Coronavirus cases in India rise to 1,636, 132 cured and 38 dead

• The Ministry of Health data shows that there are 1,636 active cases, 132 recovered and 38 dead.
  
• The number of positive coronavirus cases linked to the Nizamuddin Markaz where the Tablighi Jamaat held a congregation of thousands has risen to 93.
  
• Maharashtra saw the sharpest spurt since lockdown, the number of positive cases notched staggering 302, with the highest number from Mumbai.

It is day eight of a 21-day lockdown here in India. As the country entered the critical phase of Coronavirus pandemic, it touched a new high today, nearing the 1400 mark with regards to the number of infected people.

The Ministry of Health data shows that there are 1,466 infected people, out of which 132 recovered and 38 died.

13 new COVID-19 cases in Rajasthan, tally reaches 106

A total of 13 new cases of COVID-19 positive patients was reported on Wednesday in Jaipur, taking the total tally to 89 in Rajasthan which when counted with 17 evacuees from Iran, who tested positive in Jodhpur, counted 106 in state, confirmed health officials.

All 13 are the contacts of the first person who tested positive in Ramganj a few days ago. They have been kept in isolation at the Rajasthan University of Health Services and NIMS and samples were taken from there, said Additional Chief Secretary Rohit Kumar Singh.

The man who tested positive a few days ago after returning from Oman is now been termed as a super-spreader as he also infected his friend a day after he returned.

Govt sets up national monitoring dashboard on COVID-19 grievances

The government has set up a National Monitoring Dashboard where novel coronavirus or COVID-19 related grievances received in Centralized Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System with all ministries, departments, states and Union Territories are monitored on priority basis by a technical team.

It aims to ensure timely redress of COVID-19 grievances. Directions have been issued to all ministries and departments to prioritize these grievances and provide redress in three days.

The grievances monitored by a technical team of Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) which developed the dashboard and implemented it at https://darpg.gov.in. DARPG is the nodal agency of the Central government for administrative reforms as well as redress of public grievances relating to the states in general and those pertaining to Central Government agencies in particular.

25-year-old man succumbed to death in UP

Uttar Pradesh reported its first coronavirus-related death on Wednesday after test reports of a 25-year-old man, who died two days ago, came COVID-19 positive.

The man was admitted to the BRD Medical College here on Sunday and he was suffering from kidney and liver problems, the institute's principal Ganesh Kumar said.

"The sample of the patient was found positive for the coronavirus," an official of the King George's Medical University (KGMU) said in Lucknow.

Coronavirus droplets could travel up to 27 feet: MIT scientist

New coronavirus droplets could travel up to 27 feet as a sneeze or a cough results in a turbulent gas cloud that could contain SARS-CoV-2 droplets, an MIT researcher has claimed in a paper published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

Lydia Bourouiba, associate professor at MIT and an expert in fluid dynamics, has suggested to revise social distancing of six feet (2 metres) to limit the risk of exposure as well as currently used surgical and N95 masks which "are not tested for these potential characteristics of respiratory emissions".

"Mask efficacy as source control depends on the ability of the mask to trap or alter the high-momentum gas cloud emission with its pathogenic payload. Peak exhalation speeds can reach up to 33 to 100 feet per second (10-30 m/s), creating a cloud that can span approximately 23 to 27 feet (7-8 m)," Bourouiba wrote.

6.88 lakh persons surveyed in TN under corona containment plan

Around 6.88 lakh individuals residing in 182,815 houses in 16 districts of Tamil Nadu have been surveyed under the Coronavirus Containment Plan.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the state government said that 688,473 individuals were surveyed till March 31 under the plan to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Under the plan, seven km radius from the residence of a corona positive person would be marked and officials check each house within the area to ascertain whether anyone else shows signs of coronavirus infection.

Covid-19 positive cases from Nizamuddin event at 93, cause a national spike

The number of positive coronavirus cases linked to the Nizamuddin Markaz where the Tablighi Jamaat held a congregation of thousands has risen to 93.

Due to this, there has been a big spike in India's number of cases and on Tuesday (March 31), 146 new cases were reported by the Union Health Ministry.

This takes the total number of COVID-19 positive cases to 1,397 in India, including 1,238 active cases and 35 deaths while 124 persons have been cured.

Jamaat participants identified in MP, Noida, Bhopal and Jaunpur

After Delhi’s Nizamuddin Markaz congregation incident led to six deaths in Telangana, many states are scrambling to trace contacts. The Madhya Pradesh government claimed to have identified 82 out of 107 persons who attended a religious congregation of Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi.

"We have the addresses of 82 persons out of 107 who have attended Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi. Some of them have been taken for quarantine. The rest of the persons would soon be tracked down," he said.

This came after 32 people from Bhopal were put under quarantine in the national capital itself and the Jaunpur administration quarantined about 50 people in the Jaunpur district.

Noida administration also twice home quarantined 34 attendees from Gautam Buddh Nagar, who have shown no symptoms of coronavirus yet.

Covid-19 positive cases cross 100-mark in Karnataka

After Maharashtra and Kerala Covid-19 positive cases crossed the 100-mark in Karnataka. As many as 13 more people tested positive in the last 24 hours, raising the state's tally 101, an official said on Tuesday (March 31).

"Till date, 101 Covid-19 positive cases have been confirmed. This includes three deaths and eight discharges," an official said.

Among the 90 people currently admitted to different hospitals across the state, the condition of 88 persons is stated to be stable while two are critical -- case number 43 and 101.

The 43rd case was a 63-year-old man from Bengaluru who returned on March 19 after travelling to Brazil and Argentina while a 62-year-old woman from the city emerged as positive case number 101.

COVID-19 positive cases rise to 4 in Odisha

A 29-year-old male from Odisha's Bhadrak district with travel history to Dubai has been tested COVID-19 positive, said the Health department, on Tuesday (March 31).

"Fourth COVID-19 positive case in Odisha; 29 years old male of Bhadrak district with travel history to Dubai," tweeted the Health department.

Health Secretary Nikunja Bihari Dhal spoke to Bhadrak district collector and asked him to shift the patient to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack.

UP gets strict as COVID-19 tally reaches 103

The coronavirus tally in Uttar Pradesh reached 103 by Tuesday (March 31) night.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, in a late-night meeting on Tuesday, also asked officials to strictly enforce the lockdown in the state and ensure strict punishment for violators.

Seven new cases were reported from different parts of the state -- five from Bareilly and one each from Noida and Ghaziabad— on Tuesday(March 31).

State surveillance officer, Vikasendu Agarwal, said, "The cases in Bareilly are all close relatives of the previous patient who worked in the Noida factory."

Chief medical officer of Ghaziabad N.K. Gupta informed that the patient who tested positive for corona was a resident of Murad Nagar area and worked in the cease-fire company of Noida. He said that this is the third case of coronavirus in Ghaziabad associated with the Noida factory.

Maha Covid-19 positive cases shoot to 302, 11 deaths

Eighteen more people have tested positive for coronavirus in Maharashtra, taking the total number of such cases in the state to 320, a health official said on Wednesday.

"Maharashtra's COVID-19 tally till Tuesday night was 302. Today, we got reports of 18 more people testing positive for the viral infection. This has taken the state tally to 320," the official said.

Of the 18 new cases, 16 have been reported from Mumbai and two from Pune, he said.

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