Coronavirus India Updates: Deaths Near 12,000 As States Correct Data; Total Cases Cross 3.5 Lakh

More than 3.5 lakh people have been infected by the Covid-19 strain of coronavirus in India, with the total number of deaths nearing the 12,000-mark. India reported the single largest spike in one-day deaths -- at 2,003 -- as Delhi and Maharashtra revised their back-logged data.

India added nearly 11,000 cases in the 24 hours preceding the Health Ministry’s 8 a.m. update on June 17, taking the total tally to 3,54,065.

Maharashtra on Tuesday reported that the state's death toll has been revised upwards to 5,537 as it accounted for additional fatalities following a review. A total of 1,328 older deaths were reported, the public health department said. Of this, 862 were from Mumbai while 466 were from the rest of the state.

Key Numbers

• Total number of confirmed coronavirus cases: 3,54,065
• Active cases: 1,55,227
• Cured/discharged/migrated: 1,86,935
• Deaths: 11,903

Authorities reported 10,974 new cases, 2003 deaths and 6,922 recoveries in the 24 hour period.

Global Update

Beijing has ordered all schools to close and imposed restrictions on visits to all residential compounds in an escalation of measures to halt a fresh outbreak. The Chinese capital city reported 31 local cases for Tuesday.

Brazil registered 34,918 new infections, a record number of daily cases, while Mexico reported 4,599 new cases. In the U.S., Florida’s infections reached a new high and Texas saw hospitalizations surge, adding to signs that the outbreak is worsening in some states.

Hope for an affordable virus therapy also appeared: A low-cost anti-inflammatory drug became the first treatment shown to improve survival in patients with Covid-19.

Global cases top 8 million, deaths exceed 438,000.

Track news and developments around the Covid-19 pandemic in India here.

After a report by a high-level expert committee on testing rates, a price of Rs 2,400 has been fixed in Delhi.

Noting that the spread of Covid-19 is more in a few big states and cities, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday asked chief ministers to make full use of their state's existing testing capacity and also work to augment health infrastructure.

Speaking to chief ministers and representatives of 14 states and the union territory of Jammu & Kashmir, Modi said big crowds, lack of physical-distancing, daily movement of large number of people and small houses in some cities have made the battle against the coronavirus "more challenging".

Saving lives should be the top priority, he said, and called for expanding health infrastructure, according to a statement.

Source: PTI

The Supreme Court Wednesday sought response from the Centre on a plea seeking a direction that all the contributions made for Covid-19 pandemic by individuals and institutions should be credited to the National Disaster Response Fund rather than to the PM CARES Fund.

The Public Interest Litigation alleged that the Centre has been "refraining from divulging information about the specific utilization of crores of rupees that have been contributed to the PM CARES Fund till date".

It also sought a direction for the government to prepare, notify and implement a national plan under the Disaster Management Act to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

A bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan, SK Kaul and MR Shah, issued notice to the Centre and sought its response within two weeks on the plea filed by NGO, Centre for Public Interest Litigation, which has sought a direction that all the contributions till date in the PM CARES Fund may be directed to be transferred to the NDRF.

The plea, filed through advocate Prashant Bhushan, has also sought a direction to the Centre to utilise NDRF for the purpose of providing assistance in the fight against Covid-19 pandemic in compliance with the provision of the Disaster Management Act.

It has also sought a direction to the Centre to lay down minimum standards of relief under the Disaster Management Act to be provided to persons affected by coronavirus as well as by the lockdown.

"Section 11 of the DM Act makes it mandatory for a national plan to be drawn up for disaster management for whole of the country but currently, there is no such national plan in place to deal with the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic even though the same has been notified as a disaster' and numerous notifications are being issued to contain the same under the DM Act," the plea has said.

It said that the national plan needs to be prepared after due consultation with the state governments as well as the experts.

The plea further said that issuance of ad-hoc and emergent orders was understandable owing to the largely unpredictable crisis being faced by the world but after over two months since the lockdown was imposed, there is a need for a robust national plan.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Centre to issue directions to states for payment of salaries and providing necessary quarantine facilities to doctors and healthcare workers engaged in treating Covid-19 patients.

A bench of justices Ashok Bhushan, SK Kaul and MR Shah said that doctors and healthcare workers treating Covid-19 patients should not be denied quarantine facilities.

The top court asked the Centre to file a compliance report within four weeks on payment of salaries and quarantine facilities to doctors and healthcare workers and warned that non-compliance would be viewed seriously.

The bench was hearing a plea filed by a private doctor raising questions on the Centre's May 15 decision that 14-day quarantine was not mandatory for doctors.

Source: PTI

The world’s second-most populous nation took just seven days to add more than 2,500 casualties and 17 days to double its death count to 11,903. Total number of people who succumbed to the disease rose by 2,003 in the last 24 hours, according to the Health Ministry’s update on June 17. The spike in new deaths came after Maharashtra government revised its death toll to recognise more than 1,300 Covid-19-related fatalities.

Here’s what he said after yesterday’s meeting.