COVID-19: Massive tracing of railway passengers begin after TTE tests positive

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The Indian Railways has launched a massive contract tracing of passengers who boarded the Lucknow-Mumbai Pushpak Express after the onboard train ticket examiner (TTE) tested positive for COVID-19. The TTE and his wife have been quarantined for 15 days, railway officials said.

According to a report in the Times of India, hundreds of passengers were exposed to the novel coronavirus when the TTE of Lucknow-Mumbai Pushpak Express tested positive.

A Central Railway official said, "The railway administration is now preparing to get other railway workers examined. The record of passengers on the train has been sent to the government so that they can be traced and tested to curb the spread of the virus."

As per sources, TTE Deepak Mishra took the Mumbai-bound Pushpak Express and left from Lucknow. After getting down at Bhopal on March 16, Mishra took the Pushpak Express to Lucknow from Bhopal the next day.

When the train reached Lucknow, the TTE felt feverish, following which the railway administration was alerted. Mishra was sent to a private hospital and later referred to Badshahnagar Railway Hospital, where he and his family underwent tests. Mishra and his wife tested positive.

The railways have provided a list of passengers to various states to trace them, an official said.