Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Finance Minister T M Thomas Isaac has tested positive for Covid-19, the first in the cabinet to contract the infection. He has been shifted to the medical college hospital in Thiruvananthapuram.
His staff members and others who came in contact with him have been urged to quarantine.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had warned last week that cases may go up as the government had relaxed norms in view of Onam festivities. But the government has made it clear that total closure was not a viable option to check the spread and it wants to increase tests and create better awareness among people to live with the virus.
In July, Vijayan and his six cabinet colleagues had gone into quarantine after senior officials involved in the Kozhikode plane crash rescue operation tested positive for Covid-19.
Health Minister K K Shailaja and Ministers A C Moideen, E Chandrasekharan, V S Sunil Kumar, Kadannappally Ramachandran and K T Jaleel were among the Ministers who went into quarantine. Assembly Speaker P Sreeramakrishnan had also gone into quarantine. However, none had tested positive.