Coronavirus Pandemic: Mumbai, one of the metro cities with the most number of cases, on Saturday reported fifth COVID-19 case from Dharavi, Asia’s largest slum
New Delhi, April 5:
Seventy-seven people have died in India after being infected with the novel coronavirus or COVID-19, the health ministry said today, adding that the country recorded 472 cases in last 24 hours that takes the total to 3,374. India recorded the highest number of cases (601) and deaths (12) on Friday amid an unprecedented surge in the COVID-19 count over the last week linked to a controversial religious gathering in Delhi. More than 1,000 people who attended the religious held by Islamic group Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi last month have tested positive, the government said on Saturday. Tonight, millions across India are expected to join Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call to express national solidarity by turning off lights “at 9 pm for nine minutes” in fight against “darkness of coronavirus pandemic”
Here is your ten point-cheatsheet on coronavirus cases in India:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that India is working closely with the US to win the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed thousands and infected over a million across nations. “Had an extensive telephone conversation with President @realDonaldTrump We had a good discussion, and agreed to deploy the full strength of the India-US partnership to fight COVID-19,” PM Modi tweeted last evening.
The religious event at a 100-year-old mosque complex in south Delhi by Islamic group Tablighi Jamat last month has been declared a coronavirus hotspot by the government, with 22,000 who were either at the event or came in contact with Jamaat members quarantined.
Cases linked to the Tablighi Jamaat have been reported from 17 states – Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir, Assam, Karnataka, Andaman and Nicobar, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Arunachal Pradesh and Jharkhand. Tamil Nadu is the worst hit with over 450 cases.
Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh have also reported large numbers of COVID-19 cases linked to the Tablighi Jamaat, with 87 per cent of Andhra’s cases so connected and positive cases reported from 27 UP districts. The North East has also been badly affected with 26 of 30 coronavirus cases connected to the Delhi mosque event.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackery on Saturday warned people against communalising the fight against COVID-19, saying: “This COVID19 sees no religion”. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy made similar appeals.
Mumbai, one of the metro cities with the most number of cases, on Saturday reported fifth COVID-19 case from Dharavi, Asia’s largest slum. There are over a million people living within five square kilometres and five confirmed cases have been reported in four days.
The government on Saturday said that it will provide free coronavirus testing and treatment facilities to over 50 crore Ayushman Bharat health insurance scheme beneficiaries. The National Health Authority, the government body that runs the scheme, said private labs and empanelled hospitals will be roped in for extending free service to the masses.
In Madhya Pradesh, two top health officials have tested positive for COVID-19. The state has so far reported 104 cases and six deaths.
In a first-of-its-kind massive drive to contain the spread of coronavirus, the Tamil Nadu government has deploy 16,000 trained workers for a door-to-door screening across Chennai. The trained workers – armed with personal protective equipment – would submit daily reports keeping a 24×7 monitoring of Chennai residents.
The World Bank has approved $1.9 billion in aid for 25 countries. The largest chunk of this – $1 billion – will come to India and should be used for “better screening, contact tracing and laboratory diagnostics, (buying) personal protective equipment and setting up new isolation wards”, the global financial institution has said.
Courtesy: NDTV
