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A quarantine centre exclusively for pregnant women, among the groups most vulnerable due to the coronavirus outbreak, has been set up in Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh, an official said on Sunday. The facility has come up at a community health centre in Kesla village, some 120 kilometres from here, and presently houses eight pregnant women, all migrant workers who had returned from different states amid the lockdown, a public relations department official said. "On the instructions of Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, special facilities are being provided to pregnant women, children and senior citizens in quarantine centres. The first quarantine centre for pregnant women has come up in Kesla village of Bilaspur district," he said. Nutritional food, screening facilities and protective gear are available at the centre, which is sanitised three times a day, and medical personnel have been deployed round the clock, he added. As on Saturday, 2,31,536 people, mostly migrants, were kept in 19,732 quarantine centres in the state, while 52,997 were in home isolation as a precautionary measure. Chhattisgarh has, so far, recorded 997 COVID-19 cases, though active cases are 734 as 259 patients have recovered and four have succumbed to the infection. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/with-233-fresh-cases-bihars-covid-19-tally-rises-to-4831/articleshow/76238545.cms">Bihar registers 233 new coronavirus cases with its overall tally rising to 4.831</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/noida-21-new-covid-19-cases-tally-591/articleshow/76238339.cms">Noida’s total coronavirus cases hit 591 with 21 new cases detected in the past 24 hours</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/342-new-coronavirus-cases-in-pune-district-six-deaths/articleshow/76239001.cms">Six more people die of coronavirus in Pune with 342 fresh cases</a>

Quarantine centre for exclusively for pregnant women set up in Chattisgarh

As many as 2,368 prisoners have been released from various jails in Chhattisgarh so far since the enforcement of lockdown last month, to decongest prisons in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, a state minister said.Various precautionary measures are being taken in jails, including physical distancing, to protect prisoners from the viral infection, state Home Minister Tamradhwaj Sahu told reporters on Saturday. "A total of 2,368 detainees, including under trials and convicts, have been released from five central jails, 20 district jails and eight sub-jails on interim bail, regular bail and parole till Saturday," the minister said. Nearly 72,000 police personnel have been deployed across the state to ensure strict implementation of the lockdown guidelines, Sahu said. Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (which prohibits assembly of four or more people) is being strictly enforced by police to maintain law and order and to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the state, he informed. A special 'corona cell' has been set up at the police headquarters in Raipur, from where law and order is being monitored 24 hours by maintaining a constant contact with all districts of the state, he said. So far, 1,316 FIRs have been registered for violation of protocols put in place to contain the spread of COVID-19.Nearly 1,110 people have been arrested, 2,020 vehicles seized and a collective fine of Rs 97,94,595 has been recovered in this connection, the minister said. After relaxations were given during the lockdown, the Public Works Department started construction work of 40 roads,42 buildings and 22 bridges in the state in the last six days, he added. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/dhfls-kapil-and-dheeraj-wadhawan-taken-into-custody-by-cbi-for-role-in-yes-bank-scam-case/articleshow/75388823.cms">DHFL's Kapil and Dheeraj Wadhawan taken into custody by CBI for role in Yes Bank scam case</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/pm-modi-says-indias-fight-against-coronavirus-is-people-driven/articleshow/75387305.cms">PM Modi says India's fight against Coronavirus is 'people-driven'</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/lockdown-may-be-extended-in-covid-19-hit-urban-areas-of-maha/articleshow/75386981.cms">Coronavirus lockdown may extend beyond May 3 in urban areas of Maharashtra</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/international/news/china-needs-to-guard-against-covid-19-resurgence-warn-health-official-amid-rise-in-imported-cases/articleshow/75385801.cms"></a>

Chhattisgarh has released 2,368 prisoners from overcrowded jails to prevent the rapid spread of Coronavirus

With reports of a new Covid surge in several states, the Delhi Government is likely to make mandatory a negative test report from Friday for those travelling in from Maharashtra, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab, sources said. This measure was taken for those arriving by flights, buses, trains, personal transport from the five states following the recent surge in coronavirus cases there, sources added. The new set of rules by the Aam Aadmi Party government will come into effect from Saturday and will continue till March 15. The move has come because in the past week, 86 per cent of the new virus cases have emerged from these states. Officers in these states will be asked to verify Covid negative reports from tests taken up to 72 hours before the flight before allowing passengers to leave for Delhi. Maharashtra and Kerala alone account for 75 per cent of the country's current active cases after a sudden rise in new infections in recent days. On Tuesday, Maharashtra recorded the highest number of 5,210 new cases, followed by Kerala (2,212) and Tamil Nadu (449). Maharashtra reported 18 deaths, followed by Kerala with 16 and Punjab 15, said the Union Health Ministry.

Delhi: Negative COVID-19 test report to be mandatory for arrivals from Maharashtra, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab

Bengaluru, May 21 () For the second time this week, Karnataka registered over 100 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the the state's tally to 1,578 till Thursday afternoon. According to the health department, as many as 116 cases, most of them returnees to the state, were added in the state from since Wednesday evening. With 41 deaths and 570 discharges, there were 966 active <keyword id="1754604" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="coronavirus">coronavirus</keyword> cases in the state, the department said in its mid-day situation update. Fourteen patients were discharged so far on Thursday. Breaching the century mark for the first time, Karnataka on Tuesday had recorded the biggest single-day spike of 149 new positive cases. Like in the last few days, most of those tested positive had travelled from other states and were under quarantine. About 75 out of 116 cases are with inter-state travel history from Maharashtra, five from Tamil Nadu, four from Telangana, three from Jharkhand, two from Rajasthan, and one each from Kerala and Chattisgarh among others. Six had arrived from the United Arab Emirates. Among the districts where the new cases were reported, Udupi accounted for 25 followed by Mandya (15), Hassan (13) and Ballari (11). Uttara Kannada and Belagavi nine each, Bengaluru urban (seven), Shivamogga and Dakshina Kannada (six), Dharwad (five) Davangere (three) Gadag and Chikkaballapura (2), and one each from Vijayapura, Mysuru and Tumakuru shared the other cases. A report from Mangaluru said all the six who tested positive in Dakshina Kannada district had arrived from Dubai on the second repatriation flight to the city on May 18. Five of them belonged to DK district, while a 29-year-old who tested positive hails from Kalaburagi. All the six have been shifted from their quarantine facility to the Wenlock COVID-19 hospital, it said quoting officials. In Udupi district, as many as 21 people are returnees from Maharashtra, three from Telangana and one from Kerala. See Also - <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/tamil-nadu-eases-guidelines-for-lockdown-4-0-but-not-for-chennai-heres-a-list-of-activities-allowed/articleshow/75822744.cms">Tamil Nadu lockdown 4 guidelines</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/ashok-vihar-anand-vihar-shankar-vihar-and-others-among-45-containment-zones-in-gurugram/articleshow/75849453.cms">Checkout the list of 45 containment zones in Gurugram, Haryana</a>

116 new COVID-19 cases in Karnataka, total infections at 1,578 till May 21

From Tamil Nadu to Assam, the Nizamuddin Coronavirus hotspot has infected hundreds and quarantined thousands across India

Amid the rising cases of coronavirus, <keyword id="6354814" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="prime-minister-narendra-modi">Prime Minister Narendra Modi</keyword> is scheduled to review the situation on Tuesday with the Chief Ministers, sources said. Sources also said the Prime Minister will discuss the rollout of the vaccine programme in the states. He will hold virtual meetings with the Chief Ministers of Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Chattisgarh, West Bengal and Kerala. After this meeting, the Prime Minister is scheduled to discuss the vaccine delivery roll out with all the states and Union Territories. The Centre is preparing on a war footing the vaccine delivery system as the Covid cases have surpassed nine million. With 44,000 new Covid-19 cases, India's tally reached 91,39,866 on Monday. According to the data released by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, 511 new deaths occured due to the deadly virus in the last 24 hours taking the toll to 1,33,738. While the active cases stood at 4,43,486, a total of 85,62,641 have recovered from the virus and have been discharged of which 41,024 were discharged in the last 24 hrs. It is also, however, the 16th straight day when India reported less than 50,000 cases in a day. The last time daily new cases crossed the 50,000-threshold was on November 7. While the recovery rate stands at a whopping 93.86 per cent, the fatality rate is at 1.46 per cent, the Ministry data revealed. Maharashtra remains the worst hit state with 82,521 active cases and 46,623 deaths so far. The recoveries in the state stand at 16,51,064. Apart from Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka have reported the highest number of cases. National capital is also witnessing a surge. On Sunday, it recorded 6,746 new cases and 121 deaths. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/how-to-earn-money-at-home-from-googles-task-mate/articleshow/79362215.cms">Google is testing ‘Task Mate’ in India, which lets users earn money for doing tasks on their smartphones</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/apps/news/hdfc-banks-net-banking-upi-services-and-atms-down-due-to-data-centre-outage/articleshow/79344484.cms">HDFC Bank’s net banking, UPI service and ATMs were down due to a 'data centre outage' but RBI demands more detailed information</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/environment/news/mount-everest-home-to-microplastics-and-melting-glaciers/articleshow/79324609.cms">Microplastics found at the highest point on Earth as the glaciers around Mount Everest’s death zone melt</a>

Modi to discuss India's COVID situation and vaccine rollout with states tomorrow

New Delhi, Apr 20 () The Union Health Ministry said on Monday the rate at which the number of coronavirus cases in the country was becoming double in the last one week has improved to 7.5 days, as against 3.4 days before the nationwide lockdown was imposed. As per data on April 19, 18 states and UTs have shown an improvement than the national average doubling rate, Ministry of Health and Family Affairs Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said at a briefing. He said that the states and UTs where the doubling time is less than 20 days are Delhi where it is doubling in 8.5 days, Karnataka in 9.2 days, Telangana 9.4 days, Andhra Pradesh 10.6 days, Jammu and Kashmir 11.5 days, Punjab 13.1 days, Chattisgarh 13.3 days, Tamil Nadu 14 days and Bihar 16.4 days. Places where the doubling time is between 20 days to 30 days include Andaman and Nicobar Island where it was 20.1 days. In Haryana, the cases are doubling in 21 days, in Himachal Pradesh 24.5 days, Chandigarh 25.4 days, Assam 25.8 days, Uttarakhand 26.6 days and Ladakh 26.6 days. States having doubling time more than 30 days are Odisha and Kerala which reported dubling time as 39.8 days and 72.2 days respectively, Agarwal said. He also said that a total of 1,553 cases and 36 deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours taking the total number of cases in the country to 17,265 and death toll to 543 so far. Also 2,546 people have been cured and overall around 14.75 per cent people have recovered, he stated. Apart from Mahe in Puducherry and Kodagu in Karnataka, Pauri Garhwal district from Uttarakhand too have not reported any fresh case of coronavirus infection during last 28 days, he said. There are 59 districts in 23 states and UTs where no case has been reported in the last 14 days, he said. Agarwal also said that in some good news, all the patients in Goa have been discharged. No further active cases have been reported in the state yet, he said. He also expressed concern over the news of some journalists in Mumbai testing positive for the virus and said that when they attend their call of duty, they should take the required precautions. "Follow the norms of social distancing and wear face masks," Agarwal said. A representative from the Ministry of Agriculture said that the FCI has moved double the average quantity of food grains during the lockdown period and that face masks and hand sanitizers have been brought under Essential Commodities Act. She also said that NGOs have been permitted to buy food grains directly from FCI for relief operations. "Sown area of summer crops has registered 36 per cent increase over last year; farming has been exempted from lockdown but social distancing has to be maintained," the Agriculture Ministry official said. She also said that the government has hiked MNREGA wages in the wake of the pandemic and the the average increase is Rs 20. PLB ASG AARAAR

Rate at which coronavirus cases doubling in India improves to 7.5 days: Health Min

Raipur, Apr 24 () A male nursing officer posted inthe COVID-19 ward of All India Institute of Medical Sciences(AIIMS) in Chhattisgarh capital Raipur tested positive fornovel coronavirus on Friday, an official said.He was quarantined on April 14 as a precautionarymeasure and his report returned positive on Friday evening, anAIIMS public relations officer told ."He was posted in the COVID-19 ward and was taken offduty after 10 days on April 14 and quarantined. On Friday, hedeveloped symptoms following which his samples were sent fortesting," he said.In a tweet, AIIMS Raipur said, "One of AIIMS Raipurnursing officer is found positive in COVID 19 test today. ThisBrave corona warrior was posted in COVID Ward. He was inquarantine since 14 April after 10 days of duty. We arecommitted to take care of him."Chattisgarh's COVID-19 count currently stands at 37,with 30 having been discharged after recovery.All seven active cases in the state are being treatedin AIIM Raipur. TKPBNM BNM

C'garh: AIIMS Raipur male nursing officer tests positive

New Delhi, May 13 () Half of over 5,000 households surveyed in rural areas of 12 states have been eating fewer meals during the coronavirus lockdown, according to a survey.The study, 'COVID-19 induced Lockdown-How is Hinterland Coping', was conducted in 47 districts.While 50 per cent of households in rural India have reduced the number of meals ever since the lockdown was imposed as part of immediate adjustment for food security, about 68 per cent of the households reduced the number of items in their meals. According to the study, 84 per cent of the households received food items through the public distribution system and 37 per cent received take home ration. About 24 per cent of the households borrowed foodgrain in villages and 12 per cent people received free food.The findings of the study were released in a webinar on Wednesday.The study found that households have depended on kharif stock more than rabi, but that stock is now depleting fast."Households are coping with the shock by eating less food and fewer times and with large dependence on PDS Need for increased food support through PDS and promotion for food crop cultivation in kharif," the study said.It pointed out that the preparedness for kharif 2020 is low and there is a need for public support in terms of seed provision and credit.It further said that a large chunk of migrants are yet to return to rural India."Lockdown and rumours have indeed adversely affected income - dairy and poultry. The coping mechanisms mostly clustered around change in food habits and reduction in expenditures," the study said.The states where the survey was conducted were Assam, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. The survey was carried out by civil society organisations PRADAN, Action for Social Advancement, BAIF, Transform Rural India Foundation, Grameen Sahara, SAATHI-UP and the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme with research support of Vikas Anvesh Foundation and Sambodhi.Speaking at the webinar, Madhu Khetan, the programme director at PRADAN, said the survey was conducted in villages which were comparatively more accessible and the situation in remote villages might be worse. According to Girish Sohani, the president of BAIF, the survey also raises certain health aspects and there will be more such surveys to better assess the ground situation.The nationwide lockdown imposed from March 25 aims at preventing the spread of the novel coronavirus that has claimed 2,415 lives and infected 74,281 people in the country. UZM DPBDPB

COVID-19 lockdown: 50 pc of surveyed households in rural India eating less

New Delhi, May 6 () Piramal Foundation said its primary healthcare body Piramal Swasthya has so far handled and addressed over 2.5 lakh phone calls related to COVID-19 queries during the lockdown period. Piramal Swasthya Management and Research Institute has tied up with seven states -- Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka and Bihar -- for providing its Health Information Helpline - 104 in this COVID-19 crisis period. So far, the institute has received 2.5 lakh plus phone calls on this helpline platform and addressed callers' queries on coronavirus disease, the Piramal Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Piramal Group, said in a statement. On an average, the health helpline received around 20,000 calls in a day. The calls were received from seven states, but maximum were from Bihar, Assam, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh, it said.During this COVID-19 pandemic, the health helpline service has been acting as a channel between the governments and the communities by offering validated medical advice to the callers 24x7 every day.Piramal Swasthya said to deal with the increased number of calls, the frontline staff team has been significantly expanded as per state requirement. Currently, over 1,200 staff across various centres, which include paramedics, counsellors and doctors, are relentlessly attending to calls related to health advice, counselling, information sharing and reporting of COVID-19.Commenting about the helpline, Piramal Foundation CEO Paresh Parasnis said: "This initiative has helped in creating awareness thus bringing down the anxiety and fear in the society caused due to the coronavirus."The 104-health helpline proved to be a simple and yet effective tool to share validated information as per the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, especially for people who are not technology savvy or live in areas where access to media is challenging, he added. It was in 2006, Piramal Swasthya had started 104-Health Information Helpline in India as a one stop solution for all health-related information and advice.The service is supported by innovative software application and Clinical Decision Support System of validated algorithms and disease summaries and helps in tackling shortage of human resource enabling access to quality healthcare services. LUX MKJ BALBAL

Piramal Swasthya handles over 2.5 lakh COVID-19 queries on phone calls during lockdown

New Delhi, May 6 () Piramal Foundation said its primary healthcare body Piramal Swasthya has so far handled and addressed over 2.5 lakh phone calls related to COVID-19 queries during the lockdown period. Piramal Swasthya Management and Research Institute has tied up with seven states -- Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka and Bihar -- for providing its Health Information Helpline - 104 in this COVID-19 crisis period. So far, the institute has received 2.5 lakh plus phone calls on this helpline platform and addressed callers' queries on coronavirus disease, the Piramal Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Piramal Group, said in a statement. On an average, the health helpline received around 20,000 calls in a day. The calls were received from seven states, but maximum were from Bihar, Assam, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh, it said.During this COVID-19 pandemic, the health helpline service has been acting as a channel between the governments and the communities by offering validated medical advice to the callers 24x7 every day.Piramal Swasthya said to deal with the increased number of calls, the frontline staff team has been significantly expanded as per state requirement. Currently, over 1,200 staff across various centres, which include paramedics, counsellors and doctors, are relentlessly attending to calls related to health advice, counselling, information sharing and reporting of COVID-19.Commenting about the helpline, Piramal Foundation CEO Paresh Parasnis said: "This initiative has helped in creating awareness thus bringing down the anxiety and fear in the society caused due to the coronavirus."The 104-health helpline proved to be a simple and yet effective tool to share validated information as per the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, especially for people who are not technology savvy or live in areas where access to media is challenging, he added. It was in 2006, Piramal Swasthya had started 104-Health Information Helpline in India as a one stop solution for all health-related information and advice.The service is supported by innovative software application and Clinical Decision Support System of validated algorithms and disease summaries and helps in tackling shortage of human resource enabling access to quality healthcare services. LUX MKJ

Pirmal Swasthya handles over 2.5 lakh COVID-19 queries on phone calls during lockdown

(Eds: combining related series)Jaipur/Chennai, May 17() The coronavirus outbreak in jails with Jaipur accounting for a large chunk has sparked worries of new cluster cases, as authorities released thousands of prisoners on parole or bail to decongest crowded prisons in the country to try halt the spread of the infection in closed settings. The release of prisoners as a precautionary measure from the last week of March followed a direction by the Supreme Court, and more jail inmates are expected to come out in the next few days. The bail and parole are for a initial 45-60 day period which is extendable. The apex court had asked all the states and union territories to constitute high-level committees to consider releasing on parole or interim bail prisoners and undertrials for offences entailing up to a seven-year jail term, to decongest prisons in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The top court on March 23 said overcrowding of prisons is a matter of serious concern, observing it was "difficult for prisoners to maintain social distancing". Concerned over the spread of coronavirus infection to nearly 150 prisoners in Jaipur jails, an official on Sunday said the Rajasthan government may take a decision on Monday to conduct random sampling of prisoners lodged in other prisons in the state. After COVID-19 cases were reported in the Jaipur district jail, the prison authorities got all the inmates and staff members tested for the virus. In the district jail which is home to 423 inmates, the jail superintendent and 130 inmates have tested positive so far. A few cases were reported from the Jaipur central jail as well. "All the inmates and staff members of Jaipur district jail have been tested for coronavirus. Cases have come up from one ward in the central jail also and now we have decided to conduct random sampling in other wards of the central jail," said DG (Prisons) NRK Reddy. In Jaipur district jail, Reddy said a prisoner who came in early April was the source of infection. He was asymptomatic when he was kept in isolation in initial days and later suffered from low blood pressure and diarrhoea. He was tested for COVID-19 and the report came positive on May 9. In the meantime, the jail superintendent and a few other inmates got infected. The cases in Jaipur district jail spiked on Saturday when 119 prisoners tested positive. On Sunday, 14 prisoners (12 from central jail and two from district jail) also tested positive for the virus. After the death of an inmate in Agra Central Jail due to COVID-19, a senior official said the Uttar Pradesh Prison Administration and Reform Department has started random testing of samples for coronavirus in all the prisons of the state. Fourteen jail inmates were quarantined following the death of the prisoner on May 8, Anand Kumar, DG of the Department of Prisons Administration and Reform, told . He said 13 jail officials who looked after the barrack where the prisoner was lodged were also tested for COVID-19. At present, there are 71 operational jails in UP with over 94,000 inmates. So far, more than 16,000 inmates have been released either on bail or parole, Kumar said. "Even today, there are 94,000 inmates in jails against a capacity of 60,000. Overcrowding is a problem. We are still 1.5 times above the sanctioned capacity," he added. In the first case of COVID-19 at a Punjab prison, a 48-year-old woman inmate at the Ludhiana jail has tested positive, an official said. The woman, who tested positive on May 1, is facing charges under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. She was brought to the prison by the Sangrur Police on April 28. The Punjab government has so far released 9,773 inmates from all the jais, the official said. In the national capital, officials said a total of 3,500 inmates were released from three jails--Tihar, Rohini and Mandoli. Tihar jail is Asia's largest prison complex. Days after a 28-year-old inmate of Rohini jail tested positive for coronavirus, 15 others who shared a barrack with him and one head warden have also tested positive on Saturday for the infection, officials said. Jail authorities said when they started the process to decongest in March, the prisoner population in the three jails was 17,500 as against the sanctioned strength of 10,000. With several inmates being released, the population in the jails has come down to around 14,200 but the process of more coming out will continue, they said. Authorities in Maharashtra have released over 7,200 prisoners so far, an official said, adding, around 10,000 more will be released shortly. "The pre-lockdown population in the 60 prisons across the state was over 35,000 and so far we have released over 7,200 inmates temporarily to decongest the jails," the official from the prisons department told . Over 100 inmates and staff of central Mumbai's Arthur Road Jail had recently tested positive for COVID-19, the official said. The pre-lockdown population of Arthur Road Jail was 2,300, of which around 700 prisoners were released, he said. There are 1,572 inmates in the jail now, he added. In Tamil Nadu, prisoners were provided with smart phones and inmates are allowed to make video calls to their family members in a bid to avoid crowding of jails by visitors. More than 6,000 inmates were released on bail from different prisons, an official said. As a result, the present strength of prisoners in 135 plus jails, including nine central and five special prisons for women, in the state is approximately 13,500 as against the authorised capacity of about 23,000, the official told . The Bihar government has shifted around 4,500 prisoners from overcrowded jails to lesser-crowded ones but has not released a single inmate either on parole or interim bail, a senior officer said. When asked why no prisoner was enlarged on interim bail or released on parole despite the apex court's order, IG (Prisons) Mithilesh Mishra said the inmates were not released as they might become vulnerable to coronavirus and later spread the infection once they return to the prison. Nearly 6,500 prisoners were released from jails in Madhya Pradesh since the coronavirus outbreak, an official said. The state has around 131 jails, of which more than 75 per cent was overcrowded, he said. The jails have a total capacity for 28,500 prisoners. Over 3,550 inmates, including 300 lodged in detention camps, were released from jails across Assam since March, a senior official said. Of them, around 1,700 prisoners were released following the Supreme Court direction while others got out as per normal legal procedure, said Assam Inspector General of Prisons Dasarath Das. He said the state's 31 jails currently house 8,510 inmates against the sanctioned capacity of 8,938. In Gujarat, nearly 2,500 of the 14,000 prisoners have been released from 28 jails, according to Additional Director General of Police, Prisons, K L N Rao. In Haryana, nearly 4,000 of the 20,000 inmates in 19 jails, including three central prisons--one in Ambala and two in Hisar were released, an official said. In Chattisgarh, as many as 3,418 prisoners, mostly undertrials, came out of the jails. In a bid to prevent spread of COVID-19 in prisons in Kerala, the state government will admit remand prisoners only if they test negative for the virus. The state has already granted remission and parole to several inmates. The swabs of remand prisoners will be taken and tested for the virus and till the results arrive, they will be either lodged at hospitals or quarantine facilities arranged by the district administration, a senior prison official said. SDA AMP SLB SPK VT CHS VSD LAL SUN NAV VGN TR RRT GSN GSNGSN

COVID-19 outbreak in Jaipur jail worries authorities; thousands of prisoners released on bail or parole across India

V Gangadharan Chennai, Apr 26 () Started as a pioneering scheme to offer meals at highly subsidised prices, the Amma Canteens inTamil Nadu have turned out to be the saviour during theCOVID-19 national lockdown, helping all sections, includingguest workers, truck drivers and even the middle class. Though largely the working classes, including migrantworkers, and the indigent people, depend on Amma Canteens, apet scheme of late chief minister Jayalalithaa, now these havecome as a boon to several others who are feeling the pinch ofthe lockdown with pay cuts and loss of jobs.What'smore, the ruling AIADMK has started bearing thecost of the food served by the canteens in several cities andtowns, making it free for the customers.Of the 650 plus Amma Canteens, run by local bodies,scattered across the state, Chennai alone has 407, over twothirds, and dish out idlies for breakfast, variety rice forlunch and chapathis for dinner and have come in forappreciation for the quality. "I had a wrong impression previously that the food qualityhere is not good. But actually it is good and on par withother eateries. During these times of financial distress, AmmaCanteens are a boon," a young man, who lost his informationtechnology job a few months ago, said.The man turned up with tiffin boxes to take home food atthe city's Madipakkam locality where a large number of peoplethronged the canteen on Sunday, which also happened to be thefirst day of the four-day complete shutdown announced by thegovernment in major cities, including Chennai, to check spreadof the coronavirus.With the government announcing that all shops wouldremain closed during the four days, only the Amma Canteens,named so after Jayalalithaa, fondly called by her supportersas "Amma" (mother), were abuzz with activity.A variety of people such as truck drivers, guest workers,and also men and women from middle and upper middle classescould be seen arriving to eat or take food home as stafferswere busy cooking and cleaning up. As a mini-truck arrived at one such eatery in thesprawling but empty Madipakkam bus terminus on Sundayafternoon, the driver and another man got down from thevehicle hurriedly and walked up to the outlet and asked if"anything" was available to eat. When pat came the reply, "only sambar and curd rice rightnow" the duo was apparently relieved as it was not availableanywhere else.Usually, the Amma canteens do not offer take away but itis now allowed. A V Ganesan, a priest in a small local temple, said hewas happy that Amma canteens were open. "The LPG cylinder in my home has gone dry and this canteenis close to my home, and I can eat or take home food," hesaid.Free food was now a boon since many like him, who work intemples. have virtually no income, he added. In another locality, a couple of women and children, partof a group of street performers from Chattisgarh, are visuallyrelieved that the canteens are serving food free during thelockdown. "These are very tough times for us as there is no incomeand the canteens are no doubt a boon, it is a boon," a youngmother of two children said in a mixture of broken Tamil andHindi. In fact, it is a repeat of such scenes in several areas ofthe city and especially in north Chennai which has a sizablechunk of labour class population. At one such canteen in Vyasarpadi, people could be seenstanding in serpentine queues on Sunday, but maintainingsocial distancing. An Inter-Ministerial Central Team to assess the COVID-19situation in Tamil Nadu also visited a canteen on KamarajarSalai here. An official told that a special fund allocation of Rs19.54 crore has been made for Chennai Corporation AmmaCanteens and as a whole Rs 31.39 crore has been earmarked forall the eateries in the state. In Chennai alone 4.5 lakh people eat food at the canteensevery day while the rest of the state sees about 6.25 lakhfootfall. Since the start of the lockdown period, over 140.38 lakhidlis, 53.24 lakh rice items, and 37.85 lakh pieces ofchappathis have been distributed, benefiting about 85 lakhpeople, the official said.Launched by Jayalalithaa years ago, the canteens offeridlis at a cost of Rs one each, two pieces of roti at Rs 3,Pongal Rs 5 and rice varieties including sambar, lemon andcurd at Rs 5 a plate. Now the food is being offered free of cost with theAIADMK's local units footing the bill in major cities ofChennai, Salem and Coimbatore besides some other places inview of the lockdown.In Salem, the home district of Chief Minister KPalaniswami in western Tamil Nadu, eggs are being served freein addition to the regular menu, officials said.The state governments of Karnataka and Rajasthan hadlaunched Indira Canteens and Annapurna Rasoi respectivelyinspired by the Amma Canteens. Across Tamil Nadu, there are 658 Amma Canteens, includingaround 250 outside Chennai under 14 corporations and 121municipalities. VGNVS VS

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