india

Updated: Apr 29, 2020 16:40 IST

The Covid-19 tally in the country breached the 31000-mark on Wednesday. India reported a total of 31332 coronavirus cases, Ministry of Health stated. The figure includes 22629 active cases, 7695 patients who have been cured or discharged and over 1000 fatalities.

The extended phase of coronavirus lockdown in the country will come to an end on May 3 if not further extended.

Here are the key developments:

1. The government has given an in-principle approval to requests from Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates to send Indian doctors and paramedics to help fight the Covid-19 pandemic.

2. Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh announced the extension of curfew for two more weeks in the wake of the coronavirus crisis.

3. The central government on Wednesday asked all its employees to download the Aarogya Setu app and commute only after they have been marked “safe” or “low risk” in a move to reduce the spread of coronavirus.

4. The Kerala government on Wednesday decided to float a new Ordinance - which will enable it to defer payment of salary up to 25% amid the coronavirus outbreak.

5. The Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday announced some relaxations for Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai where a four-day “intense lockdown” was clamped to check the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) will end at 9pm.

6. With more than 40 cases of coronavirus reported so far, the 31st Battalion of CRPF posted in Delhi has become the epicentre of coronavirus cases.

7. Central teams, which were tasked to check preparedness of districts with a high load of coronavirus cases, found that infection prevention control practices were not properly followed in several hospitals, news agency PTI reported.

8. Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi is completely shut today, district magistrate Kaushalraj Sharma said as the number of cases of the coronavirus disease rose in municipal corporation limits.

9. Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Wednesday said that those health centres and hospitals that don’t have the permission to practice plasma therapy should not perform it. Jain said that the central government has said that plasma therapy is very technical and is at an experimental stage currently.

10. The doors of the Kedarnath Temple in Uttarakhand were opened early on Wednesday after a six-month-long winter break in the absence of pilgrims due to the nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus pandemic.