At least 254 Indian pilgrims stranded in Iran have tested positive for Covid-19, a list shared by an Indian embassy official with pilgrims shows. Several pilgrims, including the one who tested positive, told Scroll.in that the list was shared on Sunday on a WhatsApp group of pilgrims and Indian government officials.

The pilgrims claimed Indian embassy officials in Iran have assured them that all those stranded will be airlifted back to India in the next few days. "They had taken samples from almost all the stranded passengers over the last 10-12 days and now the results have come," 36-year-old Mohammad Imran, one of the pilgrims stranded in Iran, said. According to Imran, most of the Covid-19 positive patients are above 50 years old. Imran himself has tested negative. The patients belong to a group of 850 pilgrims mostly from Kargil marooned in Iran since February.