Coronavirus latest updates: The Indian Army reported its first case of the coronavirus after a 34-year-old soldier from the Ladakh Scout regiment tested positive for the infection in Leh, army said on Wednesday as the total number of cases in India climbed to 147 after several states reported fresh cases of COVID-19.
Here is a look at the latest developments from India and around the world —
276 Indians, including 255 in Iran, infected with coronavirus abroad: MEA
As many as 276 Indians have been infected with coronavirus abroad, including 255 in Iran, 12 in UAE and five in Italy, the government informed the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.
In a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha, minister of state for external affairs V Muraleedharan said the total number of Indians infected by coronavirus is 276 — 255 in Iran, 12 in UAE, five in Italy, and one each in Hong Kong, Kuwait, Rwanda and Sri Lanka.
UK asks nationals in India with coronavirus symptoms to self isolate for 7 days
The UK has advised British nationals in India that if they have symptoms of coronavirus they should self-isolate for seven days and contact the Government of India’s helpline in case their condition worsens.
UK’s Acting High Commissioner to India Jan Thompson also said the situation remains “fluid” and it is recommended that all British nationals should continue to monitor any advice on state-level restrictions and follow the instructions of local authorities in India.
Thompson said the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has advised against all but essential travel to India.
147 cases in India
In the first case of the coronavirus in the Indian Army, a 34-year-old soldier has tested positive for the infection in Leh, taking the total number of cases in India rose to 147. The confirmed cases include 24 foreign nationals and three persons who died in Delhi, Karnataka and Maharashtra. According to the health ministry’s data, 14 people have been discharged or recovered. Till Tuesday evening, health ministry count stood at 138 confirmed cases which was updated to 147 on Wednesday morning.
Vaishno Devi yatra closed
The Jammu and Kashmir administration announced on Wednesday closure of the Vaishno Devi yatra and banning of all interstate buses as part of the precautionary measures to arrest the spread of coronavirus.
“Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Yatra has been closed from today. Operations of all interstate buses — incoming and outgoing from Jammu and Kashmir, banned from today,” the Jammu and Kashmir director of information and public relations (DIPR) said in a tweet.
The district administration in Udhampur suspended all modes of public transport, while two major parks including Bagh-e-Bahu in Jammu and all public parks in Poonch district have been closed till further orders, officials said.
Non-emergency leave of paramilitary men to be cancelled, govt says
All non-emergency leaves of paramilitary personnel should be “cancelled” in order to minimise the risk of contracting coronavirus during travel and they should get into “battle mode” to combat the pandemic by ensuring personal and public safety, according to a government order.
A four-page directive was issued by the medical wing of the Union home ministry on Tuesday stating that the next three weeks are crucial in checking the spread of the virus and lack of caution can affect the forces, around 10 lakh personnel-strong, deployed for ensuring the country’s internal security and border protection.
The Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) or the paramilitary forces include the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and Sashatra Seema Bal (SSB) apart from the counter-terrorist force National Security Guard (NSG) and the Assam Rifles.
“All non-emergency leave of any kind may be cancelled forthwith. This will cut down travel risk as well,” the guidelines, accessed by PTI, said.
“Avoid international or domestic air, bus or train travel for at least a month except when it is essentially required. Long distance travel is biggest cause for spread (of the virus),” it said.
It has also asked these forces to postpone all meetings and regular departmental reviews related to promotions, medical review, sports tournaments and recruitments.
Colleagues of Ladakh jawan who tested positive for COVID-19 quarantined
The Indian Army reported its first case of the coronavirus after a 34-year-old soldier from the Ladakh Scout regiment tested positive for the infection in Leh, Army sources said on Wednesday.
The Army has quarantined all soldiers and colleagues of the jawan who has tested positive for COVID-19 in Ladakh, according to Army sources.
The jawan was attached to the Ladakh Scouts Regimental Centre in Leh. According to senior Army sources, the Lance Naik tested positive for Covid-19 on Monday.
The father of the 34-year-old jawan had returned to India on February 27 after pilgrimage to Iran and was quarantined and kept in isolation in hospital in Ladakh after testing positive for the novel coronavirus.
According to sources, the soldier who was also quarantined on March 7 was detected positive on March 16 and was kept in isolation at hospital. The jawan’s sister, wife and two children are also under quarantine.
Classes 1-8 students in Uttar Pradesh to get promoted without exams
Students of classes one to eight of all government primary schools in Uttar Pradesh will get promoted without having to appear in examinations in view of the coronavirus outbreak, an official said on Wednesday. Examinations in primary schools were scheduled between March 23 and 28. All schools have been closed till April 2. Competitive and other examinations too have been postponed till April 2.
COVID-19 turns Bengaluru tech hub into ghost town
The Karnataka government’s “work from home” advisory to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic has turned India’s tech hub into a ghost town, with the bustling campuses of IT majors like Infosys and Wipro deserted as thousands of their techies are missing in action since Monday.
“We have advised our employees to work from home while ensuring client confidentiality and security. We will continue work with local governments the world over in following their advisories,” said Infosys chief executive Salil Parekh on Tuesday.
The $11-billion IT behemoth has an 81-acre green campus in the Electronic City, with over a dozen glistening glass buildings housing its software development centres where a whopping 30,000 techies work 5-days a week during normal times.
“The partial lockdown has forced many of our engineers to work from home, leaving empty offices, sparsely utilized corridors, lobbies and other facilities across the green campus,” admitted a company official.
Infosys’ rival Wipro also enforced work from home option for its code writers.
“Given the evolving situation, we have advised our employees to work from home wherever feasible and if their role allows them to do so,” a Wipro spokesperson told IANS.
More than 179,000 cases across the world: WHO
More than 11,500 people were infected with the novel coronavirus globally on Tuesday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases above 179,000, the World Health Organisation said in its latest coronavirus situation report for Tuesday. A total of 475 people died of the infection on Tuesday, raising the global death toll to 7426, the report stated. Eight more countries — three in Africa, one in the Mediterranean Region, three in the Americas, and one in the Western Pacific Region – reported cases of the virus over the past day.
Imported coronavirus cases in China outpace local infections for 5th day
Mainland China had 13 new confirmed cases of coronavirus infections on Tuesday, the country’s National Health Commission said, down from 21 cases a day earlier. Of the new cases, 12 involved infected travellers arriving from abroad. Imported coronavirus cases in China outnumbered cases of location transmission for the fifth straight day as infected travellers passed through major Chinese transportation hubs in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen. Wuhan had only one case of locally transmitted infection on Tuesday. The overall number of imported cases of the virus in mainland China reached 155 as of Tuesday, up 12 from a day earlier. That brings the total number of confirmed cases in mainland China so far to 80,894, the health authority said in a statement on Wednesday.
Cyber cops step up vigil against rumour-mongers
Maharashtra Cyber Police has warned of strict action against rumour-mongers who spread misleading and unverified information on social media regarding COVID-19, an official said on Wednesday. Police have stepped up online surveillance to identify senders of such fake news and other content. The official said many instances of spreading of false and unverified news regarding coronavirus on various social media platforms have come to the fore. These kind of posts can potentially lead to panic and terror among the common people, officials said.
Covid-19 remains stable on surfaces for hours
As per a study conducted by the researchers of National Institutes of Health, CDC, UCLA and Princeton University, the novel coronavirus infectious particles can remain stable in air and linger on solid surfaces for spans ranging from several hours to days. The scientists found that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was detectable in aerosols for up to three hours, up to four hours on copper, up to 24 hours on cardboard and up to two to three days on plastic and stainless steel. The results provide key information about the stability of SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19 or novel coronavirus infection.
Pune woman tests positive; Maha count climbs to 42
A 28-year-old woman from Pune with a travel history to France and the Netherlands tested positive for COVID-19. With this, the number of COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra has gone up to 42. Confirming the case, District Collector, Naval Kishore Ram said that the woman returned India on March 15 and was hospitalized on March 17.
Tom Hanks says he has the ‘blahs’ but no fever in isolation
Hollywood actor and filmmaker Tom Hanks says he feels the “blahs” but has no fever as he and wife Rita Wilson remain in isolation in an Australian residence after being discharged from a hospital following their coronavirus diagnosis. “Hey folks. Good news: One week after testing positive, in self-isolation, the symptoms are much the same. No fever but the blahs. Folding the laundry and doing the dishes leads to a nap on the couch. Bad news: my wife has won 6 straight hands of Gin Rummy and now leads by 201 points,” he posted on social media Tuesday evening.
Quarantined gamers boost China’s Tencent profits
Millions forced to stay at home amidst the outbreak have driven up the demand for online games and streaming services. Chinese technology major, Tencent Holdings Ltd, is likely to provide its first estimate on the impact of the epidemic on Wednesday when it reports October-December earnings, with analysts saying that Tencent will be one of the biggest corporate winners. Tencent’s businesses are mainly online-only, positioning it uniquely against other tech giants such as Alibaba Group Holding Ltd that focus on e-commerce and whose supply chains have been severely disrupted by the outbreak. Overall, downloads of all Tencent apps for this February grew 32.3% month-on-month and 42.9% year-on-year, said analyst Nan Lu at researcher Sensor Tower.
Facebook bug wrongly deleted authentic coronavirus news
Facebook said a bug in its anti-spam system temporarily blocked the publication of links to news stories about the coronavirus. Guy Rosen, Facebook’s vice president of integrity, said on Twitter Tuesday that the company was working on a fix for the problem. Users complained that links to news stories about school closings and other information related to the virus outbreak were blocked by the company’s automated system. Later on Tuesday, Rosen tweeted that Facebook had restored all the incorrectly deleted posts, which also covered topics beyond the coronavirus.
Jaishankar meets officials at Delhi Airport
External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar met immigration, health, security and airport officials at Delhi Airport late Tuesday night and lauded their efforts. In a tweet, he thanked the officials and workers “for their exceptional effort in these difficult times. That too, with great courtesy and a warm smile.” The EAM also wrote in his tweet,”India works because countless Indians do”.
Over 1.85 lakh passengers screened at Delhi airport
Over 1.86 lakh passengers who have returned from the coronavirus-affected countries have been screened at the Delhi airport till date and placed under surveillance, Delhi Health Department authorities said on Tuesday. The total coronavirus cases in Delhi now stands at eight. As many as 4,458 passengers from the coronavirus-hit countries were screened on Tuesday, according to a statement released by the Delhi Health Department. India had reported its second casualty due to coronavirus on Friday with the death of a 68-year-old woman in Delhi.
Pilgrimage at Malaysian mosque became hotspot
The Muslim gathering held at the end of last month at a sprawling mosque complex on the outskirts of Malaysia’s capital Kuala Lumpur has emerged as a source of hundreds of new coronavirus infections spanning Southeast Asia. The four-day Muslim gathering was attended by 16,000 people, including 1,500 foreigners. Malaysia has now shut down its borders to contain the outbreak. The hosts, the Islamic missionary movement Tablighi Jama’at, which traces its roots back to India a century ago, on Monday suspended missionary activities but did not comment directly on the Malaysian event.
Trump calls for national unity against coronavirus
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday called for a unified national response to the coronavirus threat, after coming under fire for downplaying the pandemic and allowing states to go their own way. Trump’s call came as Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the White House was presenting a massive economic stimulus plan to Congress and was looking at sending direct payments to all Americans, as well as aid to embattled airlines.
Asian business confidence slumps
Confidence among Asian companies slumped to near 11-year lows in the first quarter as the coronavirus pandemic sent countries into lock down, battering economic activity and consumer sentiment, a Thomson Reuters/INSEAD survey showed. Representing the six-month outlook of 100 companies, the Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asian Business Sentiment Index fell 18 points to 53 for the first quarter. Also, the survey, conducted in 11 Asia-Pacific countries across a range of sectors from Feb. 28 to March. 13, does not reflect the gloom that has pervaded markets this week.
24×7 helpline for visa, travel queries for foreigners in India
The government has launched a helpline and an email id to answer queries regarding visa and travel restrictions as well as to facilitate foreigners in India in availing consular services amid coronavirus breakout. The services have been issued by the Bureau of Immigration, under the Union home ministry, and will be available round the clock. The phone number is 011-24300666 and the email id is support.covid19-boi@gov.in, a home ministry spokesperson tweeted.
Avoid self-medication with ibuprofen against Covid-19 symptoms: WHO
The World Health Organisation on Tuesday recommended that people suffering from Covid-19-like symptoms should avoid self-medicating with ibuprofen, after French authorities warned anti-inflammatory drugs could worsen the effects of the virus. The warnings over the weekend by French health minister Olivier Veran followed a recent study in The Lancet weekly medical journal that hypothesized that an enzyme that is boosted when taking anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen could facilitate and worsen Covid-19 infections.
France locks down as global virus panic spreads
France moved into a near-total lockdown on Tuesday over the coronavirus, the latest country to impose draconian restrictions affecting the lives of hundreds of millions of people around the world. European leaders also plan to ban all non-essential travel into the continent on Tuesday in a bid to stem a pandemic that has killed thousands, upended society and battered economies. With French President Emmanuel Macron describing the battle against COVID-19 as a “war”, governments around the world are scrambling to keep the public safe with measures rarely seen in peacetime, slamming borders shut and forcing citizens to stay home.
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