The Union Home Ministry has asked the States to strictly implement night curfew for nonessential activities in all jurisdictions till the lockdown is in force.

The Hindu has brought out a multi-language e-book on essential COVID-19 information, in addition to covering the developments related to the coronavirus pandemic as it unfolded. Here is a collection of our daily cartoons on COVID-19.

Here are answers from experts on your queries about the virus, a list of State Helpline numbers, a State-wise tracker for COVID-19 cases, deaths and testing, and a map of confirmed cases in India.

Here are the latest updates:

Karnataka revises testing protocol for travellers from six high-risk States

All asymptomatic travellers from high-risk States — Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Delhi, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh — will now be tested between the fifth and the seventh day of their arrival.

Those who are symptomatic (Influenza-Like Illnesses symptoms) will be tested immediately on arrival, stated an order issued by Jawaid Akhtar, Additional Chief Secretary (Health and Family Welfare and Medical Education) on Thursday.

All symptomatic individuals, who have undertaken international travel in the last 14 days, will be tested immediately on arrival.

Maharashtra fixes price cap on pvt hospitals treating COVID-19 cases

The Maharashtra government has come out with three slabs on per day charges on treatment of COVID-19 patients in private and charitable hospitals and also decided to regulate rates for 80 per cent of the operational bed capacity in these medical facilities.

Fresh guidelines issued by the state government on Thursday said the fee regulation decision applies to both isolation and non-isolation beds in private and charitable hospitals.

This means 80 per cent of beds in isolation and non- isolation wards available with any healthcare provider will be regulated by the state government/municipal commissioner/ district collector.

Healthcare providers may charge their own rates to the remaining 20 per cent beds, according to a government notification.

For COVID-19 patients, there will be three rate slabs on per day basis - Rs 4,000, Rs7,500 and Rs 9,000 - based on the category of wards they have been admitted in, said the notification.

Health Ministry plans to study viral behaviour in corpses

The lockdown period has been gainfully utilised to ramp up the health infrastructure in the country, the Union Health Ministry said on Thursday, with senior health officials confirming that India is now planning to initiate a study on ‘behaviour of the coronavirus (COVID-19) virus in persons who have died after contracting the disease.’

Autopsy in confirmed COVID-19 cases is not recommended by the Health Ministry and this research, to be conducted at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, will be the first to be undertaken on a COVID-19 dead body. This is expected to give researchers an insight into how the virus behaves in a dead body, the manner in which it affects organs of the body etc.

Mumbai tally rises to 25,500

Mumbai recorded 1,382 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, the third-highest single-day jump, pushing its tally to 25,500. The city also recorded 41 fatalities for the second consecutive day, taking its death toll to 882.

Of the new victims, 24 were men and 17 were women. Of these, 23 patients had co-morbidities. While three were below 40 years, 17 were between 40 and 60 years, and 21 were above 60 years.

Over 6,000 COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours in India, highest single day rise

India registered a spike of 6,088 COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, making it the highest single-day rise here since the start of the pandemic, according to figures released by the Health Ministry on Friday.

As many as 148 new deaths have also been registered. India’s tally now stands at 118447 cases, 3583 deaths and 48,534 recoveries.

An employee of Lok Sabha Secretariat has tested COVID-19 positive on Friday.

All necessary arrangement regarding sealing and sanitsation are being carried out by Lok Sabha security staff. More details are awaited.

With 571 COVID-19 cases, Delhi records biggest 24-hour surge

As many as 571 new COVID-19 cases were reported in Delhi in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of cases to 11,659, according to the Delhi government health bulletin released on Thursday. This is the biggest single-day jump in the number of cases in the city so far.

Tuesday and Wednesday had also recorded the biggest single-day increase till then. Also, 18 more deaths have been reported, taking the total number of deaths to 194, though the bulletin said that all the deaths did not happen in the past 24 hours.

Brazil suffers record daily coronavirus death toll, soon to be world No. 2

Brazil suffered a record of 1,188 daily coronavirus deaths on Thursday and is fast approaching Russia to become the world's No. 2 COVID-19 hot spot behind the United States.

Brazil also passed 20,000 deaths on Thursday and has 3,10,087 confirmed cases, up over 18,500 in a single day, according to Health Ministry data. The true numbers are likely higher but Brazil has not carried out widespread testing, the ministry said.

371 cases and 24 deaths in Gujarat

Gujarat’s COVID-19 tally jumped to 12,910 after 371 infections were reported while the toll jumped to 773 following 24 deaths on Thursday.

The State continues see sharp rise with over 300 cases per day for the last two weeks.