Prime Minister begins his speech, saying:

• Social distancing is the only way out
• We have to break the cycle of infections
• Social distancing is for all, not only for those who are ill
• Social distancing only way out
• Total lockdown from midnight
• Saving lives is my priority
• Three-week lockdown from midnight
• Do not venture out in the next 21 days
• Even Italy and US, where healthcare is among the best in the world, could not mitigate the effects of the virus
  
• No matter what, we should stay at home
  
• Don't cross the lakshman rekha of your home
  
• Remember when there is life there is hope
  
• At home, think of those who are putting their lives at risk to help you... Doctors, nurses, ward boys, safari karmachari
  
• Please pray for those who are cleaning the neighbourhood
  
• Think of those in the media, police who are working 24 hours to make your life easier
  
• We are taking all measures to ensure regular supply of essentials
  
• Rs 15,000 crore allocated by Centre to improve health apparatus
• Told state governments to prioritise only healthcare now
  
• Do not believe in rumours and blind superstition
  
• Do not take any medicine without consulting doctors
  
• 21-day lockdown is a long period, but it is the most important thing to do in this hour
  

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the nation at 8pm on Tuesday on the coronavirus outbreak.

"Will address the nation at 8 PM today, 24th March 2020, on vital aspects relating to the menace of COVID-19," Modi tweeted.

Modi had addressed the nation on efforts to combat the virus on March 19, but announced he would be doing so a day earlier engulfing the nation with suspense and concern about possible measures he would unveil.

As cases of the viral infection surged, authorities have put almost the entire country under lockdown, banning gathering of people and suspending road, rail and air traffic till March 31.

Entire Bengal under lockdown

Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday extended the ongoing lockdown in force in Calcutta and other urban areas of West Bengal to the entire state till March 31 to contain the coronavirus outbreak.

The number of people getting infected is rising now, Banerjee, also the health minister of the state, said and urged citizens of the state to stay indoors and cooperate with the administration during the lockdown.

Banerjee announced a scheme Prochesta under which a financial help of Rs 1,000 will be extended to those working in the unorganised sector, who will be the worst hit by the lockdown.

The lockdown in Kolkata and several urban agglomerations had begun on Monday and was scheduled to continue till March 27 midnight.

A man, wearing a mask, looks from a closed gate during lockdown in the wake of coronavirus pandemic, in Calcutta, Tuesday, March 24, 2020 PTI

Odisha extends lockdown to whole state

The whole of Odisha will be under lockdown from Tuesday midnight as a precautionary measure to contain the coronavirus outbreak, a top state government official said.

Fourteen of the state's 30 districts are already under a lockdown.

The government's chief spokesperson on COVID-19, Subroto Bagchi, said the shutdown will be in force till March 29.

He said the decision was taken after the state's chief secretary chaired a meeting with all district collectors.

The lockdown, which initially started with five districts on March 22, and was then extended to nine others, will now cover the entire state, Bagchi added.

The Odisha government had already announced suspension of all public transport services including intra-state buses, taxis and auto-rickshaws across the state from Tuesday to restrict movement of people.

Bagchi said essential services like hospitals, pathology labs, medicine shops, fire brigade, water and electric supply will be kept out of the purview of the lockdown.

Cases cross 500, death toll now 10

Coronavirus cases crossed 500 and one more death from the infection was reported, taking the toll to ten, as the Centre on Tuesday asked the states and Union territories to clamp curfew wherever necessary in the wake of people defying lockdown orders in several parts of the country.

As 32 states and Union territories announced complete lockdown till March 31 to deal with the pandemic, authorities are taking a serious view of people continuing to venture out despite the lockdown considering that the coming days and weeks are going to be extremely crucial to contain the spread of the viral infection.

Punjab, Maharashtra and Puducherry have already declared curfew in their respective areas.

States like Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday decided to expand the lockdown to cover the entire state. All 75 districts in Uttar Pradesh will be under a three-day lockdown from Wednesday to fight the coronavirus outbreak.

In Maharashtra, a 65-year-old coronavirus patient died in Mumbai, taking the death toll due to COVID-19 to three in the metropolis. The western state has accounted for 101 of the total cases followed by Kerala (105).

According to the data updated on Tuesday morning, the total number of COVID-19 cases rose to 492, including 446 active cases. The figure includes 41 foreign nationals. Cases of a few more persons having tested positive for the infection were reported during the day.

The earlier nine deaths were recorded in Maharashtra (2), Bihar, Karnataka, Delhi, Gujarat and Punjab, West Bengal and Himachal Pradesh.

Thirty-seven people have been cured/discharged/migrated, according to the official data.

As cases of the viral infection surged, authorities have put almost the entire country under lockdown, banning gathering of people and suspending road, rail and air traffic in unprecedented steps till March 31.

Over 72,460 people are under observation, with 467 in isolation wards of various hospitals AP

105 cases in Kerala, 14 fresh cases on Tuesday

Kerala reported 14 fresh cases of coronavirus on Tuesday, taking the total number of positive cases in the state to 105.

A health worker is among those affected, chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters after a Covid19 review meeting this evening.

While six cases were reported from Kasaragod, two new positive patients were detected from Kozhikode, he said.

Over 72,460 people are under observation, with 467 in isolation wards of various hospitals.

Four persons had been treated and discharged earlier-- three from Wuhan and one from Kannur.

City streets wear a deserted look during lockdown in the wake of coronavirus pandemic, in Prayagraj, Tuesday, March 24, 2020 PTI

A top functionary of the central government called up some of the chief ministers and apprised them of the necessity of imposing the curfew if people continue to venture out of their homes.

The state governments have been conveyed that public gatherings could lead to escalation of the prevailing situation.

"Now, it is up to the state governments to take action as per the local situation and give necessary instructions to the district magistrates who have the powers to impose curfew," the official said.

In Kerala, the latest state to order a lockdown, buses went off the roads and shops, barring those selling essentials, remained shut but violations were galore, prompting police to book culprits.

Autorickshaws and private vehicles, including two-wheelers, were seen plying at several places disregarding instructions that people should not venture out without any valid reason.

At some places in Haryana, police had a tough time to persuade people who were out for non-essential work and sent them back to their homes.

In Bhiwani, at a check barrier, police had to deal with number of two-wheeler riders many of them who were out on roads for non-essential work.

In Delhi, Union health minister Harsh Vardhan reviewed the status of containment and management of COVID-19 in the country and emphasised on the quality and sturdiness of the community surveillance and contact tracing.

As on date, cumulatively 1,87,904 persons are under surveillance, and around 35,073 have completed 28 days observation period as on day, an official statement said. Vardhan visited the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) Control Room and the Testing Laboratories, and reviewed the current status there with the senior officials.

He also interacted with the National Health Mission (NHM) MDs and senior surveillance officers of the states/UTs through a video conference.

You all form our frontline warriors, who through supporting people with correct, timely and vital information, are rendering yeoman service to the nation. I salute the scientists who work with the testing procedures, and put themselves at risk in their line of duty

Health minister Harsh Vardhan to National Health Mission MDs

"You all form our frontline warriors, who through supporting people with correct, timely and vital information, are rendering yeoman service to the nation. I salute the scientists who work with the testing procedures, and put themselves at risk in their line of duty," he told them.

Won't deduct salary of employees: IndiGo

Budget carrier IndiGo has assured its employees that it will not make any deduction in their salaries or leaves due to the suspension of domestic flights till March 31.

The government's decision to suspend domestic flight would come into effect from midnight Tuesday, as part of larger efforts to curb spreading of coronavirus infections.

In an e-mail to his employees, IndiGo chief executive officer Ronojoy Dutta said the company has "reasonable" level of advanced bookings for April and it was "anxious' to fly again albeit with a reduced capacity.

"For those who don't have to be working during this temporary suspension of operations, we will make no deduction of salaries or leaves," Dutta said in the e-mail.

A city street wears a deserted look during Janata curfew in the wake of coronavirus pandemic, in Bengaluru, Sunday, March 22, 2020. PTI

Eight new cases in Karnataka, total infections 41

Eight new positive cases of coronavirus were confirmed in Karnataka, taking the total number of the affected in the state to 41 on Tuesday.

"Out of 38 cases detected and confirmed in Karnataka so far, three are transit passengers of Kerala who have landed in airports in Karnataka", an official update said.

Between 2 pm on Monday and 8 am on Tuesday, four more new cases, including three with a travel history to Dubai, have been confirmed in Karnataka, the update said.

Meanwhile, three persons, including two Australia returnees, who violated the home quarantine advise have been apprehended here and isolated, it said.

Locals gather to collect LPG cylinder after lockdown as a precautionary measure against coronavirus pandemic, at Uzan Bazaar in Guwahati, Tuesday, march 24, 2020 PTI

Sikkim to be placed under lockdown

Sikkim will be placed under lockdown from 6am on Wednesday till March 31 to check the spread of coronavirus, a senior official announced.

Jacob Khaling Rai, the political secretary to chief minister Prem Singh Tamang, said in a video message that the decision was taken in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

Sikkim has not reported any positive case of coronavirus, which has infected nearly 500 people in the country.

During this week-long lockdown, all shops and business establishments will remain shut throughout the state, he said.

Private vehicles and taxis will not be allowed to ply, Rai said.

Essential services such as pharmacies, petrol pumps, LPG supply and movement of government and Army vehicles have been kept out of the purview of the lockdown.

Other essential services such as telecom, internet, postal, banks and ATMs will remain operational during the period. Civil defense personnel will also be exempted.

No new COVID-19 case in Delhi

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Tuesday no new coronavirus case had been reported in the national capital in the last 24 hours and that the biggest challenge now was to not let the situation go out of control.

Kejriwal said on Twitter that five people infected with COVID-19 had been discharged from hospitals after getting treatment.

"In the last 24 hours, no new case (of coronavirus) has been reported. Five people have been discharged. We should not be happy right now," he tweeted at 9.59 am.

"The biggest challenge now is to not let the situation go out of control. Need your (people''s) cooperation for this," Kejriwal added in his tweet in Hindi.

The national capital has reported 30 cases of COVID-19.

EC defers march 26 RS polls

The Election Commission has deferred the Rajya Sabha polls scheduled for March 26 in view of the coronavirus outbreak, official sources said on Tuesday.

Election to fill up 55 seats in the upper huse of Parliament was to be held on March 26, but 37 candidates have already been elected without a contest.

The decision on holding the election for the remaining 18 seats will be taken based on the prevailing situation, the sources said.

32 states, UTs under complete lockdown

As many as 32 states and Union territories have declared complete lockdown so far covering 560 districts, in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, officials said on Tuesday.

Three other states and UTs have imposed lockdowns in certain areas in their territories, covering 58 districts, and one UT has imposed closure of some activities in its jurisdiction.

People rush with their vehicles rush to petrol pumps to fill tanks during the lockdown in the wake of coronavirus outbreak in Thane, Mumbai, Monday, March 23, 2020 PTI

"Following the central government's communication to state governments and UTs, a total of 32 states and UTs have imposed complete lockdown covering 560 districts," a government official said.

There are 28 states and eight UTs in the country.

COVID-19 cases rise to 33 in Gujarat

The total number of Covid-19 patients in Gujarat rose to 33 with three more coronavirus positive cases reported in the state, the health department said on Tuesday.

Out of the three new cases two are of local transmission in Gandhinagar, while one patient reported from Surat has travel history to Saudi Arabia.

"Three new cases of coronavirus have been reported in Gujarat. The total number of cases has risen to 33," the state health department said in a release.

One COVID-19 patient has died in the state so far. The death of a 67-year-old man was reported from Surat on Sunday. He had interstate travel history and was suffering from various ailments like kidney failure and asthma, officials earlier said.