Coronavirus Outbreak Highlights: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday tweeted that he reviewed the situation of coronavirus and the preparedness of India to deal with the global pandemic, assuring citizens that there was no reason to panic. His tweet came a day after two cases of novel Coronavirus emerged in India. A Delhi-based man, who had recently returned from Italy, tested positive for COVID-19, while a man in Hyderabad was also found to have contracted the disease after he had gone to Dubai where he worked with his colleagues from Hong Kong. Apart from that, an Italian tourist in Jaipur was found to be infected by the virus on Monday.
On Tuesday, Hyatt Regency asked its staff to self-quarantine after a coronavirus-infected man had dined at the hotel restaurant on February 28. It told all staffers who were present in the restaurant on that day to quarantine themselves for 14 days. Apart from this, the hotel will also conduct daily temperature checks for all staffers and contractors upon entering and exiting the hotel, ANI reported the hotel administration as saying.
The Union Government also suspended all regular visas and e-visas, including visa on arrival, issued till March 3 for Italian, Iranian, South Korean and Japanese nationals who have not entered India yet.
Meanwhile, two schools in Noida have been shut for the next few days as one of the students is the child of the Delhi-based man who was tested positive for coronavirus. The exams in one of the schools have also been postponed and the premises have been fumigated.
Financial Express Online brings you latest updates on coronavirus. Stay tuned.
21 Italian nationals were brought from a hotel in South Delhi to Indo-Tibetan Border Police’s (ITBP) quarantine facility in Chhawla for preventive isolation on Tuesday. Their samples have been taken for testing and results are awaited, reports news agency ANI.
Negating fears that coronavirus spreads via people who appear healthy, the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Tuesday said only one per cent of new coronavirus cases registered in China were without symptoms, reports AFP.
Big tech companies such as Twitter, TCS, HCL have taken a number of measures to tackle the situation arising due to spread of Coronavirus across the globe. While Twitter has asked its employees to work from home, tech giants like Tata Consultancy Services and HCL Technologies instructed staff to avoid non-essential travel. | READ MORE HERE
As countries across the world continue to fight the menace of Coronavirus, a top Italian researcher has warned that people should not expect a vaccine to halt the spread of ther virus rather pursue quarantine measures. Massimo Galli, director of the Biomedical Research Institute in Milan, said, “I would be very happy if it was confirmed that the vaccine could be ready by April.” “It is a bitter pill to swallow (but) quarantine measures and the limitation of individual movements in the most affected areas will help stop the spread,” AFP quoted Galli, as saying in an interview.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Delhi has said it is taking all efforts to contain the spread of Coronavirus after a man was tested positive for the the virus on Tuesday. The government has reserved 230 beds in isolation wards being set up at 25 hospitals and also sent advisories to schools mentioning precautions to take to tackle the situation.
An Army officer, who returned from Iran recently, was admitted to the isolation ward of a military hospital at Mhow in Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday for suspected exposure to the coronavirus, news agency PTI reported.
In response to growing economic risk due to Coronavirus outbreak, the US Federal Reserve on Tuesday implemented an emergency rate cut. In a unanimous decision, the Fed’s policy-setting committee cut its key interest rate by a half point to a range of 1.0-1.25, AFP reported.
NATHEALTH, the apex healthcare industry body, has called for a unified response to deal with the impact of Coronavirus after six fresh cases were reported on Tuesday. The government has taken a number of measures to reduce cascading effects of coronavirus impact on human lives, the body said in a statement.
NATHEALTH, the apex healthcare industry body, has called for a unified response to deal with the impact of Coronavirus after six fresh cases were reported on Tuesday. The government has taken a number of measures to reduce cascading effects of coronavirus impact on human lives, the body said in a statement.
With fresh cases of novel coronavirus being reported from Delhi, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, the cabinet secretary on Tuesday held a meeting to review and assess actions being taken for containing COVID-19. According to a press note released by the Health Ministry, the cabinet secretary held the review meeting with the secretaries of ministries concerned, and chief secretaries and health secretaries of states through video conference over the issue.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has issued strict guidelines to tackle Coronavirus threat. The regulatory body has directed airports and airlines to ensure that each aircraft arriving from South Korea, Japan and Italy is subjected to the disinfection process before the boarding begins for next journey. READ MORE HERE
Group of Seven finance officials said on Tuesday they would use all appropriate policy tools to achieve strong, sustainable global growth and safeguard against downside risks posed by the fast-spreading coronavirus. G7 finance ministers were ready to take action, including fiscal measures where appropriate, to aid the response, Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso told reporters. Central banks would continue to support price stability and economic growth. (AP)
The Information and Broadcasting Ministry on Tuesday urged all private radio and TV channels to give “adequate publicity” to the travel advisory issued by the Health Ministry in the wake of coronavirus outbreak in China and its spread in some other countries. The Health Ministry issued the travel advisory on Tuesday — a day after two fresh cases of coronavirus were reported in India — suspending all regular visas/e-visas granted on or before March 3 to nationals of Italy, Iran, South Korea, Japan, who have not yet entered India. The advisory also suspends visa on arrival (VoA) issued by March 3 to Japan and South Korea nationals who have not yet entered India. In its advisory, the I&B Ministry has asked all the private satellite news channels and private FM radio channels to publicise the travel advisory. (PTI)
The Information and Broadcasting Ministry has urged all private radio and TV channels to give “adequate publicity” to the travel advisory issued by the Health Ministry in the wake of coronavirus outbreak in China and its spread in some other countries.
Ensure that adequate protective gears like surgical masks, gloves are available in flights for passengers. Adequate hand sanitising facilities should be there at multiple locations in airports for staff and passengers. Advisable that crew on all flights have protective gears like surgical masks and gloves. Ground handling staff entering international flights should have disposable protective gears like surgical masks, gloves: DGCA to airlines
DGCA asks all airlines to ensure that aircraft arriving from South Korea, Japan and Italy are subjected to disinfection process: Coronavirus
Karnataka Health Minister B Sriramulu said that a medical team is monitoring the health condition of all those people who had come in contact with the software engineer. 24-year-old techie, is admitted in Hyderabad and had recently travelled to Dubai and Bengaluru.
Indian Navy’s Milan multilateral naval exercise planned to be held from March 18 in Visakhapatnam may be cancelled in view of Coronavirus. Govt has asked Army, Navy and Air Force to be prepared for quarantine facilities for over 2500 suspected cases in coming days. New dates are being worked out for the Milan exercise in which around 40 countries were supposed to participate: Government sources (ANI)
Government of Uttar Pradesh: Six suspected cases of COVID19 found in the state. All suspected patients have been admitted to Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi. Samples have been sent to National Institute of Virology, Pune for testing.
The Coronavirus affected passenger in Hyderabad travelled on IndiGo flight 6E 96 (Dubai-Bangalore) on Feb 20. All 4 cabin crew who operated this flight have been placed on home observation. We’re following all prescribed Airport Health Organization guidelines: IndiGo statement
Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia: Chief Minister was informed about the one positive case. In 25 hospitals, the process of setting up of isolation wards is underway. We have to take care of personal hygiene & develop a habit of washing our hands frequently.
The Haryana Police on Tuesday directed its field units to take immediate action to safeguard on-duty personnel from potential coronavirus infection by providing them masks, gloves and hand sanitisers. In an official communication, Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Navdeep Singh Virk said all police personnel who come in close contact with other persons during frisking, interacting, crowd control, access control, traffic duties are at risk of exposure. They need to be protected by equipping them appropriately with masks, gloves and hand sanitisers, he said. (PTI)
Xiaomi announced on Tuesday that it is canceling all upcoming on-ground launch events in India to reduce exposure risk in wake of the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Xiaomi India head Manu Kumar Jain made the announcement in an open letter shared on social media, calling it “an unprecedented yet extremely important step. Read More
“We have received about 35% of cancellation queries from travellers planning their trips to foreign locations during holiday season. We at Yatra.com are advising and helping customers to postpone their travel dates and book their tickets accordingly. Travelers are now looking at alternate foreign destinations from India, such as Sri Lanka and Bhutan for summer travel. There is a hike in enquires to domestic destinations such as Andaman & Nicobar, Goa, Ujjain, North-east cities among others,” says Sabina Chopra, Co-Founder and COO, Corporate Travel and Head of Industry Relations at Yatra.com.
“Due to the prevailing situation of Coronavirus in different locations across the globe, there are many destinations which are expected to face a drop in foreign tourist arrivals because of the advisories issued by various governments. Southeast Asia and Italy being one of the most preferred destinations for Indians, we can anticipate a drop of about 20-25% in terms of future bookings, though it is too early to predict any drastic impact. They are wary of making fresh bookings to the affected locations and airfares to these destinations have dropped by 20-30%,” says Sabina Chopra, Co-Founder and COO, Corporate Travel and Head of Industry Relations at Yatra.com.
Four crew members, who were with the coronavirus-infected passenger from Hyderabad on Febryuary 20 Dubai-Bengaluru flight, are under home observation since March 2, says IndiGo. (PTI)
Italian tourist in Jaipur tests positive for coronavirus, taking the total number of confirmed cases in India to 6, Health Ministry sources have said. (PTI)
The CISF has provided medical kits containing hand sanitisers, gloves and masks to all its personnel deployed to guard 62 civil airports in the country in view of the coronavirus scare, officials said on Tuesday. (PTI)
COVID-19 is a new infection, but there is no need to panic. Government is taking all possible steps to keep Delhi safe and isolation wards are being readied in 25 hospitals, says Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain, reports PTI.
The government on Tuesday put export restrictions on 26 pharma ingredients and medicines, including paracetamol, vitamin B1 and B12, amid the coronavirus outbreak in China. (PTI)
In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, the 14th edition of Art Dubai, which was scheduled to be held on March 25-28, has been “postponed” till further notice, organisers announced on Tuesday. In a statement signed by Benedict Floyd, Pablo del Val, and Chloe Vaitsou, the CEO, artistic director, and international director of the fair respectively, a new Dubai-focused programme has been announced in place of the international fair. “In consideration of the ongoing global health implications of the coronavirus, and having consulted with our partners and stakeholders, Art Dubai today announces that the 14th edition of the international art fair, scheduled for 25 – 28th March 2020, will be postponed. (PTI)
Government authorities recently confirmed that an individual who dined at La Piazza restaurant at Hyatt Regency Delhi on February 28, has been diagnosed with COVID-19. All colleagues who were present at restaurant on February 28 have been asked to self-quarantine for 14 days. The restaurant has also started to conduct daily temperature checks for all colleagues and contractors when they enter and exit the building: Hyatt Regency Delhi (ANI)
Japan’s Olympic minister said Tuesday the contract to hold the Tokyo Games only specifies the event has to be held during 2020. Seiko Hashimoto’s response to a question in the upper house of parliament implies the Olympics could be held later in the year and would not have to start on July 24 as planned. The Paralympics open on Aug. 25. The Tokyo Olympics are being threatened by a fast-spreading virus that has been blamed for 12 deaths in Japan and has shut down most schools, sports competitions and Olympic-related events in the country. The virus that started in China has been detected in at least 70 countries, with 90,000 cases and 3,100 deaths reported. (AP)
Air India Tweeted: This is for the attention of passengers who flew on AI154 Vienna-Delhi of 25th Feb’ 20. One of the passengers has tested positive for Coronavirus. Please follow the protocol notified by the Ministry of Health regarding Corona Virus
After three positive cases of coronavirus emerged in India from Delhi, Telangana and Rajasthan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday tweeted an advisory listing out the measures that can be used to prevent COVID-19. While posting the tweets, PM Modi assured that there was no need to panic and that the citizens of India needed to work together. He further said that “small yet important” precautionary measures could ensure self-protection. Read More
Apart from paracetamol, vitamin B1, B6 and B12, other APIs and formulations over which the export restrictions have been imposed include tinidazole, metronidazole, acyclovir, progesterone, chloramphenicol, ornidazole, formulations made of chloramphenicol, clindamycin salts, neomycin, and paracetamol. Read full report here
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the detection of fresh coronavirus cases in India, saying he should quit wasting India’s time “playing the clown” with his social media accounts when India is facing an emergency. (PTI)
Iran reports 11 new Coronavirus deaths, death toll reaches 77: AFP news agency
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal called an urgent meeting with Health Minister Satyendar Jain and other top officials to review the government’s preparations to deal with coronavirus. The move comes a day after a case of the novel coronavirus was reported in the national capital, PTI reported.
Two private schools in Noida have cancelled classes for the next few days as a precautionary measure after the father of a student tested positive for coronavirus, PTI quoted officials as saying. One of the schools, where a student’s father tested positive, said it will remain shut from March 4 to March 6, the report added.