Indian authorities placed 40,000 people under quarantine across 20 villages in the northern state of Punjab after a man with COVID-19 refused self-isolation.
The 70-year-old preacher did not heed the advice to undergo self-isolation and attended a religious gathering in India in mid-March, BBC reported.
He travelled from Italy and Germany before joining the six-day festival, which attracts 10,000 people every day.
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The man died shortly after the event and was diagnosed later with coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
BBC reported that 19 of his relatives contracted the virus which affects the respiratory tract one week after his death.
A senior official said around 550 people who had contact with the man were traced.
“So far, we have been able to trace 550 people who came into direct contact with him and the number is growing. We have sealed 15 villages around the area he stayed,” the senior official said.
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Around 20 villages were already sealed off to halt the spread of the virus.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi imposed a 21-day nationwide lockdown affecting 1.3 billion people in an effort to slow the spread of the highly contagious disease.
As of March 29, there are 867 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in India with 25 fatalities according to the country’s official tally.
