Govt. to add 40,000 ventilators by June to battle virus

Death toll rises to 17 even as 75 fresh cases are added in the last 24 hours, including a 10-month-old infant from Karnataka

28/03/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,NEW DELHI

No-go zone: Curfew was imposed in Ramganj, Jaipur, on Friday after a resident tested positive for COVID-19.Rohit Jain ParasRohit Jain Paras

As the ICMR on Friday confirmed 75 fresh cases and 17 deaths in the COVID-19 outbreak, the Union Health Ministry announced that it was scaling up measures to combat the virus by bringing in 40,000 more ventilators in the next three months.

According to data released by the Ministry, a total of 724 individuals have tested positive; 27,688 samples from 26,798 individuals have been tested for the SARS-CoV2 virus as on March 27, an ICMR release said.

According to reports from States, the toll from the outbreak has touched 21, with 159 fresh cases in the last 24 hours. Karnataka reported its third death of a 60-year-old man, along with nine new cases, including a 10-month-old infant from Dakshina Kannada. Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh reported one fatality each. Kerala reported the maximum number of cases at 179 with 39 new cases, while Maharashtra had 153 cases.

Joint Secretary in the Health Ministry Luv Agarwal said India is working on the guidelines prescribed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to isolate, test, track and treat.