Thiruvananthapuram: As many as 362 prisoners have so far tested positive for Covid-19 in Poojappura Central Prison in Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram.
A total of 758 prisoners have been tested so far. Director General of Prisons and Correctional Services Rishiraj Singh reportedly said that the jail headquarters will be closed for three days as instructed by the health department.
The testing of the inmates in Poojappura jail began after an aged prisoner was confirmed to have Covid-19 on Tuesday. This was followed by a rapid antigen test of 107 prisoners on Wednesday out of which 59 had tested positive.
The number of Covid-19 cases continued to increase with the state reporting 1,530 new cases. The number of new cases have been hovering over 1,400 for the last one week. On 13 August, the number crossed 1,500-mark for the first time.