Shimla, Aug 4 (PTI) Twenty-nine people, including a lab technician in Mandi's Nerchowk Medical College, tested positive for COVID-19 in Himachal Pradesh, raising the state's virus count to 2,848 on Tuesday, officials said.

The state has seen 13 deaths linked to the novel coronavirus so far.

Also Read | Permanent Commission For Women Officers: Indian Army Begins Process of Granting PC, Invites Applications by August 31.

Of the fresh cases, 14 were reported from Bilaspur, seven from Mandi and two each from Chamba, Sirmaur, Shimla and Kullu, Additional Chief Secretary (Health) R D Dhiman said.

In Mandi, a laboratory technician posted at Nerchwok Medical College is among the fresh cases, a district official said.

Also Read | Ram Mandir Bhoomi Pujan Live Streaming: Watch Deepotsav in Ayodhya on DD National And DD News Ahead of August 5 Foundation-Laying Ceremony.

The lab is being sanitised on Tuesday and Wednesday and no test will be conducted at Nerchwok lab for two days, Senior Medical Superintendent of the college Jeevanand Chauhan said.

Besides, five men and a woman from different areas of Mandi also tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the district official said.

In Kullu, a 30-year-old woman and a 32-year-old man tested positive for COVID-19, Superintendent of Police Gaurav Singh said.

The Kullu SP said 16 primary contacts of the two fresh cases have been quarantined.

In Shimla, a couple tested positive for COVID-19 at Jhalta village of Rohru subdivision, Rohru Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Babu Ram Sharma said.

The SDM said the couple had returned from Chandigarh on August 3 and were home quarantined.

Eleven more patients -- three each in Sirmaur, Solan and Chamba, and two in Shimla-- recovered from the infection, Dhiman said.

So far, 1,669 people have recovered from the infection in Himachal Pradesh while 26 patients have migrated out of the state.

There are 1,138 active COVID-19 cases in the state now, he said.

Solan has the highest number of active COVID-19 cases in the state at 411, followed by 157 in Mandi, 137 in Sirmaur,  117 in Kangra, 83 in Una, 79 in Shimla, 58 in Bilaspur, 38 in Chamba, 27 in Hamirpur, 20 in Kullu and 11 in Kinnaur. PTI DJI COR

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)