Tokyo: Two Indian crew members on board a cruise ship ‘Diamond Princess’ off the Japanese coast have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the Indian Embassy in Japan said Wednesday. Meanwhile authorities confirmed that 174 people have been infected with the deadly disease on the ship.
‘Diamond Princess’ with 3,711 people on board arrived at the Japanese coast early last week and was quarantined after a passenger who de-boarded last month in Hong Kong was found to be the carrier of the novel virus on the ship. A total of 138 Indians, including 132 crew and six passengers are on board the ship.
“Due to the suspicion of novel coronavirus (nCoV) infection, the ship has been quarantined by the Japanese authorities till February 19, 2020,” the embassy said in a statement. “As of February 12, 2020, altogether 174 people have been tested positive for nCoV, including two Indian crew members,” it added.
All the infected people have been taken to hospitals for adequate treatment, including further quarantine, in accordance with the Japanese health protocol, it said.
The embassy said it was in constant touch with the Japanese authorities to ensure the welfare of Indian nationals on board the ship as well as the possibility of their early disembarkation, in case they are not found to have tested positive for the virus. Japanese authorities have confirmed that they are following the designated health protocols, it said.
“The Embassy of India in Tokyo has reached out to the Indian nationals through emails and telephone calls and explained to them about the health and safety regulations of Japanese authorities and have requested for cooperation,” the statement from the Indian Embassy said. “None of the Indian nationals have complained of discriminatory treatment meted out to them,” it added.
The embassy also informed that it has been in constant touch with the ship management company- Princess Cruises (for the crew members) and the employer of six passengers to tie up their travel back to India.
Media reports had earlier showed a video of Indian crew members pleading to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the UN to segregate the Indians on board the ship on an urgent basis.
One of the crew members in the video, identified as Binay Kumar Sarkar is heard saying in the video, “Please somehow save us as soon as possible. What’s the point if something happens (to us)…I want to request the government of India and Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi-ji, please segregate us and bring us back home safely.”
Agencies