Coronavirus: 60 cases in India; 'Namaste over handshake' introduced

The number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the country has risen to 60, with two fresh positive cases — one each from Delhi and Rajasthan — being reported, the health ministry said on Wednesday (March 11).

Giving details of the breakup, the ministry said five positive cases have been reported in Delhi, while nine persons were diagnosed with the infection in Uttar Pradesh till Wednesday morning. The 60 confirmed cases include 16 Italians, the ministry said. Karnataka and Maharashtra have reported four and two confirmed cases of COVID-19 respectively. Ladakh has recorded two positive cases.

Rajasthan, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Jammu and Kashmir, and Punjab have reported one case each, the ministry said.

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Kerala has till now reported nine cases which includes the three patients who were discharged last month following recovery.

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, who spoke to a few COVID-19 patients admitted at Medanta and Safdarjung hospitals through video calls on Tuesday (March 10), said all the people infected by the disease were stable and showing signs of recovery.

According to the protocol currently followed, a suspected case is tested at least twice before it is confirmed as positive.

Restrictions on travel

Amid rising cases of the COVID-19 pandemic globally, India on Tuesday barred entry of the nationals of three more countries — France, Germany and Spain — suspending the regular as well as e-visas granted to them till date.

“All regular (sticker) Visas/e-Visas granted to nationals of France, Germany and Spain and issued on or before March 11 and who have not yet entered India stand suspended with immediate effect,” said a Bureau of Immigration notification issued late on Tuesday (March 10) night.

Regular visas, including e-visas, granted to all foreign nationals who have travel history to these countries on or after February 1 and who have not yet entered India also stand suspended, it said.

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Issuing a travel advisory, the health ministry also called for passengers with travel history to China, Hong Kong, Republic of Korea, Japan, Italy, Thailand, Singapore, Iran, Malaysia, France, Spain and Germany to undergo self-imposed quarantine for a period of 14 days from the date of their arrival, and their employers to facilitate work-from-home for such employees during this period.

India had already suspended visas granted to the nationals of Italy, Iran, South Korea, Japan, and China.

The Union Health Ministry has strongly urged people to refrain from travelling to China, Italy, Iran, Republic of Korea, Japan, France, Spain and Germany and advised them to avoid non-essential travel abroad in view of the coronavirus outbreak.

Measures taken by states

Kerala

Stepping up efforts to check the spread of coronavirus in Kerala, the state government has sent at least 45 people who returned here from COVID-19 hit Italy to various health facilities, official sources said on Wednesday.

While 35 people including two children and two pregnant women have been shifted to a government district hospital in Aluva, 10 suffering from fever and breathing problems have been admitted to the Kalamassery Medical College Hospital, they said.

Samples collected from them have been sent for examination at the National Institute of Virology lab in Alappuzha, they said.

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All 45 had arrived at the Cochin International Airport here on Tuesday from the European nation.

Meanwhile, the Ernakulam district administration has decided to arrange more facilities at more government hospitals to keep under observation those who are expected to arrive here from foreign countries like Italy in the coming days.

The government decided to scale up efforts after three people from Pathanamthitta district returned from Italy on February 29.

Karnataka

The Karnataka government on Wednesday started a campaign called ‘Namaste over Handshake’ that encourages people to greet in the traditional Indian style, to tackle the spread of coronavirus.

The campaign also includes health advice on how people can protect themselves from the infection by adopting hygiene practices such as regularly washing hands to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

As part of the campaign, the state health and family welfare department has uploaded a poster on the social media, featuring a Bharatnatyam dancer draped in a red saree saying Namaste. “Use Namasthe to greet others, fight against corona” read a message on the poster online.

The poster has health helpline numbers (104 and 011- 23978046) for public queries on the viral disease, which has claimed 4,251 lives worldwide.

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A health department official said that as part of the campaign, posters have been uploaded on social media and it would be printed and despatched to different districts to be put up at important junctions.

“We had been working on this idea. Kerala has already done it. They are using Kathakali dansseus whereas we are using a Bharatanatyam dancer as our model,” the official said.

Medical Education Minister K Sudhakar too had insisted that people should adopt ‘Namasthe’ or ‘Namaskara’ to greet people instead of handshakes or hugs.

Delhi

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought the stand of the Centre and the Delhi government on a PIL seeking proper and adequate measures to combat coronavirus.

A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar issued notice to the Ministry of Health and the Delhi government seeking their replies on the public interest litigation (PIL) filed by an advocate. The petition, by lawyer Triveni Potekar, seeks directions to the Centre and the Delhi government to make available important and relevant information on access to and availability of medical facilities for testing and treatment for the coronavirus disease.

Jammu and Kashmir

All educational institutions, stadiums and sports clubs in Srinagar will be closed from Thursday till further orders amid the coronavirus scare, the city administration has said.

The order is a precautionary measure and “an unavoidable decision” to allow the Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) to plan, sterilize and sanitize schools and colleges, Srinagar Mayor Junaid Azim Mattu said on Wednesday.

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Maharashtra

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray convened a meeting on Wednesday to review steps to be taken to check the spread of coronavirus in the state.

Health Minister Rajesh Tope has submitted a proposal that viewing of Indian Premier League (IPL) matches be restricted to television only, according to sources. “There will be a discussion on how to curb gathering of crowds at marriages and social events,” a source said. The meeting is scheduled at Vidhan Bhavan later in the afternoon, the sources said.

Meanwhile, former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said the opposition would cooperate with the state government in tackling the coronavirus disease. The BJP leader also expressed the need to tell people that they need not panic over the virus.

“We all need to take care in view of the coronavirus. But, at the same time, there is a need to ensure there is no panic. The opposition will cooperate with the government in this regard,” Fadnavis told reporters in the Vidhan Bhavan complex.

Earlier speaking in the state Assembly, Fadnavis, who is the leader of the opposition in the House, highlighted the matter of about one lakh used masks found in an open area in Bhiwandi town of Thane district on Sunday.

Fadnavis claimed that the used masks were brought from other countries and washed for sale in the local market. He demanded action against the guilty.

Speaker Nana Patole directed the government to probe the matter and take appropriate action.

Goa

A 27-year-old man from Goa, who travelled to Italy and Finland last month and came in contact with a coronavirus patient, has been kept at an isolation ward of Goa Medical College and Hospital after he complained of cough and fever, Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Rane said on Wednesday.

The man, a native of Vasco town in South Goa, was working on a ship and returned to the coastal state two days back, Rane said.

(With inputs from agencies)