Supreme Court observed that fear and panic was becoming “a bigger problem than the coronavirus”

India’s COVID-19 count increased to 1,071 on Monday (March 30) with its toll at 29, according to the health ministry figures, while the government reiterated there was no community transmission in the country yet. The Supreme Court, meanwhile, took up two pleas regarding the exodus of migrants and sought a report from the Centre by Tuesday.

Here are the latest updates from the day:

92 new cases since Sunday

The health ministry said 92 new cases and four deaths due to coronavirus have been reported in India since Sunday, taking the total number of cases to 1,071 and the number of deaths to 29. “It took 12 days for cases to rise from 100 to 1,000 in our country, whereas seven other developed nations having lesser population than us have seen multiple increase,” it said.

No community transmission

COVID-19 is still in the local transmission stage in India, the health ministry said while reiterating there has been no community transmission as of now. It said if there will be a community transmission, it will want to convey it to the community through media to increase the level of alertness at field level.

SC on exodus of migrants

Supreme Court has observed that fear and panic was becoming “a bigger problem than the coronavirus”, and sought a report from the government by Tuesday. It said it would not create more confusion by issuing directions on measures that the government is already taking.

Promotion in Delhi schools

Delhi government has announced students from nursery to Class 8 will be promoted to the next class in the national capital. It also announced online classes for students of Class 12 from first week of April. In Delhi University, professors and students have already begun using digital platforms.

Dedicated AIIMS hospital

AIIMS, Delhi will ramp up its preparedness against the new coronavirus by converting its sprawling trauma centre into a “dedicated” COVID-19 hospital, said official sources. It has 242 beds and 18 more were being added. AIIMS administration would make an announcement soon, sources said.

Army advisory

Army personnel concealing symptoms for COVID-19 and failing to disclose contact with infected persons and travel details to areas having infection cases will face punitive action under Army Act. The Army headquarters sent an advisory to all Army bases, formations and wings in this regard.

Patanjali quarantine centre

Patanjali Ayurved has announced setting up of five quarantine centres with a total capacity of 1,500 beds across the country to fight COVID-19 pandemic. The camps would be set up in Haridwar (Uttarakhand), Sadhupul (Himachal Pradesh), Modinagar (UP), Kolkata and Guwahati.

Amazon delivery resumes

E-commerce major Amazon India has resumed services in some cities, including Bengaluru, Noida, Gurugram, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Mumbai, but deliveries would continue to be delayed because of movement restrictions and extensive lockdowns.

For BSNL, MTNL users

State-owned telecom operators BSNL and MTNL will extend validity period of their prepaid mobile services till April 20 and offer ₹10 additional talktime even after zero balance, to enable users, especially poor and underprivileged, to stay connected during the 21-day nationwide lockdown.

Exam application dates

The HRD Ministry has directed the National Testing Agency to postpone by one month the last date of acceptance of applications for multiple exams conducted by it, including UGC NET, JNU entrance test, ICAR exam, CSIR NET, NCHM JEE, IGNOU PhD and management entrance exams.

Chlorine spray on migrants

A group of migrants heading home after the lockdown was hosed down with a chlorine solution in UP’s Bareilly, triggering criticism and then an admission from the local authorities that they went too far. The Union health ministry said action has been taken against the employees.

Wards out of railway coaches

Railway Board has instructed zonal railways that they might be required to convert up to 20,000 coaches into isolation wards as part of its preparedness to fight the coronavirus outbreak. In a letter to all zonal general managers, the board has said that initially 5,000 coaches will be converted.