Current Events :
Coronavirus cases in the country have seen a sharp rise in the month of March. The virus has infected more than 700 people across the country, while 17 people have succumbed to death. Over 60 people have made a recovery and have been discharged across the nation. Maharashtra and Kerala remain the top two worst coronavirus-hit states in the country.
Here’s a look at the statewise tally of Covid-cases, deaths and recoveries in India.
Kerala
The southern state has 137 positive cases of coronavirus as per the latest data by the Ministry of Health. The state hasn’t witnessed any Covid-19 death yet. 11 people have successfully recovered.
“This is the time for youth to shoulder responsibility. We are planning a volunteer force of 2 lakh members. Food supply to hospital work they will be trained. Their expenses will be met by local and civic bodies,” Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Thursday.
Maharashtra
With 130 Covid-19 cases, Maharashtra is one of the worst hit states by Covid-19 infection. The state has registered four coronavirus deaths so far while 15 patients have been recovered and released.
Karnataka
The state has recorded 55 Covid-19 cases and two deaths. Three people have been cured and discharged.
Telangana
45 positive cases of coronavirus have been reported here so far. One person has made a recovery from the virus while no one has died of Covid-19 in the state.
Gujarat
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state has registered 43 coronavirus cases and no recoveries so far. As many as 3 people have died from the infection in the state.
Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh
Both states have 41 positive cases of coronavirus. While 11 people have recovered from Covid-19 in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan has seen three people get better and discharged.
Delhi
As many as 36 people have been tested positive of coronavirus in the national capital. One person has died from the infection while 6 people have made a recovery.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has urged citizens not to step out of their homes and has assured that no one will go to sleep on an empty stomach. He also assured a smooth supply of all essential commodities across the National Capital Territory.
Haryana and Punjab
The neighbouring states have 30 and 33 Covid-19 cases respectively. While one person has died of coronavirus in Punjab, Haryana has seen no deaths. 11 people have been recovered from coronavirus in Haryana.
Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh
The southern state has registered 29 Covid-19 cases and one recovery. Madhya Pradesh closely follows with 20 positive cases of coronavirus in the state. Both states have registered one death each.
Besides this, Jammu and Kashmir has 13 positive cases of coronavirus. One person has died from the infection while one was cured. Andhra Pradesh has 12 positive Covid-19 and one recovery cases while West Bengal has 10 people who tested positive for the infection with one death.
In Chandigarh, 7 people were found infected from Covid-19. Chhattisgarh and Bihar have recorded 6 cases each with one death in Bihar.
Uttarakhand has 4 coronavirus patients, one person has recovered. Goa and Himachal Pradesh have recorded 3 cases each, one patient has died in Himachal. Odisha has just two Covid-19 positive patients. States and Union territories with just one positive Covid-19 case include Andaman, Manipur, Mizoram and Pondicherry.
Coronavirus killed eight more people in India on Thursday and 88 new cases – the highest in a single day – were confirmed.
On Friday, India entered the third day of the 21-day long nationwide coronavirus lockdown announced by PM Modi to break the chain of Covid-19 infections in the country.
Karam Prakash
Tribune News Service
Patiala, April 2
Resident doctors and staff nurses of Government Rajindra Hospital here were exposed to the coronavirus for no fault of theirs. Consequently, resident doctors had to undergo self-isolation for precautionary measures.
In fact, 42-year-old corona suspected patient from Ludhiana, who died at the hospital later, was brought to the Emergency first before taking her to the isolation ward — breaching the COVID-19 protocol.http://
The staff at emergency, who were not supposed to wear protective gear, examined the patient clinically without proper kit, thereby exposed themselves to the virus.
As per the ICMR guidelines, all COVID-19 suspected patients have to be taken directly to the isolation ward — a special dedicated room for the positive patients. Due to the missing link in the chain of communication, resident doctors at the emergency ward at the hospital had already been exposed to the virus, said the experts.
Worryingly, the resident doctors, thereafter, treated many other patients at the emergency ward, therefore, those (patients) are also at risk of infection and should be traced, say the experts.
Though, hospital authorities claim that resident doctors on duty were wearing masks and gloves, experts said personal protective equipment (PPE) kit is necessary for treating suspected patients.
Until now, the emergency ward has not been sanitized. Though, as many as four resident doctors who were exposed to the COVID-19 patient have already self-isolated themselves.
Meanwhile, senior doctors at the hospital said they were scared to work under these circumstances where protocols were not strictly followed.
A doctor of the medicine department, said, “The entire ward and medical devices used on that day should have been sanitized. The negligence creates a sense of fear among doctors.”
Dr Paras Pandove, Medical Superintendent, said it was not negligence but lack of communication. He said that first it was a referred case, therefore, the authorities who referred the patients had to inform in advance; second, kin of the patient could have informed about the same.
He added, “We have already deployed a special doctor at the emergency ward, who will be equipped with the PPE kit, to check the patients so as to avoid such incidents. We are trying our best so that our doctors are not exposed to COVID-19.”
Even as the local authorities have been tasked with handling the nitty-gritty of implementing the 21-day lockdown announced by the Prime Minister and ensuring that the 1.3 billion people of the country get regular supplies of essential groceries, vegetables, milk and medicine at their doorstep, the situation on the ground on Day 2 of the ‘curfew’ continued to be marked by hiccups galore and a confusion-driven scramble for supplies. The yawning gap between the planning and execution exposed chinks in the management of the supply chain, right from trucks carrying goods and retailers to the delivery boys. The smooth flow of the chain was disrupted for reasons varying from highhandedness of the law enforcers, lack of permits or sealing of borders across Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. The lucky few who got the supplies felt short-changed, especially with vegetables.
Responsible residents abiding by the orders to stay at home were harried as the phone numbers put out for home delivery of essential items in Chandigarh remained inaccessible. Elsewhere, when some district authorities in the region gave a relaxation in the curfew for the people to go out and shop, items flew off the shelves as panic-buying and hoarding ruled, despite the overcharging. With social distancing going for a toss as people thronged chemist shops and grocery stores, questions arise about the purpose of the lockdown getting defeated. The possibility of the insidious coronavirus spreading in the community definitely goes up.
For the fight against the virus to succeed, there is an urgent need to fix the supply chain hiccups. The operations of production, supply and distribution should not be hampered. The help of local resident welfare associations and volunteers may be solicited. A continuous flow of goods is essential to tide over the trying times. Use of technology and apps to keep the people informed would go a long way in ending the present state of confusion. And, only when a person is assured of a running kitchen, and his health needs are met would he be in a position to abide by that other equally vital request of the PM: each one, help nine poor families.
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, April 2
Former Hazoori Ragi of the Golden Temple Nirmal Singh Khalsa died of cardiac arrest around 4:30 am on Thursday.
According to the Amritsar Civil Surgeon, he had tested posted for coronavirus on Wednesday. It was the second positive case from the district and the “first corona death”.
Earlier, a coronavirus-positive patient from Hoshiarpur had died at Amritsar Government Medical College.
The 62-year-old ‘Gurbani’ exponent was awarded the Padma Shri in 2009.
Singh, who recently returned from abroad, was admitted to Guru Nanak Dev Hospital after he complained of breathlessness and dizziness on March 30.
Meanwhile, police have sealed the area around Singh’s residence to check the spread of the infection.
With his base in the densely populated Sultanwind area, the development would add to the trouble of the administration.
He had come back from abroad in February and later attended many religious events, including accompanying Zakir Hussain, the tabla player, to Golden Temple on February 29.
This is a day after Zakir Hussain performed at a jam packed Patiala auditorium as part of the Patiala Heritage Festival on February 27, a day after which he visited Amritsar.
Details regarding his travel history and events are being ascertained by the authorities.
According to the officials, Singh held a large ‘sammelan’ (religious gathering) in Delhi and some other places after he returned from abroad.
His family members and others who came into his contact would be quarantined, said the health department officials.
Manmeetpal Kaur had been taking health awareness workshops for kids before the lockdown in the city.
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, March 24
As people across the world are living under lockdown due to Covid-19 outbreak, hand sanitisers have become a weapon of mass protection, or so it seems. As hand sanitisers fly off the shelves of medical and grocery stores, there are some people who have come up with their own DIY recipes of sanitisers that are made using simple ingredients in the kitchen.
Manmeet Pal Kaur, a science teacher from the city, is one of them. She has been making hand sanitisers at home so that her stock is never low in this period of uncertainty. “Before the curfew and lockdown, I couldn’t find any hand sanitisers for my family. This made me look for some home remedies or ideas and I thought of using natural ingredients to make one,” said Manmeet.
She has made a hand sanitiser using simple ingredients such as isopropyl alcohol, apple cidar vinegar, glycerin, body oils and aloe vera and had been conducting workshops before the lockdown, for kids on health awareness.
She said: “The basic ingredient of any sanitiser is isopropyl alcohol, but we can also use ethanol-based products such as rubbing alcohols. If we do not have alcohol-based product, we can use apple cidar vinegar, which is found in most kitchens these days.”
She further said: “Mix isopropyl or any alcohol-based product with aloe vera in 2:1 ratio, along with glycerin mixed with water in 1:1 ratio. We can add essential oils or body oils such as sesame oil, coconut oil (only viable in summers) and almond oil to make natural and safe hand sanitisers.”
Manmeet is using kitchen remedies to ensure health and safety of her family during the lockdown. “Oiling neem or mango or peepal leaf in mustard oil and using it as a body rub also offers protection against germs. Since, we are under curfew and we cannot go out in case we fall short of sanitisers, these are simple methods to make sure your kids and family members are guarded,” she added.
She says that the current situation is a reminder of adopting nature-friendly lifestyle and going back to nature for good health.
Method
Mix isopropyl or any alcohol-based product with aloe vera in 2:1 ratio, along with glycerin mixed with water in 1:1 ratio. Add essential oils or body oils such as sesame oil, coconut oil (only viable in summers) and almond oil to make natural and safe hand sanitisers.
eligion has often caused harm to the world and humanity as a whole, whether in the form of environmental damage by filing the Yamuna and Ganga with ‘religious waste’ or turning the densely populated and congested Nizamuddin Basti into a Covid-19 hot spot for the sake of an Islamic gathering.
Tablighi Jamaat, an Islamic reformist group, had a large gathering of more than 3,000 people on 13 March in Nizamuddin with foreign nationals from Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Kyrgyzstan, and Malaysia, a hot spot the deadly virus. Infact, the Jamaat has also been held responsible for having spread the virus to half a dozen nations in its February gathering in Malaysia.
Now, people across India who had participated in the Islamic congregation, are testing positivefor Covid-19 from as far as Andaman and & Nicobar Islands, and 10 have already died, including the Jamaat’s Kashmir head. All of this happened because of an annual Islamic gathering.
I am not encouraging Islamophobia, it will always be a prejudice that needs vehement opposition but if this isn’t plain stupidity in the name of Allah, then what is?
Whether India had implemented strict travel restrictions by 13 March or not isn’t the question here, the point is why gather in such huge numbers, with ‘red’ travel history for the sake of preaching religion? People from the gathering continued living in the area even after 13 March. Their orthodox movement has exposed all of us at a greater risk of contamination, from Assam to Telangana to the Andamans. And we can’t justify it by saying that other religions had also kept their doors open for a long time. All doors should have been shut.
Also Read: Tablighi Jamaat congregation and how religion has been the ‘super spreader’ of coronavirus
Unfortunately, even amid this global crisis, some people are trying to veil the Jamaat’s irresponsibility by bringing up a 13 March PTI report on government officials saying that the coronavirus is not a health emergency and hence the Sunni Muslim group didn’t violate any norms.
Here is a fact-check; Delhi government on 13 March prohibited any gatherings of more than 200 people under the Epidemic Diseases Act. Moreover, they also directed people coming from any Covid-19 affected country to self-isolate. Members of the Tablighi Jamaat in Nizamuddin violated both these directions.
Some have also argued that the Janata curfew was imposed a week later on 22 March and not during the Jamaat’s celebrations, which is also completely ridiculous. The question here is of moral and social responsibility along with the Delhi government’s order, which prohibited religious gatherings of over 50 people from 16 March. Covid-19 had already created chaos in the world by 13 March and the Jamaat made its contribution to it, not once, but twice.
Some others are now comparing this gathering with the exodus of migrant workers in the national capital. What these people fail to understand is that those workers had to walk home together because there was no other option. No one chooses to walk hundreds of kilometres with their children and no food if they have another option. But what Tablighi Jamaat did was sheer negligence and idiocy.
This outdated and orthodox movement has committed a crime that has put several others at the risk of coronavirus infection. No one knows the whereabouts of those 3000 people and who they have contacted in the last 16 days. Sadly, all of this was done in the name of Islam.
Also Read: More than 2,100 foreigners linked to Tablighi Jamaat entered India since 1 January
Surprisingly, India’s ‘liberals’ including actors, journalists and authors are quiet on this. They have only tried to whitewash the Jamaat’s doing by pointing out the loopholes of the government and the administration. This entire fiasco, caused solely for the purpose of preaching Islam, does not seem to be a matter of concern for them. Ironically, if such irresponsibility was shown by some other religious group in the country, the same liberals would have ridiculed it, like they did for Yogi Adityanath’s Ayodhya celebrations.
We need to understand that speaking against a wrong committed by an orthodox religious group from a particular religious community doesn’t mean you’re stereotyping them. Of course, Muslims in India have always been discriminated and faced Islamophobia. However, this does not mean that you should not speak up against crimes committed by a group of orthodox people.
Not speaking up against this gross violation of human safety exposes your hollowness and your lack of balance. More so, it throws light on why there will never truly be an Indian liberal.
Also Read: What is Tablighi Jamaat? Organiser of Delhi event behind spike in India’s Covid-19 count
When ISIS attacked a Gurdwara in Kabul last week, there were some who said they were ashamed of the crimes of this terrorist organisation in the name of Islam. There were others who not only tried defending Islam in the wake of the Islamic state’s activities but also tried their best to establish the difference between ISIS and Islam.
The fact is ISIS is a global terrorist outfit that kills people, and rapes women. It has much less to do with Islam than it has to do with power. But Tablighi Jamaat should force us to think of our religious practices in every day life.
This congregation is probably the worst thing that these 3,000 Muslims could have ever inflicted on humanity in the name of preaching Islam. Ultimately, the brokers of Islam have added to this coronavirus mess.
Jaiswar
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, March 26
A day after a man was thrashed by the police after chasing him to his residence, who had gone outside with his 8-month-old pregnant wife to get medicines for her, a fireman, who was going to his office, was allegedly beaten up an ASI, identified as Tarsem Singh, at a checkpoint here on Thursday. According to information, the incident took place despite the fact that the victim had a curfew pass.
Agitated over the incident, fire brigade officials took fire tenders to the Gate Hakima police station and lodged a protest. The victim has been identified as Naresh Sharma, who stays at his aunt’s house.
The victim’s father Pawan Sharma, who had also served in the Fire Brigade Department, said the police initially tried to hush up the case. He said after sanitising some areas, including Roop Nagar, Anngarh and Bharariwal, at night, Naresh was told join the duty for assisting in fumigation.
He said after receiving a call from his office in the morning, he left his house. He was stopped near the Gate Hakim naka by cops and when he told that he was going to his office, the policemen said he was not allowed to move on roads.
The victim’s father said Naresh was thrashed with sticks by ASI Tarsem Singh. Naresh suffered an injury on his wrist and there was a whipping mark on his back.
Fire brigade officials demanded immediate suspension of the ASI and registration of a case against him.
The Gate Hakima police have written to the Police Commissioner recommending immediate suspension of the ASI. In their report, they said a number of complaints of misbehaviour were received against the ASI.
On Wednesday, a woman, identified as Renu Bala, had accused two policemen of thrashing her husband Sukhdev Singh when they went outside to get medicine for her. The cops even chased her husband to his house in the Sultanwind Road area here. The incident was captured in CCTV cameras. Sukhdev suffered an injury in his nose and was admitted to hospital.
Cops are facing flak from residents who said they were using their powers in this hour of crisis.
Police Commissioner Dr Sukhchain Singh Gill said the incident was brought to his notice and action had been initiated against the accused cops. He said they were looking into the second incident.
The number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 873 in India on Saturday, 28 March with the death toll rising to 19, according to the Union Health Ministry.
The United States on Friday, 27 March, announced $174 million financial assistance to 64 countries, including $2.9 million to India, to help them fight the coronavirus pandemic, PTI reported.
The Ministry of Home Affairs issued an advisory to states and UTs on Friday to prevent an exodus of migrant and agricultural labourers, industrial workers, and unorganised sector workers during the nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.
Over 2,500 people have recently returned from other parts of the country and placed under home quarantine in Nagaland, where no person has so far tested positive for COVID-19, officials said.
Out of the 17 samples that were sent for testing, results for 13 were negative and the remaining reports are awaited, government spokesperson and minister for planning & coordination Neiba Kronu said.
Six new coronavirus positive cases were confirmed in Maharashtra on Saturday – 5 in Mumbai and 1 in Nagpur. The total number of positive cases in the state has risen to 159, said Maharashtra Health Ministry.
Restaurants in Dehradun can keep their kitchens open for take away/food deliveries from today, reported ANI. Also, vehicles of people rendering/availing essential services will not be stopped, ANI said quoting Dehradun District Magistrate Ashish Kumar Srivastava.
A Dornier aircraft of Indian Navy, carrying 60 samples for COVID-19 testing, took off from INS Hansa (located near Dabolim in Goa) to Pune in Maharashtra on Friday, 27 March. The samples were carried by a technician from Goa State Health department.
China has reported 54 new imported coronavirus cases, taking their tally in the last few days to 649, while the death toll in the country has risen to 3,295 with three more fatalities confirmed on Friday, China’s National Health Commission said on Saturday, 28 March.
While no new locally transmitted cases of COVID-19 were reported on Friday, the number of coronavirus infections in people returning from abroad has gone up to 649 with 54 new cases reported, it said.
A total of three deaths and 29 new suspected cases were reported in the Chinese mainland on Friday.
All the deaths were reported in the COVID-19 epicentre Hubei Province and its capital Wuhan, which are now being gradually opened up after kept under lockdown since 23 January.
The overall confirmed cases in the mainland reached 81,394 by the end of Friday.
The number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 834 in India on Saturday with the death toll rising to 19, according to the Union Health Ministry.
In its updated figures, the ministry stated two fresh deaths.
However, it could not be immediately known where these two new deaths were reported from as the state-wise figures are awaited.
There are 748 active COVID-19 cases so far in the country, out of which 67 are cured/discharged/migrated cases and 19 deaths, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said on Saturday, 28 March.
Two more persons have tested positive for coronavirus in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir, Principal Secretary and government spokesperson Rohit Kansal said on Friday.
ops on patrol duty at a locality in Jalandhar on Thursday. Tribune Photo: Malkiat Singh
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, March 26
In the last 24 hours, 170 FIRs have been registered and 262 persons arrested for violating curfew and quarantine directions. As many as 40,153 cops in various ranks have been deployed on ground across the districts for enforcement of curfew, an official release by the state police said.
Meanwhile, taking cognisance of reports of excesses against citizens for the enforcement of the curfew in the state, Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Thursday directed the police to be more humane and sensitive in dealing with violations.
Urging the police personnel to exercise maximum restraint in the difficult situation, the Chief Minister asked them to find more compassionate ways of handling curfew violations, especially in cases of individuals found moving out for essentials.
Use of corporal means to punish violators could not be allowed, said Capt Amarinder, directing DGP Dinkar Gupta to take all possible steps to sensitise the police personnel and warn them against taking the law into their hands in dealing with cases of curfew violation.
The Chief Minister also appealed to the people to stay at home and reach out to police and civil administration through helpline numbers in case of emergency. All efforts were being made to provide doorstep delivery of essential goods and services, he said.
Meanwhile, DGP Dinkar Gupta said while by and large the police personnel were seen to be caring and gentle, there had been a few cases of some of them using force against those found violating the restrictions. Gupta said he had directed the CPs and SSPs to make it clear to the force that there should be zero tolerance to physical beatings etc. No society can tolerate such visuals, he warned, adding that where needed, violators should be booked. Calling for patience, the DGP said, “We don’t want to sully all the good work we are doing by a few aberrations here and there.”
