IDUKKI: One and a half years since the country reported its first Covid case, Edmalakkudy reported its first Covid case on Tuesday. A 40-year-old woman from Iruppukallu and a 24-year-old man from Idalippara have tested positive for Covid-19. Edamalakkudy had not reported a single Covid case for the past one and a half years.

Edamalakkudy is also the first tribal panchayat in the state. The people of this place were under surveillance without letting anyone in from outside. Government employees used to come in between to deliver food. The primary conclusion is that the infected people might have contracted the disease from these employees.

The 40-year-old housewife tested positive for the virus after she underwent a Covid test at Kottayam Medical College. The 24-year-old man tested positive for the virus after undergoing a test at a private hospital in Munnar.

Idukki MP Dean Kuriakose had landed in controversy two weeks ago when he entered Edamalakkudy with a vlogger. The MP and his friends were criticized for making such a trip after the health department denied them permission.