As many as 66 of the over 2,000 people on board the Cordelia cruise ship, which came to Goa from Mumbai, have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, state Health Minister Vishwajit Rane said on Monday, January 3. The cruise liner, where the Narcotics Control Bureau busted a high-profile rave party in October last year, was carrying hordes of New Year revellers.

A medical team in PPE kits came on board to conduct RT-PCR tests of the passengers and crew members, and the sample testing process continued till Monday afternoon. The testing of those on board the vessel was necessitated after a crew member was found infected with the coronavirus on Sunday, an official said. Officials had instructed that no one should disembark from the ship till the result of the RT-PCR tests was declared.

The liner is anchored close to Mormugao Port Trust (MPT) cruise terminal. In the afternoon, Rane tweeted, Out of 2000 samples tested from Cordelia cruise ship, 66 passengers tested positive for #COVID19. Respective collectors and MPT staff have been informed. The authorities will decide whether to allow disembarking of passengers from the ship. The ship, operated by a private firm, had arrived at Mormugao Port Trust in Goa on Sunday.

More than 2,000 passengers were still stuck on the cruise ship a day after it docked in Goa following arrival from Mumbai, as their testing for COVID-19 continued on Monday. Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Rane on Sunday told reporters that the ship operator had been asked to conduct the tests of all the passengers, and they would not be allowed to disembark if they are found infected with the coronavirus.

A day ago, Goa had reported 388 new COVID-19 cases, taking the infection tally to 1,81,570, while one death raised the toll to 3,523, as per official data.