In a video address to the nation at 9 am, Modi asked people to light candles and diyas, or switch on torches or mobile phone flashlights, for nine minutes at 9 pm on Sunday, April 5, to “illuminate the common purpose we are all fighting for”.

The average countrywide prices of vegetables such as onions and tomatoes, which were softening in the first fortnight of March, recorded a perceptible spurt in the second half of the month after March 15 when lockdowns became effective.

At Bhangore area of South 24 Parganas on Wednesday night, a patrolling team came under attack when it stopped youths from gathering, a police officer said.

When lockdown lifts, will need trained, skilled labour pool, says Coimbatore-based KPR Mill which has 17,500 workers on premises.

On March 6, four days after Maharashtra registered its first two Covid-19 cases, the state government realised it would be wise to cancel the event. The organisers also agreed, officials said.

According to figures uploaded on the MGNREGA official portal, 5.47 crore households sought MGNREGA works, the highest since 2010-11, when the number was 5.5 crore. It was 5.27 crore in 2018-19.

The government shared information on the number of isolation beds and ventilators in Covid-19 dedicated hospitals during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s video conference with Chief Ministers Thursday morning.

Of the 141 new cases in the Capital, 129 are people evacuated from Markaz Nizamuddin, the headquarters of the Tablighi Jamaat, where a congregation of over 4,000 was held last month.

The study, led by Sandip Mandal of the ICMR’s Department of Health Research, estimates that the current 21-day lockdown will reduce epidemic peak by 43 per cent and total mortality by 19 per cent.

While Kerala, which was among the earliest to report COVID-19 cases and has at least two of these hotspots, has already started using these rapid tests, other states like Tamil Nadu and Chhattisgarh have been pushing for it.

India coronavirus lockdown: Within the government, a “limited lockdown” in some areas is an option that seems to be gaining ground, at this point.

Interacting with the Chief Ministers via video-conference, Prime Minister Narendra Modi suggested that the lifting of the lockdown be staggered, earmarking some days for vehicles, other days for cyclists, and that fewer people should be in offices.

PM Modi informed Merkel about the recent Indian initiatives to disseminate simple yoga exercises and immunity-enhancing Ayurvedic remedies.

Anup Kumar Yadav, Director of National Health Mission, said in most of the cases of death, the patients neither had a foreign travel history nor came in close contact with any infected person.

During an interaction on Monday with Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, exporters said if India does not begin shipments at this juncture, its export market will be taken over by Chinese products.

In a detailed interview to The Indian Express in which he explained a range of issues from testing to India’s relatively low numbers, Dr Guleria was asked what his advice would be to the government on the next steps.

While most states have written letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking that the Centre clear their pending dues, they are likely to press these demands at a video conference he has scheduled on Thursday.

So far, 53 members of the outfit, who were part of a congregation at the Markaz Nizamuddin last month, have tested positive in Delhi.

Earlier in the day, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, in its first statement on the issue, said 154 COVID-19 cases across the country had been traced to the Delhi meet.

On Wednesday, after addressing a meeting to review the state’s preparedness to meet the COVID-19 threat, Chief Minister Chouhan ordered the removal of Hajela.

As per the guidelines on clinical management of COVID-19 issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, patients with mild symptoms, “may not” require hospitalisation “unless there is a concern for rapid deterioration”.

Outside, a voice from a loudspeaker mounted on a police jeep exhorts people to stay inside, and to wash their hands to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Additional Chief Secretary Awanish Awasthi said that 95 per cent of those who had attended the meeting and had returned to the state have been identified, while 10-12 people remain unknown.

With 146 positive cases, including two deaths, being reported in the last 24 hours, the total count has gone up to 1,397 (124 recovered, 35 dead).