Coronavirus in India: 614 infected, 41 recovered and 9 dead

• The Ministry of Health data shows that the country now has 614 infected people; out of which 41 recovered and 9 died.
  
• PM Modi draws a Lakshman Rekha— a 21-day nationwide lockdown.
  
• Globally, Coronavirus infected 407,485 people leading to 8,227 deaths.
  
• Follow the comprehensive coverage of the coronavirus pandemic and its impact, and other useful resources that can help you in the fight on Business Insider India.
  

As the country entered the third and critical phase of the Coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday (March 24) announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown.

The situation can be seen getting worse after the Coronavirus cases in India crossed 600 mark yesterday (March 24). The Ministry of Health data shows that the country now has 614 infected people; out of which 41 recovered and 9 died. Out of the 562 active cases, 419 were Indians, while 43 are foreigners.

277 stranded Indians brought back from Iran

Over 270 Indians stranded in Iran were brought back to India on Wednesday morning. According to sources, Iran-based Mahan Air brought back 277 Indians from Tehran to Delhi and then all the passengers were taken to Jodhpur.

Last week, Centre had given permission to Iran-based Mahan Air for evacuating Indians stuck in the Middle Eastern country due to the outbreak of COVID-19.
As per plans, two ferry flights have been allowed to land in India. These will evacuate around 600 Indians from Iran. The first such flight arrived on Wednesday, while the second flight will be operated on March 28.

Medanta, Gurugram nurse tests positive

A nurse working in Medanta Hospital in Gurugram was detected Coronavirus positive in Panipat town on Wednesday (March 25). The total number of active cases rose to 17 in Haryana.

Central to infuse ₹15,000 crore for medical necessities

Modi said that this lockdown is like a Lakshman Rekha outside peoples homes and whosoever will cross it will have to pay a heavy price.

He also said that the government arranged a fund of ₹15,000 crore to procure essential medical items like ventilators, quarantine facilities, personal protective equipment, isolation beds, ICU beds, ventilators and other essential requirements.

Commercial and Private establishment to shut down till April 15

According to the PM’s announcement, all commercial and private establishments shall be closed down. However, an exception has been made for essential services that include ration shops (under PDS), grocery stores, fruits and vegetable vendors, dairy and milk booths. Here’s a list of what can be accessed during the lockdown.

India may see 13 lakh cases by mid-May, claims scientists group

As per a a US-based scientist group’s calculations, the country may have 1.3 million cases of the pandemic by mid-May at the current rate of growth.

According to researchers with the COV-IND-19 Study Group, an interdisciplinary group of scholars and data scientists, the frequency of testing has been very low in India. Only 11,500 subjects have been tested as of March 18.

“When there is no approved vaccine or drug for treating COVID-19, entering phase 2 or phase 3 of escalation will have devastating consequences on the already overstretched healthcare system of India,” the scientists wrote in a post on Medium. ICMR too said earlier that Stage 3 of the disease can only be delayed not avoided completely.

More than 400,000 global confirmed cases of Coronavirus

The number of Coronavirus cases worldwide topped 400,000 on Tuesday (March 24), according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.

The fresh figure reached 407,485 cases with 18,227 deaths, the CSSE said, Xinhua reported.

Outside China, the countries that reported over 10,000 cases included Italy, the US, Spain, Germany, Iran and France. Italy suffered the most deaths from the disease, which stood at 6,820 as of Tuesday afternoon, according to the CSSE.

It took three days for the total number to jump from 300,000 to 400,000. Over 160 countries and regions have reported COVID-19 cases so far, the CSSE said.

Coronavirus claims its new victim in Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu on Wednesday (March 25) woke up to the dreaded news of its first death of a Coronavirus/COVID-19 patient in Madurai.

In a tweet, Health Minister C. Vijayabaskar said the COVID-19 positive patient in Madurai died at the Rajaji Hospital. He had a medical history of prolonged illness with steroid-dependent chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and uncontrolled diabetes with hypertension.

He also said the COVID-19 with comorbidities like uncontrollable diabetes and hypertension, immunosuppression is high-risk conditions and asked people with such conditions to be extra cautious.

Railways suspend all trains till April 14

The Indian Railways on Tuesday announced the suspension of all passenger services till April 14 after the declaration of lockdown.

Freight movement, however, will continue to carry essential commodities across the county.

The Railways on Sunday suspended its passenger services from March 22 midnight to March 31 midnight. This has been extended. The suspensions also included all local train services.

Two more positive cases in Gurugram

Gurugram reported two more positive Coronavirus cases, raising the total to 10 yesterday (March 24). The new cases were reported from Emar Palm Garden sector 83 and Palam Vihar.

With these two, Palam Vihar has become most infected with four positive cases. Nirvana country sector 50 and Sector 9A has 2 cases each, and Sushant Lok one positive case.

Several lockdown violators have been booked under various IPC sections. However, the officials said the numbers were much lower than day one of lockdown.

SEE ALSO: Prime Minister Modi declares 21-day nationwide lockdown starting midnight