Maharashtra continues to be the worst-affected state followed by Gujarat.

Coronavirus India Updates: Coronavirus cases in India inched towards the 50,000-mark with the country registering 49,391 cases, according to the latest figures from the Union Health Ministry. The death toll jumped to 1,694, with 126 fatalities in the last 24 hours. The latest rise comes a day after the country registered its biggest single-day jump in numbers — 195 deaths and 3,875 cases — on Tuesday.

The number of active COVID-19 cases is 33,514. A total of 13,160 people have recovered and one patient has migrated. Maharashtra continues to be the worst-affected state followed by Gujarat. Telangana, which has seen a decline in the number of cases, became the first state in the country to extend the lockdown till May 29.

Here are the important COVID-19 developments from across India

Karnataka announces Rs 1,610 crore relief package; cancels special trains for migrants

The Karnataka government on Wednesday announced a Rs 1,610 crore relief package for the benefit of those in distress due to the COVID-19-induced lockdown.

Additionally, the government has decided to cancel all trains arranged to transport migrants to other states. The state government Tuesday wrote to the South Western Railway (SWR) withdrawing their request to arrange for train services scheduled for Wednesday.

The cancellations were made even as thousands of migrants have been stranded in the city.

As per the Railways Ministry, 115 Shramik Special trains have been run since May 1. More than 42 trains have been planned for today.

‘What after May 17?’: Congress asks govt to reveal lockdown exit strategy

The Congress party on Wednesday questioned the Centre over the criteria it adopted to judge how long the COVID-19-induced lockdown will continue and also asked to reveal the steps that will be taken after the curbs are lifted.

Addressing a meeting of chief ministers of Congress ruled states, party president Sonia Gandhi asked: “What after May 17?.” “After May 17th, What? and After May 17th, How?…what criteria is GoI (government of India) using to judge how long the lockdown is to continue…,” Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala quoted Sonia Gandhi as saying in the video conference with CMs.

At Delhi’s Okhla market

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh, who was also present at the meeting, said, “We need to know, as Soniaji said, what will happen after lockdown 3.0?”. “Soniaji has already pointed out. CMs need to deliberate and ask as to what is the strategy of the government of India to get the country out of lockdown,” Singh asked.

Delhi constable dies after falling sick; samples sent for COVID-19 test

A 31-year-old constable, posted with North-West district’s Bharat Nagar police station, died on Tuesday. His colleagues took him to RML Hospital where they were informed that he died on the way. He had complained of fever and cough on Tuesday morning and was tested for COVID-19. His test reports are awaited.

Punjab liquor vends to open tomorrow, home delivery service available

Punjab government has ordered opening of liquor vends in the state from Thursday with a provision to deliver liquor at doorstep of residents. The stores would be allowed to open only during the curfew relaxation hours — from 9 am to 1 pm. In an order issued by the government Tuesday evening, not more than two litres of liquor would be allowed to be delivered to a single buyer. The government, however, has not given permission for delivery of Punjab Made Liquor (PML).

The government, however, has not given permission for delivery of Punjab Made Liquor (PML).

Aarogya Setu says ‘no data, security breach’ after hacker claims data of 90 million Indians at stake

The official handle of Aarogya Setu asserted late on Tuesday that “no data or security breach had been identified” in the app. The Setu team said the hacker had pointed out two issues – “the app fetches user location on a few occasions”, and a “user can get the Covid-19 stats displayed on home screen by changing the radius and latitude-longitude using a script.”

Statement from Team #AarogyaSetu on data security of the App. pic.twitter.com/JS9ow82Hom

— Aarogya Setu (@SetuAarogya) May 5, 2020

The team, however, said fetching of a user’s location is “by design”, and it is “stored on the server in a secure, encrypted and anonymised manner.” Regarding the second issue, the team said the radius parameters on the app “are fixed and can only take one of the five values: 500m, 1km, 2km, 5 km, and 10 km.” It added that the information does not “compromise on any personal or sensitive data”.

Explained | Why Tamil Nadu is latest cause for worry

For the last few days, Tamil Nadu has been adding to its coronavirus numbers at a very fast pace. It has nearly doubled in the last one week, from 2058 to 4058. The state reported over 500 new cases on each of the last two days and was the single biggest contributor to the national numbers after Maharashtra.

Unlike some other states like Punjab or West Bengal, where the sudden surge in the numbers in recent days could be attributed to specific reasons, it is not clear what is causing the rise in numbers in Tamil Nadu. After all, the number of new cases were increasing at a much more modest rate in Tamil Nadu earlier. Its previous doubling had taken 17 days.

Liquor shops re-open in Telangana; tipplers throng stores

After remaining shut for over a month in view of the COVID-19 lockdown, liquor shops in Telangana re-opened on Wednesday with impatient tipplers forming serpentine queues even before the shutters went up. Owners of the outlets performed special prayers with flowers, coconuts, incense sticks and offered ‘Aarti’ (lighting traditional lamp and camphor) infront of the stores at several places, before commencing business. However, bars, pubs and other outlets that serve booze will remain shut.

In case you missed it: Important stories from The Indian Express

The doubling rate of COVID-19 cases slowed down from four days day in the first week of April to 11 days by the end of the month. A man waiting outside to open grocery shop in Kolkata (Express Photo Shashi Ghosh)