Total cases of coronavirus in India rise to 283, says Health Ministry

New Delhi, March 21

The number of novel coronavirus cases in India rose to 283 on Saturday with 65 persons testing positive as several states went into battle mode to contain the pandemic, imposing restrictions on people’s movement and gatherings besides announcing a slew of precautionary measures.

The country is also set to observe a janata curfew from 7 am to 9 pm on Sunday after Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday pitched for social distancing, asking people, barring those in essential services, not to get out of their homes.

The health ministry said the total number of coronavirus positive cases stood at 283, with 65 fresh cases reported, the highest in a day.

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"We are bringing back 272 Indian citizens home from Italy today," Joint Health Secretary Luv Agarwal said.

"There's a lot of misinformation about masks. Not everybody needed to wear them, social distancing more important," he said.

"Asymptomatic direct and high-risk contacts of confirmed cases should be tested once between day 5-14 of coming in contact," the health ministry said.

The total figure includes four deaths reported from Delhi, Karnataka, Punjab and Maharashtra.

Several states also reported fresh cases though these numbers were not immediately taken into account by the health ministry.

In some good news, Uttar Pradesh Health Minister Jai Pratap Singh, who had attended a party with Bollywood singer Kanika Kapoor days before she tested positive for coronavirus, tested negative for COVID-19 on Saturday.

LIVE UPDATES

10: 30 pm: Assam reports first coronavirus case; four-and-a-half-yr-old girl tests positive in Jorhat, samples sent to ICMR for reconfirmation

10:00 pm: Nawanshahr, Bathinda, Hoshiarpur administrations order lockdown starting Sunday

9:21 pm: Jalandhar administration announces 4-day lockdown from Sunday to Wednesday.

8:20 pm: Jamia Millia Islamia students temporarily suspend protest against CAA. 

7:37 pm: Patiala Deputy Commissioner imposes lockdown from March 22 to 24.

6:46 pm: Twelve more people test positive for coronavirus in Kerala on Saturday, taking the total number to 49: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

5:30 pm: Bihar shuts down bus services, restaurants, banquet halls till March 31 

The 66-year-old minister had gone into self-isolation after undergoing the testing here on Friday. Samples of 28 people who came in contact with him have also tested negative, King George Medical University spokesperson Dr Sudhir Singh said.

The Uttar Pradesh Police have booked Kapoor for negligence and committing acts that are likely to spread disease dangerous to life. She had attended at least three gatherings in Lucknow, including a party where political leaders were present.

Following Kapoor’s announcement, a number of people who came in contact with her directly or indirectly went into self-quarantine. They included BJP leader Vasundhara Raje, her MP son Dushyant Singh and parliamentarians Derek O’Brien and Anupriya Patel.

Former BSP MP Akbar Ahmad Dumpy, whose high profile party in Lucknow was attended by Kapoor, has decided to stay in isolation as a precautionary measure for 14 days at his farmhouse in Utttarakhand, an official said.

States announce measures

A number of states and union territories announced measures aimed at curbing the spread of coronavirus.

The Delhi Government said the novel coronavirus was causing terrible financial stress to the poor and announced that those receiving ration from fair-price shops would get 50 per cent extra for next month.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal pension for widows, differently-abled and elderly will be doubled for this month.

Urging people to stay indoors, Kejriwal said the government has not imposed a lockdown in Delhi for now, but would have to do it if the need arises in the wake of coronavirus pandemic.

The Chhattisgarh government ordered closure of all its offices, except those providing essential and emergency services, till March 31.

In Odisha, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik announced a “near total” shutdown in five districts and eight other prominent towns for a week from Sunday morning.

These districts and towns were identified as over 3,000 residents have returned to these places from abroad in the past few days.

The Goa government imposed section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) across the state to prohibit large gatherings.

Health Minister Vishwajit Rane said the state government has also issued an order banning inter-state transport, except for the supply of essential commodities, from Saturday night onwards.

Goa shares borders with Maharashtra and Karnataka, where several people have tested positive for coronavirus infection.

Private events, including weddings, have also been banned in Goa till further orders.

The State Election Commission of Arunachal Pradesh announced that municipal and panchayat elections slated to be held in April-May have been temporarily put on hold.

The Nashik administration in Maharashtra banned the sale of liquor from Saturday till further orders in the district invoking the Epidemic Diseases Act and Disaster Management Act.

The order to close bars, including those located in five star hotels and resorts, and liquor shops was issued by Collector Suraj Mandhare.

The Akola district administration ordered a lockdown between March 22 and 24 during which all establishments except those selling essential items will remain closed.

The move is similar to the sectoral shutdown put in place in Maharashtra’s major cities like Mumbai, Pune, Thane and Nagpur.

In West Bengal, the Mamata Banerjee government ordered all restaurants, bars, pubs, nightclubs, amusement parks, museums and zoos to remain shut till March 31.

The order, which aims to prevent all non-essential social gatherings, comes into effect on Sunday morning. The directive also applies to massage parlours and hookah bars, an official said, adding that strict action would be taken in case of any violation.

The Jammu and Kashmir administration said all its employees with foreign travel history along with their relatives would have to go for quarantine before resuming their duties.

Amid increasing cases of people affected by coronavirus, a couple was deboarded from a Delhi-bound Rajdhani train after co-passengers noticed a home quarantine seal on the husband’s hand. The Railways urged people to avoid non-essential travel for the safety of fellow citizens.

At a press conference, the health ministry said it carried out training for critical care management at 1,000 places through video conference and will conduct nationwide mock drill on Sunday for emergency response to handle coronavirus cases cases.

Revised testing guidelines

Revised testing guidelinesHealth ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said guidelines for coronavirus tests have been revised, directing that asymptomatic direct, high-risk contacts of confirmed cases should be tested once between day 5 and day 14 of coming in contact with an infected person.

The government is likely to issue guidelines for private labs for the test later on Saturday, he said, adding that people should not go for coronavirus tests “out of fashion” or as a confidence-building exercise. Protocols are in place and that will be followed, he said.

He asserted that the government is working to ramp up production of masks and sanitisers with states asked to allow deodorant manufacturers to produce sanitisers, adding there is no shortage of these items and people should not indulge in panic-buying.

New cases

Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Punjab, and Uttar Pradesh were among states that recorded new cases.

Punjab reported 10 new cases, bringing the total number of cases in the state so far to 13. This figure includes a 70-year-old man who died.

Haryana reported four new cases—two in Gurugram, one in Sonepat and another in Panchkula.

Twelve more fresh cases of coronavirus were reported from Kerala on Saturday, taking the tally to 49, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said.

While six more people tested positive from Kasaragod, three each new cases were from Kannur and Ernakulam districts, Vijayan told reporters after a COVID-19 review meeting here.

All those who were diagnosed with the virus today had returned from Dubai recently, Vijayan said.

In Tamil Nadu, three foreign nationals under observation have tested positive for coronavirus on Friday, taking the total number of cases to six in Tamil Nadu, State Health Minister C Vijaya Baskar said. This brings the state tally to six.

One more person has tested positive for coronavirus in Noida, taking the number of COVID-19 cases to five, here, district officials said on Saturday. The development led to the district administration locking down residential society in Sector 74 from 10 am on Saturday till 7 am on Monday for sanitisation, the officials said. This new case adds to

Earlier, three residents from Sectors 100, 78 and 41 and one from Delhi have tested positive in Noida, according to officials.

The total number of coronavirus positive patients in Maharashtra has risen to 63 with 11 more positive cases reported in the last 24 hours, officials said.

Of the 11 new cases, 10 are in Mumbai and one in Pune, they said on Saturday.

Officials said seven patients were admitted to Kasturba hospital, one each at Saifee hospital, Nanavati hospital and HN Reliance hospitals in Mumbai. A coronavirus positive patient has been admitted to Naidu hospital in Pune, officials said. Earlier this week, a Covid-19 patient died in Mumbai.

West Bengal reported another coronavirus case on Saturday, bringing the state tally to three.

Meanwhile, eight passengers who had travelled on AP Sampark Kranti Express from Delhi to Ramagundam on 13th March have tested positive.

Karnataka also reported another case, taking the number of infections to 16. A 32-year-old person from Gauribidanur in Chikkaballapura district, who has returned from Mecca has been confirmed for COVID-19 infection, Health Minister B Sriramulu tweeted.

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has decided to discharge all ‘stable’ patients from municipal hospitals in order to make more space available during exigencies, a civic official said on Saturday.

In Maharashtra’s Aurangabad, some 800 people under home quarantine in Aurangabad, a senior official said on Saturday.

Rajasthan and Gujarat both reported six new cases, taking the tally of the former to 23 and the latter to 13.

Meanwhile, the Environment Ministry suspended meetings of its green panel till March 31.

Delhi government to hold all press conferences online

The Delhi government will conduct all its press conferences online to protect journalists from the coronavirus pandemic which has claimed one life and infected 20 others in the national capital.

“All Delhi Govt. press conferences will be conducted digitally now. It’s very important that all journalists, who are on the forefront of our battle against Corona, also protect themselves as they are in a high exposure environment,” Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted.

Kejriwal will brief the media on the threat at 4 pm on Saturday. Agencies

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