In an unusual and worrying case in Madhya Pradesh, 26 employees of a national Hindi daily including editorial and non-editorial workers have tested positive for Covid-19.

On Monday, the district administration sealed the building of the newspaper at Press Complex in MP Nagar area of Bhopal.

It all started when a reporter covering the health beat fell ill and tested positive for Covid-19 on July 9. The same day, all the employees were tested and around a dozen reported positive. The numbers kept surging and reached 26 on Monday.

While the district administration has sealed the office, the remaining employees who have tested negative are working from home. Those reported positive include news reporters, computer operators, desk staff, peons and others.

Several Hindi newspapers had stopped morning meetings and regular work amid the lockdown but soon returned to normal functioning at full strength despite Covid-19 cases rising in the state capital over the past few weeks.

Also, several workers of the Bhopal municipal corporation`s public relations wing and some of their family members have tested positive for Covid-19. Ibrahimganj area in Bhopal has been kept under complete lockdown after reporting a surge in cases since Sunday.

The sub-divisional magistrates (SDMs) have suggested to the collector, Avinash Lavania, to impose 3-4 days of lockdown in a phased manner in different locations to rein in rising cases. The administration has started efforts to penalise those not wearing masks and shopkeepers who are not following safety guidelines.

Besides, several areas of the city are persistently reporting new cases of infection that have doubled within a few days. And the situation is similar in Indore. According to the state health bulletin of July 12, Bhopal reported 95 cases, and on Monday well over 80 fresh cases were reported by afternoon. On Sunday, Indore had reported 84 cases in addition to 92 cases reported by Monday evening.

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