Thirty-three people from Province 2, who were on the same flight as the second person in the country to test positive for Covid-19, have tested negative for the disease, provincial authorities said on Thursday.

A total of 34 people from the province were on Qatar Airways flight QR652, which was also boarded by the infected 19-year-old woman in Doha while returning to Kathmandu from France on March 17.

One individual from Siraha, who was also on the flight, however, has contracted fever. The man is receiving treatment at the Kathmandu-based Shukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital. His test report hasn’t been issued yet, said police.

“Thirty-three people from Province 2 returning from Qatar on the same flight as the Covid-19 patient have tested negative for the virus,” said Deputy Inspector General Pradhumna Karki from the provincial police office, Janakpur. “They are currently in self-quarantine in their own homes.”

The 34 people were tracked by police after authorities intensified search for all passengers onboard QR652. After the passengers were tracked, their throat and nasal swabs were sent to the central laboratory for testing.

“Everyone returning from Qatar to Province 2 is under the surveillance of health officials and security agencies,” said Bijaya Jha, senior health officer at the social development ministry of Province 2.

Meanwhile, authorities are taking a host of initiatives to control the possible spread of coronavirus in the province. According to the provincial police office, 68 people have been kept in quarantine in various districts. Most of them were placed in quarantine after they returned from India and other countries in the past few weeks.

However, as Nepal saw a huge influx of people from India and other countries hours before the nationwide lockdown began on Monday, authorities are facing a hard time tracking all returnees. “A majority of Nepalis working abroad, especially in India, made their way into Nepal in the last two weeks. We are working on identifying them, contacting them and keeping them under surveillance,” said Karki.

In Saptari, authorities have deployed health workers to track people who returned to Nepal from foreign countries in the past 10 days.

With the country confirming three Covid-19 cases—all of them “imported”—health workers in the district are keeping an eye on people who have returned from countries such as Dubai, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and India in the past 10 days.

District Public Health Office chief Duniya Lal Yadav said the returnees will be kept in quarantine. He said, “The district can accommodate 215 people in 18 locations.” The health office has also urged local units to establish quarantine facilities at the earliest.

According to Yadav, 36 individuals in the district have been quarantined.

Quarantine facilities have also been set up in Bodebarsain Municipality, Saptakoshi Municipality, Chandanrup Municipality, and Agnisaira Krishnasavaran Rural Municipality.

In Dhanusa, Nepal Army has set up a 160-bed quarantine facility at Mithila Aayurveda College, Gaguli.

The Province 2 government has established a relief fund with Rs 250 million seed money to facilitate efforts to control the spread of the coronavirus. The fund will also be used to provide relief to those affected by the pandemic. According to the Minister for Internal Affairs and Law Gyanendra Kumar Yadav, provincial ministers will also contribute a month’s salary to the fund.

The Cabinet meeting also decided to make provisions to allow three laboratories in Janakpur, Birgunj and Rajbiraj to test for Covid-19.