Infected Bengaluru techie’s wife tests positive for coronavirus
The 25-year-old wife of a Google employee, who had tested positive for novel coronavirus in Bengaluru earlier this week, also tested positive for it on Friday. The woman, who had recently returned from Italy, was put under quarantine after her husband displayed symptoms of the disease. According to a Times of India report, On March 8, she “escaped” from Bengaluru and took a flight to New Delhi and travelled to Agra from there to be with her parents.
Health officials claimed that they also faced resistance when they visited her house and were only able to move the woman, and the eight other family members she had been staying with, after the district magistrate intervened
China sends medical experts, supplies to help Italy combat CIVD-19
A team of nine Chinese medical staff and 30 tonnes of equipment and medical supplies including masks and respirators, arrived in Italy from China on a flight organised by the Chinese Red Cross.
“In this moment of great stress, of great difficulty, we are relieved to have this arrival of supplies. It is true that it will help only temporarily, but it is still important,” said the head of the Italian Red Cross, Francesco Rocca and added that Italy was in desperate need of masks.
The outbreak risks overwhelming Italian hospitals and some key supplies are running low. Italy is now the worst-affected nation in the world after China, with 1,016 dead and 15,113 confirmed cases since the contagion came to light there on February 21.
In contrast to China, Italy’s partners in the European Union earlier this month refused Rome’s requests for help with medical supplies as they looked to stockpile face masks and other equipment to help their own citizens.
(Reuters)
Flu not a disease, people catch cold during weather change: UP CM Yogi Adityanath
Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath has said that “flu is not a disease” and people catch cold due to a change in weather. Adityanath on Sunday also urged the media to “not create panic” over the disease and focus on finding a solution.
“By creating panic over disease, there cannot be a solution. Instead, by having a systematic plan, solution could be found,” Adityanath said.
“I will request even the media that there is no need to sow fear of diseases in the minds of people. Yesterday, I found that there was information of some number of people dying of swine flu in Meerut. Flu is not a disease. When the weather changes, some people catch a cold. It is flu in itself. Based on what it causes, we call some as swine flu or bird flu or by any other name,” he said and added that there was “no need to create panic” and that “people should be made aware about it”.
US House of Representatives approves Coronavirus aid package
The US House of Representatives has approved legislation which provides free coronavirus testing, paid sick leave for people who contract the virus, enhanced unemployment benefits and insurance, and greater food aid to families that require it.
Fresh coronavirus case reported in Telangana
Another case of coronavirus was confirmed in Telangana on Saturday taking the total number of those infected to two, chief minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao said and added that the patient with travel history to Italy has been admitted to the state-run Gandhi hospital in the city for a quarantine.
The samples of two others with suspected symptoms of the virus have been sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune, Rao said.
Noting that some states in the country have initiated measures such as temporarily shutting down cinema halls, malls and educational institutions to contain the spread of the viral disease, the chief minister said a cabinet meeting has been called on Saturday to finalise its course of action.
(PTI)
Four including Peruvian national admitted to an isolation ward
A Peruvian national and three Indians, including a nine-month-old child, have been admitted to an isolation ward of a government hospital in Kolkata with symptoms of novel coronavirus, a senior official of the state health department said on Saturday.
Two Indians, who had travelled to Mayapur, the headquarters of the ISKCON during the Holi festival last week, have been kept under watch at the same ward, the official said and added that the nine-month-old child, who has a history of travelling from Kuwait, is also undergoing treatment at the isolation ward.
(PTI)
Punjab, Himachal Pradesh shut down educational institutions
After ordering the closure of all educational institutions in the state till March 31, the Punjab government has said that it is considering shutting down cinema halls, restaurants and clubs till the end of this month amid coronavirus scare.
Himachal Pradesh chief minister Jai Ram Thakur said in the state assembly on Saturday that all educational institutions and cinema halls have been closed in the state till March 31 as a precautionary measure to check community transmission of novel coronavirus (COVID-19). However, examinations will continue as per schedule, he added.
No confirmed case of COVID-19 has been found so far in Himachal Pradesh.
(PTI)
Europe now ‘epicentre’ of the pandemic: WHO
The World Health Organisation on Friday said that Europe now was the “epicentre” for the global coronavirus pandemic — and warned that it was impossible to know when the outbreak would peak.
The continent had now “more reported cases and deaths than the rest of the world combined, apart from China”, said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “More cases are now being reported every day than were reported in China at the height of its epidemic,” he said, referring to the global numbers.
According to WHO data, there are 142,320 confirmed cases of the Coronavirus and 5,388 deaths have been recorded so far. 129 countries, areas or territories have been identified with cases of Coronavirus.
Indian government declares COVID-19 a ‘Notified Disaster’
The government has declared the novel coronavirus outbreak in the country a “notified disaster” and will provide compensation and aid to infected people and the families of those who killed by the virus. Funds for compensation and other measures will be drawn from the Disaster Response Funds (SDRF) of each state.
According to a letter from the home ministry, Rs four lakh will be given to the families of those whose deaths have been linked to the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19. Additionally, the cost of hospitalisation for those being treated for the virus has been fixed by state governments.
The government will also provide temporary accommodation and supply of food, water, clothing and medical care for patients and those in quarantine camps.
Government decides to treat #CoronavirusinIndia as a notified disaster for the purpose of providing assistance under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF).#CoronavirusPandemic #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/A0x0BnlQ12
— PIB India (@PIB_India) March 14, 2020
India’s confirmed coronavirus cases rise to 84: health ministry
The health ministry on Saturday said that the number of positive cases of coronavirus in India had risen to 84.
The ministry also said that over 4,000 people who had come in contact with 84 positive cases were under surveillance. Seven people, including five from Uttar Pradesh and one each from Rajasthan and Delhi, who tested positive for coronavirus, have been discharged after treatment.
Brazi’s President Jair Bolsonaro tests negative for coronavirus
After local media outlets reported that the Brazillian President had tested positive for COVID-19, Bolsonaro, in a Facebook post, put an end to all speculation by stating that he had tested negative for the novel coronavirus.