38 patients from Dindigul district discharged after recovery: Collector

A total of 76 positive cases admitted to Karur GH till date

22/04/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,DINDIGUL

Collector M. Vijayalakshmi on Tuesday said the district had 76 positive patients undergoing treatment at Karur Government Medical College Hospital till date. Of them, 38 had been discharged.

Presiding over a disaster management review meeting at the Collectorate here, she appealed to residents in containment zones to cooperate with officials by remaining indoors. All arrangements had been made to take essential commodities to the doorstep of residents once in two weeks. Officials and front line workers designated in the cordoned-off zones too were subjected to swab tests.

Hence, the challenge was to fight the pandemic and the government stood by the people, which should be well understood by each citizen, she stressed.

Police booked cases and seized two-wheelers/four-wheelers only in public interest. People should not venture out even during the day unless it was essential or an emergency, said R. Saktivel, Superintendent of Police.

Police personnel were manning vantage locations round the clock despite the steep rise in mercury levels, he added.

He appealed to residents to cooperate fully during the ongoing health emergency.

DRO S Kandasami, PO (DRDA) Kavitha, DD Health Nalini, District Panchayat Chairman M Baskaran, PA (general) to Collector Rajkumar were and among other officials who attended the meeting.

Speaking to reporters, the Collector later said she held a consultative meeting with Muslim leaders from the district and discussed the modalities of distributing rice for gruel to Muslims, who would commence fasting for Ramzan.

Rice distribution

In the next one or two days, the free rice given by the State government would be delivered to all 77 mosques in the district.

Last year, the State government distributed 716.58 tonnes of rice during Ramzan. However, with social distancing being mandatory in the present situation, Muslims had been advised to refrain from organising mass prayers at mosques.

SImilarly, the Muslim leaders were told to distribute the free rice to deserving people in the community at their homes directly. The leaders agreed to cooperate with the administration, according to the Collector.

Violating lockdown norms with impunity

22/04/2020,

 SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,TIRUNELVELI

The curfew imposed to enforce physical distancing has lost some of its edge with two-wheeler riders roaming around the streets with impunity to “buy essentials” after police were ordered to return vehicles seized from violators.

Initially, there was fear of seizure of vehicles, but that has dissipated now. The bike riders can be seen roaming along roads once again as they are confident of getting back their vehicles after the directive to police.

Kanniyakumari police stand apart from their counterparts in other districts in south Tamil Nadu as they have so far seized 4,185 vehicles from violators after registering 5,265 cases.

“Stringent measures initiated by us have led to nil fatal accident in the district as on April 1. Only on April 20, a 40-year-old woman died in a hit-and-run accident involving a two-wheeler and an unidentified lorry. We will continue to enforce the lockdown with more vigour,” says N. Shreenath, Superintendent of Police, Kanniyakumari district.

Police have seized over 4,000 vehicles in Tenkasi district.

In Tirunelveli district, they have seized 2,440 vehicles from 3,272 violators after registering 2,350 cases.

In Thoothukudi district, police have registered 2,483 cases against 2,937 persons and seized 1,383 vehicles.

“It is not enough. Though police intercept vehicles, most of them give false reasons to justify their roaming and they are allowed to go. When a woman crossed VVD signal around noon on Tuesday on her two-wheeler with two children and another adult woman, all without helmets, she was allowed to go for reasons best known to the police deployed at the point,” said an ambulance driver, who witnessed the incident.

“If only the woman, who told the police that she was going to a supermarket, had been booked for not wearing helmet, defying lockdown and taking three pillion riders, she will not come out any more. We feel that such mild action encourages people to come out again and again,” the driver added.

Police admit that returning seized vehicles has emboldened violators as they are sure of facing the case in the court later.

“Instead of returning the vehicles, our higher-ups should have announced that vehicles will be released only after the rightful owners get an order from the court in their favour. As a case is registered without any vigour now, it encourages them to violate the law again and again,” said a police officer, who has been deployed to file cases against violators in Tirunelveli district.

Total shutdown in Tirunelveli city on April 26, May 3

Move aimed at curbing growing incidences of violation; hospitals and pharmacies to remain open

22/04/2020,

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,TIRUNELVELI

The district administration has decided to clamp total lockdown in the city on April 26 and May 3 after increasing incidences of violation. All shops will remain closed and residents should not come out of their homes for any reason. Medical emergencies are exempted and hospitals and pharmacies will remain open.

Although official machinery is taking a range of measures to enforce lockdown, people continue to visit markets and other places without protective equipment. Also, youth have been found roaming the streets without masks.

The violations showed a slight decline when police seized vehicles and registered cases and the Corporation cracked the whip against those without masks.

To intensify the measure further, the Corporation has introduced three types of ‘colour cards’ that allows residents to come out of their houses only twice a week to buy essential commodities.

The green (Monday and Thursday), blue (Tuesday and Friday) and red (Wednesday and Saturday) cardholders can shop between 6 a.m. and 1 p.m. The card-bearer should carry identity proof and be above 15 and below 60 years of age. They should strictly follow physical distancing or else the card will be cancelled, the Corporation has warned.

While police personnel have been deployed in temporary vegetable markets and meat stalls to ensure physical distancing, there is disarray when the crowd swells. The colour card system has been effective to some extent and in a bid to fine-tune it further, Collector Shilpa Prabhakar Satish has ordered cent per cent closure of all shops, except pharmacies and hospitals, on April 26 and May 3.

“Shops will not be allowed to open on the two days. Hence, residents should buy essential commodities on previous days mentioned on their colour card. This is being done to ensure physical distancing, which is essential to check spread of COVID-19. Hence, we appeal to everyone to remain indoors,” Corporation Commissioner G. Kannan has said.

Singapore extends curbs as cases surge

22/04/2020, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE,SINGAPORE

Singapore on Tuesday extended restrictions to fight the COVID-19 until early June as cases surged past 9,000 due to a growing number of infections among migrant workers. The city-state managed to keep its outbreak in check in the early stages due to widespread testing and contact-tracing, but is facing a second wave of infections. It reported 1,111 cases on Tuesday taking the total to 9,125, with the majority of new infections in foreign workers’ dormitories, which have become the epicentre of the city’s outbreak.

Pak. PM to get tested for COVID-19

22/04/2020, PRESS TRUST OF INDIA,ISLAMABAD

Imran Khan has agreed to get tested for COVID-19 after a well-known philanthropist was tested positive for the COVID-19, days after meeting the Pakistan prime minister, his doctor said on Tuesday. Faisal Edhi, the son of late philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi and chairman of the Edhi Foundation, met Mr. Khan last week. Mr. Khan’s personal physician , Faisal Sultan, said that Mr. Khan would undergo COVID-19 test. The protocols recommend self-isolation for people who meet those tested positive for the disease.

Humans to blame for pandemic

22/04/2020, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE,PARIS

Whether it came from a bat or a pangolin is not certain, but one thing is: the coronavirus outbreak comes from the animal world. It is human activity that enabled the virus to jump to people, and specialists are warning that if nothing changes, many other pandemics of this nature will follow.

The name given to diseases transmitted from animals to humans is “zoonoses”, based on the Greek words for “animal” and “sickness”.

They are not new — tuberculosis, rabies, toxoplasmosis, malaria, to name just a few, are all zoonoses.

According to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), 60% of human infectious diseases originate from animals. This figure climbs to 75% for “emerging” diseases such as Ebola, HIV, avian flu, Zika, or SARS, another type of coronavirus. The list goes on.

“The emergence of zoonotic diseases is often associated with environmental changes or ecological disturbances, such as agricultural intensification and human settlement, or encroachments into forests and other habitats,” says UNEP report.

“Changes in the environment are usually the result of human activities,” it adds.

Gwenael Vourc’h of INRAE, a French public research institute, also blames human activity for the crossover between species.“Given the growth of the human population and its ever more intense use of planetary resources, the destruction of more and more ecosystems multiplies contacts,” she says.

A key area of concern is deforestation to make way for agriculture and intensive livestock farming.

In terms of endangered wildlife, a study by American researchers published last week shows that those who share the most viruses with humans are precisely “populations declining due to exploitation and loss of habitat”.

Trump to suspend immigration to U.S.

He says the temporary move is to protect local jobs; new green cards, work visas are likely to face ban

22/04/2020, SRIRAM LAKSHMAN,CHENNAI
/WASHINGTON

New measures: Donald Trump in Washington on Monday. APAlex Brandon

U.S. President Donald Trump has said he will temporarily suspend immigration in order to protect Americans’ jobs.

“In light of the attack from the Invisible Enemy, as well as the need to protect the jobs of our GREAT American Citizens, I will be signing an Executive Order to temporarily suspend immigration into the United States!” he said on Monday evening (Washington time), in a reference to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tightening visa policies

While Mr. Trump did not clarify the scope — in terms of visa categories or time — of this planned order, it will likely temporarily stop new green cards and work visas, as per several reports.

The order is in line with the tightening of visa policies that the administration has undertaken over the years, backed by immigration hawks such as Mr. Trump’s adviser Stephen Miller.

The State Department issued 4,62,422 immigrant visas in the 2019 fiscal year — down from just over 6,17,752 in 2015, while U.S. Citizens and Immigration Services granted permanent residence to nearly 5,77,000 individuals.

Monday night’s tweet on immigration could also be Mr. Trump’s way of trying to push States to open up, after weeks of lockdown, a Washington DC source who works in the economic policy area told The Hindu.

With more than 22 million Americans seeking unemployment benefits over the last month, and with a general election looming, Mr. Trump has been keen on opening up the U.S. economy — battling with some Governors to open up States. Last week, Mr. Trump issued an advisory telling States they could open by May 1 or before. Some States such as Tennessee, Georgia and South Carolina — all headed by Republican Governors — are planning to ease restrictions.

Call for easing curbs

On Twitter last week, Mr. Trump called for Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia — States with Democrat Governors — to be “liberated”. Earlier, the President had claimed he had the power to “open up” States and conservative groups have backed protests against “stay at home” orders across States.

National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien on Tuesday cast the President’s announcement as a move to protect the American people’s health. Mr. O’Brien said the temporary halt to immigration would not be “dissimilar” to limits on travel to the U.S. from China that Mr. Trump put in place in January.

“We’re trying to do everything, the President’s trying to do everything he can to put the health of the American people first during this crisis,” Mr. O’Brien told Fox News.

“So this is one step. It’s not dissimilar to the restrictions on travel from China that he implemented back on January 29 at the very outset of this public health crisis.”

Asked about Mr. Trump’s reference to jobs, Mr. O’Brien referenced the virus’ economic toll. “There’s been an economic cost here, too, and the President’s looking out for Americans on both fronts at every turn,” he said.

Mr. Trump has issued a number of immigration-related executive orders before after the pandemic began — such as allowing the immediate deportation of migrants without valid papers and the potential sanctioning of countries that do not accept their citizens back from the U.S. Like those, his temporary immigration suspension order will likely be challenged in court.

(With Associated Press inputs)

@CovidIndiaSeva launched

People can pose queries and get answers on Twitter

22/04/2020, PRESS TRUST OF INDIA,NEW DELHI

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Tuesday launched the ‘COVID India Seva’, an interactive platform to establish a direct channel of communication during the pandemic.

The initiative is aimed at enabling transparent e-governance delivery in real-time and answering citizen queries swiftly, at scale, especially in crisis situations like the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, an official statement said.

Through this, people can pose queries @CovidIndiaSeva and get answers in almost real time.

The @CovidIndiaSeva works off a dashboard at the backend that helps process large volumes of tweets, converts them into resolvable tickets and assigns them to the relevant authority for real-time resolution, the statement said.

“Trained experts will share authoritative public health information swiftly at scale, helping to build a direct channel for communication with citizens,” the Minister said in a tweet.

Over time, Twitter has proved to be an essential service for both the government and citizens to interact and exchange information, especially in times of need,” Mr. Vardhan said.

12 new cases in Dharavi

22/04/2020, STAFF REPORTER,MUMBAI

Dharavi reported 12 new COVID-19 positive cases on Tuesday, bringing the total number of cases in the area to 180 so far. It also reported its 12th death, that of a 62-year-old man from Mukund Nagar.

In Asia’s largest slum that saw its first positive case on April 1, the number of cases have increased by leaps and bounds, reaching 180 positive cases within three weeks. The majority of these 180 cases are concentrated in five areas of Dharavi, including Kalyanwadi (44), Muslim Nagar and Madina Nagar (23), Mukund Nagar (27), Social Nagar (13) and Dr. Baliga Nagar (6). About 83 cases were found during fever screening. On Tuesday, Dharavi reported 12 new cases, including five from Rajiv Gandhi Nagar and four from Muslim Nagar.

Police official dies of virus in Ujjain

22/04/2020, STAFF REPORTER,BHOPAL

A 59-year-old in charge of a police station in Ujjain died of COVID-19 on Tuesday morning while undergoing treatment at a hospital.

“He had contracted the illness during the course of his duty,” said A.G. Sinha, Ujjain Chief Medical and Health Officer. She added that the inspector was posted at the Neelganga station, which fell under one of the containment area where infected cases had been reported.

The official, who died at 5.10 a.m. on Tuesday, was admitted to a private hospital in Indore 10 days ago in a serious condition. “He had bilateral pneumonia and difficulty in breathing. Despite continuous treatment, he didn’t show improvement,” said Vinod Bhandari, a doctor who oversaw his treatment.

Towards the end, he was put on a ventilator. “Despite all efforts we couldn’t save him,” said Dr. Bhandari.

Death toll in U.P. increases to 21

Number of cases climbs to 1,337

22/04/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT ,LUCKNOW

Helping hands: Volunteers serving food to those in need in U.P. on Tuesday. PTI

The COVID-19 death toll in U.P. hit 21 on Tuesday with three cases, two in Moradabad and one in Aligarh, as per the UP Directorate of Health Services.

The number of positive cases also climbed to 1,337 with 153 new ones in the last 24 hours. The highest rise was recorded in Agra (65) and Rae Bareli (33), while Kanpur and Moradabad each reported 15 since Monday.

Previously negative

The fresh cases included 33 from Rae Bareli where persons kept under quarantine who had tested negative earlier now tested positive.

Speaking about this at a press briefing here, Additional Chief Secretary, Home Department, Awanish Awasthi said, “[We] got the benefit of keeping people under quarantine as precaution.”

Mr. Awasthi, however, did not provide details.

With 306 positive cases and six deaths, Agra continues to be the worst-affected district in the State so far while Lucknow is in the second place with 169 cases.

The cases have been reported in 53 of the 75 districts.

Ten have been declared “corona-free”.

Samples tested

The State has so far sent 37,933 samples for testing.

With 1,154 active cases and after experimenting with pool testing at the King George’s Medical University here, the government has now also started it at the LLRM Medical College in Meerut and plans to have it in the SGPGI Lucknow too.

Gujarat sees 239 new cases, 19 deaths

Only eight patients discharged after recovery, suggesting slow recovery rate

22/04/2020,

 SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,AHMEDABAD

Keeping a check: Border Security Force personnel on a patrol in the Behrampur area of Gujarat’s capital Ahmedabad. AFPAFP

Novel coronavirus infections continued unabated in Gujarat, adding 239 cases and 19 deaths on Tuesday, bringing the State to the second position in both the number of cases (2,178) and deaths (90), after neighbouring Maharashtra.

On Tuesday, as many as 15 deaths were recorded in Ahmedabad alone, which is the single largest cluster with 1,373 cases and 53 deaths so far, two in Surat, and one each in Bharuch and Bhavnagar.

Only eight patients were discharged from the State after recovery, suggesting that the recovery rate is very slow, while new cases and casualties are surging. So far, only 139 patients have recovered and been discharged from hospitals.

The pandemic has now spread to as many as 28 out of 33 districts in the State.

According to the Health Department’s data, as of Tuesday, there were 14 critically ill COVID-19 patients on ventilator support, while 1,935 are stable.

The State has so far tested 36,829 samples. Fourteen government laboratories and four private labs have been approved for carrying out tests by the Indian Council for Medical Research.

“The State has been witnessing a spike in infections and deaths, both extremely worrisome factors for Maharashtra,” a State government official told The Hindu. He added that the situation is worsening in Ahmedabad and to some extent in Surat, the largest cities in the State.

Expand capacity

To deal with the surge in cases, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation has now decided to expand the capacity of its main S.P.V. Hospital from 500 beds to 1,000 beds, while it has also created a 2,000-bed COVID-19 care centre at the University hostel campus, where patients with mild symptoms are treated, whereas serious patients are admitted in the SPV Hospital. In Surat, so far, 347 cases have been reported, alongside 12 casualties.

Meanwhile, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic spreading to more areas of the State, the government has roped in five senior IAS officers and rushed them to various districts to oversee arrangements, and monitor how the local authorities are dealing with the evolving epidemic.

Maharashtra records 552 fresh cases

Tally touches 5,218; 19 deaths take toll to 252

22/04/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,PUNE

Strict enforcement: Police personnel deployed near Gokhale Nagar in Powai, Mumbai. Mukesh TrivediMueksh Trivedi

Maharashtra reported an identical surge of 552 new COVID-19 cases in less than 72 hours as its tally soared past the 5,000-mark on Tuesday to reach 5,218 cases, while 19 new fatalities took the State’s death toll to 252.

The State had recorded a spike of precisely 552 fresh novel coronavirus cases on Sunday as well, making both instances the highest single-day surge across Maharashtra so far. The State has reported nearly 1,600 new cases over a 72-hour period.

Twelve of the 19 deaths were reported from Mumbai city, while four fatalities were reported from Pune district, including one from Pimpri-Chinchwad. Two deaths were reported from Thane district, while State health officials finally confirmed the death of a 47-year-old district cooperative bank official in Sangli in their medical bulletin. The patient had succumbed to acute respiratory failure at the Government Medical College and Hospital in Miraj on Sunday evening.

“A total of 63% of the deaths reported had high-risk co-morbidities such as diabetes, hypertension, asthma and heart disease,” said State Surveillance Officer Dr. Pradeep Awate. Despite the rapid surge in cases, 150 patients were discharged from hospitals on Tuesday, taking the number of recovered cases in the State to 722.

Overwhelming number

In a familiar pattern, the overwhelming majority of new cases (419) was reported from Mumbai alone, as the city’s tally shot to 3,451 cases with 151 deaths. Pune district witnessed another bout of fresh cases, reporting as many as 53 cases to take the district’s tally to 726, with 51 being reported from Pimpri-Chinchwad. The district’s death toll stands at 55, with two fatalities being reported from Pimpri-Chinchwad. According to Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation Commissioner Shravan Hardikar, no fresh case has been reported in the past 48 hours. The second death reported from Pimpri-Chinchwad was of a 62-year-old wife of an ex-Army jawan.

A glimmer of hope amid the State’s relentless rise in cases was the fact that no new cases were reported from Latur, Osmanabad, Washim and Hingoli districts in Maharashtra’s rural hinterland.

“Currently, 93,569 people across the State are in home quarantine and 7,808 persons in institutional quarantine,” said Dr. Awate.

‘Support given to stranded citizens in Iran’

22/04/2020, LEGAL CORRESPONDENT,NEW DELHI

The Centre informed the Supreme Court on Tuesday that the Indian Embassy in Iran is taking care of citizens stranded there, including 860 fishermen, due to COVID-19. However, a Bench led by Justice N.V. Ramana took into consideration a submission made by senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan that the fishermen were unable to procure supplies because of non-payment of bills. The court directed the Centre to look into the grievance and address it.

CEC stuck in U.S. due to travel curbs

22/04/2020, DAMINI NATH ,NEW DELHI

Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora, who went on a personal visit to the United States and was scheduled to return to Delhi on April 4, has been stuck in the country since March 23 when all international flights were stopped.

He said that he was on leave from March 7 and his return was on April 4. Now, like many others, he is waiting for the resumption of flights. Election Commission officials said Mr. Arora had been working remotely. The two Election Commissioners – Ashok Lavasa and Sushil Chandra – and other senior officials were in touch with him.

Mr. Arora said the ECI headquarters in Delhi, including his own office, was operational with a skeleton staff. The decision of the CEC and ECs on a 30% cut in salary for one year to contribute to the COVID-19 response of the government was taken after conversations among the three, he said.

ICMR asks States to stop using rapid tests

22/04/2020

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan has written to the Health Departments of all States/U.T.s to ensure adequate availability of blood in banks in particular, for people in need of regular transfusion with blood disorders, Mr. Agarwal said.

“Portal ‘e-RaktKosh’ needs to be used for the real-time status monitoring of the current stock of each blood group. As part of the collaborative approach for COVID-19 management, Indian Red Cross has started a 24X7 control room in Delhi for blood services. The numbers are: 011-23359379, 93199 82104, 93199 82105,’’ the Health Ministry said.

Addressing the problem of hospitals getting closed as some healthcare workers are becoming positive and some patients admitted for unrelated disease in non-COVID-19 hospitals becoming positive, the Ministry has issued guidelines for detection of such cases in non-COVID-19 health facilities.

“The hospital infection control committee is now responsible for monitoring such issues. It shall ensure that the healthcare workers are oriented on infection prevention and control guidelines. Local health authorities have to be informed about the cases and transfer the patients to be treated in isolation for COVID-19. Such patients should be masked and only dedicated healthcare workers should attend these cases,’’ Mr. Agarwal said, adding, “All close contacts shall be put on HCQ for a period of 7 weeks keeping in mind the contraindications of HCQ also”.

(With inputs from

Mohammed Iqbal)

‘Evacuation of people from the U.S. not possible right now’

Govt. says representation can be made in specific cases

22/04/2020, LEGAL CORRESPONDENT,NEW DELHI

The government on Tuesday informed the Supreme Court that it was not possible to evacuate stranded people from the United States at this stage of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, for the government, however told a Bench led by Justice N.V. Ramana that a representation could be made by petitioners regarding “specific vulnerable people” to designated officers listed by the Ministry of External Affairs within the next fortnight.

“On such a representation being filed by the petitioners, the authorities concerned are directed to consider the same on its own merits and take appropriate steps to ameliorate the conditions of those in the U.S.A.,” the court ordered.

The Bench was hearing petitions, including one filed by senior advocate Vibha Datta Makhija, seeking evacuation of vulnerable Indian citizens from the U.S., particularly those on temporary visas. The Centre had earlier filed a status report setting out steps already taken by it. The court referred to the government’s measures as a “proactive approach.”

Huge spike in cases likely in Mumbai: Central panel

22/04/2020

“We are taking the projections with a pinch of salt even as we do not wish to discard them completely. The response of the State is now scaled up keeping in mind these numbers. Overall, the basis of using a Doubling Rate of 3.8 days has been questioned by us and not factoring in discharge patients and our methods of isolating high risk patients while drawing these projections,” said a senior Maharashtra bureaucrat.

Several models

A senior State health official told The Hindu that several models were being used for projections of COVID-19 cases to gauge Maharashtra’s preparedness based on these projections.

“All the models have derived varied results. Some predicted at least a lakh cases over the next few weeks while some have predicted a staggering explosion with several lakh of cases,” said the official, adding that some of the figures seemed exaggerated and misleading.

“The State, as well as the Centre, is equally puzzled. We are all confused about which estimate to go by. However, it was decided to take a slightly higher projection and work on those statistics in order to be better prepared rather than being under-prepared,” he said.

The official also said the Government of India has now made its own tool that is currently being used in Maharashtra. “We are already in the process of carrying out a gap analysis based on the projections made by the new tool,” he said.

Epicentre of outbreak

Mumbai, which has become the epicentre of the outbreak with the highest number of cases and deaths, is the State’s biggest concern.

Of the 5,218 cases recorded in Maharashtra, 66% were in Mumbai alone. The city also contributed to 60% of the 251 deaths in the State.

The decision to convert the tertiary care Nair Hospital, attached to a medical college, into a COVID-19 facility taking large empty areas and converting them in quarantine facilities have all stemmed from anticipating the worst.

“We are preparing for the worse as Mumbai continues to be at the peak. The city’s density poses a challenge,” said a doctor who is on the newly formed task force by the government.

100 families self-isolate at Rashtrapati Bhavan

Movement within the Estate restricted

22/04/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,NEW DELHI

Rashtrapati Bhavan

Over a 100 families went on self-isolation within the President’s Estate after one person tested positive for COVID-19, an official release from Rashtrapati Bhavan said on Tuesday.

Confirming the news to The Hindu, the senior official said the main Rashtrapati Bhavan, where President Ram Nath Kovind and his family stay, remained unaffected.

“It may be clarified that till date no employee of President’s Secretariat has tested positive for COVID-19 and the Secretariat, along with the local administration, is taking all the preventive measures required under the government guidelines,” said a press release.

The official statement, however, said that a family member of an employee of the President’s Secretariat had been in touch with a COVID-positive patient who passed away on April 13.

“As required under the guidelines, all the seven members of this family were moved to the quarantine facility at Mandir Marg on 16.04.2020. Subsequently, one of the family members, who was in contact with the deceased, tested positive. All other family members, including the employee of the President’s Secretariat, have tested negative,” the statement said.

Following guidelines from the designated authorities, movement of 115 families within the President’s Estate has been restricted.

“The residents of these houses are being provided doorstep delivery of essential commodities,” the statement said.

In the third week of March, President Kovind too decided to strictly follow the Health Ministry’s protocol after one Lok Sabha member, who was part of a delegation of MPs from Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan invited by President Kovind for a breakfast meeting, announced self-quarantine on March 19.

3 deaths in A.P. & Karnataka, new cases in Kerala

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan says vigil is needed at borders as cases are coming in from the other States

22/04/2020, SPECIAL

 CORRESPONDENT,VIJAYAWADA/HYDERABAD/BENGALURU/THIRUVANANTHAPURAM

Kurnool and Guntur districts continue to remain hotspots for COVID-19 in Andhra Pradesh, registering new positive cases with each passing day. Two more persons have succumbed to the disease in Guntur, raising the toll in the State to 22.

One person who died in Karnataka was found positive for the virus.

Bucking the trend of over a week, Kerala had 19 new COVID 19 cases on Tuesday. The number of patients declared to have recovered from the disease was 16.

Andhra Pradesh registered 35 new cases in the 24 hours ending Tuesday morning, and 19 of them were from the two districts – Kurnool (10) and Guntur (9). The other districts were Kadapa with six cases, West Godavari four, and Krishna and Anantapur three each.

With the latest additions, the total number of positive cases went up to 757. With four persons recovering on the day, the number of those who recovered so far stood at 96. The number of active cases was 639.

Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh tested 5,022 samples in the last 24 hours, the second time it crossed the 5,000 mark.

Kurnool has reported 184 cases and Guntur 158 in all. Krishna (83), Nellore (67), Chittoor (53), Kadapa (46), Prakasam (44), West Godavari (39), Anantapur (36), East Godavari (26), and Visakhapatnam (21) are the other districts with multiple cases.

Spike in Telangana

Telangana witnessed a steep surge in COVID-19 positive cases on Tuesday. There were 56 new cases taking the total number of affected persons since the outbreak of the pandemic to 928.

No deaths were reported on Tuesday and the number of casualties remained at 23. Also, 194 people were discharged from hospital.

The bulletin of the Public Health and Family Welfare department, Suryapet district reported 26 cases by evening. The GHMC area reported 19 more cases while three were reported from Nizamabad district.

Adilabad and Jogulamba-Gadwal districts reported two new cases while Khammam, Medchal, Warangal and Rangareddy reported one each. The department urged people to wear face masks compulsorily.

Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao asked senior officials to tour the districts to examine how well decisions to prevent spread of coronavirus were being implemented. Mr. Rao held a high-level review meeting on Tuesday.

With a senior citizen succumbing to COVID-19, Karnataka’s death toll touched 17 on Tuesday.

The day saw 10 more cases being detected, taking the total number of cases to 418.

An 80-year-old man from Kalaburagi, with a history of Parkinson’s disease, and admitted on April 19 with Severe Acute Respiratory Illness passed away on Monday morning and he was later reported positive.

Of the 10 new cases, three each are from Vijayapura and Kalaburagi, two from Nanjangud in Mysuru, and one each from Belagavi and Dakshina Kannada.

In Kerala, Kannur district accounted for 10 of the new cases, Palakkad four cases, Kasaragod three, and Kollam and Malappuram one case each. Of the 19 new cases, 13 were people who had returned home from abroad, three (one each from Malappuram, Palakkad and Kollam) came from Tamil Nadu, one person had returned from Uttar Pradesh and two were contacts who had developed the disease from imported cases.

Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan said cases from across the border meant that stricter control was needed at borders with other States.

Kerala has reported 426 COVID-19 cases, of which only 117 were currently undergoing treatment in hospitals.

UAE nationals to be flown out from Kochi international airport

22/04/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,CHENNAI

The Chennai Corporation and the district administration of various parts of the State have made arrangements to send foreign nationals from the UAE back home.

The State government has directed officials of the Corporation and Collectors of districts such as Kancheepuram, Chengalpet, Coimbatore, Tiruppur, Kallakurichi, Villuppuram and Erode to provide relief to UAE nationals stranded in various locations. They will be taken by road to the Kochi international airport from areas such as Chennai, Kancheepuram and Chengalpattu to board an Air Arabia flight on Wednesday, it is learnt.

The State has directed civic agencies and District Collectors to make road transit arrangements. Those having flu symptoms will not be allowed on the flight. They will be put under quarantine and tested.

Officials have been asked to ensure social distancing during transit.

House owners warned

22/04/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT ,CHENNAI

The State government on Tuesday issued an order directing District Collectors, superintendents and commissioners of municipal corporations to take penal action against property owners who try to evict doctors and paramedical staff from their houses.

Issuing the order, Health Secretary Beela Rajesh said that reports had been received that house owners were forcing doctors/paramedical staff/healthcare personnel treating COVID-19 patients to vacate the premises. Such behaviour amounted to obstructing public servants from discharging their duty, Ms. Rajesh said.

Policemen over 55 told to stay home

Those in 50-55 age group asked to avoid field work

22/04/2020, VIVEK NARAYANAN,CHENNAI

In the wake of a sub-inspector testing positive for Covid-19, the city police have asked policemen between the ages of 55 and 58 to stay home and those between 50 and 55 years to avoid field work.

A few days ago, a sub-inspector attached to the Esplanade police station tested positive for COVID-19.

All his colleagues underwent checks and tested negative.

“He had joined our station a few weeks ago and his colleagues said that he used to take all precautions. We, along with health and Chennai Corporation officials are tracing his contacts,” said a senior police officer.

Apart from personnel at the Esplande police station, around 1,000 other policemen underwent tests and the results are awaited. “Considering the present situation, we have decided not to use policemen above the age of 50 for field work,” said a senior police officer.

Many said that though the department had provided them with masks and gloves, the danger of contracting the virus remained high.

“Mainly during vehicle checks, we have to interact with motorists. We are risking our lives and those of our families, but the public does not seem to be bothered,” said a police constable from Tambaram.

Those blocking COVID-19 victims’ funeral to face Goondas Act

Royapuram and Mannady containment zones to get three-tier security system

22/04/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT,CHENNAI

No entry: Tin sheets put up at B.C. Press Road in Royapuram, a containment zone. B. JOTHI RAMALINGAM B. JOTHI RAMALINGAM

Chennai Commissioner of Police A.K. Viswanathan said on Tuesday that anyone who obstructed the burial or cremation of COVID-19 victims would be arrested and booked under the Goondas Act.

Mr. Viswanathan told reporters that 21 persons had been arrested and remanded for rioting and attempt to murder while opposing the burial of Dr. Simon Hercules, who died of COVID-19 on Sunday. “We are searching for a few more persons involved in this incident and all of them will be booked under the Goondas Act. The Corporation and health officials are following WHO guidelines and experts have assured us that the virus will not spread due to burial/cremation of COVID-19 victims. If people continue opposing this, we will take strict action,” he warned.

Mr. Viswanathan urged residents to understand the seriousness of the pandemic and not step out of their houses. “Experience from other countries has taught us that only if we fight together can we win against this virus. So all residents should follow the advice of the GCC and Health Department,” he said.

Inspection held

The police and the Chennai Corporation would together provide a three-tier security system in the Royapuram and Mannady containment zones, which have the largest number of COVID-19 cases in the city, he added.

Mr. Viswanathan, Corporation Commissioner G. Prakash, Additional Commissioner of Police (North) R. Dhinakaran and other police officers inspected the two containment zones.

“We wanted to study the zones to decide on what kind of measures need to be taken. There were some irregularities pertaining to personal distancing in the Mannady grain market,” said a senior police officer.

At a press meet conducted soon after the inspection, Mr. Prakash said that till Monday, the city had recorded a total of 303 COVID-19 cases, and of those, 92 cases were reported in the Royapuram zone alone. Of the 92 cases, close to 60 were concentrated in four to five wards. “After this analysis, the GCC and the city police decided to take steps to increase security in the containment zones,” he said.

The police said that in core areas, residents would not be allowed to come out and steps would be taken to ensure that essential commodities were provided to them. At the next level, people could come out for basic needs, though outsiders would not be allowed. At the final level, vehicle diversions would be effected.

Since goods from the wholesale market at Mannady are supplied to different parts of the State, a meeting will be held with traders. “This is to see what kind of protective mechanisms can be put in place in the locality without affecting trade. The plans will be implemented from Wednesday and by doing this, we hope that the spurt can be contained,” said a police officer.

‘Don’t compel students to pay fees’

22/04/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT ,CHENNAI

K. Shanmugam

The Tamil Nadu government has directed all private colleges and schools in the State not to compel students or their parents to pay fees for the 2020-21 academic year or collect dues during the lockdown period.

A government order, issued by Chief Secretary K. Shanmugam, said students or their parents should also not be forced to pay dues for the 2019-20 academic year or be subjected to penalties for delays in making payments during the lockdown period. The government issued the direction under the Disaster Management Act, 2005.

“It was brought to the notice of the government that some private colleges/schools have been demanding fees from parents during this period of lockdown,” the G.O. said. The Revenue and Disaster Management Department had, in a G.O. dated April 15, extended restrictions across the State under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, to contain the spread of COVID-19, it pointed out.

Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami had earlier warned of action against the schools that were sending messages to parents, asking them to pay up.

Acting on ICMR’s advice, State halts rapid testing

Nod for trial of convalescent plasma therapy

22/04/2020, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT, CHENNAI

With the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) having asked the States to put antibody-based rapid testing on hold for two days, Tamil Nadu, which had launched testing with rapid test kits on Saturday, will halt the exercise for 48 hours.

Health Minister C. Vijayabaskar said the ICMR’s decision was based on test results in Rajasthan and West Bengal. “We have been emphasising that the rapid test kits are only a surveillance tool, and it is the RT-PCR which is the confirmatory test for COVID-19,” he said.

Officials of the Health Department said that based on an oral communication from the ICMR, they were suspending the use of rapid test kits for two days. “However, we have had no adverse results from the tests. We have asked 42 deputy directors of health services to collect full reports of the testing, and will compile the details on Wednesday,” an official said.

Mr. Vijayabaskar said the ICMR had granted approval to T.N. for trials of convalescent plasma therapy.

“Now, the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital will take up trials for convalescent plasma therapy,” he said.

The State plans to provide plasma therapy to critically-ill COVID-19 patients. This involves the collection of plasma from persons who had recovered from the disease, and transfusion to severely-ill patients. When a person recovers from COVID-19, their blood would have antibodies against the virus.