Bhubaneswar: Odisha’s Food Supplies & Consumer Welfare Minister Ranendra Pratap Swain Friday said that he has tested positive for COVID-19.
Swain became the sixth minister in the state to be infected by coronavirus.
“I have been tested positive for #COVID19. Although I don’t have any symptoms I am at home isolation as advised by my doctor. I have requested all my staff and each one who came in contact to get them tested as soon as possible,” Swain said on Twitter.
I have been tested positive for #COVID19. Although I don't have any symptoms I am at home isolation as advised by my doctor. I have requested all my staff and each one who came in contact to get them tested as soon as possible.@CMO_Odisha @IPR_Odisha
— Ranendra Pratap Swain (@rajaaswain) September 11, 2020
Earlier in the day, Women and Child Development and Mission Shakti Minister Tukuni Sahu had also tested positive for COVID-19.
Earlier, Rural Development Minister Susant Singh, Higher Education Minister Arun Kumar Sahoo, Textile Minister Padmini Dian and Tourism Minister J P Panigrahi had tested positive for the infection.
Three Lok Sabha MPs, two from BJD and one from BJP, have also tested positive for the infection. They are Nabarangpur MP Ramesh Chandra Majhi, Bhadrak MP Manjulata Mandal (both BJD) and Bargargh MP Suresh Pujari (BJP).
This apart, several other BJD MLAs including Nabarangpur MLA Sadasiva Pradhani, Laxmipur MLA Prabhu Jani, Anandpur MLA Bhagirathi Sethy, Khandapada MLA SR Patnaik, Basudevpur MLA Bishnubrata Routray, Bhubaneswar North MLA Susant Rout, Bhubaneswar Central MLA Ananta Narayan Jena, Berhampur MLA Bikram Panda and Chandbali MLA Byomakesh Ray have also tested positive.
The other MLAs to test positive are Badamba MLA Debi Prasad Mishra, Pottangi MLA Pritam Padhi, Bhadrak MLA Sanjib Mallick, Bari MLA Sunanda Das, Polasara MLA Srikant Sahu, Remuna MLA Sudhanshu Shekhar Parida, Jagatsinghpur MLA Prasanta Muduli and Salipur MLA Prasant Behera.