Coronavirus India Live Updates: India’s Covid-19 recovery rate rises to 74.30 per cent\, says Health Ministry
Coronavirus India Live Updates: India’s Covid-19 recovery rate rises to 74.30 per cent, says Health Ministry
Coronavirus (Covid-19) India Live Updates: The overall tally rose to 2,905,823 after 68,898 fresh cases were registered within a span of 24 hours. As many as 983 deaths were also recorded on Thursday, taking the total to 54,849.
By: Express Web Desk | New Delhi |
Updated: August 21, 2020 5:42:59 pm
The overall Covid-19 tally rose to 2,905,823 after 68,898 fresh cases were registered within a span of 24 hours.
Coronavirus India Live Updates: India’s coronavirus recovery rate soared past 74 per cent on Friday after 62,282 patients recovered and were discharged in a day, taking the total recoveries to 21.5 lakh, the Union Health Ministry announced. The case fatality rate has dropped further to 1.89 per cent as on date, it added. Follow Covid-19 vaccine updates here
The overall tally rose to 2,905,823 after 68,898 fresh cases were registered within a span of 24 hours. As many as 983 deaths were also recorded on Thursday, taking the total to 54,849.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court today allowed devotees to offer Paryushan prayers in three Jain temples in Mumbai. A bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde, however, said that permission for Ganesh Chaturthi will have to be taken on a case-to-case basis from the Maharashtra Disaster Management Authority. The apex court said that no permission for prayers would be given for any other temple in Mumbai.
Globally, over 22.5 million people have been infected with the virus so far, including over 7.9 lakh who died. The United States continued to be worst affected followed by Brazil and India.
Live Blog
Coronavirus (Covid-19) India Live Updates: Over 29 lakh cases, nearly 1,000 deaths in 24 hours. Get latest updates here.
17:42 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Scientists decode how severe COVID-19 patients develop low blood oxygen levels
COVID-19 is causing significant dilation of the blood vessels of the lungs, contributing to the very low oxygen levels seen in patients with respiratory failure, according to new research that may help provide better treatment to those who are severely affected by the disease.
The pilot study of 18 patients, published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, helps explain how COVID-19 behaves differently than classic acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in which lung inflammation leads to leaky blood vessels in the organ.
In ARDS, the study noted that the leaky blood vessels in the lungs flood the organ with fluid and make it stiff, impairing oxygenation. Click here to read the full report.
17:40 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Nepal's Covid-19 cases reach 30,483
Nepal on Friday reported 838 new COVID-19 cases, taking the total number of infections in the country to 30,483, the health ministry said.
According to Jageshwor Gautam, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health, 250 coronavirus patients have been discharged from different health facilities in the past 24 hours.
With this, the total number of patients who have recovered from the disease stands at 18,214.
At present, there are 12,132 COVID-19 patients undergoing treatment at different isolation centres across the country. (PTI)
17:06 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Seoul Covid-19 surge appears to spread around South Korea
South Korea added its most new virus cases in months on Friday, driven by a surge around the capital that appears to be spreading nationwide.
The 324 new infections were its highest single-day total since early March and the eighth consecutive triple-digit daily increase.
Most of the new cases are in the densely populated Seoul region, where health workers are scrambling to track transmissions from sources including churches, restaurants, schools and workers. Click here to know more.
(AP Photo)
16:47 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Election Commission issues guidelines for conduct of elections during Covid-19
The Election Commission of India has issued guidelines for the conduct of general elections/by-elections during COVID-19.
* All voters are to wear face masks, which they will be asked to remove briefly for identification at the time of voting
* Only 2 people can accompany candidate at the time of nomination
* If a voter, on the day of voting, shows symptoms then they will be provided with a token and asked to come back at the last hour of polling
* Hand gloves will be provided to voters at the time of signing the register and pressing EVM button
* Only group of 5 people can campaign door to door
* Candidate convoy for roadshows restricted to 5 vehicles
* Max 1,000 voters, instead of 1,500, can vote at a polling station
* Quarantined Covid patients will be allowed to vote at the last hour of poll under supervision of health officials, strictly following preventive measures.
(Representational Image)
15:58 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Millions escaped caste discrimination. Covid-19 brought it back
Millions of migrant workers made arduous journeys to their villages after India imposed the world’s largest lockdown in March. Back in the rural hinterland, many say caste discrimination is reversing even the small economic and social gains they eked out in the cities. Read this Bloomberg report to know more.
A woman carries monthly ration from a ration distribution center at Aston village, Madhya Pradesh. (Bloomberg Photo: Dhiraj Singh)
15:54 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Maharasthra police records over 300 new Covid cases; 5 deaths
Over 300 personnel of the Maharashtra police tested positive for coronavirus, while five died of the infection in the last 24 hours, PTI reported on Friday. The latest casualties have taken the death toll in the police force to 136.
15:38 (IST)21 Aug 2020
14 Air India passengers have tested Covid positive till Thursday, says Hong Kong govt
Fourteen passengers who travelled from Delhi to Hong Kong on an Air India flight on August 14 have tested positive for COVID-19 till Thursday, the Hong Kong government said.
Due to this incident, Air India's passenger flights have been barred from landing in Hong Kong till August-end, it added on Friday.
A passenger from India can arrive in Hong Kong only if he or she has a COVID-19 negative certificate from a test done 72 hours prior to the journey, according to the rules issued by the Hong Kong government in July.
15:15 (IST)21 Aug 2020
New features added to Aarogya Setu app
Aarogya Setu app is being updated with new features every other day to smoothen the user experience. We had a look at some of the latest updates that have been added to the app. Click here to know about them.
15:11 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Beijing says residents can go mask-free
Health authorities in China’s capital Beijing have removed a requirement for people to wear masks outdoors, further relaxing rules aimed at preventing the spread the novel coronavirus after the city reported 13 consecutive days without new cases.
Despite the relaxed guidelines, a large proportion of people continued to wear masks in Beijing on Friday.
Some said the mask made them feel safe, while others said social pressures to wear the masks were also a factor.”I think I can take off my mask anytime, but I’ll need to see if others accept it. Because I’m afraid that people would be scared if they see me not wearing mask,” one 24-year old Beijing woman surnamed Cao told Reuters.
(AP Photo)
14:46 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Kejriwal hands over Rs 1 crore cheque to family of sanitation work who died of Covid
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday met the family members of a sanitation worker who recently died of coronavirus and handed over a cheque of Rs 1 crore as an ex-gratia to them. Talking to reporters during his visit in North Delhi's Majnu Ka Tilla area, Kejriwal said that sanitation worker Raju contracted the infection when he was on Covid-19 duty and died while serving the people of Delhi. "We are proud of such 'corona warriors' who are sacrificing their lives while saving the citizens of Delhi," he said.
14:20 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Covid recovery rate in India rises to 74.30 per cent
India's coronavirus recovery rate soared past 74 per cent on Friday with a record 62,282 patients having recuperated and discharged in a day taking the total recoveries to 21.5 lakh, the Union Health Ministry said. The coronavirus case fatality rate has dropped further to 1.89 per cent as on date. With more patients recovering and being discharged from hospitals and home isolation, the total recoveries have surged to 21,58,946 and exceeds active cases of coronavirus infection by 14,66,918 as on date. India's Covid-19 recovery rate has risen to 74.30 per cent which is further bolstered by 33 states and UTs reporting recovery rate more than 50 per cent, it said.
13:44 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Amid Covid pandemic, Supreme Court allows prayers at three Jain temples
The Supreme Court today allowed prayers at three Jain temples — in Dadar, Byculla and Chembur — on August 22 and 23 for the holy Paryushana season on condition that standard operating procedures to deal Covid will be strictly complied with.
13:42 (IST)21 Aug 2020
India coronavirus numbers explained: Covid-19 doubling time down to 30 days
With the daily growth rate continuing to slow down, the doubling time of novel Coronavirus cases in India has now dropped to 30 days. As on Thursday, there were 29.05 lakh confirmed cases in the country. The halfway stage was crossed on July 27, which means the present doubling has happened in 24 days. But the next doubling, at the current rate of growth, would happen only after 30 days, signalling a slowdown. Doubling time is a function of the growth rate. Lower the growth, higher is the doubling time. It is one of the several metrics used to assess the pace at which the epidemic has been spreading in the population. At the start of the outbreak, in April and May, when the cases were rising rapidly, a doubling period of ten days was considered healthy for the stage of epidemic India was in at that time. Click here to read more.
13:32 (IST)21 Aug 2020
KGMU VC tests positive for coronavirus
Vice Chancellor of the King George's Medical University in Lucknow, Lt Gen (Retd) Dr. Vipin Puri, has tested positive for coronavirus, a university spokesman said on Friday. The driver and another staff member of Dr. Puri had tested positive for Covid-19 after which he got himself tested and found that he had contracted the disease, university spokesperson, Dr Sudhir Singh, said. The vice chancellor is in home isolation as a precautionary measure and has appealed to all those who came in contact with him to take all precautionary measures and get themselves tested. Dr Puri had recently taken over as the new Vice Chancellor of the university.
13:04 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Maharashtra: 17 persons booked for defying ban at Palghar beach
A case has been registered against 17 persons, including three women, for allegedly defying prohibitory orders by holding a pre-wedding photoshoot at Kelve beach in Palghar district of Maharashtra, PTI reported. District collector Dr Kailash Shinde has issued an order prohibiting the movement of people near water bodies, including rivers, dams, waterfalls and beaches in Palghar. At least 17 persons, all from Mumbai, violated the order by gathering at Kelve beach for a pre-wedding photoshoot on August 19, Palghar police PRO Sachin Navadkar said.
12:51 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Maharashtra: 50 staffers, 21 patients infected by Covid at state mental hospitals
The coronavirus disease has hit the four government mental hospitals in the state at Thane, Nagpur, Pune and Ratnagiri hard, with 21 patients and 50 staffers infected by the virus till August 19. While all the facilities have suspended group therapy and called off family visits to prevent the virus from spreading further, doctors said, maintaining physical distance and implementing habits, such as hand hygiene and wearing face masks, among the mentally ill patients has been difficult. Restrictions on travel during the lockdown, meanwhile, have also forced a large number of patients, declared fit for discharge, to continue to wait at the facilities inducing restlessness in some, they said.
12:31 (IST)21 Aug 2020
To tackle shortage of doctors in rural areas, Centre & MCI approve two-year PG courses after MBBS
The Covid-19pandemic has brought to the fore the acute shortage of specialists in rural healthcare centres across the country. In a move that is being hailed by medical experts as a “radical reform” in the field of higher medical education, the central government and the Medical Council of India (MCI) have given the go-ahead for launching post-graduate diploma courses that can be undertaken after completing MBBS. A gazette notification was issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, introducing post-graduate diploma courses in eight medical specialties under the National Board of Examinations on August 6. On Thursday, medical experts from across the country participated in a webinar and welcomed the move, with noted cardiac surgeon Dr Devi Shetty terming it a “radical reform”.
12:27 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Senior Kolkata Police officer dies due to COVID-19
A senior officer of Kolkata Police died due to Covid-19 on Friday, taking the total number of its personnel succumbing to the virus to nine, officials said. Assistant Commissioner of Police, Uday Shankhar Banerjee, in his mid 50s, died at a private hospital here in the early hours, they said. Kolkata Police Commissioner Anuj Sharma expressed grief over his demise and described Banerjee as a "corona martyr". "Extremely saddened to share the news of untimely demise of an outstanding Officer ACP (Central Div) Uday Shankar Banerjee who was under treatment in hospital due to COVID-19. TeamKP stands by the family of the deceased Officer #Sad #CoronaMartyr #RIP," Sharma said on Twitter.
11:57 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Dilip Kumar’s brother Aslam Khan dies of Covid-related complications
Aslam Khan, younger brother of veteran Bollywood actor Dilip Kumar, passed away on Friday morning in Mumbai due to coronavirus-related complications, Lilavati Hospital said in a statement. The statement reads, “Aslam Khan, younger brother of Dilip Kumar, passed away early morning in Lilavati hospital under Dr Jalil Parkar due to covid19 with diabetes, hypertension and ischaemic heart disease.” Dilip Kumar’s spokesperson Faisal Farooqui confirmed the news on Twitter. Dilip Kumar’s brothers Eshan and Aslam Khan were admitted to Lilavati hospital last Saturday after testing positive for coronavirus.
11:20 (IST)21 Aug 2020
Strict lockdown in Kolkata, violations reported in some districts
Normal life came to a grinding halt in Kolkata on Friday after a complete shutdown was enforced across West Bengal for the second consecutive day. Incessant overnight rain owing to a low-pressure system that continued this morning also forced people to stay indoors in the city and most other places in south Bengal, PTI reported. All public transport, government and private offices, banks and other commercial establishments, barring those dealing with essential services, remained shut while flight operations in and out of the Kolkata international airport were suspended for the day. Long-distance trains were also rescheduled. Essential services like medicine shops and health establishments remained open as these were kept out of the purview of the complete shutdown. In several district towns, police personnel were seen checking papers of those vehicles that were out on the streets despite the restrictions. At least 2,687 people were arrested from across the state, 541 of them in Kolkata, for violating lockdown rules.
A migrant labourer with her child returning to the city for work looks for transport in New Delhi(AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
High humidity can extend the airborne lifetime of medium-sized virus-laden droplets by as much as 23 times, according to a study which suggests that maintaining physical distancing would significantly remediate the spread of COVID-19.
The novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19 is thought to spread through natural respiratory activities, such as breathing, talking and coughing, but little is known about how the virus is transported through the air, the researchers said.
The study, published in the journal Physics of Fluids, analysed how airflow and fluid flow affect exhaled droplets that can contain the virus.
The model developed by researchers at the University of Missouri in the US includes a more accurate description of air turbulence that affects an exhaled droplet's trajectory.
"If the virus load associated with the droplets is proportional to the volume, almost 70 per cent of the virus would be deposited on the ground during a cough," said study author Binbin Wang.
Coronavirus vaccine update
India has asked developers of three vaccines that are currently undergoing human trials in the country to disclose estimates of the price at which their respective vaccines can be made available.
Two Indian companies, Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech and Ahmedebad-based Zydus Cadila, are carrying out phase-1 and phase-2 human trials of their vaccine candidates. A third candidate, being developed by pharma major AstraZeneca and Oxford University, has also been approved for human trials in India, which are expected to begin soon.
NITI Aayog member V K Paul, who also heads the national expert group on vaccine administration, on Tuesday said the trials of the three vaccine candidates were “on track”, and that it was being reviewed regularly.
“Pricing is perhaps complex because some of them (candidate vaccines) are at an early stage (of development). This information will be refined as we move along. There is no firm information. But we have asked about the price range (of the potential vaccines) from individual manufacturers,” Paul said.
Pune-bases Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest manufacturer of vaccines by volume, has entered into an agreement with Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation which will enable it to make vaccines available for about Rs 240 per dose. According to this agreement, Serum would produce 100 million doses of one of the vaccines that would eventually become successful for supply to middle and low income countries. It is expected that at least 50 per cent of this tranche would be supplied within India.
Meanwhile, state-owned Chinese company Sinopharm has claimed that a candidate vaccine it is developing would be available in the market by December this year, and would be priced lower than 1,000 yuan (about Rs 10,000) for two doses, according to a report in The Global Times.
The vaccine being developed by Sinopharm is in phase-3 human trials which is being carried out in United Arab Emirates. It is one of the six Chinese vaccines that are currently undergoing human trials.
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The overall Covid-19 tally rose to 2,905,823 after 68,898 fresh cases were registered within a span of 24 hours. 
A migrant labourer with her child returning to the city for work looks for transport in New Delhi(AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
COVID-19 is causing significant dilation of the blood vessels of the lungs, contributing to the very low oxygen levels seen in patients with respiratory failure, according to new research that may help provide better treatment to those who are severely affected by the disease.
The pilot study of 18 patients, published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, helps explain how COVID-19 behaves differently than classic acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in which lung inflammation leads to leaky blood vessels in the organ.
In ARDS, the study noted that the leaky blood vessels in the lungs flood the organ with fluid and make it stiff, impairing oxygenation. Click here to read the full report.
Nepal on Friday reported 838 new COVID-19 cases, taking the total number of infections in the country to 30,483, the health ministry said.
According to Jageshwor Gautam, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health, 250 coronavirus patients have been discharged from different health facilities in the past 24 hours.
With this, the total number of patients who have recovered from the disease stands at 18,214.
At present, there are 12,132 COVID-19 patients undergoing treatment at different isolation centres across the country. (PTI)
South Korea added its most new virus cases in months on Friday, driven by a surge around the capital that appears to be spreading nationwide.
The 324 new infections were its highest single-day total since early March and the eighth consecutive triple-digit daily increase.
Most of the new cases are in the densely populated Seoul region, where health workers are scrambling to track transmissions from sources including churches, restaurants, schools and workers. Click here to know more.
The Election Commission of India has issued guidelines for the conduct of general elections/by-elections during COVID-19.
* All voters are to wear face masks, which they will be asked to remove briefly for identification at the time of voting
* Only 2 people can accompany candidate at the time of nomination
* If a voter, on the day of voting, shows symptoms then they will be provided with a token and asked to come back at the last hour of polling
* Hand gloves will be provided to voters at the time of signing the register and pressing EVM button
* Only group of 5 people can campaign door to door
* Candidate convoy for roadshows restricted to 5 vehicles
* Max 1,000 voters, instead of 1,500, can vote at a polling station
* Quarantined Covid patients will be allowed to vote at the last hour of poll under supervision of health officials, strictly following preventive measures.
Millions of migrant workers made arduous journeys to their villages after India imposed the world’s largest lockdown in March. Back in the rural hinterland, many say caste discrimination is reversing even the small economic and social gains they eked out in the cities. Read this Bloomberg report to know more.
Over 300 personnel of the Maharashtra police tested positive for coronavirus, while five died of the infection in the last 24 hours, PTI reported on Friday. The latest casualties have taken the death toll in the police force to 136.
Fourteen passengers who travelled from Delhi to Hong Kong on an Air India flight on August 14 have tested positive for COVID-19 till Thursday, the Hong Kong government said.
Due to this incident, Air India's passenger flights have been barred from landing in Hong Kong till August-end, it added on Friday.
A passenger from India can arrive in Hong Kong only if he or she has a COVID-19 negative certificate from a test done 72 hours prior to the journey, according to the rules issued by the Hong Kong government in July.
Aarogya Setu app is being updated with new features every other day to smoothen the user experience. We had a look at some of the latest updates that have been added to the app. Click here to know about them.
Health authorities in China’s capital Beijing have removed a requirement for people to wear masks outdoors, further relaxing rules aimed at preventing the spread the novel coronavirus after the city reported 13 consecutive days without new cases.
Despite the relaxed guidelines, a large proportion of people continued to wear masks in Beijing on Friday.
Some said the mask made them feel safe, while others said social pressures to wear the masks were also a factor.”I think I can take off my mask anytime, but I’ll need to see if others accept it. Because I’m afraid that people would be scared if they see me not wearing mask,” one 24-year old Beijing woman surnamed Cao told Reuters.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday met the family members of a sanitation worker who recently died of coronavirus and handed over a cheque of Rs 1 crore as an ex-gratia to them. Talking to reporters during his visit in North Delhi's Majnu Ka Tilla area, Kejriwal said that sanitation worker Raju contracted the infection when he was on Covid-19 duty and died while serving the people of Delhi. "We are proud of such 'corona warriors' who are sacrificing their lives while saving the citizens of Delhi," he said.
India's coronavirus recovery rate soared past 74 per cent on Friday with a record 62,282 patients having recuperated and discharged in a day taking the total recoveries to 21.5 lakh, the Union Health Ministry said. The coronavirus case fatality rate has dropped further to 1.89 per cent as on date. With more patients recovering and being discharged from hospitals and home isolation, the total recoveries have surged to 21,58,946 and exceeds active cases of coronavirus infection by 14,66,918 as on date. India's Covid-19 recovery rate has risen to 74.30 per cent which is further bolstered by 33 states and UTs reporting recovery rate more than 50 per cent, it said.
The Supreme Court today allowed prayers at three Jain temples — in Dadar, Byculla and Chembur — on August 22 and 23 for the holy Paryushana season on condition that standard operating procedures to deal Covid will be strictly complied with.
With the daily growth rate continuing to slow down, the doubling time of novel Coronavirus cases in India has now dropped to 30 days. As on Thursday, there were 29.05 lakh confirmed cases in the country. The halfway stage was crossed on July 27, which means the present doubling has happened in 24 days. But the next doubling, at the current rate of growth, would happen only after 30 days, signalling a slowdown. Doubling time is a function of the growth rate. Lower the growth, higher is the doubling time. It is one of the several metrics used to assess the pace at which the epidemic has been spreading in the population. At the start of the outbreak, in April and May, when the cases were rising rapidly, a doubling period of ten days was considered healthy for the stage of epidemic India was in at that time. Click here to read more.
Vice Chancellor of the King George's Medical University in Lucknow, Lt Gen (Retd) Dr. Vipin Puri, has tested positive for coronavirus, a university spokesman said on Friday. The driver and another staff member of Dr. Puri had tested positive for Covid-19 after which he got himself tested and found that he had contracted the disease, university spokesperson, Dr Sudhir Singh, said. The vice chancellor is in home isolation as a precautionary measure and has appealed to all those who came in contact with him to take all precautionary measures and get themselves tested. Dr Puri had recently taken over as the new Vice Chancellor of the university.
A case has been registered against 17 persons, including three women, for allegedly defying prohibitory orders by holding a pre-wedding photoshoot at Kelve beach in Palghar district of Maharashtra, PTI reported. District collector Dr Kailash Shinde has issued an order prohibiting the movement of people near water bodies, including rivers, dams, waterfalls and beaches in Palghar. At least 17 persons, all from Mumbai, violated the order by gathering at Kelve beach for a pre-wedding photoshoot on August 19, Palghar police PRO Sachin Navadkar said.
The coronavirus disease has hit the four government mental hospitals in the state at Thane, Nagpur, Pune and Ratnagiri hard, with 21 patients and 50 staffers infected by the virus till August 19. While all the facilities have suspended group therapy and called off family visits to prevent the virus from spreading further, doctors said, maintaining physical distance and implementing habits, such as hand hygiene and wearing face masks, among the mentally ill patients has been difficult. Restrictions on travel during the lockdown, meanwhile, have also forced a large number of patients, declared fit for discharge, to continue to wait at the facilities inducing restlessness in some, they said.
The Covid-19 pandemic has brought to the fore the acute shortage of specialists in rural healthcare centres across the country. In a move that is being hailed by medical experts as a “radical reform” in the field of higher medical education, the central government and the Medical Council of India (MCI) have given the go-ahead for launching post-graduate diploma courses that can be undertaken after completing MBBS. A gazette notification was issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, introducing post-graduate diploma courses in eight medical specialties under the National Board of Examinations on August 6. On Thursday, medical experts from across the country participated in a webinar and welcomed the move, with noted cardiac surgeon Dr Devi Shetty terming it a “radical reform”.
A senior officer of Kolkata Police died due to Covid-19 on Friday, taking the total number of its personnel succumbing to the virus to nine, officials said. Assistant Commissioner of Police, Uday Shankhar Banerjee, in his mid 50s, died at a private hospital here in the early hours, they said. Kolkata Police Commissioner Anuj Sharma expressed grief over his demise and described Banerjee as a "corona martyr". "Extremely saddened to share the news of untimely demise of an outstanding Officer ACP (Central Div) Uday Shankar Banerjee who was under treatment in hospital due to COVID-19. TeamKP stands by the family of the deceased Officer #Sad #CoronaMartyr #RIP," Sharma said on Twitter.
Aslam Khan, younger brother of veteran Bollywood actor Dilip Kumar, passed away on Friday morning in Mumbai due to coronavirus-related complications, Lilavati Hospital said in a statement. The statement reads, “Aslam Khan, younger brother of Dilip Kumar, passed away early morning in Lilavati hospital under Dr Jalil Parkar due to covid19 with diabetes, hypertension and ischaemic heart disease.” Dilip Kumar’s spokesperson Faisal Farooqui confirmed the news on Twitter. Dilip Kumar’s brothers Eshan and Aslam Khan were admitted to Lilavati hospital last Saturday after testing positive for coronavirus.
Normal life came to a grinding halt in Kolkata on Friday after a complete shutdown was enforced across West Bengal for the second consecutive day. Incessant overnight rain owing to a low-pressure system that continued this morning also forced people to stay indoors in the city and most other places in south Bengal, PTI reported. All public transport, government and private offices, banks and other commercial establishments, barring those dealing with essential services, remained shut while flight operations in and out of the Kolkata international airport were suspended for the day. Long-distance trains were also rescheduled. Essential services like medicine shops and health establishments remained open as these were kept out of the purview of the complete shutdown. In several district towns, police personnel were seen checking papers of those vehicles that were out on the streets despite the restrictions. At least 2,687 people were arrested from across the state, 541 of them in Kolkata, for violating lockdown rules.