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COVID-19 death toll rises in India to 62; total cases at 2,547

New Delhi (NVI): The total number of positive COVID-19 cases in India rose to 2,547 while the death toll climbed to 62, according to the Health Ministry data.

The latest numbers put out by the Health Ministry include 2,322 active coronavirus cases, while 156 people have been cured or discharged. The spike in numbers came even as the country entered its tenth day of lockdown.

Maharashtra has become the worst affected state with 335 cases, followed by Kerala with 286 positive cases.

Meanwhile, Delhi’s Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that the number of coronavirus cases may shoot up in Delhi in the coming days as the government has decided to put all the people evacuated from Nizamuddin Markaz under test.

Meanwhile, a nationwide search is underway to identify those who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event. Authorities across states have already identified 5,000 persons and sent them for quarantine, according to the media reports.

WFP helps Bhutan prepare for Covid-19

The facility, like the one in this file photo, will be used to preposition food to help meet the needs of the population in Bhutan. (Source: Twitter @WFPAsiaPacific)

New Delhi (NVI): United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has donated two mobile storage units to Bhutan in a bid to help prepare the landlocked country for COVID-19.

The units, worth a total of USD 45,000, will be used to help authorities store food to meet the needs of people in case of any emergency due to the COVID-19 situation.

The mobile storage units were donated by WFP to Bhutan yesterday. The facility will be used to preposition food to help meet the needs of the population.

Bhutan is a small landlocked country in the Eastern Himalayas bordered by the People’s Republic of China in the North and India on the other 3 sides.

WFP has extended the support, keeping in mind the potential shocks that can affect a vulnerable population. At such a time of crisis, many countries in the world may face decreased access to affordable and nutritious food amid the growing unemployment rate and lost/reduced wages.

So far, Bhutan has reported only five coronavirus cases and no deaths, but there are fears due to the pandemic.

Bhutan Government had confirmed its first two cases of COVID-19 on March 28, detected in Bhutanese nationals. Its first confirmed infection was a 76-year-old American tourist on March 5.

Four LeT militants, 3 OGWs arrested in north Kashmir

woman SPO

Mubashir Bukhari

Srinagar (NVI): Jammu and Kashmir Police today said that it has arrested four Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) militants and three Over Ground Workers (OGWs) from Handwara area of north Kashmir.

“In the wee hours today, Handwara police with 21 RR, 30 RR and 92 BN CRPF following the input regarding the presence of militants in Village Gund Chogal launched a search operation. During search operation four militants of LeT were apprehended,” police said.

The arrested militants have been identified as Parvaiz Ahmad Chopan, Mudasir Ahmad Pandit, Mohammad Rafi Sheikh and Burhan Mushtaq Wani.

The police have recovered three AK-47s, eight AK 47 magazines, 332 AK rounds, 12 Hand Grenades, three pistols, six pistol magazines, 24 pistol rounds and letter Pad of LeT outfit.

Earlier in the day, police arrested three LeT OGWs from Handwara.

NCC in Shillong to help fight Covid-19

Shillong (NVI): In a bid to help contain the fast-spreading coronavirus, the NCC Group in Shillong has set up a Disaster Management Cell along with the Meghalaya state government, the Defence spokesperson said today.

On the occasion, Group Commander NCC Shillong, Brig PM Bali visited the Emergency Operations Centre at Shillong. He interacted with officials and staff manning the facility to understand the requirement of NCC volunteers by the state & explained to them guidelines issued by the Ministry of Defence for ‘Ex NCC Yogdan’.

As per the guidelines, all NCC volunteers will be trained before being employed. Meghalaya government will provide 100 Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to NCC for the task.

The Defence Ministry yesterday said that NCC has offered the services of its cadets in aiding the civil authorities from across the country to join the fight against COVID-19 under ‘Exercise NCC Yogdan’.

As per MoD, only senior division volunteer cadets above 18 years of age will be employed under the exercise. They should be employed in small cohesive groups of eight to 20 under the supervision of permanent instructor staff and an associate NCC officer.

Five more test positive for Covid-19 in JK, total 75 cases so far

Mubashir Bukhari

Srinagar (NVI): Five more people have tested positive for novel coronavirus in Jammu and Kashmir, as the total number of positive cases in the Union Territory reached 75 today.

“75 COVID19 cases have been reported in Jammu & Kashmir, with 5 cases being reported today out of which 70 are active. Four of the new cases are from Kashmir while one came into light in Jammu,” J&K government spokesperson, Rohit Kansal said.

Kashmir now has 57 positive cases while Jammu has 18 COVID-19 patients.

Till yesterday, the government has placed 1,70,677 persons under observation. “Of them, 10,694 are in-home quarantine, 622 in hospital quarantine, 4,109 in-home surveillance.

Meanwhile, in case of any emergency, people can avail free ambulance services 24×7 at their doorsteps by calling on toll-free No- 108. Pregnant women and sick infants can avail free ambulance services by dialing toll-free No- 102.

Furthermore, a 24×7 toll-free national helpline number 1075 has been activated for support, guidance, and response to health-related queries on novel coronavirus disease. The government of Jammu and Kashmir has also set up helpline numbers in this regard: 0191-2549676 (UT level Cell for J&K), 0191-2520982, 0191-2674444, 0191-2674115 (For Jammu Division), 0194-2440283 and 0194-2430581 (For Kashmir Division).

According to the advisory, people are advised to remain calm & not to panic as the prevention, containment and management of COVID-19 in the UT are being monitored at the highest level and necessary action to protect and safeguard the lives of people have been taken by the Government. “The Government has undertaken aggressive contact tracing and testing campaign that is why surge has been found in the number of confirmed positive cases,” the advisory reads.

People have been requested to stay indoors, strictly implement social distancing measures, disclose recent travel history to COVID-19 affected countries/areas and report any contact with positive cases voluntarily.

The general public has been advised to avoid unnecessary visits to hospitals, in case anyone develops a fever, cough and difficulty in breathing, seek medical advice promptly by calling on COVID-19 helpline numbers so that they can be provided correct medical advice and directed to the right health facility, if needed.

“People must take basic precautions for personal hygiene; frequent hand washing with soap & water, and observing coughing & sneezing etiquettes,” the Government advisory added.

Spike in COVID-19 cases in Sri Lanka; total at 143

New Delhi (NVI): The number of total confirmed coronavirus cases in Sri Lanka has risen to 143, according to the Health Promotion Bureau report.

In addition, 2 deaths due to the novel coronavirus have been reported.

A total of 173 more people are under observation at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases (IDH), according to the media reports.

The indefinite curfew continues in Colombo, Gampaha, Kaluthra, Puttalam, Jaffna and Kandy regions.

Over 7,000 people have been arrested for curfew violations, according to the police officials.

President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has said today that it has been observed during the current state of emergency in the country, messages purported to be from him are being shared on various social media messaging platforms, such as WhatsApp, Viber, Facebook messenger etc.

He said that any announcement will be made only through his official web pages and social media account.

Father on death bed, J&K man cycling over 2100 km from Mumbai

Mohammad Arif

Mubashir Bukhari

Srinagar (NVI): With the entire country under lockdown and public transport off the roads, a man has embarked on a long journey on his bicycle from Mumbai to meet his ailing father in Rajouri district of Jammu, around 2100 kilometers away.

It is not going to be an easy journey for 29-year-old Mohammad Arif, a resident of Rajouri, who works as a watchman in Mumbai Central. But a distress call from his hometown has compelled Arif to take up the extraordinary challenge.

“My father has suffered a hemorrhage after he was beaten by his relatives. He is right now in hospital fighting for life. His last wish is to see me,” Arif said.

Arif landed in Mumbai a month back to earn his livelihood. “My father is living alone as I am his lonely son. Besides, I and my wife parted ways long back and three of my kids are staying with her,” he said.

He said his in-laws live near his father’s house, and recently, there was a scuffle on some issue in which his father suffered the hemorrhage.

When asked how he will reach Rajouri on a bicycle, Arif said, “I had no other option than to start this journey on the bicycle. I don’t have money to even hire any vehicle,” Arif said while adding that it will be an easy journey for him if people can help him by arranging a conveyance.

Meanwhile, concerned residents of Mumbai have launched a campaign on social media to help Arif.

Before landing in Mumbai, Arif was working in UAE as a driver for seven years. “I met an accident there because I didn’t have proper documents. I was jailed there for 11 months that’s why I have to return back to India,” he said.

COVID-19 cases in Pakistan cross 2,400; lockdown extended till Apr 14

(Image source: Dawn.com)

New Delhi (NVI): Pakistan has reported 2,458 positive cases of coronavirus, the highest in South Asia, fuelled by a jump in cases related to members of Tablighi Jamaat, according to Dawn news.

Meanwhile, Pakistan has decided to extend its lockdown till April 14 to curb the spread of COVID-19 besides finalising a solid strategy to cope with the impact of the pandemic.

The decisions were taken in a session of National Coordination Committee held under the chair of Prime Minister Imran Khan to review the current situation of coronavirus pandemic in Pakistan.

Today, the Sindh province enforced a “curfew-like” lockdown for three hours beginning from 12 noon to deter people from coming out of their homes for prayers, officials said.

So far, 31 deaths have been reported across the country, with no new deaths being reported in the last 24 hours, according to the media reports.

In addition to this, 82 patients have been recovered from COVID-19 pandemic, according to the national dashboard.

Coronavirus cases in Bangladesh reach 61; total deaths at 6

Bangladesh lockdown

New Delhi (NVI): Five more positive cases of coronavirus have been reported taking the total number of cases in Bangladesh to 61, according to the United News of Bangladesh.

Bangladesh has so far reported six deaths from COVID-19.

Bangladesh on March 8 confirmed the first infections while the first death was reported on March 18, according to the media reports.

Bangladesh’s Health minister Zahid Maleque, through a video-conference, said that the risks were not yet over and everyone should stay home and abide by the government’s directives to maintain social distancing.

The Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) has been repeatedly advising people not to go to the hospitals or IEDCR in person but to call its call centres following which they would collect the samples from the patients’ homes, in order to reduce the possibility of the virus spread if the patient is found positive.

PM interacts with sportspersons

New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi today interacted with eminent sportspersons in the country and told them they have an important role to play in boosting the morale of the nation amid the lockdown period due to Covid-19 outbreak.

While praising the sportspersons for bringing glory to the nation through stellar performances on the fied, the PM said that they can play a crucial role in spreading the message of social distancing along with asking people to continuously follow advisories given during lockdown.

The Prime Minister, who interacted with sportspersons through video conferencing told them that they can reach out to citizens and spread the message of positivity to fight against COVID-19 pandemic.

He also said that COVID-19 is an adversary of the entire humanity and the gravity of the situation can be ascertained from the fact that for the first time since World War II, the Olympics has been postponed.

He underlined that the traits learnt in sports training viz the ability to face challenges, self-discipline, positivity and self-belief are the essential tools to combat the spread of the virus.

During the virtual interaction, the PM gave them five-point mantra of ‘Sankalp, Sanyam, Sakaratmakta, Samman Sahyog’ to tackle COVID-19.

He also asked them to highlight the importance of both physical and mental fitness and also popularize guidelines released by AYUSH Ministry.

More than 40 top sportspersons from across disciplines including Bharat Ratna Shri Sachin Tendulkar, BCCI President Shri Sourav Ganguly, Women’s Hockey team captain Rani Rampal, ace badminton player PV Sindhu and many others participated in the video conference.

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