Migrant labourers in Maharashtra. (Express Photo by Nirmal Harindran)
Coronavirus India News Live Updates: India has reported 9,987 cases of coronavirus in the last 24 hours, taking the country’s tally to 2,66,598 infections. The country is treating 1,29,917 active cases, while nearly the same number of patients, 1,29,214, have been discharged. With India relaxing restrictions, a surge in cases is expected to begin soon.
The Centre Tuesday deployed high-level multi-disciplinary teams to 15 states and Union Territories that have more than 50 districts/municipal bodies witnessing high case loads.
In other news, the Supreme Court Tuesday directed the Centre to send migrant labourers to their home states within 15 days. The apex court also directed state governments and Union Territories to formulate a scheme to provide employment to workers, asking that their skills be mapped. Furthermore, the bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan, Sanjay Kishan Kaul and M R Shah asked authorities to consider the withdrawal of complaints against migrants for alleged violation of lockdown norms.
Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain, meanwhile, said the source of the Covid-19 infection was unknown in 50 per cent cases in the national capital, but added it was up to the Centre to declare whether the city was witnessing community spread of the disease. At the same time, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said he had spoken to officers from the central government, who said there was no community spread of the disease. Sisodia also said the government was expecting 5.5 lakh Covid-19 cases by July 31.
The World Health Organization (WHO) Tuesday said the coronavirus pandemic was “worsening” across the world, two days after the highest global tally of 1,36,000 cases was reported. The Director-General of the global body, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said there was a glimmer of hope as some countries were seeing positive results, but the biggest threat now could be “complacency”. There are over seven million cases of the novel coronavirus infection in the world.
A priest cleans temple bells in Lucknow on Sunday. (Express photo/Vishal Srivastava)
The Lucknow Zoo on Tuesday was opened for public after two-months of lockodown. Express photo by Vishal Srivastav.
*India has reported 9,987 cases of coronavirus in the last 24 hours, taking the country’s tally to 2,66,598 infections.
*With India relaxing restrictions, a surge in cases is expected to begin soon. There has been a major virus surge in 24 states and UTs, cases are growing faster than national average.
*The Supreme Court has directed the Centre to send migrant labourers to their home states within 15 days.
*Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain said the source of the Covid-19 infection was unknown in 50 per cent cases in the national capital.
*At the same time, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said there was no community spread of the disease.
*Sisodia also said the government was expecting 5.5 lakh Covid-19 cases by July 31.
*The World Health Organization (WHO) Tuesday said the coronavirus pandemic was “worsening” across the world.
*The number of people infected with coronavirus rose to 7,119,736 on Tuesday, with as many as 406,542 fatalities.
*Brazil drew further criticism for its handling of the coronavirus pandemi after it published contradictory figures on fatalities and infections, deepening a scandal over the country’s COVID-19 data.
*The UK on Monday reported around 55 deaths, the lowest daily death toll since the time before the country went into lockdown on March 23. The country now has 288,834 cases of coronavirus and as many as 40,680 deaths.
The Supreme Court Tuesday asked worst Covid-19 affected state Maharashtra to be more vigilant and make concerted effort in identifying and sending the migrant workers still stranded there to their native places. The top court, which directed all states and Union Territories to transport all stranded workers by train, bus or other mode within 15 days, said there were "huge lapses" by the Maharashtra authorities in dealing with the issue and asked the government there to announce suitable place for their registration.
A bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan, Sanjay Kishan Kaul and M R Shah noted the state government's submission that it has 37,000 migrant workers waiting to return to their native places and it has requested only one train from the railways for sending them back. "We are of the view that State has to make a more vigilant and concentrated effort in identifying the migrant workers, who are still stranded in State of Maharashtra and who are willing to return to their native places," it said. It added that the government should publicise and announce the places like police stations or any other suitable place for identifying/registering the workers who have not yet been provided any train or bus journey.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) in Delhi Police Monika Bhardwaj, who had tested positive for coronavirus last month, joined office on Tuesday after recovering from the infection. She was welcomed back to work with garlands by her subordinates, who also clapped and showered flower petals on her.
Two persons on Tuesday tested positive for coronavirus in the Union Territory of Daman, which was till now in green zone, officials said.
The two patients, a 41-year-old man and a four-year-old girl, both of whom arrived here from Mumbai recently, were shifted to a hospital in Marwad area of Daman, District Collector Rakesh Minhas said.
"Till now, the man was kept at a government-run quarantine facility, while the girl was home quarantined with her parents in Khariwad area. We have shifted both the patients to a hospital in Marwad," he said.
The girl's parents, whose reports came out negative, have also been shifted to the isolation ward of the hospital, the official said.
Delhi BJP chief has requested the LG to make new quarantine centres as cases in the city are on surge.
The DGP of Himachal Pradesh along with 30 other officers have been in self-isolation after coronavirus scare. The police headquarters in state has been sealed, said the spokesperson in a quote to PTI.
Lufthansa group has offered to fly empty planes to India and carry passengers only on its outbound flights to destinations in Europe, senior government officials said on Tuesday. Scheduled international passenger flights have been suspended in India since March 23 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Therefore, there is a pent up demand for outbound international travel to some countries, especially among non-resident Indians (NRIs) who are in a hurry to go back either for personal or professional reasons, according to aviation industry experts. "Lufthansa group (which operates airline brands like Lufthansa, SWISS, etc) have offered to fly ferry (empty) flights to India and carry passengers only on its outbound flights to destinations in Europe. A decision is yet to be taken on this matter," said a senior government official.
The Civil Aviation Ministry started Vande Bharat Mission on May 7 to bring back stranded Indians from abroad on flights operated by Air India group amid the coronavirus lockdown. Air India group has been taking bookings on its outbound flights too, and for some destinations the demand has been huge. Since March 23, foreign airlines have operated non-scheduled repatriation flights to take their stranded citizens back home.
The Delhi High Court Tuesday asked the Delhi government to treat as representation a petition seeking direction to it for capping or fixing rates to be charged by private hospitals for treating COVID-19 patients and to prominently display availability of beds for them. The plea, filed by Vineet Kumar Wadhwa, through lawyer Praveen Chauhan, sought direction to the Delhi government to develop a mechanism whereby the hospitals here display availability of COVID 19 beds at a prominent place in the hospital and on their websites. A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Prateek Jalan, conducting the hearing through video conferencing, also asked the Delhi government to treat as representation another petition by a two-year-old boy highlighting the considerable risk faced by him and many other minors due to the Delhi government's decision to lift the restrictions imposed to contain the spread of COVID 19. The government will consider the representations and decide accordingly, the court said.
A 59-year-old Delhi Police personnel passed away Tuesday morning due to Covid-related complications at the Army Base hospital. Sub-inspector Karambeer was deployed as the driver of ACP Seelampur, and was admitted at the hospital on June 2. He is the fourth Delhi Police personnel to have succumbed to the virus.
Delhi Police Additional PRO Anil Mittal said, "He was on ventilator support for the last five days, and today morning he lost his life fighting ailments related to Covid-19. He was diabetic." Karambeer, a resident of Brijpuri in northeast Delhi, is survived by his 55-year-old five and their children, aged 23 and 26 years old.
Input from Somya Lakhani
IndiGo Tuesday said it had repatriated over 1,000 Indian nationals from the UAE, Oman and Maldives amid the coronavirus pandemic. The airline company flew six special international charter flights in the first nine days of June to bring home stranded Indians.
The Centre has deployed high-level multi-disciplinary teams to 15 states and Union Territories that have more than 50 districts/municipal bodies witnessing high case loads.
With no clarity yet on examinations, students in Maharashtra colleges and universities are in limbo, especially those who are graduating this year. The Indian Express explains the issues that beset this Coronavirus-dominated year’s college exams.
Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia says an official from the central government has said there is no community spread of Covid-19 in the national capital. Sisodia also told reporters the L-G had refused to reconsider his decision to overrule the Delhi govt's order reserving state-run and private hospitals for residents of Delhi.
Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain Tuesday said the source of Covid-19 infection was unknown in 50 per cent cases in the national capital. He, however, added it was up to the Centre to declare whether the city had entered the phase of community spread.
The Delhi L-G’s decision overturning the Delhi CM’s order that only Delhi residents can be admitted to private and state government hospitals for Covid-19 treatment cited a Delhi High Court judgment from 2018, which dealt with a similar issue.
The then Delhi HC Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice V Kameswar Rao had quashed a circular issued by the Medical Director of GTB Hospital, where patients without Delhi voter IDs were categorised as non-Delhi residents and denied certain facilities. Chief Justice Menon held that the act of the Delhi government in “creating a class within a class i.e. within citizens identically situated is impermissible, and thereby further act of conferring benefit of medical facility to citizens on such classification is impermissible”.
The Meghalaya government has decided to waive 50 per cent of the tuition fees of students, whose families were affected by the lockdown, Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong said. The decision will be effective for the months of April, May and June in all government-aided, deficit pattern and deficit schools, he said. Tynsong said private schools, those run by missionaries or other individuals will not collect any other fees except tution fees from students for these three months. "It will be applicable to those students whose families were affected by the lockdown, and the fees, if already paid, will be adjusted accordingly," the deputy chief minister told reporters on Monday. (PTI)
Eleven Kolkata Police personnel have tested positive for COVID-19, taking the total number of infected policemen in the force to 217, a senior officer said on Tuesday. The 11 infected Kolkata Police personnel were from the combat force, the Police Training School (PTS) and different police stations, the officer said. On Saturday, a constable posted at the Shakespeare Sarani Police Station in the city had succumbed to the disease while undergoing treatment at the Kolkata National Medical College. (PTI)
Delhi Lt Governor Anil Baijal has called an all-party meeting at 3 pm Tuesday to discuss the Covid-19 outbreak in the national capital. "The LG has called a meeting with all political parties at 3 pm on Tuesday to discuss the present situation of COVID-19 in Delhi and measures to contain the spread of the same," an official told news agency PTI. Delhi has recorded just over 1,000 cases of the infection in the last 24 hours, taking its tally to more than 29,000. At least 874 people have died of Covid-19 in the city.
The Supreme Court has directed the Centre to send migrant labourers to their home states within 15 days. The apex court, which had taken suo motu cognizance of the migrants issue, ordered the Centre to provide Shramik Special trains to states within 24 hours of demand.
The top court also directed state governments and Union Territories to formulate a scheme to provide employment to workers, asking that their skills be mapped. Furthermore, it directed authorities to consider the withdrawal of complaints against migrants for alleged violation of lockdown norms.