Srilanka

As at yesterday (30th),17 individuals suspected to have been infected with Coronavirus are under surveillance at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID). One patient has already been confirmed positive while there were six new admissions.Five patients were discharged during last 24 hours, a Health Ministry Spokesman said.

resident Gotabaya Rajapaksa has instructed officials to bring back all Sri Lankans including students in Wuhan and Sichuan provinces where the Coronavirus is fast spreading.The PresidentOffice, the Ministry of Foreign Relations, Ministry of Health, Sri Lankan Embassy in Beijing and SriLankan Airlines have joined together in this exercise.The Sri Lanka Embassy in Beijing had submitted an application to land a Sri Lankan Airlines aircraft in Wuhan city airport to airlift 32 Sri Lankan students including their family members. The Embassy is closely following up with ChinaForeign Ministry and Foreign Affairs Office of the Wuhan Province to expedite the process of obtaining clearance for the landing of the aircraft, as soon as they are allowed to travel out of their present locations, the Foreign Ministry said.

The first confirmed case of Coronavirus has been reported in Sri Lanka, as a Chinese national has been tested positive with the mysterious virus, stated the Ministry of Health.Reportedly, a 47-year old Chinese from Hubei Province in China had been admitted at the Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH) in critical condition.

Sri Lankan students studying in China are now returning from China. The Sri Lankan Embassy in Beijing said that a group of 21 students have left for Sri Lanka this afternoon.The PresidentOffice, the Ministry of Foreign Relations, the Ministry of Health, Sri Lankan Embassy in China and SriLankan Airlines are coordinating the evacuation process.