One coronavirus infected Indian national dies in Iran

New Delhi/Tehran, March 19 One Indian national has died of Covid-19 in Iran, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday. This is the first confirmed death of an Indian national outside the country due to the coronavirus, which originated in Wuhan city of China.

A government official confirmed about the death of the Indian national in Iran. Out of the 276 Ind infected by coronavirus outside the country, 255 are in Iran. So far, the Modi government has brought back 590 Ind from the country.

"The Ind infected with coronavirus in Iran have been segregated and are being taken care of by the government's health care teams. We believe they will recover and we will bring them back," a senior MEA official said.

Minister of State for External Affairs, V. Muraleedharan, said the nationals in Iran include about 1,100 pilgrims mainly from Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir and Maharashtra. There are also nearly 300 students primarily from J&K, about 1,000 fishermen from Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat, and others who are on a long-term stay in Iran for pursuing their livelihood and religious studies.

( With inputs from IANS )