After a series of creative doodles to thank the ones who are fighting Coronavirus from the forefront, like the healthcare workers, police, Google doodle is now urging people to stay at home to contain the spread of novel Coronavirus and spend the extra time by playing games.

Today's animation features a young kid dressed as one of the O's from the word Google. The kid is sitting on the computer and playing a game. The text on the doodle reads, "Stay and play at home with popular past Google Doodles: Coding (2017)."

Once you click on it, it takes you to a game that was originally shared by Google in 2017 to celebrate 50 years of kids coding. The game features a rabbit and various carrots which are placed around him need to be collected.

Covid- 19 has affected a total of 29,70,705 people and taken 2,06,514 lives globally till now. In India, the novel coronavirus positive cases have crossed the 27,000 mark and over 800 fatalities have been reported.

Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Sunday said India should look at converting the world's "hatred" for China amid the coronavirus pandemic into an economic opportunity for itself by attracting large-scale foreign investments.

Interacting with overseas Indian students via video conferencing, the minister for MSME and Road Transport and Highways said across the world now, there is "hatred for China. Is it possible for us to convert it into an opportunity for India?" Referring to the economic package announced by Japan for its businesses exiting China, Gadkari said, "I feel that we should think on that and we will concentrate on it. We will open the Indian scenario for that. We will give the clearances and everything to them and attract foreign investment."

Asked if India can take any action against China incase it is found to have deliberately "suppressed" information on coronavirus, the minister said this was a sensitive subject related with the Ministry of External Affairs and the prime minister, and therefore it will not be appropriate for him to comment on it. Gadkari said all government departments, particularly the finance ministry as well as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), are formulating policies to win the "economic war" post the COVID-19 pandemic and fulfil the prime minister's dream of making India a USD 5 trillion economy. "At the same time, we can make infrastructure of Rs 100 lakh crore," he added.

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Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat on Monday said that he is following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mantra of 'Jaan Bhi Jahan Bhi' as the state government is gradually working on improving the economic situation while adhering to coronavirus guidelines.

His remarks came after attending the meeting of Chief Ministers with the Prime Minister over the prevailing COVID-19 situation. "Now we are working on the mantra 'Jaan Bhi Jahan Bhi' given by the Prime Minister. While strictly following the guidelines of the Government of India, we are gradually working on improving the economic situation. Pharma, food processing units are working, many industries have started under the guidelines,"

Rawat said, according to a release by Uttarakhand CMO "Nine hill districts of the state are free from the influence of Corona. The works of National Highway, MNREGA have been started keeping in mind everything. For the economic revival of the state, a committee of cabinet sub-committee and experts has been formed, whose report will be received soon," he said.

The Chief Minister said that it should be looked at and which economic activities can be started while adhering to all guidelines to combat COVID-19.

Rawat said that Uttarakhand being a tourism and pilgrimage destination has been greatly affected by the lockdown. "But I am confident that under the leadership of the Prime Minister, the situation in the state will improve again," he added. He said that the gates of Gangotri and Yamunotri have been opened on Akshaya Tritiya while maintaining all precautions.

The Chief Minister also suggested that the duration of employment in MNREGA be increased from 100 days to 150 days.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the impact of coronavirus will remain visible in the coming months and masks and face covers will be part of life while asserting that the country needs to give importance to the economy as well as continue the fight against COVID -19. The remarks came during his interaction with Chief Ministers via video conferencing to discuss the emerging situation and plan ahead for tackling the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The country has seen two Lockdowns till now, both different in certain aspects, and now we have to think of the way ahead. As per experts, the impact of coronavirus will remain visible in the coming months," Modi said, according to an official release.

COVID-19 impact will remain visible in coming months, need to fight it with impetus on economy: Modi

Read @ANI Story | https://t.co/6eX7vLdAgn pic.twitter.com/aBYrrrTzQy

— ANI Digital (@ani_digital) April 27, 2020

Reiterating the mantra of 'do gaz doori', he said that "masks and face covers will become part of our lives in the days ahead". "We have to give importance to the economy as well as continue the fight against COVID -19," Modi said. The Prime Minister underlined that the lockdown has yielded positive results as the country has managed to save thousands of lives in the past one and a half months.

"India's population is comparable to that of the combined population of several countries. The situation in many countries, including India, was almost similar at the start of March. However, due to timely measures, India has been able to protect many people," he said.

Prime Minister Modi, however, forewarned that the danger of the virus is far from over and constant vigilance is of paramount importance. "Prime Minister Modi added that under the circumstances, everyone's aim must be rapid response. He pointed out that many people are self-declaring whether they have cough and cold or symptoms, and that this is a welcome sign," the release said.

Prime Minister said that we have to give importance to the economy as well as continue the fight against COVID -19. He emphasized on the importance of usage of technology as much as possible and also to utilize time to embrace reform measures: PMO on PM's meeting with CMs pic.twitter.com/cjk9KaY6IQ

— ANI (@ANI) April 27, 2020

The Prime Minister emphasised on the importance of usage of technology as much as possible and also to utilize time to embrace reform measures and on the significance of ensuring that more people download the AarogyaSetu app to bolster the efforts of the country in the battle against COVID-19.

"We have to be brave and bring in reforms that touch the lives of common citizens. People associated with Universities can be integrated on devising ways to fight the pandemic and strengthen research as well as innovation," he said. He also highlighted the importance for states to enforce guidelines strictly in the hotspots i.e. the red zone areas. "The efforts of the states should be directed towards converting the red zones into orange and thereafter to green zones," he said.

On the issue of getting back Indians who are overseas, the Prime Minister said that this has to be done keeping in mind the fact that they don't get inconvenienced and their families are not under any risk. He also urged Chief Ministers to factor in the changes in weather - advent of summer and monsoon - and the illnesses that can potentially come in this season, while strategizing ahead. Union Home Minister Amit Shah reaffirmed the need to enforce lockdown so that maximum lives are saved.

"The Chief Ministers praised the leadership of the Prime Minister during this period of crisis, and also highlighted the efforts undertaken by them in containing the virus. They spoke about the need to keep a close vigil on international borders, and also on addressing the economic challenge and ways to further boost health infrastructure. The leaders expressed gratitude towards the police force and medical staff for the exemplary work done by them in the fight against COVID-19," read the release.

Impact of Coronavirus will remain visible in the coming months, masks & face covers will be part of our life: PM Narendra Modi in his video conference meeting with Chief Ministers pic.twitter.com/aEhVdXnuBx

— ANI (@ANI) April 27, 2020

This was the fourth such interaction of the Prime Minister with the Chief Ministers, the earlier ones had been held on March 20, April 2, and April 11. Today's meeting comes just a week ahead of the scheduled ending of the nationwide lockdown. On March 24, the Prime Minister had announced a 21-day lockdown as a precautionary measure to contain the spread of COVID-19. The lockdown was later extended till May 3.

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The mortality rate in Maharashtra due to coronavirus is 4.24 per cent said the State Health Department on Monday. "With 440 new COVID-19 cases, the total number of cases in Maharashtra has mounted to 8,068. Besides, the total number of deaths has reached 342 after 19 new deaths were reported," said an official statement from the Health Department.

The statement also said, "While India's mortality rate is 3.13%, the mortality rate in Maharashtra due to coronavirus is at 4.24 per cent."

According to the latest update by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of coronavirus cases in the country stands at 27,892, of which 6185 have recovered/migrated and 872 patients have succumbed to the disease.

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At a time when the pandemic is making us realise the importance of protecting the environment, the proposal for the Etalin Hydro-Electric Project (3,097 MW) in Arunachal Pradesh's Dibang Valley was placed for approval before the Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) of Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change on April 23. It has not gone down well with conservationists as about 2.7 lakh trees have to be cut down to make way for the project.

Speaking to mid-day, Arjun Kamdar, who is studying MSc Wildlife Biology and Conservation at National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore, said, "The proposed Etalin dam is slated to be the largest hydro-project in the country, which will not only destroy the biodiversity of the region but also threaten the lives of millions of people who live downstream. Independent studies have shown that as these rivers are glacier-fed, climate change will render these projects inefficient within the next 30 years."

Pic/Arjun Kamdar

Bittu Sahgal, editor, Sanctuary Asia magazine, said, "Building dams in the Himalayas, when melting of glacier has rendered river flow data unreliable and outdated, is patently artless. Besides, clearly the Standing Committee of the MoEFCC and the Forest Clearance Committee has not applied its mind to the reality that the forests they so nonchalantly, some might suggest illegally, destroy are more valuable as infrastructures in an era of accelerating climate crisis, of both survival and commerce than the dams that are at risk of becoming stranded assets even before the first turbines turn. The banks have obviously not done their risk analysis diligently. Its also time for us to question the wisdom of the MoEFCC and their choice of independent members, who have probably not understood the importance of the reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services and WHO, which point to deforestation as a key factor that could lead to the next pandemic from displaced species that come into contact with humans."

Conservationist and Director of The Corbett Foundation, Kedar Gore, said, "No compensatory afforestation programme can ever replace the irreversible loss of 2.7 lakh trees. There are very few areas remaining in India with such extraordinary biodiversity wealth, much of which is endemic. It is unfortunate that such projects are being pushed through ignoring all appeals from scientists and conservationists. It is indeed shocking that the COVID-19 pandemic has still not opened the eyes of our policymakers."

It may be noted back the forest advisory committee has already discuss the issue of forest clearance for the project in the meeting that took place on April 23rd but there has no been any final decision that has been taken.

According to the plans the hydroelectric project will be coming up in dibang valley which is one of the most biodiversity Himalayan zones in Arunachal Pradesh. The project will involve diversion of 1150.08 hectares of land having rich biodiversity and it will require cutting of 2.7 lakh trees from the “subtropical evergreen broad-leaved and subtropical rainforest

When contacted, actor Dia Mirza, who is also UNEP Goodwill Ambassador and UN Secretary Generals Advocate for SDGs, said, "Humanity is experiencing firsthand the effects of biodiversity loss and wild nature from the COVID-19 pandemic. If there is one thing this human crisis must teach us to do, it will be to acknowledge the linkages between ecological balance and health. This bio-diverse region cannot and must not be devastated by this project."

Rare and important species found in the area includes

Mishmi Takin (endangered goat) , clouded leopard, tigers, himalayan serow, Asiatic bgolden cat, Sclater's monal, Mishmi wren babbler, Marbled cat and Mishmi giant flying Squirrel.

4. Herpetologist Kedar Bhide said , "Arunachal should be declared as complete eco sensitive zone with respect to it's biodiversity as well as cultural diversity . Any large ill conceived projects like hydro electric power or a highway infra projects should not be even thought in such ecological and cultural sensitive area".

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As India enters the final week of the lockdown, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday conveyed to chief ministers that the country will have to give importance to the economy as well as continue the fight against the Novel Coronavirus.

In a video-conference with the chief ministers, fourth such interaction since March 22 when he first spoke to them on the pandemic, Modi also highlighted the importance for states to enforce prescribed guidelines strictly in the Coronavirus hotspots, the government said in a statement.

The PM underlined that the nationwide lockdown has "yielded positive results as the country has managed to save thousands of lives in the past one-and-a-half months", it said. "The PM said that the country has seen two lockdowns till now, both different in certain aspects, and now we have to think of the way ahead. He said that as per experts, the impact of Coronavirus will remain visible in the coming months," the statement added.

Modi also said that masks and face covers will become part of lives of people in the days ahead, adding everyone's aim must be to ensure rapid response under the current circumstances. He emphasised on the importance of the use of technology as much as possible. "The situation in many countries, including India, was almost similar at the start of March. However, due to timely measures, India has been able to protect many people," the statement said quoting the Prime Minister.

CRPF reaches out to cops over jawan's arrest

The CRPF has taken up with the Karnataka Police the "unpleasant" case of alleged manhandling and handcuffing of its CoBRA commando by cops and has sent a team to follow-up on the matter, officials said on Monday. The CoBRA unit of the CRPF specialises in guerrilla tactics and jungle warfare. The force has written a letter to Karnataka Director General of Police (DGP), Praveen Sood stating that the "unpleasant situation could have been avoided had the state police taken the CRPF hierarchy into confidence before making the arrest" of the jawan on April 23 in Belagavi district.

As govts decide on next plan of action...

. SC rejects petition: The SC on Monday declined to entertain a petition seeking direction to the Centre to conduct en masse door-to-door testing for COVID-19 and challenging the validity of PM CARES fund, and termed it having "political colour."

. Kanpur a Corona hotspot: With 33 more Corona positive cases emerging in the past 24 hours, Kanpur is now a major COVID-19 hotspot in UP after Agra. The tally of Corona positive cases in Kanpur is now 185 and the city has 25 hotspots.

.Lockdown extension: Odisha Health Minister, Naba Kishore Das on Monday said that the COVID-19 lockdown should be extended for another month. "There is a need for the extension of lockdown and it should further be extended by one month," said Das after attending the video-conference of Prime Minister, Narendra Modi and chief ministers of all states.

. COVID cess on ultra-rich: Former Karnataka chief minister, H D Kumaraswamy on Monday suggested imposing "COVID cess" on the ultra rich to offset the loss of revenue, as he called for citizen-centric measures and lower the cost of living, to help those affected by the lockdown.

. Relaxations in Meghalaya: The Meghalaya government on Monday relaxed a number of activities including sale of essential goods, courier services for essential goods, e-commerce operations in essential goods and Common Service Centres during the lockdown period.

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With 1,543 more COVID-19 cases reported in the last 24 hours, India's tally of coronavirus cases has reached 29,435 cases, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Tuesday.

The tally includes 21,632 patients who are active cases, 6,868 patients have been cured/discharged with one patient migrated.

With 62 more deaths reported in the last 24 hours, making it the sharpest rise in the number of deaths so far, the number of deaths due to coronavirus stands at 934.

According to the ministry, Maharashtra has the most number of cases at 8,590 of which 1,282 have been cured/discharged with 369 fatalities.

Gujarat has the second-highest number of positive COVID-19 cases with 3,548 cases of which 394 patients have been cured/discharged while 162 patients have died due to the deadly virus.

Delhi's tally has also crossed the 3,000 mark with 3,108 cases with 877 patients cured and 54 patients who died due to the highly contagious virus.

Meanwhile, Goa (seven cases and all seven patients recovered), Tripura and Manipur (two cases and both cases recovered) and Arunachal Pradesh (with one case who has recovered now) have reported no new cases, as of Tuesday.

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Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi on Monday raised the issue of low salary paid to the intern doctors performing their duty amid the nationwide lockdown to combat coronavirus and demanded that Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath should raise their pay.

"Intern MBBS doctors in UP are performing their duty in this crisis with all sincerity. Their lives are also in danger. And they get only Rs 250 per day. Chief Minister Yogi Aditynathji, their salary is very low. In my understanding, it is your duty to increase the salary of intern doctors at this time of crisis," Priyanka Gandhi, who is also the party in-charge for eastern Uttar Pradesh, said in a tweet.

Her remarks came after several intern doctors in the state raised the issue of getting Rs 250 per day. On Monday, the total number of Covid-19 cases in Uttar Pradesh rose to 1,955 with 31 people losing their lives due to the pandemic across the state. A total of 335 people have been cured in the state so far.

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Restrictions enforced in West Bengal to fight Covid-19 will continue till May 21 with curbs on normal life varying in intensity based on the extent of spread of the viral infection in a particular area, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Monday.

"We want the restrictions to continue till May 21. We have to be careful till that time," Banerjee told media persons at the state secretariat Nabanna.

The Chief Minister, however, clarified that she was not announcing any extension on lockdown, as that decision will be taken by the central government. "I am talking of restrictions, which is different from the lockdown," she added.

Banerjee said while the restrictions would be strictly implemented in every red zone (areas with a large number of corona positive cases), the impact will be less severe in orange zones (areas with a limited number of cases in the past and with no surge in positive cases recently, where restricted activities would be allowed).

Districts with no coronavirus positive cases are included in green zones.

"If an area which is now an orange zone, shows an increase in the prevalence of the disease and enters the red zone, the restrictions will be made stiffer, and vice versa. There will be more relaxations given in the green zones, but the areas will be placed under stiffer restrictions if more positive cases are detected putting them under orange or red zone categories," she said.

The Chief Minister announced the formation of a cabinet committee on COVID management, chaired by Finance and Industries Minister Amit Mitra. Education Minister Partha Chatterjee, Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim, and Minister of State for Health Chandrima Bhattacharya will be part of the committee. Mitra and Chatterjee will work from home.

The Chief Secretary, the Health Secretary, and the Home Secretary will be among the committee members. Banerjee said her government was discussing on resuming more activities in rural areas that come under the green zone.

She announced that home delivery companies, which were so long allowed to ferry only essential goods, would now be permitted to reach non-essential items also.

"We have to think of giving relaxations that won't harm the people," she said. She said though relaxations have been given on 100 days' job guarantee scheme, the problem was in getting labourers.

The Chief Minister appealed to the centre to ensure international borders were closed, and not allow domestic and international flights, and train services till the situation normalises. Inter-state bus services or travel also should not be allowed, except for emergencies.

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In an extra-ordinary sight from Madhya Pradesh, an otter was seen putting up a brave front and protecting her baby from a pack of feral dogs. The sight was captured at the Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary that has been making rounds in the social media for quite some time now.

The viral video was shared by forest officer Ravindra Mani Tripathi on Twitter called the scene a ‘great fight’ and ‘rare viewing for humans and explained that it shows a ‘great interaction’ between dogs and otters.

The Great fight

Today morning at Gandhisagar..
Great interaction between dogs and otters.The way elder otter prevents younger one is a great learning.A rare viewing by humans.@rameshpandeyifs @dipika_bajpai
@jayotibanerjee@ @nehaa_sinha @susantananda3 @nehaa_sinha@NatGeo pic.twitter.com/VDrTOLVhrU

— Ravindra Mani Tripathi (@RavindraIfs) April 27, 2020

The four dogs in the video are seen standing in the bank of the river and trying to attack a small otter in the water. Soon, two other otters came to the baby’s rescue and put up a fight with the canines.

In another video, that appears to be of the same incident sharing by forest officer Susanta Nanda on Twitter, the elder otter is seen taking the baby to a safe point and joining another otter into running out of the water and scare the dogs. The caption of the video reads, “Otters defending fiercely their baby from feral dogs.”

Otters defending fiercely their baby from feral dogs. Scene from Gandhi sagar Sanctuary, MP. pic.twitter.com/qYYLbvV9WP

— Susanta Nanda IFS (@susantananda3) April 27, 2020

The two videos have collectively garnered more than 11,000 views on Twitter with over 300 likes and was retweeted by more than a hundred of users. The users commented on the video saying that they have never seen a sight such as this one.

What do you think about the video?

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A 25-year-old woman, who was an accused in a murder case, has allegedly committed suicide by hanging herself in her cell in Tihar Jail, the police said on Tuesday.

According to the police, the woman identified as Parveena hanged herself with her "dupatta" in her cell on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday. The woman was rushed to Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, where she was declared brought dead by the doctors, the police said.

Praveena, a resident of Delhi, was lodged in Tihar jail number 6 since April 25 in connection with a murder case registered at Chhawla police station.

She, along with her husband, was accused of killing her father-in-law and mother-in-law, after which she had also tried to commit suicide but failed.

An inquest proceeding under Section 176 (inquiry by a magistrate into the cause of death) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) is being conducted in connection with the alleged suicide.

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After a series of doodle honouring coronavirus warriors, Google launched a new series since April 27 where they have been urging people to stay home and play games amid the COVID-19 crisis. Today, google shared an interactive doodle featuring the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy.

It’s day 2 of our throwback #GoogleDoodle series...

Today, crickHIT for 6 in our 2017 Doodle game celebrating cricket! 🏏🦗#GoogleDoodle → https://t.co/hokoBrGUtO pic.twitter.com/NSFpjSmbjg

— Google Doodles (@GoogleDoodles) April 28, 2020

The doodel features the letter G where a person can be seen donning a Chef's hat as he uses a rolling pin in place of a bat while the letter E shows another person ready to bowl to the batsman like a bowler. When one hovers over the final doodle, it shows the message, "Stay and play at home with popular past Google Doodles: Cricket (2017).

The game provides you a virtual experience of playing cricket at a stadium

Once clicked on the animation, google takes the user to a game where one can play cricket on a pitch. The 2017 ICC Champions Trophy doodle was originally shared to celebrate the launch of the ICC Champions Trophy. the interactive feature gives you the surreal feeling of being in a stadium while playing the sport.

Explaining the motive behind launching the 10 game series to be played at hime, Google said, "As Covid-19 continues to impact communities around the world, people and families everywhere are spending more time at home. In light of this, we're launching a throwback doodle series looking back at some of our popular interactive Google Doodle games!"

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With 1,594 new cases of COVID-19 reported in the last 24 hours and 51 deaths, India's total count of coronavirus cases surged to 29,974, said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Tuesday.

1594 new cases and 51 deaths reported in last 24 hours. India's total number of #Coronavirus positive cases rises to 29,974 (including 22010 active cases, 7027 cured/discharged/migrated and 937 deaths): Ministry of Health and Family Welfare pic.twitter.com/XKEarSluZm

— ANI (@ANI) April 28, 2020

The total cases are inclusive of 7,026 cured and discharged patients, one migrated and 937 deaths. At present, there are 22,010 active COVID-19 cases in the country.

Addressing a press conference here, Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary, Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry, said that in the last 28 days, 17 districts have had no new Covid-19 cases. "This means we need to maintain constant vigil," he added.

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New Delhi: The Health Ministry on Tuesday said currently plasma therapy is at the experimental stage and there is no evidence yet to support that it can be used as a treatment for COVID-19.
Addressing a press briefing, Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said currently there are no approved therapies for COVID-19 and there is not enough evidence to claim that plasma therapy can be used for the treatment of the disease.

"ICMR has launched a national-level study to study the efficacy of plasma therapy in the treatment of COVID 19," he said.

"Till ICMR concludes its study and a robust scientific proof is available, plasma therapy should be used only for research or trial purpose. If plasma therapy is not used in a proper manner under proper guidelines, then it can also cause life-threatening complications," said Agarwal.

The official said that the doubling rate of coronavirus cases now stands at 10.2 days.
He further said that in the last 24 hours, 1,543 new cases of COVID-19 have been reported, taking the total cases to 29,435.

"6,868 COVID-19 patients, which is 23.3 per cent of total cases, have recovered so far," he added.

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A total of 6,869 people have been cured of coronavirus in India so far, taking the recovery rate to 23.3 per cent, said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Tuesday.

A total of 1,543 new cases of coronavirus have been identified, which take the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 29,435, said Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary, Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry,
here on Tuesday.

On Monday, the ministry had put the recovery rate from COVID-19 at 22.17 per cent. Addressing a press conference here, Agarwal said: "With 1,543 new cases, there are 29,435 positive cases in India till now. So far, 6,869 people have recovered including 684 people who recovered yesterday. This takes our recovery rate to 23.3 per cent. This is a progressive increase in the recovery rate."

Agarwal said that in the last 28 days, 17 districts have had no new case. "This means we need to maintain constant vigil," he added.

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The Congress on Tuesday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to spell out a clear exit strategy for Coronavirus lockdown after May 3, saying the nation is waiting for it. Congress chief spokesperson, Randeep Surjewala said the prime minister is expected to lead the nation in crisis like these.

"We once again appeal to the PM to come out with a clear exit strategy for the lockdown, to state the roadmap for economic revival and to deal with the health pandemic post May 3, as also restrict the lockdown only to hotspot zones," he told the media at a press conference through video-conferencing. He said the chief ministers requested the PM to tell the nation what is the exit strategy from the lockdown.

"What is the government's strategy on the health front and the economic front in terms of post lockdown period? What is the roadmap for the future course after May 3? How is the PM going to come out with financial action plan 2 as Sonia Gandhi has demanded and so have many experts, be it for starvation, migrant labourers, or be it for kickstarting the economy or the small and medium enterprises?" the Congress leader said.

The appeal comes a day after Modi met chief ministers of various states through video-conferencing and sought their views, while also spelling out the government's strategy on tackling COVID-19. Most of the chief ministers have demanded extension of the lockdown and urged PM to take a call on the exit strategy, while asking him to have a cautious approach in opening it.

States navigate through Corona crisis

Relaxations in Delhi: The Delhi government has allowed from Tuesday some relaxations in the ongoing lockdown and has approved services of electricians, plumbers and sale of educational books even as it has said no other relief will be given till May 3. In an order issued late on Monday night, the government also allowed the movement of inter-, intra-state and air travel of all healthcare workers and scientists.

More cases in TN: Two city police personnel and a flower vendor at the Koyambedu market on Tuesday tested positive for Coronavirus, officials said. Authorities have taken up disinfection work and testing of those associated with the trio who become the latest COVID-19 patients, taking the total in Tamil Nadu to 1,940, they said. Pay cut stalled: The Kerala high court on Tuesday stayed for two months the operationalisation of the state government order to deduct the salary of government employees for fighting the COVID-19 pandemic in the state.

Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas issued the interim order considering a batch of petitions filed by a section of employees and their organisations challenging the government decision. Bengal's bus drivers seek help: A bus operators' association in West Bengal on Tuesday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking a financial package for the passenger transport sector, which has taken a severe hit amid the Coronavirus-triggered lockdown.

'Contactless dining' free for restaurants

Zomato CEO, Deepinder Goyal on Tuesday said that the company has made its 'contactless dining free for all restaurants across India and other global destinations for a period of at least six months. Restaurants in India, the UAE, Australia, New Zealand, Turkey, Portugal, Philippines, Indonesia, and Lebanon will have to only bear the payment gateway fee and Zomato won't charge any fee from them.

Don't buy veggies from Muslims: MLA in video

Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from Barhaj constituency in Deoria district, Suresh Tewari, was on Tuesday seen in a video clip, telling people not to buy vegetables from Muslim vendors. The clip has now been widely shared on social media, triggering a controversy. "I am saying openly don't purchase vegetables from Muslims (ek cheez dhayan mein rakhiyega, main bol raha hoon openly, koi bhi miyan ke hathon sabzi nahi lega)," the MLA can be heard saying in the clip.

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The portals of Kedarnath Temple were thrown open at 6.10 am on Wednesday after a six-month-long winter break. Amid the nationwide lockdown, pilgrims are prohibited from visiting the shrine. Covered in a thick layer of snow, the temple was decorated with 10 quintals of marigold flowers.

The process of opening the doors of Kedar Dham began at 3 am. Shiva Shankar Linga, the chief priest of the shrine, carried out the tradition of opening the doors. The first ''pooja" was performed in the name of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said a statement. A representative of the Devasthanam Board, BD Singh, along with 20 employees from Panchagai, was present here when the religious rituals and aarti were performed. Apart from this, around 15 policemen and administration officials participated in the aarti. All participants maintained social distancing during the rituals.

Meanwhile, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat has extended warm wishes to the devotees and administration of the shrine. He prayed for everyone's good health and happiness. "With the blessings of Baba Kedar, we will surely be able to defeat corona. This time devotees could not visit the shrine but Lord Kedar's blessings are with us," he said.

This year Army band did not participate in the religious ceremony at a time of opening the portals of the shrine due to lockdown restrictions.

With the opening of the doors of Kedarnath Dham, three of the four dhams of Uttarakhand will be opened. While Gangotri-Yamunotri Dham opened on April 26 on the occasion of Akshaya Tritiya, the portals of Badrinath Dham will open on May 15.

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The Coronavirus outbreak has infected scores of people across the globe and claimed many lives. As people stare into uncertainty, many doctors, nurses and other healthcare staffs have been battling the pandemic on the frontline to ensure things go back to normal as soon as possible. Amid such a time, a video of doctors across the country dancing to Pharrell Williams’ hit song, Happy, has been made the internet smile with hope.

Posted by the Ministries of Memories on Instagram, the makers of the video said in the caption that they were trying to bring ‘some sunshine and raising awareness for mental health.’ The video has 60 doctors from cities such as Pune, Surat, Nagpur, Bengaluru, Prayagraj, Indore, Agra, Gurugram, Delhi, Kochi, Lucknow and Kolkata busting some gracious moves.

The wide-shared video has been conceptualised by Dr Pooja Nadkarni Singh, Dr Sheetal Sawankar and Dr Unnati Mamtora and they are calling the video, a ‘Song of Hope’.

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Puja & Rahul Kedia (@theministryofmemories) onApr 24, 2020 at 10:35pm PDT

Posted on Saturday, the video has garnered more than 36,102 views on Instagram and has received 2,646 likes. The users commenting on the video lauded the makers of the video for sending the message through such a peppy song.

A user said, "Take a bow, respected Medicos! You and your dedicated, lovely staff are performing divine Seva! May God help you always grow from strength to strength! Love you all! Thank you for stretching that bit more to make this amazing video and regaling our hearts!." Another user said, "Absolutely loved this....Thank you for bringing a smile in such anxious times." One user said, "Great job on spreading some smiles, kudos to the whole team."

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India's tally of COVID-19 cases has reached 31,332, said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday. With 73 more deaths reported, the number of deaths due to coronavirus in the country breached the 1,000 mark and stood at 1,007. The tally is inclusive of 22,629 active coronavirus cases, 7,695 patients who have been cured/discharged and one patient migrated.

According to the Ministry, Maharashtra has the most number of COVID-19 cases with 9,318 cases of which, 1,388 patients have been cured/discharged while 400 patients have succumbed to the virus. Gujarat has the second-highest number of positive cases in the country with 3744 cases including 434 patients cured/discharged and 181 deaths.

Delhi's tally stands at 3314 cases of which, 1078 patients have recovered while 54 patients have succumbed to the virus. Madhya Pradesh has a total of 2387 positive cases including 377 patients recovered/discharged and 120 fatalities.

Meanwhile, Goa (seven cases; all seven recovered), Arunachal Pradesh (one case; now recovered), Manipur (two cases; both recovered), Tripura (two cases; both recovered) have reported no new cases of COVID-19.

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Congress leader and MP from Wayanad Rahul Gandhi has interacted with the local leaders of the party in his constituency and took stock of the situation during the covid lockdown. During the video conferencing that happened on Tuesday evening, the local leaders raised the issue of the condition of patients suffering from chronic ailments like kidney and liver disease.

Party sources said Rahul Gandhi assured his help to these patients and said that he would take care of the treatment of such patients. The sources also said that Rahul Gandhi has assured to help a 1,000 people for their medical treatment. Earlier, Rahul Gandhi had sent thermal scanners and PPE kits to his constituency and had spoken to the collector Adeela Abdullah and Jafar Malik. The Congress MP has also allotted money from his MPLAD Fund.

Rahul Gandhi has been emphasising on conducting more tests.

He has also suggested easing of the lockdown as economic activity could start in the green zones. Rahul has been critical of the Centre for "the one-size-fit-all lockdown" which "has brought untold misery and suffering to millions of farmers, migrant labourers, daily wagers and business owners".

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The family of an asthma patient put him on a handcart when the ambulance did not turn up, but failed to save his life with policemen on the way to hospital and doctors there allegedly ignoring his plight. Both police and medical authorities denied their alleged negligence which the family said led to the death Monday of vegetable vendor Satish Agrawal, who lived in curfew-bound Faithagadi in Kota's Rampura area. Agrawal was carried about half the way to MBS Hospital on the cart from which he sold vegetables, before a private ambulance arrived.

"As none of the ambulance services responded, I put my father on his vegetable cart and started for the hospital over two and a half kilometres away from home," he said. "Though policemen on the way removed barricades at various intersections on the curfew-bound road, none of them thought of helping us and rushing my father in a police vehicle to the hospital," Manish told PTI.

"After Manish had covered over a kilometre till Nayapura circle on the way to MBS Hospital, I somehow managed to hire a private ambulance," another relative said. "Even at the hospital, we were made to shuttle from one room to another and to a makeshift clinic outside the hospital building before doctors eventually attended on him and declared him dead at 2.30 pm," he said.

MBS Hospital's medical superintendent Dr Naveen Saxena, however, refuted the allegation. "Satish Agrawal was brought to the hospital in a collapsed condition and a doctor immediately examined him in room 125 and declared him brought dead," he said. "Sometime later, the family members of the victim, however, said the patient's heart was still beating, following which Dr Lokesh Suwalka re-examined him and conducted an ECG," Dr Saxena said.

"The medical staff did not delay in the treatment," he asserted. On the unavailability of an ambulance, he said the service is managed by the chief medical and health officer. The officer could not be contacted for comment. Kota's Assistant Superintendent of Police Dilip Saini too rejected the family's allegation about policemen ignoring the plight of the patient being carted to a hospital on a handcart.

"It is hypothetical to say that the policemen did not help. The policemen in the area did not have any vehicle or an ambulance, which could have been summoned only from a hospital or the ambulance service numbers 104 or 108," said Saini.

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A 35-year-old police constable on lockdown duty here in Maharashtra was injured after a man allegedly assaulted him and tried to set him ablaze, an official said on Wednesday. The accused, identified as Arun Sinh Jadhav, has been arrested, he said. The incident took place near Maloli village in Malshiraj tehsil of Solapur on Tuesday night when the constable was asking people to stay indoors, a duty officer at Velapur police station said.

"At that time, Jadhav came in his car and started abusing the policeman. The accused sought an explanation from the constable as to why he had gone to check his brother's hotel," the official said. Jadhav snatched the policeman's phone and threw it on the road. He then allegedly slashed the constable's left hand and face with a blade and started thrashing him, the official said. "The accused then took out a bottle of petrol from his car and allegedly poured it on the policeman. However, a
police patil (village-level official) and some others caught hold of Jadhav and stopped him from setting the constable on fire," the official said.

The constable, who is attached to Velapur police station, later lodged a police complaint in connection with the incident. The accused was subsequently arrested and booked under Indian Penal Code Sections 307 (attempt to murder) and 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), the official said.

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Amid the rising number of coronavirus cases in Maharashtra, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a thunderstorm warning in several parts of the state for the next five days till May 1. IMDs Mumbai centre issued warning for 15 state across Maharashtra include places such as Kolhapur, Pune, Raigad, Satara, Sangli, and Latur among others.

WEATHER INFO-
Nowcast warning issued at 1515 Hrs IST Dated 28/04/2020
Thunderstorm accompanied with Lightning, Rain and Gusty winds with speed reaching 30-40 kmph likely to occur at isolated places in the district of Nanded and Hingoli during next 4 hours.

-IMD MUMBAI pic.twitter.com/Z70XbHQNeT

— K S Hosalikar (@Hosalikar_KS) April 28, 2020

While speaking to Mumbai Mirror, K S Hosalikar, deputy director general of meteorology, India Met Department said that the thunderstorms warning predicted by IMD is for the next five days until May 1. According to IMDs weather bulletin, thunderstorms accompanied by lightning, aand rains will occur in several parts of Maharashtra amid the COVID-19 crisis.

Thunderstorm warnings by IMD today for Maharashtra for coming 5 days.
29 & 30 April, watch for severe TS in Madhya Maharashtra, south side with possibilities of hailstorms in some areas.
Pl Watch for all weather updates & nowcast warnings further daily.
Take appropriate care pl. pic.twitter.com/fK9HIsnr3P

— K S Hosalikar (@Hosalikar_KS) April 28, 2020

"Nowcast warning issued at 1515 Hrs IST Dated 28/04/2020. Thunderstorm accompanied with Lightning, Rain and Gusty winds with speed reaching 30-40 kmph likely to occur at isolated places in the district of Nanded and Hingoli during next 4 hours. - IMD," Hosalikar tweeted.

The IMD also stated that on April 29 and 30, there will be severe thunderstorms in Madhya Maharashtra, south side with possibilities of hailstorms in some areas. In an earlier tweet, Hosalikar urged people to follow all necessary safety guidelines during lightning/thunder issued by DM GoM and NDMA. He also urged farmers to look after their crops.

Thunderstorm warnings in Maharashtra for coming 5 days by IMD.
Keep watch on updates & pl follow up Nowcast warnings that would be issued daily afternoon onwards.
Request follow all necessary Safety Guidelines during lightning/thunder issued by DM GoM and NDMA.
TC of Crops too. pic.twitter.com/7bzT3rIO0D

— K S Hosalikar (@Hosalikar_KS) April 27, 2020

He said that the quality of air during the lockdown in Mumbai and Pune has been good. Throwing light on Mumbai's weather, IMD said that the maximum temperature in Mumbai on Tuesday was 35 degree Celsius, while the minimum temperature was 26 degree Celsius. IMD also stated that Mumbai will witness clear skies with a relative humidity of about 74 percent in Santacruz and 88 percent in Colaba.

While the total number of coronavirus cases in India reached 29,435, Maharashtra continues to remain the worst state with nearly 9,000 cases in the state.

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India's tally of COVID-19 cases has reached 31,332, said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday. With 73 more deaths reported, the number of deaths due to coronavirus in the country breached the 1,000 mark and stood at 1,007.

The tally is inclusive of 22,629 active coronavirus cases, 7,695 patients who have been cured/discharged and one patient migrated.

According to the Ministry, Maharashtra has the most number of COVID-19 cases with 9,318 cases of which, 1,388 patients have been cured/discharged while 400 patients have succumbed to the virus.

Gujarat has the second-highest number of positive cases in the country with 3744 cases including 434 patients cured/discharged and 181 deaths.

Delhi's tally stands at 3314 cases of which, 1078 patients have recovered while 54 patients have succumbed to the virus.

With 1813 new cases & 71 deaths reported in the last 24 hours, the total number of #COVID19 positive cases in India rises to 31787 (including 22982 active cases, 1008 deaths, 7797 cured/discharged and 1 migrated): Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare pic.twitter.com/Vu77dQ3K2m

— ANI (@ANI) April 29, 2020

Madhya Pradesh has a total of 2387 positive cases including 377 patients recovered/discharged and 120 fatalities.

Meanwhile, Goa (seven cases; all seven recovered), Arunachal Pradesh (one case; now recovered), Manipur (two cases; both recovered), Tripura (two cases; both recovered) have reported no new cases of COVID-19.

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Hitting out at the Congress party, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that wilful defaulters were beneficiaries of 'phone banking' under the UPA regime and the Modi government is chasing them to recover the dues. She was responding to the opposition's allegations of loan waivers worth Rs 68,607 crore in the form of write-offs of top 50 wilful defaulters during the first half of the financial year ended March 2020. The Finance Minister, through a series of tweets posted late night on Tuesday, said that the Congress has attempted to mislead people, and former Congress President Rahul Gandhi should introspect why his party fails to play a constructive role in cleaning up the system. "Shri @RahulGandhi MP (LS) and Shri @rssurjewala spokesperson of @INCIndia have attempted to mislead people in a brazen manner.

Typical to @INCIndia, they resort to sensationalising facts by taking them out of context. In the following tweets wish to respond to the issues raised. "@INCIndia and Shri.@RahulGandhi should introspect why they fail to play a constructive role in cleaning up the system. Neither while in power, nor while in the opposition has the @INCIndia shown any commitment or inclination to stop corruption & cronyism," she said. Highlighting that between 2009-10 and 2013-14, scheduled commercial banks had written off Rs 1,45,226 crore, she quipped, 'Wished Gandhi consulted former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on what this writing-off was about'. She also referred to media reports quoting former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Raghuram Rajan as having said that a large number of bad loans originated in the period 2006-2008 and "too many loans were made to well-connected promoters who have a history of defaulting on their loans".

"Those defaulters who do not repay despite having capacity to pay, divert or siphon-off funds, or dispose of secured assets without bank's permission are categorised as wilful defaulters. They are those well connected promoters who benefitted from UPA's `phone banking'," she added. In another tweet she said, "Earlier, on 18.11.2019, in the Lok Sabha for an unstarred Question no:52, a list of 'Borrowers flagged as wilful defaulter by Public Sector Banks under CRILIC (Central Repository of Information on Large Credits) reporting as on 30.09.2019 (For borrowers with exposure of Rs. 5 crore and above, Global operations) was provided."

Bank-wise details of aggregate funded amount outstanding and amount technically/prudentially written off pertaining to top 50 wilful defaulters was provided as an annex to the answer to Lok Sabha starred question 305 of Gandhi on March 16, 2020. However, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said he had asked the government in Parliament the names of the top 50 bank loan defaulters, but the Finance Minister did not answer his question. "Now the RBI has given the names of Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and many of BJP's ''friends'' in the list of bank frauds. That is why this truth was held back from Parliament," Gandhi said in a tweet in Hindi.

The Congress alleged the government waived loans worth Rs 6.66 lakh crore since 2014 till September 2019. Sitharaman said this is an attempt of Congress leaders to mislead on wilful defaulters, bad loans and write-offs. She emphasised that it is the Narendra Modi-led government which is pursuing cases against these wilful defaulters and 9,967 recovery suits, 3,515 FIRs, invoking of Fugitive Amendment Act in cases are on now. The total value of attachment and seizures in the cases of Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and Vijay Mallya is about Rs 18,332.7 crore, she said. Sharing details, she tweeted: "Vijay Mallya Case: Total value at the time of attachment was Rs 8,040 crore and of seizure was Rs 1,693 crore. Value of shares at the time of seizure was Rs 1,693 crore. Declared fugitive offender. On extradition request by GoI, UK High Court, has also ruled for extradition."

In case of Mehul Choksi she said, "attachments of Rs 1,936.95 crore including foreign attachment of Rs 67.9 crore. Seizure of Rs 597.75 crore. Red Notice issued. Extradition request sent to Antigua. Hearing for declaration of Mehul Choksi as fugitive offender is in progress." On the Nirav Modi case, the Finance Minister said, "Immovable and movable properties worth more than Rs 2,387 crore attached/seized. (Attachment Rs 1,898 crore and Seizure Rs 489.75 crore). This includes foreign attachments of Rs 961.47 crore. Auction of luxury items for Rs 53.45 crore. He is in prison in the UK."

Provisions are made for non-performing assets (NPAs) as per the four-year provisioning cycle laid down by the RBI, she said, adding, upon full provisioning being done banks write-off the fully provided NPA but continue to pursue recovery against the borrower and no loan is waived off. On Tuesday, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala demanded answers from the Prime Minister on why their loans were waived. "This is a classic case of promoting ''dupe, deceive and depart'' policy of the Modi government, which can no longer be accepted and the prime minister has to answer," Surjewala said. He said the entire country is fighting the coronavirus and the government has no money to pay.

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ates, but has the money to condone and write off Rs 68,607 crore of bank loan defaulters.

A 45-day-old baby boy, said to be India's youngest Covid-19, patient has recovered from the disease and was discharged from a hospital here on Wednesday. Officials clarified that the infant was just 20-day-old when he contracted the infection from his father and was admitted to state-run Gandhi hospital here. After undergoing treatment for 25 days, the baby boy from Mahabubnagar district was discharged on Wednesday. "He is probably the youngest person in the country to have contacted the infection and recovered successfully," the health department said.

Carrying the baby in her arms, the mother was seen walking out of the hospital with a smile. The hospital staff gave warm send-off to the youngest Covid-19 patient and 12 other children who were also discharged with him. The 13 children were among 32 patients discharged in Telangana on Wednesday while the state recorded only seven new cases.

Health Minister Eatala Rajender expressed happiness over the recovery of the youngest patient and other children. He congratulated the doctors, nursing staff and paramedics of the hospital. This was the third straight day in a row that Telangana reported new cases in single digit. With this the total number of cases rose to 1,016.

The number of recoveries has also moved up to 409. The fatalities stand at 25. A total of 582 persons are currently undergoing treatment. Rajender said 10 of the patients at Gandhi Hospital were undergoing treatment in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). One of them is on a ventilator while four are on oxygen.

The minister said while the mortality rate in the country is 3.2, the same in Telangana stands at 2.5.

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A case has been registered against a man for allegedly uploading a "derogatory" post against Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, a police official said on Wednesday. The accused has been identified as Pushparaj Meshram, a resident of Kamptee, the official said.

"He had uploaded a derogatory post about these political leaders on Facebook. Based on a complaint, a case was registered against Meshram under IPC sections 505 (2), 500 (defamation), 120 (B) (criminal conspiracy)," inspector Narendra Hiwre of Lakadganj police station said.

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India's COVID-19 tally has reached 33,050, including 1,074 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Thursday. 1,718 more coronavirus cases were reported and 67 people succumbed to the virus in the last 24 hours. Currently, there are 23,651 active cases while 8,324 COVID-19 positive patients have been cured/discharged.

Maharashtra has the highest number of cases with 9,915, followed by Gujarat with 4,082 cases and Delhi with 3,439 cases.

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The national carrier Air India (AI) has asked its pilots and cabin crew details to prepare to resume operations post lockdown, probably by mid-May this year. An internal mail, accessed by ANI, which was sent to the operation staff, seeks crew availability and details for transport security passes for domestic and international operations. ANI has accessed an internal mail which was sent to operation staff seeking crew availability and details for transport security passes for domestic and international operations.

"Dear All concerned, There is a probability to commence 25 per cent to 30 per cent operations post-lockdown in mid-May 2020. You are requested to ensure and provide the following: Total No. of Cockpit / Cabin Crew residing outside municipal limits of the bases," the communication read. Further Air India has also asked the Executive Director (ED) to ensure necessary arrangements and curfew passes for the crew. "Ensure crew transport for all crew at all stations (domestic as well as International). The data at bullet 1 may be provided on priority, to enable this office to intimate ED (Security) to arrange for their curfew pass," the AI letter said.

Recently, the Government of India asked Air India to be on standby for evacuating Indians from the Gulf and other parts of the countries. India has suspended air services since March 25 to prevent the spread of COVID-19 till May 3.

Also in a notification on its website, Air India said, "In the light of the ongoing global health concerns, we have currently stopped accepting booking on all domestic & International flights for travel till 03rd May 2020."

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Tasked to ensure the enforcement of lockdown in view of the coronavirus pandemic, the district's Sahibabad Police were on Wednesday surprised when a mother came to the police station complaining that she had sent her son to buy groceries but he returned with his wife.

"I had sent my son to do the grocery shopping today, but when he returned, he came back with his wife. I am not ready to accept this marriage," said the teary-eyed mother. Speaking about the marriage, Guddu, 26-year-old groom, said: "I got married to Savita two months ago at an Arya Samaj Mandir in Haridwar."

"However, we could not get the marriage certificate at that time due to lack of witnesses. I had decided to visit Haridwar again for my marriage certificate but could not do so as the lockdown was imposed," he added. "After returning from Haridwar, Savita stayed at a rented accommodation in Delhi. However, today I decided to bring her to my mother's house as she was told to leave the rented accommodation due to lockdown," said Guddu.

Giving a solution to the family feud, the Sahibabad Police have asked Savita's house owner in Delhi to let the couple stay there during the lockdown period.

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A 28-year-old woman, infected with COVID-19, has given birth to a baby girl on Wednesday at Nagpur's Indira Gandhi Government Medical College and Hospital (IGGMCH). The infant will be screened for the virus after three days. "A woman who tested positive for COVID-19 in IGGMCH has given birth to a baby girl. The baby's corona test will be conducted after three days," said Dr Sagar Pandey, Deputy Superintendent, IGGMCH Nagpur while speaking to media.

Recently, the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) had launched a mobile dispensary to screen pregnant women for COVID-19 in containment zones.

"We have already screened tuberculosis patients. Now, health workers are screening pregnant women," Nagpur Municipal Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe had said.

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Legendary Bollywood actor Rishi Kapoor passed away due to complications arised from cancer on Thursday morning, leaving behind a legacy of almost 50 years in the film industry. Ever since the news of his passing broke, tributes have been pouring in for the actor from the film industry and the political world, where he was remembered as a jovial person.

Prominent politicians have taken to Twitter to express their grief and offer their condolences to the Kapoor family. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Jawadekar, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal were among the politicians who offered their condolences on Kapoor’s passing on the micro-blogging site.

Multifaceted, endearing and lively...this was Rishi Kapoor Ji. He was a powerhouse of talent. I will always recall our interactions, even on social media. He was passionate about films and India’s progress. Anguished by his demise. Condolences to his family and fans. Om Shanti.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 30, 2020

This is a terrible week for Indian cinema, with the passing of another legend, actor Rishi Kapoor. A wonderful actor, with a huge fan following across generations, he will be greatly missed. My condolences to his family, friends & fans all over the world, at this time of grief.

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) April 30, 2020

Deeply saddened by the sudden demise of actor Rishi Kapoor. He entertained several generations of Indians throughout his career. What a terrible loss.. My condolences to the grieving family. May God bless his soul.

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) April 30, 2020

Saddened by the sudden demise of #RishiKapoor who left a profound imprint on Bollywood by his versatile acting. Have grown up watching many of his films since my student days.
A great loss to the world of creativity.
My sincere condolences!
à¥Â शानà¥Âति!!

— Ravi Shankar Prasad (@rsprasad) April 30, 2020

Saddened to hear about the demise of veteran actor #RishiKapoor. He has been an inspiration for budding actors and will always be remembered for his iconic performances.

My heartfelt condolences to his family, friends and fans. Om Shanti.

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) April 30, 2020

Saddened to hear about the demise of veteran actor #RishiKapoor. He has been an inspiration for budding actors and will always be remembered for his iconic performances.

My heartfelt condolences to his family, friends and fans. Om Shanti.

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) April 30, 2020

Another film legend passes away... Saddened by Rishi Kapoor’s sudden demise. The film fraternity has lost a gem of an actor who always spoke his mind out. Heartfelt condolences to his family #RishiKapoor pic.twitter.com/0Dvpx8eu09

— N Chandrababu Naidu #StayHomeSaveLives (@ncbn) April 30, 2020

Rishi Kapoor was admitted to the Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital in Mumbai on Wednesday. His notable films as a romantic hero are "Laila Majnu", "Rafoo Chakkar", "Karz", "Chandni", "Heena" and "Saagar". He was, however, more proud of his second innings as an actor, which he found more satisfying. His notable films as a character artiste are "Do Dooni Chaar" with wife Neetu, "Agnipath", "Kapoor & Sons" and "Mulk".

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The number of coronavirus cases in Nashik district of Maharashtra has gone up to 276 as 71 more people have tested positive for the disease, an official from the district administration said on Thursday. Most of the new cases are from the district's Malegaon town, he said. The new patients include six police personnel and three children - aged three months, 5 years and 11 years.

Out of the total 276 cases, 253 have been reported from Malegaon, 10 from Nashik city, 11 from other parts of the district and two patients are from outside the district who are undergoing treatment in hospitals here.

There was no change in the death toll which stood at 12, the official said. Till date, 11 people have recovered from the disease in the district and discharged from hospitals, he added.

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Amid the total lockdown across the country, a viral video of Haryana police is doing the rounds on the internet for all the right reasons. The video shared by IPS officer Pankaj Nain of the Haryana Cadre has gone viral and won the hearts of netizens.

The viral video shows Haryana's Panchkula police surprising a senior citizen on his birthday with a cake amid lockdown across the country. In the one-minute 46 second clip video, a policewoman can heard asking a senior citizen his name as he walks out of his house to answer the question. "My name is Karan Puri. I live alone and I'm a senior citizen,"says the man as he walks towards the front the gate of his house, where cops can be seen waiting for him with a surprise.

Watch the heartwarming video here:

Interactions with Police is always emotional - be it fear, anger , anxiety or gratitude.
But I have never seen such overwhelming emotional burst . See how #PanchkulaPolice made the best birthday ever this senior citizen who is staying all alone.
Respect @CP_PANCHKULA pic.twitter.com/VP0oVJ2Rvf

— Pankaj Nain IPS (@ipspankajnain) April 28, 2020

As the video moves forward, the senior citizens can be seen shocked and surprised as the team of Panchkula police burst out singing 'Happy Birthday' for him. Moved by their sweet gesture, Mr Puri is seen crying his heart out as the cops present him a cake and make him wear a birthday cap.

👏👏👏👏Proud Moment

— Thakur ji (@VatsaYugal) April 28, 2020

Requesting the senior citizen to cut the cake, a police who can be heard consoling Mr Puri said, "Koi baat nahi sir, aapki family hain hum bhi (It's okay, sir, we are your family)." The heartwarming video can be seen ending with the senior citizen wearing a red hat and as he cuts take cake while the cops sing for him.

IPS officer Pankaj Nain shared the video with his 70 thousand followers and captioned it: Interactions with Police is always emotional - be it fear, anger, anxiety or gratitude. He further said that he has never seen such an overwhelming emotional burst. Officer Nain said that the Panchkula Police made the best birthday ever for this senior citizen who is staying all alone.

I am speechless! 🥺
The look on that man is priceless when the policeman said "hum bhi aapke hi bachhe hai"

— Himanshu Gupta (@himanshu98gupta) April 28, 2020

Since being shared on Twitter, the heartwarming video struck a chord with netizens and garnered over 5,000 views and nearly 1000 likes. Twitterati took to the comments section of the post to shower praises on the Haryana police officers surprising the senior citizen on his birthday amid the COVID-19 crisis in the country.

Really this stole everyone's heart as well as shows picture of our society where senior citizens need love & company of their family.

— Deens Rohilla (@DeensRohilla) April 28, 2020

One user said, "Proud Moment," while another user said, "I am speechless! Pleading face. The look on that man is priceless when the policeman said "hum bhi aapke hi bachhe hai." "This made my dayFolded handsFolded handsFolded hands. A big salute for these policemen," read a third comment.

This made my day🙏🙏🙏
A big salute for these policemen.

— abhi (@abhikatiyar230) April 28, 2020

Due to the coronavirus outbreak, India has been under lockdown since March 25 and the front-line workers, including the health workers, doctors, and the police are risking their lives to serve the nation.

Here's how netizens reacted to the viral video:

Such a cute video 😊
It was all about love and empathy.
I felt so many emotions while watching this video.
Everyone who made it possible deserves appreciation.
Good work !

— Nikita Saini (@NikitaSaini_) April 28, 2020

This is brilliant Policing🙏🏽

— Vikas Kaushik (@kaushikcop) April 28, 2020

One of the best videos you'll get to see. Overwhelming emotions indeed! Well done @CP_PANCHKULA.

— Rakesh Yadav (@Rudra5227) April 28, 2020

In these tough times; let’s gather all such positivity; what a joyous moment; thank you police personnel’s for leading it from the front; by seeing all this we shall come out strongly for sure for a new beginning; way to go....

— Sugreev Kihna (@Kihna) April 28, 2020

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With 1,993 more COVID-19 cases reported in the last 24 hours, India's tally of coronavirus cases stands at 35,043 on Friday, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The total tally is inclusive of 25,007 active cases, 8,888 patients cured/discharged and one patient migrated. With 73 more deaths in the last 24 hours, the total number of deaths due to the coronavirus rises 1,147.

According to the ministry, Maharashtra has the most COVID-19 cases with 10498 cases including 1773 patients cured/discharged and 459 patients dead. Gujarat is second on the list with 4,395 cases that include 613 patients cured and 214 patients succumbing to the deadly virus. Delhi's tally of positive coronavirus cases stands at 3,515 cases of which 1,094 patients have been cured while the death toll stands at 59.

Goa (seven cases), Tripura (two cases), Arunachal Pradesh (one case) and Manipur (two cases), all patients who were infected by the virus in these states have been cured and no new case has been reported.

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In a bizarre incident, a man climbed up a unipole advertising hoarding and threatened to commit suicide if he was not provided liquor. The high drama began late on Thursday evening and ended after an hour when police promised him a bottle of liquor.

Confirming the incident, Kotwali SHO Geetesh Kapil said: "We managed to get him down without any injury. We had only promised but did not give him liquor. The sale of liquor is banned in the state and we are strictly following the lockdown guidelines. We are trying to establish his identity so that his family can be informed."

The policemen offered food and soft 

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The current doubling rate for COVID-19 cases has improved to 11 days as against 3.4 days before the lockdown was imposed, while the case fatality has been recorded at 3.2 per cent, the health ministry said. Addressing a press briefing, health ministry Joint Secretary, Lav Agarwal said the doubling rate of COVID-19 cases was found to be between 11-20 days in Delhi, UP, Jammu and Kashmir, Orissa, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Punjab.

Doubling rate between 20-40 days has been seen in Karnataka, Ladakh, Haryana, Uttarakhand and Kerala, he added. In the last 24 hours, 1,718 new cases of COVID-19 were reported, taking the total number to 33,050 in India, he said.

Agarwal further said that the current case fatality rate is 3.2 per cent for COVID-19 in the country, with 65 per cent of it males and 35 per cent females.

No way to withdraw the lockdown: Tripura CM

Dilip Ghosh, Bengal BJP chief

'I was dumbstruck on hearing the CM say that she was not involved in the formation of the death audit committee. The CM says she even doesn't know who all are in the panel. Then who is running the govt? It must be a ghost. Otherwise, she wouldn't have made such a remark'

Biplab Kumar Deb, Tripura chief minister

'We do not find any way to withdraw the lockdown as it is the only viable means to break the chain of the Coronavirus outbreak. It seems we have to continue with the lockdown andwe have to withdraw some restrictions in a phased manner'

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In a hair-raising video making rounds of social media, an elephant was seen charging on two bikers, forcing them to abandon their vehicles and run away. The video shared on Twitter by forest officer Susanta Nanda that was filmed by a user shows the bikers, ignoring the instructions given by the forest as they tried to cross the roads at the time as the elephant.

The user who filmed the video Sreedhar V, said while posting the video, "These two-wheeler riders did not listen to FD staff and decided to go ahead while elephants were crossing and got charged at." Nanda tweeted while sharing the video, "Gently saying no. Enough is enough. When the elephant is with calf, the gentle giant can be a real giant."

Gently saying no. Enough is enough.
When the elephant is with calf, the gentle giant can be a real giant. pic.twitter.com/401n5IEFb5

— Susanta Nanda IFS (@susantananda3) April 29, 2020

The video, shared on Wednesday garnered more than 6,500 views on Twitter with 609 likes and was retweeted 129 times. Users commenting on the video posted on how man-animal conflict puts human beings and animals in danger.

Sir Notice the gentleness. Elephant in no way was trying to harm but only tried to scare off the people to protect its calf and after creating a safe distance left on its way. Elephants are 💜

— Sam (@TheRealSam_02) April 29, 2020

How did the rider come from the left to right? Is there a smaller road merging with the Main Road there?
Or was the rider trying to overtake the elephant, and lost control due to panic ðŸ¤Â”ðŸ¤Â” बà¤Âš à¤Â—à¤Â दà¥Â‹नà¥Â‹à¤Â‚ 😂😂

— @ul V (@AttulV) April 29, 2020

Narrow escape😱😱

— Tapan panda (@coolkitu) April 29, 2020

Lucky escape

— Ethiraja Sadaiyandi (@modhakethi) April 29, 2020

Such gentle wisdom in such a huge creature .. will not harm wilfully.. stupid humans shd realise that they need their space esp when she’s with her calf .. #universalFierceMother but still just scaring them away not trampling them

— Jaisree C (@cjaisree) April 29, 2020

What do you think about the video?

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The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday issued an order under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 to further extend the lockdown for a further period of two weeks beyond May 4.

The current lockdown period is scheduled to end on May 3.

"After a comprehensive review and in view of the lockdown measures having led to significant gains, the COVID-19 situation in the country, Ministry of Home Affairs issued an order under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, today, to further extend the lockdown for a further period of two weeks beyond May 4, 2020," read the order of the Home Ministry.

The Central government also listed 319 districts of the country as green zones, 284 as orange and 130 as red zones. This classification, which will come in force for a week after May 3, is multi-factorial and takes into consideration incidence of cases, doubling rate, extent of testing and surveillance feedback to classify the districts.

Maharashtra, which accounts for the highest number of cases and deaths, has 14 red zones which include Mumbai, Mumbai Suburban, Pune, Thane, Palghar, Nashik, Nagpur, Solapur, Yavatmal, Aurangabad, Satara, Dhule, Akola, Jalgaon.

Uttar Pradesh has 19 red zones,  followed by Tamil Nadu with 12 red zones and 11 in Delhi. The national capital has no orange and green zones but only red zones.

In red zones and outside containment zones, certain activities including plying of cycle rickshaws and auto-rickshaws, taxis and cab aggregators, intra-district and inter-district plying of buses and barber shops, spas and salons will be prohibited in addition to those prohibited throughout India.

A limited number of activities will remain prohibited across the country, irrespective of the zone, including travel by air, rail, metro and inter-state movement by road, running of schools, colleges, and other educational and training/coaching institutions, the order said.

This came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's meeting with chief ministers of several states last month where some of them suggested extension of lockdown.

Highlights of lockdown 3.0

• MHA issues new guidelines to regulate activities during extended lockdown based on risk profiling of districts into red, orange, green zones.
• Travel by air, rail, metro and inter-state movement by road and schools, colleges to remain shut during extended lockdown
• Educational, training, coaching institutions and hospitality services including hotels and restaurants to remain close during lockdown
• Places of large gatherings such as cinema halls, malls, gyms and places of political, cultural gatherings to remain shut, says MHA
• Movement for all non-essential activities will be prohibited between 7 pm and 7 am.
• People living in COVID-19 containment zones must download 'Aarogya Setu' app 
• Religious places and places of worship will remain shut during lockdown
• In all COVID-19 zones, people above 65, those with comorbidities, pregnant women to stay at home, except for essential works
• OPDs, medical clinics shall be permitted to operate in red, orange and green zones with social distancing norms during lockdown
• In COVID-19 red zones and outside containment areas plying of cycle-rickshaws, auto-rickshaws, taxis, opening of salons prohibited
• Sale of liquor, paan, tobacco to be allowed in green zones after ensuring minimum six-feet social distancing; not over 5 persons at one time at shop
• In COVID-19 red zones movement of individuals, vehicles allowed only for permitted activities during lockdown
• Maximum of 2 persons, besides driver, in four wheelers, no pillion rider on two wheelers

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With 2,293 new cases in the last 24 hours, the highest number of cases in a single day, India's COVID-19 tally reached 37,336 on Saturday, including 1,218 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. As many as 71 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours. Out of the total number, 9,951 people have been cured/discharged/migrated.

In the state of Maharashtra, the number of coronavirus positive cases has crossed the 10,000-mark with at least 485 deaths. The positive cases in Maharashtra has reached 11,506, including 1,879 discharged cases. After Maharashtra, Gujarat has the most number of COVID-19 cases (4,721). The state has reported 236 deaths, while 735 people have been discharged.

The Centre on Friday extended the ongoing nationwide lockdown for two more weeks with effect from May 4 till May 17 while allowing different sets of relaxations in red, orange and green zones.

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A 68-year-old COVID-19 patient died in Pune on Saturday, taking the total toll to 100 in the district, a health official said. The cause of the patient's death is acute respiratory failure due to ARDS with myocarditis with coronavirus infection.

"A 68-year-old patient who had tested positive for COVID-19 passes away in Pune. The cause of death is acute respiratory failure due to ARDS with myocarditis with COVID-19 infection. Total death toll in Pune district is now 100," an official said.

According to the Union Health Ministry, the total number of COVID-19 cases across the country surged to 37,336, including 26,167 active cases, 9,951 cured/discharged/migrated and 1,218 deaths.

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Amritsar: In a mark of gratitude towards corona warriors, Dr Satyajeet and other police officials celebrated the birthday of Civil Lines SHO Shiv Darshan Singh on Friday while he was on duty.

Dr Satyajeet said that since police officers are doing their duties despite challenges amid the coronavirus pandemic, he wanted to give them a small present by cutting a cake on his birthday.

"Cops are working continuously amid the coronavirus pandemic, despite several challenges. So I thought of giving them a small gift by cutting the cake on the birthday of the SHO," said Dr Satyajeet.

The SHO expressed his gratitude towards the doctor for making his birthday memorable. "I am very happy. I will remember this moment in my life because of the way I've been honoured here," said Shiv Darshan Singh.

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With 2,644 more COVID-19 cases and 83 deaths in the last 24 hours, the number of people infected from coronavirus in the country has reached 39,980 including 1,301 deaths, said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Sunday.

Currently, there are 28,046 active cases while 10,633 COVID-19 positive patients have been cured/discharged. The coronavirus cases in Maharashtra have reached 12,296, including 2,000 discharged cases and 521 deaths.Gujarat is in second place with 5054 coronavirus cases. The state has reported 262 deaths, while 896 people have been discharged.Delhi's count stands at 4,122 of which 1,256 patients have recovered, while 64 patients have lost their lives.

While Tamil Nadu's COVID-19 figure stands at 2,757 with 1,341 patients recovered and 29 fatalities, Rajasthan has reported 2,770 cases of which 1,121 has recovered and 65 patients are dead.Madhya Pradesh has reported 2,846 positive cases so far of which 624 patients have recovered and 151 patients have lost their lives due to the virus. In Uttar Pradesh, as many as 2,487 people have confirmed COVID-19, of which 689 recovered and 43 people succumbed to it.

In Kerala, which reported the country's first COVID-19 case, 499 people have been detected positive for coronavirus.

The Centre on Friday extended the ongoing nationwide lockdown till May 17, while allowing different sets of relaxations in red, orange and green zones.

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Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa requested his Maharashtra counterpart Uddhav Thackeray to release six TMC water from his state's reservoirs to rivers in Karnataka to meet acute drinking water shortage in North Karnataka. Yediyurappa pointed out that the North Karnataka districts, namely Belagavi, Vijayapura, Bagalkot, Kalaburagi, Yadagiri and Raichur are facing acute shortage of drinking water due to onset of summer during early days of March this year.

"I request you to kindly direct the concerned authorities to release 3 TMC of water from Warna/Koyna reservoirs to Krishna river and 3 TMC of water from Ujjaini reservoir to Bhima river on humanitarian grounds for drinking purpose," Yediyurappa said in his letter.

He reminded Thackeray that even in the past the Maharashtra government had released water from its reservoirs to meet the drinking water needs of both human beings and livestock in drought-affected areas of Karnataka.

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Eminent Kannada poet and writer K.S. Nissar Ahmed passed away here after prolonged illness, an official said on Sunday. He was 84. "Ahmed died at his residence in the city's south-west suburb after prolonged illness due to age-related complications," a state information department official told IANS here.

Kannada poet Professor KS Nisar Ahmed passes away at his residence. He was 84 years old. (File pic) pic.twitter.com/i7hadMxVhE

— ANI (@ANI) May 3, 2020

Born on February 5, 1936 at Devanahalli on the city's northern outskirts, Ahmed was a prolific writer in Kannada and penned poems, plays, short stories and novels.

A post-graduate in geology, Ahmed worked in the mines and geology department of the state government at Gulbarga in the state's northern region in the 1950s-60s before moving to Bengaluru to teach the subject (geology) at the state-run central college in the city centre and later at Chitradurga and Shimoga in the state's Malnad region during the 1970s.

"Ahmed is a recipient of several awards and honours, including Padma Sri and Sahitya Academy award in 2008 and state awards like Pampa in 2017, Nadoja in 2003 and Rajyotsava in 1981," the official recalled. Kuvempu University at Shimoga awarded honorary doctorate to Ahmed in 2010.

Ahmed is well known for his poems "Nityotsava" and other popular works such as "Manasu Gandhi Bazaru", "Sanje Aidara Male" and "Manadondige Mathukathe".

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Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan on Sunday said that India's COVID-19 mortality rate of 3.2 per cent is the lowest in the world and over 10,000 coronavirus patients have been discharged from hospitals after recovering from the disease so far.

Today more than 10,000 COVID19 patients have been discharged. Those still admitted at hospitals are on the road to recovery. If in last 14 days doubling rate was 10.5 days, then today it's around 12 days.Our mortality rate of 3.2% is the lowest in the world: Union Health Minister pic.twitter.com/YnQpnJ9IeJ

— ANI (@ANI) May 3, 2020

"Today more than 10,000 COVID-19 patients have been discharged. Those still admitted at hospitals are on the road to recovery. If in last 14 days doubling rate was 10.5 days, then today it is around 12 days," the Minister told ANI after visiting Lady Hardinge Hospital.

"Our mortality rate of 3.2 per cent is the lowest in the world," he said. With 2,644 more COVID-19 cases and 83 deaths in the last 24 hours, the number of people infected from coronavirus in the country has reached 39,980 including 1,301 deaths, said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Sunday.

Currently, there are 28,046 active cases while 10,633 COVID-19 positive patients have been cured/discharged.

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Two African lion cubs, born a month ago at Nehru Zoological Park here, came out for the first time in a 'day crawl'. According to Nehru Zoological Park Curator, N.Kshitija, this is the first time that the cubs came out since their birth last month.

#WATCH Telangana: One-month-old two African lion cubs were seen playing with her mother, Adhisana, in the Nehru Zoological Park in Hyderabad today. pic.twitter.com/UCHQJcdw2e

— ANI (@ANI) May 3, 2020

Lovely moments of the cute cubs spending time with their mother Adhisana were captured on camera by the zoo officials. One of the photographs released by the zoo authorities shows the mother licking her cub. The cubs are also seen playing with each other.

Shutdown for more than 40 days due to coronavirus-fuelled nation-wide lockdown, the zoo brought some cheers to animal lovers with the increase in the big cat population.

The Nehru Zoological Park (NZP), most popular and one of the largest zoos in the country, saw the birth of three Royal Bengal tiger cubs and two African lion cubs in the first week of April. Six jackal puppies and two Blue Gold Macaw chicks were also born.

Meanwhile, NZP officials said they were taking all precautions for the safety of the animals in the wake of the outbreak of Covid-19. It sounded an alert last month after a tiger at a New York Zoo tested positive for the dreaded virus.

The animal keepers and veterinary staff were alerted to monitor the animals, particularly tiger and primates for checking any symptoms of cold, nasal discharge or any symptoms of flu. The officials said the precautionary measures were taken up as per the instructions of Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Central Zoo Authority (CZA).

The veterinary wing is continuously monitoring the health of animals and checking for any symptoms. Thermal scanning is being done of about 150 Zoo employees engaged in taking care of the animals. The Zoo authorities took several preventive prophylactic measures since the first week of March.

The NZP, which is shut since March 22, is using the services of staff animal keepers, gardeners, security and workshop staff to attend duties for providing feed to the animals, cleaning the enclosures, maintaining hygiene and sanitation, maintaining health of animals and attending emergency maintenance works and services.

Set up in 1963, the NZP is the most popular and one of the largest Zoos with an average of 27-30 lakh visitors annually. It has over 155 species and 1550 specimens in spacious enclosures.

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Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said that not more than 50 people would be allowed at wedding functions and not more than 20 people could attend the last rites of a deceased person.

#WATCH Delhi is ready to re-open now...We will not be able to sustain the lockdown for long as the economy is in peril. The revenue has fallen from Rs 3500 Crores in April month of previous years to Rs 300 Crores this year. How will government function?: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal pic.twitter.com/jKzVp0959b

— ANI (@ANI) May 3, 2020

"Not more than 50 people are allowed at wedding functions and not more than 20 at last rites of a deceased person," said Kejriwal during a video conference. "The Center's decision of lockdown on March 24 was very important. If we had not implemented the lockdown, then the situation in the country could have been horrific now," he added.

He further said: "That time the country was not ready to fight COVID19. We had no idea of social distancing. Neither the people nor hospitals were ready. We had no personal protective equipment kits or testing kits either." The CM said that they would not be able to sustain the lockdown for long as the economy is in peril.

"The revenue has fallen from Rs 3,500 crore in April month of the previous years to Rs 300 crore this year. How will the government function?" The Delhi government will take strict action against those found spitting at public places," he added.

As per the latest update by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of positive cases of coronavirus in Delhi is 4,122, including 1,256 recovered/migrated and 64 deaths.

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In a setback, two senior army officers, were among five security personnel killed during an encounter with terrorists at a village in Rajwar forests of North Kashmir, officials said on Sunday. The deceased security personnel are — Colonel Ashutosh Sharma, Major Anuj Sood, Naik Rajesh and Lance Naik Dinesh, all from the Brigade of GUARDS regiment, and at present part of the 21 Rashtriya Rifles, deployed to counter terrorism in the hinterland. A J&K police sub-inspector, Shakeel Qazi, also fell victim to the bullets of terrorists.

The two holed-up terrorists, who were eliminated in the encounter, included commander of banned Lashker-e-Taiba Haider, a Pakistani national who has been active in North Kashmir area. The identity of the other was yet to be ascertained. They had held some civilians hostage, the officials said. Director General of J&K police, Dilbagh Singh said, "Sad to inform that five brave personnel, including Colonel Ashutosh Sharma, Major Anuj Sood and sub-inspector of JKP Shakeel Qazi were martyred in the line of duty." Security forces had noticed presence of some terrorists in the Rajwar forests in Handwara area for the past few days and a brief exchange of fire had taken place on Thursday.

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