335 People Possibly Affected With Coronavirus Untraceable In Punjab

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in India now stands at 84, after one person was tested positive in Telangana this morning. Two people were tested positive for the virus on late Friday evening; one from Ahmednagar and one from Mumbai. This takes the total number of cases in Maharashtra to 19. As of now, there have been two confirmed deaths due to COVID-19 in our country, a 68-year-old woman in Delhi and a 76-year-old man in Karnataka. Also, 335 people with travel history to coronavirus affected areas are untraceable in Punjab, the Health and Family Welfare Department of the state has revealed.

The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases have now risen to 84 in India. However, the number of people who have been cured now stands at 10.

UPDATE ON CORONAVIRUS:

• More than 1,38,000 people have been infected by COVID-19 across the world.
• Europe has now been declared as the epicenter of the pandemic.
• The United States has declared the coronavirus pandemic as a national emergency and President Donald Trump is likely to be tested for the virus. 
• The total number of confirmed cases in India now stands at 84.
• India witnessed its first fatality because of the virus on Thursday when a 76-year-old man died in Karnataka. A 68-year-old woman died in Delhi on Friday and is thought to have been infected by her son.
• The total number of cured patients stands at 10 in India. Five of the cured belong to Uttar Pradesh and one each in Rajasthan and Delhi. These people have been discharged from hospitals.

Also Read: Dreams Don't Come Without Their Challenges: Tanaz Bhathena

Number of cured patients sees a rise

After India reported one more case of coronavirus on Saturday in Telangana, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases have now risen to 84. However, the number of people who have been cured now stands at 10, reports Hindustan Times. Seven of these were cured recently, five of whom belong to UP, one belongs to Delhi and another one belongs to Rajasthan. “These were COVID-19 positive cases whose final test results came negative for the presence of SARS-cov-2 virus. As per the protocol, any person who has tested positive for the disease needs to be managed in hospital isolation for a particular period. The tests are repeated on day 14 to check for the presence of the virus. If it returns negative then another test is to be repeated within a gap of 24 hours, and if that result also comes in negative then the patient is declared to be disease-free,” a senior health ministry official told HT.

335 passengers with a history of travel to COVID-19 affected countries are untraceable in Punjab, as per the state's Health & Family Welfare Department.

Stressing on the need for collective efforts in fighting against the pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached out to the SAARC nations on social media, to formulate a strong strategy for the same. His tweet read, “The threat of COVID-19 requires coordinated efforts at the global and regional level. We have communicated that SAPM (special assistant to Prime Minister) on Health will be available to participate in a video conference of SAARC member countries on the issue."

21 Indians Stranded In Italy Reach Kochi

Also, 21 Indians who were stranded in Italy, arrived at Cochin International Airport via Dubai by an Emirates flight. On the other hand, all tourist visas have now been suspended, in an attempt to contain the spread. Union Tourism Minister Prahlad Singh Patel said, "As tourist visas have been suspended, foreign tourist footfall will decrease. Our priority is to follow the instructions of the health ministry and take precautions against the new coronavirus." Saudi Arabia has also suspended International Flights for Two weeks.

Also Read: Howdy Modi Is Bringing Together Indian Americans: Tulsi Gabbard

Amidst the panic, Health and Family Welfare Department, Punjab has said that 335 passengers with travel history to coronavirus affected areas are untraceable. "335 passengers with a history of travel to COVID-19 affected countries are untraceable. A total of 6,011 passengers have been traced as of yesterday (March 13)," said Health & Family Welfare Department of Punjab.

To contain the outbreak of this pandemic in India further, the centre and state governments have taken some stern steps. In Karnataka, all the malls, theatres, education institutes and commercial establishments have been shut down for a week. In Punjab, all educational institutes have been shut down till March 31. The Punjab government is also likely to shut down cinema halls and other public spaces. The Maharashtra government too has ordered for the shutdown of cinema halls, gyms and swimming pools in several of the state's cities including Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Pune, Pimpri Chinchwad and Nagpur from Friday midnight. Malls will, however, will remain open. The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Delhi has suspended all academic, co-curricular and extra-curricular activities and asked students to leave the hostel by March 15, 2020 midnight.