A positive case of the deadly novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) has been reported from the southern state of Kerala. This is reportedly the first confirmed case in India.

A student, who was studying at Wuhan University in China and recently returned to his home state, has been confirmed of being infected with the virus. As per reports, the patient is stable and is being closely monitored.

Kerala Health Minister KK Shailaja said that 20 samples were sent for tests out of which one was found to be positive. “The patient had returned from Wuhan (China) and is now kept in isolation at General Hospital in Thrissur. She is stable,” the minister said at a press briefing.

The health minister further asked travellers returning from China to report the Health Department. The department has directed home quarantine for those who are returning from China.

“We have directed all hospitals, including private hospitals, to monitor patients coming with similar symptoms. The health department is all set to isolate patients and start treatment,” Shailaja said.

As many as 806 persons in Kerala have been put under observation for suspected Coronavirus, including 10 in hospitals, state Health Minister KK Shailaja said on Wednesday.

In a statement, she said 19 persons were admitted to different state hospitals, of which nine have since been discharged.

“Sixteen samples were sent to the virology laboratory at Pune, of which 10 were confirmed negative. The results of the rest are awaited. Those who have returned from China have to be extremely careful and, if need be, they should get in touch with health authorities for which a general helpline has been set up,” she said.

On Tuesday, Shaukat Ali, leading a central team to inspect arrangements in Kerala to deal with the coronavirus threat, had said that 436 people were under observation in the coastal state.

Meanwhile, the death toll from the viral epidemic has leapt to 170, the Chinese government said on Thursday, with more than 1,700 new infections confirmed.

Thirty-seven of the 38 new deaths came in hard-hit Hubei province, the epicentre of a contagion that is causing mounting global fear.

In a fresh travel advisory in the backdrop of outbreak of novel Coronavirus in Wuhan province of China, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has asked people to refrain from travelling to China.

The ministry also informed that the list of airports for screening passengers for symptoms of 2019-nCoV has been increased from seven to 21. This includes airports of Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Cochin, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Kolkata, Coimbatore, Guwahati, Gaya, Bagdogra, Jaipur, Lucknow, Chennai, Trivandrum, Trichy, Varanasi, Vizag, Bhubaneswar and Goa.

As per reports, Air India is likely to operate a flight service to Wuhan in Central China to evacuate Indians stuck in the city due to the outbreak of Coronavirus. It is understood that flag carrier has kept one of its 423-seater jumbo planes ready in Mumbai for the evacuation.

Following the spread of the novel coronavirus epidemic to all the regions of China, New Delhi has been in consultation with the Chinese authorities about the evacuation of Indian nationals trapped in Wuhan city, the epicentre of the outbreak.