The medical team in protective gear at the RIMS trauma centre, which is now the dedicated novel coronavirus centre

The woman has no travel history and it was not clear whether she came in contact with the 22-year-old Malaysian woman who had put up at Hindpiri and tested positive.

A family member of the 58-year-old claimed that owing to poor health she never ventures out of her home.

“Today morning a team of health officials and local administration came to our

residence and took her away saying she has tested positive. We have not been provided with copy of the report. She had not come in contact with that Malaysian,” said the family member.

The fourth case of novel coronavirus in Jharkhand was detected on Monday from Hindpiri locality of the state capital when a 58-year-old woman suffering from kidney and heart ailments tested positive.

The woman and 10 of her family members as well as close contacts were taken to the Covid-19 ward of RIMS for treatment and medical examination.

The woman, who needs to undergo dialysis frequently, had visited a dialysis centre at Bariatu three days back. Since she is in the high-risk category and a resident of Hindpiri, where the state’s first novel coronavirus case was found last Tuesday, the doctor told her to go to RIMS and get her medical test done. She visited RIMS for the test the same day.

“RIMS authorities took her swab and asked her to go home,” said a Ranchi district administration official who requested anonymity. “Today (Monday) morning we were informed that she has been found positive. We immediately tracked her down and took her to RIMS.”

Contacted for comment, state health secretary Nitin Madan Kulkrani did not hold back.

“I can’t comment on RIMS. God save RIMS. God forgive RIMS. They even don’t follow the basics of the guidelines. RIMS did not inform us that her swab has been taken. Doctors did not even prescribe her home quarantine. She can now say that she was not at fault if she roamed freely and mixed with other people because she was not given any direction in this regard,” Kulkarni said.

“We don’t know how many people she met. Now we are searching for her contact history. So far 10 people of her family as well as close contact have been taken at RIMS and they will be kept under observation in quarantine. Doctors should have applied their mind that she is from Hindpiri where the first case was detected,” he added.