Coronavirus Delhi update: The teacher had last come to school on April 28 and started showing COVID-19 symptoms from May 2. His test report came on Friday

Musk has been ranting about the stay-home order since the company's April 29 first-quarter earnings were released, calling the restrictions fascist and urging governments to stop taking people's freedom

Coronavirus in Maharashtra: In the last 24 hours, Maharashtra's COVID-19 positive cases jumped 1,165. Coronavirus has killed as many as 779 people in Maharashtra. The state reported 48 deaths in last one day

The measures comprise 24-hour sanitisation of factory premises, providing face masks and PPEs to all workers, temperature check of all employees twice daily, no sharing of tools, and ensuring physical distancing by raising barriers on work floors as well as dining facilities, among others

Hockey legend Balbir Singh Sr, a triple Olympic gold medallist, has been admitted to a city hospital in critical condition. The 96-year-old was taken to a private hospital from his residence in Sector 36 in Chandigarh, where he lives with his daughter Sushbir and maternal grandson Kabir. "Dadaji is in ICU right now at Fortis Hospital. He was admitted last evening with complaints of pneumonia. He is on ventilator but better than yesterday," grandson Kabir told PTI.

Dr Rajinder Kalra, doctor of 1975 World Cup winning side as well as family doctor:"Balbir had 104 degree fever on Thursday night. Initially, we tried to manage by giving him sponge baths at home but his conditions didn't improve we tried to shift him to PGI, Chandigarh. "But since PGI Chandigarh is a COVID hospital, so it was difficult to get him admitted in ICU. So we admitted him in Fortis, Mohali where he as been 3-4 times before."

"He is currently in ICU but better than yesterday. His COVID-19 test went for examination today and the results are expected tomorrow," Kalra said. In January last year, Balbir Sr was discharged from PGI after spending 108 days in the hospital, where he underwent treatment for bronchial pneumonia.

"It is an unparalleled achievement and credit to his grit that he could recover at the age of 95 from the scenario of bronchial pneumonia and near cardiac failure that he was initially admitted with," Prof. Jagat Ram, Director PGIMER had then said when the former India captain was discharged.

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Today's the day to celebrate our moms. In order to honour them on Mother's Day, we've picked out some of our favourite TV matriarchs. From Kevin's mother, Norma (from The Wonder Years) to the superhero mom of the Dunphy tribe, Claire, (from Modern Family) we celebrate mothers who have broken out of their homemaker roles, became the supermoms and excelled in their chosen career paths. Here's a list of TV moms who managed to pull down a paycheck while also packing their kids' lunches!

Norma Arnold, The Wonder Years

While an 80s sitcom mom, Norma, portrayed a mother in the 1960s and 70s. She showed us the transformation of a woman during the burgeoning women's movement. Norma had dropped out of college and gotten married. But she goes back to school, finishes her degree, and lands up as an executive with a software startup. Her inspiring evolution over the years showed us that no matter the decade or circumstance, women could be or do anything. Throughout the series, you see her yearning to break out of her homemaker role, which reflected the rise in feminism in the 1960s US. If you wish to take a trip down memory lane, watch this show currently airing in India on Star World.

Jessica Huang, Fresh Off the Boat

One of the smartest, strongest, and most protective TV moms, Jessica Huang, played by Constance Wu, is a character we have all grown to admire. Whether Jessica is chasing down teens who dine-and-dash at the family's restaurant or is standing up to the middle school principal, she is nothing like a stereotypical Asian woman, or even a typical sitcom mom. She is strong, bold, and unapologetic! Beneath her brash and ambitious exterior self, she is a kind, loving, and caring mother. You see her pursue her career when she takes a step back from helping her husband run his restaurant and goes on to chart her own success as a real estate agent. You can watch the show on Hotstar.

Rainbow Johnson, Black-Ish

The perfectly imperfect TV wife and working mom, Dr Rainbow Johnson on Black-ish is kind, funny, selfless, and usually nice. Played by Tracee Ellis Ross, Bow is an anesthesiologist who is unapologetic about having a career that she loves. Like most moms, she has bouts of feeling guilty about loving her job and being a mom, but she uses those moments as teachable lessons for her children about having ambition and purpose in life. Black-ish can be watched in India on Hotstar.

Joyce Byers, Stranger Things

Joyce Byers was one of the strongest characters throughout the first season of Stranger Things, going the extra mile again and again to find Will. Remember that this is the show set in the 80s. Given the time, Joyce, a single mother, works hard at a low-paying job to support her family. Working at a retail store, she gives her best to make ends meet. And though not a central character, Joyce is a badass mother, who works damn hard and loves her kids! The show is currently streaming on Netflix.

Claire Dunphy, Modern Family

Claire is uptight, bossy, and often frantic. A stay-at-home mother and wife until season five, Claire starts the juggle between work and kids when her father, Jay, hires her to work at his office. A perfectionist when it comes to dealing with her family, Claire is a mother who almost always knows what to do during stressful times, more than Phil. She gave up her career when she got pregnant with her first child, but later returned to work to head up her father's successful closet business. One of the funniest modern moms of this generation, Claire teaches us so much! The series culminated just recently, and can be watched in India on Star World.

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Shahid Kapoor and Mira Rajput tied the knot on July 7, 2015, in a private ceremony and since then their love has grown stronger. Mira is the daughter of Delhi-based businessman Vikramaditya Rajput and Bela Rajput. Shahid Kapoor and Mira Rajput became proud parents to baby girl Misha on August 26, 2016. Shahid Kapoor and Mira Rajput welcomed their second child, a baby boy on September 5, 2018, and the duo named their new-born Zain Kapoor.

Misha and Zain are one of the most adorable star kids of B-town. The cute little kiddos are the apple of everyone's eye. Just like other star babies, both the kids, particularly Misha has several fan clubs dedicated to her. Shahid and Mira often treat their fans with lovey-dovey pictures of their kids on Instagram.

During the coronavirus lockdown, Mira tried her hands at embroidery and even took some help from daughter Misha. Mira shared a picture of an embroidered heart and wrote, "Big love with my little love. With a hand drawn pattern and help on the turns, little hands made the heart with a lot of excitement and filled with a whole lot of love!" Take a look at the picture here:

The star wife keeps sharing snippets of her family quarantine time on her Instagram profile. She recently gave a shoutout to everyone for staying indoors. She wrote an elaborate open letter which read, "Love them. Hug them. Ask them how they feel and let them cry if they're not okay. Kiss them. Paint with them and let their clothes and the walls get dirty. Watch their favourite cartoon with them. Snuggle up with them. Give them extra ketchup if they ask for it that day. And when you’re tired after doing the dishes and cooking dinner and they say “Mumma can you play with me” remember this time isn’t forever. Little hands. Big hearts Love them."

 

 

 

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A post shared by Mira Rajput Kapoor (@mira.kapoor) onApr 29, 2020 at 9:52am PDT

On the work front, Shahid Kapoor's last film, Kabir Singh, did excellently at the box office. The Sandeep Reddy Vanga directorial was the story of a brilliant doctor who takes the self-destructive path when the love of his life is forced to marry another man. It earned over Rs 250 crore and became one of the highest grosser of 2019.

As of now, Shahid has signed the Hindi remake of the Telugu film Jersey, which is the story of a cricketer and how he battles the politics within the game and his inner demons. The film is all set to release on August 28, 2020.

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Dedicating a whole day to honour and celebrate the women who raised us is beyond special. Mothers are selfless, they are strong and can overcome any obstacle with all their might to protect their family. This Mother's day, television artists take the opportunity to wish all mothers, celebrate them, and immensely thank them for being the true warriors and protectors of their children.

Nimrit Kaur as Meher from Choti Sarrdaarni:

"I think the closest person to every child is their mother. Ever since I was little, my mum has been my world and my go-to person. She has always told me that she should be the first person that I should be able to share my feelings with; no wonder she is my best friend. It's her kindness, compassion, and empathy that has ensured that I remain grounded. It is her fiercely confident nature that inspired me to push myself and to dream big. It's her constant support that made me reach where I have, today. I don't think anybody has or ever love me the way she does. I don't think I know of anyone more selfless than her. And I believe I would turn out to be a fine woman, daughter, wife, mother, and a friend if I could be half as wonderful as she is. I dedicate this Mother's Day to her and I will make sure to do things together that make her happy."

Amruta Khavilkar of Khatron Khiladi Season 10:

"Mothers always love their children unconditionally. I have always been a Mama's girl. She is like a pillar of strength in my world. She has not only stood for me through thick and thin but has been there for me when I had completely lost hope. Her immense belief in me had lifted me up and made me a more confident person. I will always be grateful to her and will definitely plan something special for this Mother's Day."

Jigyasa Singh who plays Heer in Shakti- Astitva Ke Ehsaas Kii:

"This mother's day will be different from every year. Every year, either I used to be busy at work or me and my mom used to go out for dinner and some shopping. But this time, we are home and we will celebrate it with our entire family. Ever since I have started working, I hardly got to spend quality time with my mother. Thanks to the lockdown this time, we got an opportunity to be together at home."

Puneett aka Arjun from Naati Pinky Ki Lambi Love Story

"Mothers are God's most precious gift to us. They are the ones who gave us our gift of life. This Mother's Day, I want to specially thank my mother and all the mothers out there and appreciate them for being our truest supporters. They are the real super heros of our lives. I consider myself lucky that my mother is with me at the moment. I plan to cook something special for my mother and pamper her with movies, music, fun and everything that makes her happy. We are going to have a great time this Mother's Day together."

Namish Taneja as Vivek Vardhan Singh of Vidya:

“Even the thought of living without my mother makes me feel incomplete. I will always be grateful that I got the chance to spend the entire lockdown phase with her, since I do not get much time to spend with her because of my hectic schedule. She does so much for me that I wish I could do something special for her every day, and not just on Mother's Day. Luckily, this time I will be at home and I will make sure that I make this day as special as I can for her. I also plan to cook something very special for her.”

Anita Raj as Kulwant Kaur from Choti Sarrdaarni:

"As a mother, this day is very special to me. However, my kids make me feel like every day is Mother's Day. This year, they won't be able to do much because of the locked, but I think they have already planned something for me. They have requested me to keep myself available for some time on Sunday. Just like last year, I am expecting lots of fun with my kids."

Mugdha Chapekar, who plays the role of Prachi in Zee TV's Kumkum Bhagya

"My mother has been my constant support system. She’s a strong person and has always made sure I be brave and strong. Whatever you choose to do in life make sure you are good at it and I follow it even today. She is a working woman who happens to be a wonderful homemaker as well. In fact, I have inherited her cooking skills too, but still, she is the best! I love her optimism and never have I ever seen her spirit go low! 'Put that smile on and seize the day,' is what she believes as being raised by a woman like her is the best thing to happen to me. Whatever I am today I owe it to my mother."

Siddhaanth Vir Surryavanshi who plays the role of Kuldeep in Zee TV's Kyun Rishton Mein Katti Batti

"We all have various gods and faiths and we believe in the creator above. I have only heard and read about god and his ways, but the fact is that my mom is the first god I knew. When we were kids, we were always being told that when we grow up and become parents is when we will realise how they felt and what they went through. This couldn’t have been truer as becoming a parent has made me understand them better now. In fact, I believe that there is no one on earth who loves as selflessly as a mother and lucky are those who have her and get all her love. I lost my mother 7 years back and not a day goes by where I don’t think of her. I really wish I could turn back the clock and make up for all the lost time with her, apologise for all the troubles I gave her. To be honest, she was an excellent cook and I miss Maa ke haath ka khaana the most, nobody can come close and I can never have that pleasure anymore."

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Actress Mackenzie Foy found a friend in her "The Nutcracker And The Four Realms" co-star Keira Knightley, and says she is a nice and down-to-earth person. "Keira is just amazing. I've really enjoyed working with her. She is such a nice, down to earth person. You can literally talk to her about anything and she would just listen and be a good friend," Foy said.

Asked about her favourite moment working with her, Foy said: "I don't know. We have spent a lot of time together but I think pretty much when we could just relax on the set and we could just sit and talk about nonsense. It was really fun just to get to know her."

"The Nutcracker And The Four Realms" is the retelling of ETA Hoffmann''s short story "The Nutcracker And The Mouse King" and Marius Petipa's and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's ballet "The Nutcracker". It's a story of a young girl who gets a locked egg as a gift from her deceased mother, and narrates her magical journey to get the key for the egg.

"The Nutcracker And The Four Realms" will air in India on Star Movies on May 10.

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In the fight against COVID-19, Uber has extended support by offering free rides to frontline BMC healthcare workers and non-COVID patients in Mumbai through its recently launched UberMedic service.

All UberMedic cars are fitted with a roof-to-floor plastic sheeting enclosing the driver. Additionally, all drivers are being trained in safety procedures and provided with personal protective equipment such as masks, gloves, sanitisers and disinfectants to sanitise the cars between rides.

The agreement is part of Uber’s recent offer to provide free rides worth Rs 1 crore to the Maharashtra government. Prabhjeet Singh, Director, Operations and Head of Cities, Uber India & South Asia, said, “The BMC has been working tirelessly to contain the spread of COVID-19. We feel privileged to be supporting them in these challenging times and will help move what matters by leveraging our global experience, technology and network of drivers.”

Uber’s recently launched UberMedic service has been transporting frontline medical workers in 35+ hospitals across 23 Indian cities.

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I just remembered my absolutely ouch! Irrfan moment, that makes me cringe each time I recall it. One of the relatively early big film programmes I curated was Made by Women, an international women's film festival, way back in 2004. We screened great films, mostly 35mm prints, directed by women filmmakers from all over the world. They ranged from Marziyeh Meshkiny's The Day I Became a Woman (Iran), Anne Fontaine's How I Killed My Father (France) to Ligy Pullappally's Sancharram (India) and Joan Gratz's Mona Lisa Descending a Staircase (animation, USA). We opened with Aparna Sen's beloved classic 36 Chowringhee Lane at the YB Chavan Centre (remember it?). Bishakha Datta, who heads Point of View, a non-profit that amplifies women's voices and had organised the event, was Festival Director.

Sen had flown in for the inauguration from Kolkata, ever elegant. Irfan Khan (the second 'r' hadn't rolled in yet) had very kindly agreed to be special guest at the inaugural. A huge crowd had turned up, and we let them in. My colleagues escorted Sen in, while I remained outside waiting for Irfan, who unfortunately had been held up in traffic, and arrived later than planned. When I escorted him in, the hall was pitch dark. I realised to my horror, that Sen had inaugurated the festival alone and, as the crowd had got restless, the screening had begun. Eeks! I apologised profusely to Irfan, and escorted him to the reserved VIP row, only to find that the enthu crowd had ripped the 'reserved' seat signs and occupied every seat in the house; many were even sitting in the aisles.

Crouching and whispering, I cravenly begged a series of people in the audience to give up their seat for Irfan, but they were engrossed in the film. Seeing I was in big trouble, Irfan graciously whispered, "Don't worry, Meenakshi, I'll sit on the carpet." "No, NO! Please give me a moment," I yelped. Finally, I managed to persuade someone to give up his seat for Irfan in the front row. Double eeks! From there, Irfan watched 36 Chowringhee Lane, at a 60 degree angle. Life-long, I could never live down the humiliation of being unable to treat Irfan as the star he truly was. But, Irfan was so incredibly decent about it—which made me feel even worse. He quietly vanished as the film ended, and when I phoned him to apologise, he gently brushed aside my apology and discussed what a marvellous film it was.

The episode taught me two things: if you show a great Indian film for the inaugural of an international film festival, the public will come, even if it is a 20-year-old film. Second, a great film can turn even a star into a fan. Yet, I can think of no other star who would behave with such extraordinary humility and grace, as Irfan did that evening. The festival was a great success in Mumbai, and did an all-India tour of eight cities in 2004. In fact, I curated another edition of Made by Women in 2005, with an all-India tour as well.

Adieu, Irrfan!

Meenakshi Shedde is India and South Asia Delegate to the Berlin International Film Festival, National Award-winning critic, curator to festivals worldwide and journalist. Reach her at meenakshi.shedde@mid-day.com

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A two-week course of antiviral therapy that combines the power of three drugs has shown promise in treating hospitalised patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 in a carefully undertaken phase 2 clinical trial.

The results of the trial, published in the journal The Lancet, involved 127 adults from six public hospitals in Hong Kong.

The drug combination tested in the trial included interferon beta-1b, which was developed to treat multiple sclerosis (MS), and lopinavir-ritonavir, which is normally used to treat HIV and ribavirin, an oral hepatitis C virus drug.

The findings of the phase two trial provided evidence that early treatment with triple antiviral therapy alongside standard care is safe and shortens duration of viral shedding (when the virus is detectable and potentially transmissible) compared to lopinavir-ritonavir alone—average seven days vs 12 days—in patients with mild to moderate COVID-19.

"Our trial demonstrates that early treatment of mild to moderate COVID-19 with a triple combination of antiviral drugs may rapidly suppress the amount of virus in a patient's body, relieve symptoms, and reduce the risk to healthcare workers by reducing the duration and quantity of viral shedding," said professor Kwok-Yung Yuen from the University of Hong Kong who led the research.

No new cases in Hong Kong as restrictions ease

Hong Kong recorded no new COVID-19 case on Saturday, a day after the city eased restrictions. Saturday was also the 20th day in a row with no local infections. Health experts earlier suggested that Hong Kong could be considered to be free of local transmission if there were no such cases after 28 days.

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The Chaturmukha Vishnu is a very rare form of Vishnu once worshipped in Kashmir from the 8th and 9th century, when it was an important centre of Hinduism. The image shows Vishnu with four heads. Three clear faces are those of Vishnu, the Narasimha or the lion face, and the face of the Varaha avatar. The fourth face varies according to scriptures. Different scriptures describe the fourth head as either a demonic face, or the face of Kapila, or the face of Lakshmi, or even Hayagriva, the horse. In artwork, sometimes, the fourth head is absent and only the other three heads are shown.

This form of Vishnu has not four, but eight arms. Four arms hold the traditional conch shell, discus, mace and lotus flower. The other four hands hold a bow, an arrow, a sword and a shield. Sometimes, the image just has four arms. The gada (mace) is replaced with the gadanari or it is personified as a woman. The chakra is replaced by the chakrapurusha, a wheel embodied as a man.

In the post-Gupta period, we find importance given to Vishnu's weapons, symbolised in anthropomorphic forms. The gadanari is not very popular. In South Indian temples, we find many images of the Chakrapurusha, also known as Sudarshan. The vahana or the mount depicted is Garuda. He is sometimes accompanied by Lakshmi. There is no specific story associated with it. As Hinduism waned from Kashmir, this image died out and did not become popular.

In the Gupta period, imperial lines and dynasties associated themselves with Hinduism and Vishnu. Great value was given to the 'dominating and aggressive' forms of Narasimha and Varaha. Today, however, greater value is placed on the 'bhakti' forms of Ram and Krishna, whose stories are told in the Ramayana and Mahabharata. Only in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, we find temples of Narasimha and Varaha.

There is no clear story about why Vishnu has four heads. In some places, Vishnu has only three, Brahma has four, and Shiva has five heads to show their relative power. The four heads may link to Vishnu being identified as Krishna, his brother, Balarama, his son, Pradyumna and his grandson, Aniruddha.

The only place, outside of Kashmir, where this image is found, is in Khajuraho, built in the tenth century. The Lakshman temple in Khajuraho has an image of Vishnu Vaikuntha. Here, he has three heads and four hands. The only legend associated with this image is that of the creation of a monster, with the head of a lion and a wild boar. He was told that when another creature who looked exactly like him appeared, he would be destroyed. This is why Vishnu took this form to destroy it.

Today, nobody worships this Vaikuntha form of Vishnu.

In many ways, the image connects royalty to the boar and the lion, symbols of aggression and domination. The hidden face represents the aspect of kingship that will always remain hidden from the public.

Devdutt Pattanaik writes and lectures on the relevance of mythology in modern times. Reach him at devdutt.pattanaik@mid-day.com

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The city might miss seeing Lord Ganesh in his full glory this year, as work on the gigantic idols, which usually adorn the biggest and richest pandals during Ganesh Chaturthi, has taken a big hit due to the Coronavirus outbreak and the resulting lockdown. Sculptors, who usually start work in May for the annual festival that will be celebrated on August 22 this year, have been forced to put all orders on hold, as raw materials aren't available, and most of the artisans are stuck in their hometowns. The government too, hasn't given permission to begin work. With the lockdown extended till May 17, the sculptors say that mandals might have to settle for scaled-down versions of the idol.

Mumbai has over 10,000 sarvajanik Ganesh mandals. To ensure that the idols are delivered on time, sculptors start work three months in advance, first making the pattern, a rough model, which is then corrected with welding at the workshops. Another 20 days are invested in painting the idol, and giving it the final touches. Mandals usually accept delivery of the idols 10 days before the festival begins.

A Ganesh idol-making workshop at Chinchpokli, where work otherwise begins in May, is currently shut due to the lockdown

With the way the situation has panned out till now, work is unlikely to begin before July. This will leave sculptors with just about a month to complete work. Reshma Khatu, daughter of late sculptor Vijay Khatu, says, "Currently, we have put all the orders and planning on hold and are awaiting the government's decision. The crisis doesn't seem to be nearing an end. We do not want to put our workers at risk. Even if one person is detected COVID-19 positive, work will go for a toss and the entire workshop will be sealed."

The other problem is that at least 70 per cent of the workers employed, hail from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. They work in Maharashtra during May to October. Vijay Kumar Soni, hails from Patna, but is currently stuck in Konkan, where he and his employer Rajan Zaad, have been working on rough designs. "We came here in March, and hence could begin work. Some of the dyes are ready, and we hope to get started on the idols when we return to Mumbai. But, I am not sure if the other workers from Patna will be able to make it on time." Zaad, who is a sculptor from Lalbaug, says that he will be requesting the mandals to accept smaller-sized idols.

Sculptor Rajan Zaad says he intends to request mandals to have smaller-sized idols this year

The raw materials for making the larger idols come from Rajasthan and Kerala, while shadu—a kind of clay used for the sculpture—comes from Gujarat. But transportation has taken the biggest hit, and state borders are sealed.

Ankush Kambli, a sculptor from Parel village, says he has started work from home with the help of his family members but is running out of raw materials. Ditching the ubiquitous plaster of Paris, he has decided to use only shadu. "There is no clarity, if we will be able to get back to our routines of working from a workshop. We understand that there is the need for social distancing and that is the sole reason why we are working from home."

Reshma Khatu

The Brihanmumbai Murtikar Samanvay Samiti, an umbrella body of Ganpati sculptors, has decided to share their concerns with the government. Gajanan Tondvalkar, president of the samiti, and a sculptor in Naigaon, Dadar, says, "We will request the government to help ensure transportation of raw materials, so that we can work from home, at least."

Meanwhile, the city's Ganesh mandals, have decided to put discussions about the festivities on hold. Sudhir Salvi, secretary of Lalbaugcha Raja Mandal, says, "Calls that need to be taken regarding the celebrations will be done once the Coronavirus situation is under control." The secretary of Lalbaug Sarvajanik Utsav Mandal, popularly known as Ganesh Galli Ganpati, Swapnil Parab, says the committee is yet to take a decision and will honour the government's directive.

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Maharashtra's count for COVID-19 cases crossed 20,000 cases and the city had 722 new cases on Saturday. The bar of the state's death toll rose higher with 48 deaths, and 27 of them occurred in Mumbai.

State health officials said that while Mumbai has 12,864 COVID-19 cases, an additional 178 cases have been reported, but are yet to be added to the tally. Apart from 27 deaths that occurred in Mumbai, 10 were reported in Pune, eight in Malegaon and one each in Akola, Nanded and Amravati. State health officials said that the 48 deaths had occurred between April 25 and May 8.

Migrant workers, who were walking to MP on the Eastern Expressway, were herded back by policemen before the Mulund Toll Naka. Pic/Sameer Markande

Civic officials said that among the 27 patients who died, 21 of them were suffering from other ailments and three of the patients who died were less than 40 years old. In order to reduce the burden on the city's hospitals, the civic body is now urging people who test positive but have no symptoms to refrain from visiting hospitals. They are encouraging asymptomatic positive patients to visit COVID care centres instead.

Meanwhile, 25 new cases were reported from Dharavi which included one death. Five of the cases were from Mukund Nagar, the slum pocket with the highest concentration of cases. Dharavi alone now has 833 positive cases. Five other cases were reported from Mahim, 18 in Dadar, including eight cases from Kasarwadi.

In order to avoid the spread of the infection as seen in Dharavi, officials from H West ward are sealing the Khar Danda area, which includes slum pockets. The decision was taken after five members of a family in a residential building in the area tested positive earlier this week. "We found a high-risk patient while tracing the contacts of the family that tested positive. We are sealing the area. We are figuring out the arrangements for food," said an official from H West. In other parts of Bandra West, 13 cases have been reported from Shastri Nagar and 14 from the slaugherhouse near the Bandra Railway Station. Civic officials said another 12 cases have been reported from the Nargis Dutt Nagar slums.

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It seems that there is rampant poaching of pangolins taking place during the lockdown in the Konkan belt, and their scales are being illegally sold in the local black market. During the raids, the forest department recovered two kilograms of pangolin scales and six nails. The pangolin is one of the most trafficked wild animals across the world as there is a huge international demand for its scales.

Range Forest Officer (RFO), Vaibhav Borate, said, "Based on the tip-off received from our sources, our forest department team raided the house of Kalpesh Tukaram Balgude at Karanjali [Balgudewadi] village near Dapoli. During the search operation of the house, our team recovered one tortoise shell, one jungle hare, and 22 kg of pangolin scales and nails. We have taken the accused into custody and investigation is on."

As evidence related to wildlife trade have been found from the house of the accused, the forest department is exploring the possibility of him doing this regularly. The forest department team has registered an offence under various sections of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

According to the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) website, "Major threats to pangolins in India are hunting and poaching for local consumptive use and international trade. Another reason for hunting pangolin is its meat. There is now greater evidence of its inclusion in illicit international trade, in particular its scales, from India through Myanmar to China and South-East Asian countries as the most likely, final destinations. Inadequate information on population and distribution further accentuates the threats arising from hunting and poaching."

The Indian Pangolin is found sporadically throughout the plains and lower slopes of hills from south of the Himalayas to Kanyakumari, except the north-eastern region. The Chinese Pangolin is found in India in Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Assam, Manipur, Tripura, Mizoram and the northern part of West Bengal.

Why Pangolins?

Pangolins are the most trafficked mammal in the world, for their scales [made of keratin], which are boiled off their bodies for use in traditional medicine. Their meat is a delicacy in Vietnam and China; and their blood, which is considered to be a healing tonic.

Pangolin could help find cure for COVID-19?

Soon after the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, there were many media reports that claimed that the endangered pangolin was linked to the initial outbreak of the disease in China. However, this hasn't been proven yet. Now, a research conducted by the Medical University of Vienna in Austria, has revealed that certain genes sense when a virus enters the body, and trigger an immune response in most mammals. They found that pangolins, which have been called the 'missing link' between bats and humans, lack two of those virus-sensing genes. This means that not only are the endangered animals carriers, but they also seem to be immune to it, via an unknown mechanism. This evolutionary advantage and its understanding may give way to possible treatment options for COVID-19.

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Air India's first evacuation flight with 326 Indians from London landed at Mumbai Airport on Sunday. According to Indian high commission in the UK, the flight took off from London on Saturday on board 326 people. It landed at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport. On Monday, India announced had that it will begin phased repatriation of its citizens stranded abroad from May 7.

The government said that Air India will operate 64 flights in the first week from May 7 to May 13 to bring back around 15,000 Indian nationals.

On day three of the 'Vande Bharat Mission', flights carrying Indians from the Gulf countries, the United Kingdom, Bangladesh and Malaysia arrived in India.

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In a shocking incident, a 14-year-old boy has been booked for allegedly raping a 10-year-old girl in the Ghatampur area of the district, police said. The accused and the victim belong to the same village. Circle Officer Ghatampur, Ravi Kumar Singh, said, "The accused will be sent to a juvenile correction home after being produced before a magistrate on Sunday."

The officer said that the girl had gone for cattle grazing near the Rindh river on Friday afternoon where the boy caught hold of the girl and raped her. The girl returned home and narrated her ordeal to family members, who informed the local police. The police sent the girl to a hospital for medical examination and after the report confirmed rape, the police took the boy into custody.

The boy was also severely thrashed by the family of the victim and the villagers.

"A case under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) has been registered," said the circle officer.

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Five Air India pilots, who had undertaken cargo flights to China, have tested positive for coronavirus during the pre-flight COVID-19 test. Sources in the national carrier told ANI that all five pilots are currently asymptomatic and are based in Mumbai.

The pre-flight COVID-19 test is carried out 72 hours before the pilots are rostered for flight duties.

"All of them are asymptomatic and based in Mumbai. They had undertaken cargo flights to Guangzhou, China," sources said.

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