Coronavirus in India live updates: Fourth positive case of COVID-19 reported from Gurugram

Amid the coronavirus outbreak, Indian Army has quarantined all soldiers and colleagues of the jawan who has tested positive for Covid-19 in Ladakh, according to Army sources. The jawan was attached to the Ladakh Scouts Regimental Centre in Leh. According to senior Army sources, the Lance Naik tested positive for Covid-19 on Monday.

The clergy, across religions and communities, have been advised to convince members of their respective faiths to observe prayers at homes, instead of gathering at religious places and shrines. Already, major religious places including temples and dargahs, that usually receive heavy footfall, have been locked down. The latest decision was taken by the district administration here on Tuesday, and communication to this effect has been issued to the clergy. A public notice will also be issued.

Four close contacts of the 59-year-old woman who has tested positive for Covid-19 have been quarantined as they showed symptoms of Covid-19 while three resident doctors of the GMCH are under observation. According to district officials, a total of seven people with symptoms, including the four close contacts of the woman patient, have been admitted to the district civil hospital.

Two more people on Wednesday were tested positive for coronavirus in Ladakh, taking the cases of the deadly virus in the Union Territory to eight. Both the Covid-19 positive patients are the relatives of people who were previously tested positive for the disease.

Number of novel coronavirus cases in Mumbai remained constant and no new case was recorded on Wednesday morning, a senior civic official said. Additional Municipal Commissioner Suresh Kakani said the number of COVID-19 cases remained constant in the metropolis with no fresh case being detected till 11 am.

The Department of Pharmaceuticals, under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers, has warned the manufacturers and importers of masks, gloves and hand sanitisers of penal action for non-compliance of the orders issued on March 13 regarding submission of information pertaining to these items. It may be noted that in the wake of coronavirus outbreak, the government on March 13 had declared face masks and hand sanitizers as essential commodities for the next 100 days as a step to increase the supply chain and curtail black marketing of these items to combat the spread of the virus.

At least 167 people suspected of having coronavirus have been missing in Ludhiana while only 29 have been traced, said Dr Rajesh Bagga, the city's civil surgeon. Medical officials in Punjab had received a list of people who have recently returned to India and have been tracking down people on the list in a bid to ascertain infections if any.

Following the coronavirus outbreak, the gems and jewellery sector in the country has come to a standstill with retailers managing to do only 20-25 per cent business due to fewer footfalls amid fear of the virus' spread, according to an industry body. "There is virtually no footfalls in jewellery stores and retailers are doing only 20-25 per cent business across the country," All India Gem And Jewellery Domestic Council chairman Anantha Padmanaban told PTI here.

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Karnataka chief minister BS Yediuyurappa on Wednesday called an emergency cabinet meeting to discuss the coronavirus outbreak and indicated the lock- down in the state will continue. "I have called an emergency cabinet meeting this afternoon; Speaker (of legislative assembly) has also called a meeting. We will discuss and will take what more stringent measures that needs to be taken," he said.

The Karnataka government's "work from home" advisory to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic has turned India's tech hub into a ghost town, with the bustling campuses of IT majors like Infosys and Wipro deserted as thousands of their techies are missing in action since Monday. "We have advised our employees to work from home while ensuring client confidentiality and security. We will continue work with local governments the world over in following their advisories," said Infosys Chief Executive Salil Parekh in an e-mail to IANS on Tuesday.

Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has cautioned against even the slightest of lapse in precautions to check the spreading of Covid-19 in the state. “The virus is spreading the world over. Hence even the slightest of lapse cannot be tolerated. At present, lapses are happening,” the chief minister said after the review meeting.

Nearly one-third of the population in state may be at serious risk, if community transmission of Covid-19 begins. Epidemiological models have shown that in Covid-19-hit countries, severe infection and mortality are seen only in high-risk groups like elderly and those with chronic health conditions. This is not a small group in Kerala. Nearly 13% of the total population are aged over 60. Moreover, around 27% men and 19% women are diabetic, 41% men and 39% women are hypertensive, more than 1lakh people are being treated for cancer, 5.3 lakh people have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and 4.8 lakh have asthma, as per Economic Review 2019, Kerala State Planning Board.