioned the authorities over the name of the detected patient being made viral on social media.
While, names of COVID-19 patient detected in the Goa haven’t been made public, the citizens from Sanguem wondered as to why it is done only with respect to the patient from Sanguem.
The citizens have urged the authorities to inquire as to the person who has disclosed the name of the COVID-19 patient from Sanguem on social media as it will have negative impact on the patient and his family members residing in the village and sought for action to be taken, which would serve as a deterrent and discourage people from disclosing names of other patients in the future.
