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Public transport may restart soon with some guidelines: Gadkari

New Delhi (NVI): Union Minister Nitin Gadkari today said that public transport may open soon with some guidelines while cautioning towards maintaining social distance and adopting all safety measures like hand wash, sanitizing, face masks, etc while operating buses and cars.

The Union Transport Minister was addressing the members of Bus and Car Operators Confederation of India through video conferencing. In his virtual interaction, he assured the bus and car operators of the country that the government is fully aware of their problems, and will fully support them to mitigate their issues, the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways said.

Gadkari said that he is in regular touch with the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister in this regard.

He further said the Ministry is looking at adopting the London model of public transport, where government funding is minimal and private investment is promoted.

He also pointed out towards the poor standards of Indian bus and truck bodies which he said, work for only 5-7 years, whereas the European models last for upto 15 years.

The minister also emphasised upon adopting good practices by European countries in the transport space, which he said will also be economically viable for indigenous industry in the longer run.

Speaking on the financial condition of the Indian market during the ongoing pandemic, he said, all stakeholders will have to work together to combat it.

He pointed towards a very good business opportunity being offered by world industry, which is trying to wriggle out of the Chinese market, the Ministry said.

“Indian industry should grasp this opportunity to invite those foreign companies to invest with them in India,” Gadkari said.

Apart from that, members of the confederation made suggestions for improving the condition of public transport which include extending interest payment exemptions, restarting public transport, extending age, life limit, deferring state taxes, extending MSME benefits, extending insurance policy validity, etc.

Bangladesh receives medical assistance from India

(Image source: United News of Bangladesh)

New Delhi (NVI): India handed over the third tranche of emergency medical assistance today, consisting of Covid-19 test kits capable of running 30,000 tests in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh is the first partner country to receive these test kits on priority basis reflecting the “importance attached” to the bilateral relationship by India, according to media reports.

The total number of deaths from coronavirus continues to rise in Bangladesh as 3 more people died during the period, taking the total casualties in the country to 186.

Besides, a whopping 790 new cases of coronavirus infection were reported during this period, the highest daily rise since the outbreak began in the country, raising the number of such cases in the country to 11,719, according to United News of Bangladesh.

Considering the worsening situation, the government is about to extend the general holiday again to prevent the transmission of the deadly virus, media reports states.

Pakistan reports highest COVID-19 deaths in a single day

COVID-19: Pakistan imposes mini-lockdown in Islamabad

New Delhi (NVI): Pakistan is witnessing a rapid increase in the positive cases of coronavirus with more than a 1,500 cases being reported in the last 24 hours, taking the total cases to 23,274 with at least 535 fatalities being recorded so far.

Looking at the breakdown of cases, Punjab province has reported 8,693 coronavirus cases, highest among all the provinces, while Sindh has 8,649 positive cases.

On the other hand, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa has recorded 3,499 cases, Balochistan is at 1,495, Gilgit-Baltistan at 386, Islamabad at 485 and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir is at 76 cases so far, according to Geo News.

So far 232,582 tests were conducted, including 10,178 in the last 24 hours.

Prime Minister Imran Khan has recently said that the nationwide lockdown will be lifted gradually, asserting that Pakistan cannot afford an indefinite closure, according tp media reports.

Fact Check: WhatsApp message about free internet till May 17 is fake

New Delhi (NVI): A viral WhatsApp message is claiming that mobile companies are providing free internet to mobile phone users due to lockdown till May 17 in the wake of coronavirus outbreak.

After investigating the viral message, the Fact Check Unit of the Press Information Bureau (PIB) has clarified that the message is fake and there has been no such announcement by the Telecom department.

PIB, through its Fact Check Twitter handle said, the claim made in the viral message is false and the link is also fake.

“Claim: A WhatsApp message claims that due to lockdown till May 17, 2020 amid the Corona pandemic, mobile companies have announced to provide free internet to all mobile users.

“#PIBFactCheck: This claim is absolutely false and the given link is fake. The Department of Telecommunications has not made any such announcement,” read the clarification, tweeted by PIB’s Fact Check unit in Hindi.

Social media platforms are flooded with fake news and misinformation around coronavirus. To counter such viral fake messages, PIB has initiated Fact Check handle. One can also submit such messages or claims on PIB’s official website.

PM Garib Kalyan scheme: Rs 34,800 cr financial help to 39 cr people so far, says Govt

New Delhi (NVI): Around 39 crore poor have people received financial assistance of Rs 34,800 crore under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP) as on May 5, the Ministry of Finance said today.

The digital payment infrastructure was announced by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on March 26 to protect poor people from the impact of the lockdown due to COVID-19.

Under PMGKP, the government announced free food grains and cash payments to women and poor senior citizens and farmers.

“Using the digital payment infrastructure, around 39 crore poor people received financial assistance of Rs 34,800 crore under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP) as on May 5, announced by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 26 March to protect them from the impact of the lockdown due to COVID-19,” the Ministry of Finance said in a statement.

The swift implementation of the package is being continuously monitored by Central and State governments, it said.

The progress achieved under various components of PMGKP is as follows:

1. Rs 16,394 crore front-loaded towards payment of the first installment of PM-KISAN to 8.19 crore beneficiaries.

2. With the second installment, Rs 2,785 crore credited to 5.57 crore Women Jan Dhan account holders as on May 5.

3. Rs 1405 crore disbursed to about 2.82 crore old age persons, widows and disabled persons. Benefits transferred to all 2.812 crore beneficiaries.

4. 2.20 crore Building and Construction Workers received financial support amounting to Rs 3492.57 crore.

5. A total of 6.19 lakh MT of food grains has been distributed, covering 12.39 crore beneficiaries by 22 States/UTs.

6. 2.42 lakh MT of Pulses have also been dispatched to various States/UTs.

7. Pulses have been distributed so far to 5.21 crore household beneficiaries out of 19.4 crore such beneficiaries.

8. Under Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) scheme 4.82 free cylinders already delivered to beneficiaries.

9. 6 Lakh members of Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has taken the benefit of online withdrawal of non-refundable advance from EPFO account amounting to 2985 crore.

10. Rs 21,032 crore released to states to liquidate pending dues of both wage and material under the MGNREGA scheme.

The ministry further said that fintech and digital technology have been employed for swift and efficient transfer to the beneficiary.

Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) had ensured the amount is directly credited into the account of the beneficiary.

Fact check: Google forms titled ‘Rescue flights from India’ for stranded Indians fake

New Delhi (NVI): A lot of misinformation is circulating on social media, as the Indian government is preparing a mega evacuation plan to bring back around 14,800 Indian nationals stranded in 12 countries from May 7.

A message with links to Google forms or docs titled ‘Rescue Flights From India’ for Indians stranded abroad is doing rounds on social media, especially messaging app WhatsApp. The message asks people to click on some links if they want themselves to be registered for the evacuation process from countries like Canada, US Australia.

Taking note of the message being widely circulated on WhatsApp, the Fact Check unit of the Press Information Bureau (PIB) has clarified that the Central Government has not issued any Google forms tilted ‘Rescue flights from India’, for stranded Indians abroad.

PIB, through its special Fact Check Twitter handle informed that no such forms have been circulated by the Centre and advised not to click on these links and to register only through the official Embassy website.

PIB tweeted: “Claim: A WhatsApp message is circulating with links to Google Forms titled ‘RESCUE FLIGHTS FROM INDIA’, for stranded Indians.

#PIBFactCheck: Indian Govt has not issued any such forms. It’s advised not to click on these links & to register only through the official Embassy website.”

As per the SOPs issued by the MHA yesterday, to bring back stranded Indians nationals from abroad, all such persons will register themselves with the Indian Missions in the country where they are stranded, along with necessary details as prescribed by MEA.

Liquor shops in Mumbai shut again, only essential shops to open

(Source:Twitter)

New Delhi (NVI): All liquor shops in Mumbai remained shut today after Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) commissioner issued an order in this regard late yesterday, as the government expressed concern over overcrowding outside such shops and neglect of social distancing norms.

BMC released revised guidelines in this regard yesterday as a precautionary measure to contain the spread of Covid-19. Mumbai Municipal Commissioner Praveen Pardeshi issued an order yesterday saying that only “groceries, medical/chemist shops will be allowed to be opened.”

Maharashtra is the most affected state in the country with a number of cases from Mumbai and Dharavi declared as a hotspot.


“All malls, market complexes and markets shall remain closed in urban areas, i.e. areas within the limits of Municipal Corporation and municipalities. However, shops selling essential goods in market complexes are permitted,” the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai said in an order.

Mumbai alone has recorded nearly 10,000 COVID-19 cases. Maharashtra has recorded over 15,000 cases so far, highest in the country. At least 617 people died to coronavirus disease in the state.

State-wise details of Covid-19 cases in India

New Delhi (NVI): As the nation is now in the third phase of the countrywide lockdown, amid rapid spike in COVID-19 cases, the total number of confirmed cases have been reported at 49,391 with 1,694 deaths so far, according to the Union Health Ministry.

After the first confirmed coronavirus case in India, which was reported in the state of Kerala on January 30, the virus has tightened its grip across the nation.

Total positive cases in different states/UTs:

Andaman and Nicobar Islands- 33

Andhra Pradesh- 1,717

Arunachal Pradesh- 1

Assam- 43

Bihar- 536

Chandigarh- 111

Chhattisgarh- 59

Dadar Nagar Haveli- 1

Delhi- 5,104

Gujarat- 6,245

Haryana– 548

Himachal Pradesh- 42

Jammu and Kashmir- 741

Jharkhand- 125

Karnataka- 671

Kerala- 502

Ladakh- 41

Madhya Pradesh- 3,049

Maharashtra- 15,525

Meghalaya- 12

Mizoram- 1

Odisha- 175

Puducherry- 9

Punjab- 1,451

Rajasthan- 3,158

Tamil Nadu- 4,058

Telangana- 1,096

Tripura- 43

Uttarakhand- 61

Uttar Pradesh- 2,880

West Bengal – 1,344

State/UT wise total death toll in the country:

Andhra Pradesh- 36

Assam- 1

Bihar- 2

Chandigarh-1

Delhi- 64

Gujarat- 368

Haryana- 6

Himachal Pradesh- 2

Jammu and Kashmir- 8

Jharkhand- 3

Karnataka- 29

Kerala- 4

Madhya Pradesh- 176

Maharashtra- 617

Meghalaya- 1

Odisha- 1

Punjab- 25

Rajasthan- 89

Tamil Nadu- 33

Telangana- 29

Uttar Pradesh- 56

Uttarakhand- 1

West Bengal- 140

A total of 14,183 people have been cured or discharged from hospitals in India. There are around 33,514 active cases currently.

Coronavirus cases surge past 3.65 million globally

Coronavirus cases

New Delhi (NVI): More than 3.65 million people around the world have now been confirmed with the coronavirus and nearly 2,57,000 people have died, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

However, nearly 1.2 million people have also recovered from the deadly contagion.

Meanwhile, the US President Donald Trump has decided to wind down the taskforce leading the country’s coronavirus response even though data shows more than 71,000 Americans have died from COVID-19 and more than 1.2 million have been diagnosed with the disease.

The United Kingdom now has the highest death toll in Europe with 29,501 deaths with 1,96,243 people being infected with the virus.

In addition to this, China’s National Health Commission says the mainland had two new cases of coronavirus on Tuesday with 20 new asymptomatic cases. No deaths were recorded.

In Brazil, 6,935 new cases of coronavirus have been reported in the last 24 hours and 600 new deaths, bringing the total to 1,14,715 confirmed cases of the virus and 7,921 deaths.

Whereas, a total of 40 people died from the coronavirus in Pakistan yesterday — the country’s highest single-day increase in deaths during the outbreak, according to the health ministry.

COVID-19 cases in India rise to 49,391; death toll nears 1,700

Representational Image

New Delhi (NVI): The total number of coronavirus cases in India has risen to 49,391 and fatalities from the virus has gone up to 1,694, according to Union Health Ministry.

The confirmed cases of COVID-19 include 49,280 Indians and 111 foreign nationals.

In the last 24 hours, 2,958 fresh coronavirus cases were reported in the country, it said.

With 15,525 cases, Maharashtra continues to lead the tally. The state has recorded 617 COVID-19 deaths.

Gujarat and Delhi have recorded 6,245 and 5,104 cases respectively. The death count in the national capital stands at 64, as per Health Ministry data.

The other worst affected states are Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.

Apart from this, the Union Territory Dadar Nagar Haveli entered the list with its first case. No cases had ever been reported from here so far.

The ministry also said that, the country’s recovery rate of patients who have successfully fought the illness stood at 28.71 per cent this morning.

Meanwhile, Telangana has extended the lockdown in the state till May 29, ten days after it is scheduled to end in the rest of the country.

Karnataka government asked Indian Railways to cancel all trains that were to ferry migrant workers to their home towns.

As many as 14,182 COVID-19 patients have been cured and discharged so far.

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