France reports 27 more coronavirus deaths, raising total to 175 This takes the total to 175 or an increase of around 18%, as the country entered its first day of lockdown to try and contain the outbreak.

The number of cases had risen to 7,730, up from 6,633 on Monday, which is a rise of 16.5% in 24 hours.

Salomon said 699 people were in a serious condition, needing life support.

Britain sets out emergency laws to tackle coronavirus outbreak Britain's government set out emergency legislation on Tuesday to tackle a growing coronavirus outbreak, with measures including giving powers to police and immigration officers to detain people and put them in isolation to protect public health.

Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India issues guidelines for notifying COVID19 affected persons by private institutions.

West Bengal reports first positive case of coronavirus An 18-year-old man, who recently returned from England, tested positive for novel coronavirus.

Making it the first confirmed case in West Bengal, a senior official of the state government said.

He started showing symptoms of COVID-19 since morning, following which he was admitted to the isolation ward of the Beliaghata ID hospital here, they said.

The man, who had gone to the UK for higher studies, had returned on Sunday.

"His swabs were collected and sent for examination. The reports revealed he contracted novel coronavirus," the official said.

H&M closes all stores in biggest markets Germany and the United States The world's second-biggest fashion retailer said in a statement it was also closing all its stores in Canada, Portugal and Belgium.



It said its sales in China, where it has reopened most of its stores, had gradually started to recover, and that it was now focusing on adjusting buying and inventory levels.



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Army sources: First positive case of COVID19 confirmed of an Indian Army jawan (from Ladakh Scouts). Jawan’s father has travel history to Iran. Jawan is being treated while his family including sister&wife have been put in quarantine. Jawan’s father has also tested positive.

Northeast no longer insulated from COVID-19 West Bengal reports first positive case of coronavirus

Meghalaya takes urgent measures All tourist spots in the state including parks and recreational areas are advised to remain closed till March 31.

Lucknow monuments closed for public over Covid-19 outbreak "The administration orders to close Bara Imambara, Chhota Imambara, Picture Gallery, and Shahnajaf Imambara with immediate effect till March 31. Violators of order will be liable for punishable action under section 188 of Indian Penal Code," the order said.

Virus scare: Police asked to shut pubs, dance bars in Mumbai

WHO calls for 'boldest actions' from European countries in fight against COVID-19 The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Tuesday called upon all European countries to take the "boldest actions" in the fight against novel coronavirus.



France has officially entered a lockdown, effective from Tuesday morning at 7 am ET as a part of a number of measures announced by French President Emmanuel Macron to fight the spread of coronavirus.



Government approves AirAsia flights for Delhi, Vizag to help Indians stranded at Kuala Lumpur airport Media reports said over 200 Indians, mostly students, were stuck at Kuala Lumpur Airport due to the coronavirus outbreak in the country.

The government, which on Monday banned the entry of passengers from EU countries, Turkey and the UK from March 18 till March 31.

It also closed its doors to those from Afghanistan, the Philippines and Malaysia with immediate effect, according to an additional travel advisory.

Trump authorized deferral of $300 billion in IRS payments - Steven Mnuchin, United States Secretary of the Treasury

Mnuchin says irs will not charge interest and penalities on deferral for 90 days

J&K: In view of coronovirus, Ramesh Kumar, Chief Executive Officer:

Film bodies have decided to halt shooting of entertainment products from 19th March to 31st March

Trump wants to send checks to Americans 'in next two weeks' in effort to curb economic cost of outbreak - Steven Mnuchin, United States Secretary of the Treasury

French Open tennis tournament postponed due to coronavirus, say organisers: AFP

Latest from Health Ministry: Total number of passengers screened at airport: 13,54,858

Total number of Active COVID 2019 cases across India: 120

Total number of Discharged/Cured COVID 2019 cases across India: 14

Total number of Deaths due to COVID 2019 across India: 3

The situation is bigger than 9/11 for Aviation Industry - Steven Mnuchin, United States Secretary of the Treasury

Ukrainian shops, restaurants and transport shut down on Tuesday as the country tightened restrictions to contain the spread of the coronavirus, while police arrested five people suspected of trying to rob 100,000 surgical masks at gunpoint in Kiev.

In the wake of coronaVirus outbreak, the Rock Garden of Chandigarh shall remain closed for general public and tourists with immediate effect till March 31, 2020.

Appreciate the difficult situation of Indian students & other passengers waiting in transit at Kuala Lumpur Airport. We have now approved Air Asia flights for you to Delhi & Visakhapatnam. - Dr. S Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister

Trump predicts coronavirus-hit economy will come back very rapidly

Ministry of Railways today reviewed the progress of preparedness of Indian Railways & the ongoing efforts to prevent the spread of coronavirus. - DJ Narain, Additional Directorate General of Public Information (ADG), Public Relations (PR)

Railways has cancelled 76 trains as precaution against the spread of coronavirus and due to low occupancy It has also issued a set of guidelines to zonal railways for its catering staff stating no employee having fever, cough, runny nose or difficulty in breathing.

According to officials, central railways cancelled 23 trains, south central railways cancelled 29 trains, 10 trains were cancelled in western railway zone, 9 in south eastern railway zone and 5 in northern railway zone.

Government deputes 30 joint secretary and above rank officers to assist state governments on COVID-19 The Centre on Tuesday deputed 30 officers in the rank of Joint Secretary and above to states so that they can effectively deal with the outbreak of coronavirus.



The move comes after 137 people so far tested positive and three persons died of the outbreak.



"The Government of India deputes 30 officers of Joint Secretary and above level, to assist state governments in effective management of #COVID19india," an official spokesperson said.



Coronavirus cases rise to 212 in Pakistan amidst conflicting statements on nation's first casualty The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Pakistan sharply rose to 212 on Tuesday.

The report comes amidst conflicting statements by authorities on the nation's first casualty due to the viral infection.

The Sindh province is the worst-hit with 172 cases, followed by 15 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 10 in Balochistan, 8 in Punjab, 5 in Gilgit-Baltistan and 2 in Islamabad, officials said.

African Nations Championship 2020 postponed due to coronavirus The African Nations Championship 2020 soccer tournament scheduled for April in Cameroon has been postponed indefinitely due to the coronavirus outbreak, the African Football Federation said in a statement on Tuesday.

Govt deputes 30 joint secretary and above rank officers to assist states on COVID-19

Virus takes a toll on Iran Iran said 135 new coronavirus deaths took the country's overall toll to nearly 1,000 Tuesday, as it curtailed celebrations for a fire festival in a bid to contain the disease

Two COVID-19 cases at World Health HQ Two cases of COVID-19 have been registered at the World Health Organisation headquarters.

"We do have two staff confirmed with symptoms of COVID-19," spokesman Christian Lindmeier told reporters.

"This was last week, Friday and Thursday. They both have gone home. They have self-isolated. They showed symptoms.

"Colleagues in the office have been checked and we're waiting for further information on those. Everything so far seems OK with them."

Cannot confirm whether more than 250 Indians in Iran have tested positive for COVID-19 - MEA Officials

Corporate offices in Gurugram should allow employees to work from home till March 31, orders District Magistrate The move comes in view of the rising cases of coronavirus in India and also as a pre-emptive measure.

The District Collector of Gurugram has advised all MNCs, IT Firms, Industries, BPOs and Corporate offices to allow their employees to work from home till March 31, 2020.

This comes just after India's case count witnessed a steep rise- reaching 137, with Maharashtra becoming the epicentre.

Latest from DM Gurugram:

District Magistrate Gurugram orders all MNC, IT Firms, Industries, BPO's, Corporate offices situated in Gurugram to allow their employees to work from home till 31st March 2020.

35 trips of 10 trains have been cancelled due to low occupancy in view of COVID19 - https://twitter.com/ANI/status/1239910948694978562

4 quarantined in Goa for suspected exposure Four people were admitted in the isolation ward of Goa Medical College and Hospital on Tuesday for suspected exposure.

Their condition is stable and samples have been sent for testing, an official informed.

There is no Covid-19 patient in the coastal state, a tourist haven, as yet.

So far, 15,511 passengers have been screened for symptoms at the lone airport here, including 270 on Tuesday.

So far we have sent 113 samples for testing for #Coronavirus out of which 105 have tested negative. Reports of 5 samples are awaited. 3 positive cases have been reported till now. - Director of National Health Mission, Jammu and Kashmir

The Indians who are in Iran are being very well looked after by our mission. The Ambassador is giving lot of attention to them. - Dammu Ravi, Additional Secretary, MEA

Department of Health and Family Welfare Services, Bengaluru:

Parliamentary Standing Committee for Urban Development today discussed to increase private labs for private hospitals to test #Coronavirus samples. As of now, there are total 65 labs across the country&only 2000 persons can be tested in a day.

The two men at ITBP (Indo-Tibetan Border Police) camp in Chhawla, Delhi who tested positive for #Coronavirus had come from Milan (Italy), with a batch of 216 other people on 15th March.

Avoid self-medication with ibuprofen against COVID-19 symptoms - WHO

With first COVID-19 case, Pondicherry goes in for shutdown Chief Minister V Narayanasamy announced closure of all schools, colleges, cinemas and gymnasium centres in the union territory till this month-end.

A 68-year-old woman tested positive in Mahe, an enclave of the union territory in Kerala, and her condition was stable .

Sources said the woman had returned from Saudi Arabia after a pilgrimage on March 13.

The government has earmarked Rs 7.5 crore to the Revenue Department to procure on emergency basisequipment to rise to any exigency.

Deepak Mhaisekar, Divisional Commissioner of Pune: For quarantine facility, we already have 520 beds available with us and we are adding 250 more beds, so we will have 770 beds for quarantine facility now.

Trains and buses are essential services so we are not stopping them as of now but if people don't listen to our advice and don't avoid unnecessary travel, then we will think about that too. Next 15-20 days are very crucial for us. Maharashtra CM, Uddhav Thackeray

Thailand tourist tests negative for COVID-19, dies of renal problem in Tamil Nadu: Hospital official

India should follow 'Social Distancing' in all earnestness : Health Ministry Guidelines on clinical management and dead body management have been updated, said Lav Agarwal, Jt Secy, Ministry of Health.

Large number of people who have been quarantined, have already being discharged, underlined Agarwal.

Earlier in the day, The Indian Council for Medical Research wished to involve accredited private laboratories for engagement in coronavirus testing facilities to strengthen the diagnosis process for the disease.

All private labs testing for coronavirus to ensure real time reporting to IDSP and ICMR - Health Ministry

Tests for coronavirus at private labs should be offered when prescribed by qualified physician as per ICMR guidelines - Health Minister

Italy rushes to promote new doctors to relieve coronavirus crisis Italy will rush 10,000 student doctors into service, scrapping their final exams, in an effort to help the struggling health services.

Some 2,158 people have died of the disease in Italy since the outbreak came to light on Feb 21 .

While the total number of confirmed cases has surged to 27,980, making Italy the worst-hit country outside of China.

The crisis has pushed hospitals to breaking point at the epicentre of the contagion in northern Italy .

It has left other regions scrambling to strengthen their own health networks as the number of infected rises nationwide.

Another #COVID19 positive case confirmed in the state, positive cases toll rises to 5 in the state. The new confirmed patient is an Indonesian not an Indian national; he has a travel history from Delhi to Telangana. - Telangana Health Minister, Eatala Rajendra

A 49-year-old person has also been tested positive for COVID19 in Mumbai today; he has travel history to USA. With this, total number of COVID19 cases rises to 41 in Maharashtra. - Public Health Department, Maharashtra

Information & PR Department, Punjab:

Total number of confirmed cases across India reaches 137: Health Ministry

A Russian delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Yury Trutnev has cancelled their visit to India, due to coronavirus. The meeting was expected to be held in March - Diplomatic sources

Air Force spokesperson Group Captain Anupam Banerjee :

Uttarakhand govt declares Covid-19 as epidemic "Uttarakhand government has declared coronavirus as an epidemic. Medical stores are advised not to sell medicines to people suffering from cold and cough without medical prescription. Masks and hand sanitizers should be sold at MRP only," said Pankaj Pandey, Medical Secretary of Health and Medical Education Department.