By Narendra Kumar Karna, Jaleshwor, July 29: As many as 13 persons including 10 Nepali Army officials deployed for disposal of the dead bodies of the COVID-19 victims and management of isolation ward in Mahottari district and two teachers and an individual have tested positive for COVID-19.

Girendra Kumar Jha, focal person for COVID-19 in Mahottari district health office, said 13 persons that included 10 NA personnel were found positive for the novel coronavirus in the test report of the PCR received today.

He said that the NA officials who were deployed in the disposal of the dead body of a COVID-19 victim of Mahottari Rural Municipality-3 who died while under treatment in Dharan and those NA personnel deployed in the management of isolation ward at Pipara Municipality had got infected with the virus.

All NA personnel found infected have been placed at the Central Division of the NA, according to Jha.

Of the teachers found infected, one is a head teacher of a secondary school and he had recently visited Birgunj while the other teacher had recently returned from Sindhupalchwok district.

Similarly, a person who returned his home at Balaba of the district from India also tested positive for the virus.

According to focal person Jha, district COVID-19 count has reached 859 with the 13 newly confirmed cases.