BMC medical staff heading towards Shastri Nagar slum in Mumbai. Earlier this month, 4,000 migrants had gathered near Bandra railway station after which some positive cases were reported from the area. (Express photo by Prashant Nadkar)
Coronavirus India LIVE News Updates: The Health Ministry Tuesday said the plasma therapy for COVID-19 is one of the therapies being experimented with but there is no evidence for its use as a treatment. Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said the use of this therapy without adequate safeguards can be “life threatening”.
He also said that in the last 24 hours, 1,543 new cases of the coronavirus were detected in the country, of which 684 cases were cured. The recovery rate is now at 23.3 per cent, he added. This comes even as the death toll due to the coronavirus pandemic crossed the 900-mark to reach 937 on Tuesday while the total number of infections soared to 29,974, including the 7,027 people who have been treated and discharged so far.
Patients with mild coronavirus symptoms can now stay in home isolation, according to the new guidelines by the Health Ministry. As per the new guidelines, medical officers can recommend home isolation to those patients who have been clinically categorised as a very mild case or pre-symptomatic case, provided they have the requisite self-isolation facility at their residence so as to avoid contact with other family members.
On the global front, over 3 million people have been infected from the novel coronavirus ever since its emergence in China last December, while 2,11,167 people have died. The United States continues to be the worst affected, with over 987,022 cases and over 56,144 deaths. The country has recorded 1,303 deaths in the last 24 hours. After the US, Spain reported 2,29,422 infections followed by Italy (1,99,414), France (1,62,220), Germany (1,58,142), the United Kingdom (1,54,038) and Turkey (110,130). (Click here to follow our coverage of Covid-19)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi during interaction with CMs.
The Centre is planning extension of the Covid-19 lockdown in major hotspots across the country. (Express photo/Pavan Khengre)
Of the over 2,300 people evacuated from the Nizamuddin Markaz, 1,080 had tested positive for the infection.
Coronavirus LIVE updates: The kits were to be used only for surveillance and not for diagnosis, but that too stands suspended now.
As the need to step up relief efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic continues, Coca-Cola in India has committed an initial support of Rs 100 crores towards helping the healthcare system and communities to combat the crisis and contain the spread of the pandemic. The relief programs initiated by Coca-Cola in India aims at benefitting and positively impacting over 10 lakh lives across the country, a statement by the company said.
Coca-Cola India will ensure immediate support to enhance the country’s healthcare infrastructure, including testing facilities and Personal Protective Equipments (PPEs) for health workers. The company is also working very closely with its NGO and bottling partners to provide aid to the most impacted communities such as unemployed and migrant workers by distributing meals and beverages during the lockdown period, the statement added.
A 72-year-old man died on his way back home in Tripura from Chennai where he went for treatment and got stranded after lockdown came into effect on March 25.
The deceased, who was the resident of Tripura’s Dhalai district, was suffering from cancer since several years. He went to visit Apollo Hospials, Chennai on February 17 this year for treatment and was about to return to Tripura, when lockdown was announced.
After being stranded for several days, they booked an ambulance from Chennai and started a long and ardous journey of over 3,000 km back home. But he passed away on April 24 when the ambulance was crossing Andhra Pradesh.
His son, who joined him in his last journey, decided not to go back to Chennai and carried his father home. His son is an employee of Tripura Police and is posted as personal guard of Kamalpur Sub-Divisional Magistrate Sushanta Sarkar.
Speaking to indianexpress.com, Sub-Divisional Magistrate Sushanta Sarkar informed this evening that two persons of the family including Subrata Dhar and a relative, who accompanied them in the journey to Chennai and back, were ordered to remain under home quarantine for the next 14 days.
“They returned home last night and the funeral rites of the deceased were held in the night itself. We have ordered the two of them to remain under home quarantine,' the official said.
In Jammu and Kashmir, 19 new COVID-19 positive cases have been reported in last 24 hours; all are from Kashmir division. Total positive cases in the Union Territory stand at 565 which includes 381 active cases.
After one Supreme Court employee tests COVID-19 positive, 36 security personnel who may have come in contact with him when he visited court last on April 16 placed in home quarantine “as a matter of abundant caution”.
Former Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian on Tuesday is the chief guest at the Express Adda, which is being hosted by The Indian Express online for the first time. Subramanian said India should plan for negative growth rates in this financial year.
“For developing countries like India, the trade off between lockdown and economic activity should be different from developed countries. This is the pralay of Hindu mythology,” he said.
Besides discussing the contours of a prudent yet compassionate macro-economic policy framework, Subramanian also spoke on the immediate and medium-term challenges facing the economy, the policy options before leaders, and the trade-offs there in.
Fourteen patients in Karnataka have recovered from the coronavirus in the last 24-hours taking total discharges to 207.
Two people have recovered from COVID-19 and been discharged in Haryana's Nuh today, while three have recovered in Palwal. Nuh has so far recorded 57 cases, of which 46 have recovered, while Palwal has recorded 34 cases, of which 32 have now recovered.
Nine more prisoners lodged at the Central Jail in Madhya Pradesh's Indore city have tested positive for coronavirus, an official said on Tuesday.
With this, the total number of those who contracted the infection in the jail in last 14 days has gone up to 19, including 17 prisoners and two jail guards, prison superintendent Rakesh Kumar Bhangre said.
"Out of the 124 prisoners, who were already kept at a temporary jail located far from the Central Jail campus after they showed symptoms similar to coronavirus, nine have tested positive for the disease," he said. (PTI)
Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said the doubling rate of COVID-19 cases now stands at 10.2 days.
On a question about number of health professionals with COVID-19, Lav Agarwal, Health Ministry Joint Secretary said: If health professionals do not take precautions they will get infected; some health professionals have been infected in parties, some during patient care.
Health Ministry Joint Secretary Luv Agarwal: Plasma therapy for COVID-19 is one of the therapies being experimented with. There is no evidence to use it as treatment. ICMR Delhi has also launched a trial to study this.
Health Ministry Joint Secretary Luv Agarwal is addressing the media. Here are the top points from his briefing
-1,543 cases detected in last 24 hours
-29,435 total COVID-19 cases
-21,632 active cases,
-684 cases cured in last 24-hours
-Recovery rate now 23.3 per cent
-In 17 districts, no case in last 28 days
-Kalimpong and Wayanad added from this list. Lakhisarai dropped off
Workers working on the Mumbai Metro Project near Goregaon on Western Express Highway during the lockdown.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Tuesday said it has approved $1.5 billion loan to India to help fund its fight against coronavirus pandemic.
The is fully committed to supporting the Indian government in its response to this unprecedented challenge, said ADB President Masatsugu Asakawa.
'The quick-disbursing fund is part of a larger package of support that ADB will provide in close coordination with the government and other development partners.
'We are determined to support India's COVID-19 response programs and ensure that they provide effective support to the people of India, especially the poor and vulnerable,' Asakawa said in a statement. (PTI)
The COVID-19 briefing is shifted out of National Media Centre after reports of a journalist testing positive for the coronavirus.
Patients with mild coronavirus symptoms can now stay in home isolation, according to the new guidelines by the Health Ministry. As per the new guidelines, medical officers can recommend home isolation to those patients who have been clinically categorised as a very mild case or pre-symptomatic case, provided they have the requisite self-isolation facility at their residence so as to avoid contact with other family members.
The guidelines also adds that the patient should regularly inform his health status to the district surveillance officer for further follow up by the surveillance teams. The caretaker and all close contacts of such cases should take Hydroxychloroquine as a preventive medication according to the protocol and as prescribed by the treating medical officer.
The total positive cases of Covid-19 in Gujarat's Anand district tally rose to 65 on Tuesday after a 62-year-old female tested positive from Khambat. Nine patients have recovered and will be discharged today in Anand, district administration confirmed.
In view of the deaths of three policemen in the last three days due to COVID-19 disease, the Mumbai Police have asked their personnel who are above 55 years of age with pre-existing ailments to go on leave as a precautionary measure, a senior officer said on Tuesday.
Besides, police personnel who are above 52 years of age and have existing medical conditions like diabetes, hypertension etc. have also been asked to stay at home for now.
"In view of this, we have decided to protect our policemen and officers - who are above 55 years of age and having some pre-existing ailment - and asked them to take leave," an official said.
"Because of their age, these police personnel are at a higher risk. Therefore, we are allowing them to take leave during these days," he said. (PTI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday held discussion with Indonesian President Joko Widodo over the coronavirus situation in the two countries. Taking to Twitter, PM Modi said, "Discussed COVID-19 pandemic with good friend President @Jokowi. As close maritime neighbours and Compreshensive Strategic Partners, close cooperation between India and Indonesia will be important to deal with the health and economic challenges posed by this crisis."
The Supreme Court has asked the Centre to consider the feasibility of 'temporarily' adopting the 'one nation, one ration card' scheme during the ongoing coronavirus lockdown period to enable the migrant workers and economically weaker sections (EWS) get subsidised foodgrain. The central government scheme is scheduled to be launched in June this year. A bench of Justices N V Ramana, Sanjay Kishan Kaul and B R Gavai, in an order passed on Monday said: "We direct the Union of India to consider whether it is feasible for it to implement the said Scheme at this stage or not and take appropriate decision in this regard keeping in view the present circumstances."