Commercial passenger flights to remain suspended till May 17 midnight: DGCA

A day after the Modi government announced extension of the coronavirus-induced lockdown till May 17, the DGCA on Saturday said all commercial passenger flights will remain suspended till midnight of May 17.

'It is reiterated that foreign and domestic airlines shall be suitably informed about the opening of their operations whether international to/from India or domestic, respectively, in due course,' a circular of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) stated.

India has been under lockdown since March 25 to curb the spread of coronavirus. All commercial passenger flights have been suspended for this period.

However, cargo flights, medical evacuation flights and special flights permitted by the DGCA are allowed to operate.

Coronavirus has infected over 37,000 people and killed more than 1,200 people in India till now.

The first phase of lockdown in India was from March 25 to April 14. The second phase started on April 15 and would end on May 3. The third phase would be from May 4 to 17.

Medics prepare before collecting samples for swab tests from a Covid-19 mobile testing van, during the nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus, at Ramakrishna Mission area in New Delhi, Saturday, May 2, 2020 PTI

Maharashtra: Four more test positive in Amravati, tally 47

Four persons, including a deceased patient, tested positive for Covid-19 at Amravati in Maharashtra on Saturday, taking the tally in the city to 47, an official said.

Of the 24 swab samples that were tested, results of four have come out positive, district collector Shailesh Naval said.

A deceased 58-year-old man from Kanwar Nagar was among those who tested positive on Saturday, apart from a man from Taj Nagar and one from Tarkheda, he said.

With the death of the Kanwar Nagar resident, the toll of Covid-19 deaths in the city has gone up to eight, while the count stands at 47, the collector said.

CRPF soldiers stand guard during a procession at Katra near Jammu PTI

The Delhi-Meerut expressway during the lockdown on Friday PTI

Maharashtra: 56 patients discharged at a time from hospital

As many as 56 Covid-19 patients, including a three-year-old girl, were discharged at the same time from a civic-run hospital in Mira Bhayandar township in Thane district of Maharashtra after recovery, an official said.

The staff at the hospital, including the doctors, clapped for them and bid them goodbye.

'As per the latest report, a total of 161 persons have tested coronavirus positive in the township. Of them 41 were discharged till a couple of days back. On Saturday, 56 others discharged at one time after their repeat samples tested negative,' the official said.

In-charge officer, Dr B D Arsulkar, said of the 56 patients discharged on Saturday, the youngest one was a three-year-old girl, while three persons were over 70 years of age.

'Sixty others are undergoing treatment. Three patients have died due to the infection in the township,' he said.

Talking to reporters, Municipal Commissioner of Mira Bhayandar, Chandrakant Dange said, 'The administration could control the spread of the virus due to the complete lockdown in place in the township since the last past 12 days. Only medical shops are open and milk is being supplied.'

MLA Geeta Jain said it was perhaps the first time in the state that so many Covid-19 patients were discharged at once.

4 buses carrying 74 students stranded at Kota arrive in Pune

Over 70 students from Maharashtra, who were stranded at Kota in Rajasthan due to the lockdown, were brought to Pune in four buses early on Saturday, officials said.

The Maharashtra government had sent buses to Rajasthan to bring back nearly 1,800 students.

'Four buses carrying 74 students reached the Swargate bus stand here. The last bus reached the depot in the early hours of Saturday,' a district official said.

'All the students and eight drivers went through a health screening and none of them were found with Covid-19 symptoms,' he said.

They were allowed to go after being given 'home quarantine' stamp on their hands, the official added.

He said that these students are from Pune and adjoining districts.

No income, commercial units shut: Delhi villages demand withdrawal of electricity bills

With commercial activities shut for nearly one and a half months and income going down due to the coronavirus lockdown, villages in the national capital have appealed to the Delhi government for relief from paying electricity bills.

Some village associations in letters to authorities, including Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, have sought withdrawal of power bills of commercial establishments and announcement of additional subsidy for residential units in and around villages.

'Since lockdown, all commercial establishments are shut. Also, income from residential units has depleted as the government has asked owners to refrain from seeking rent from tenants,' said Anil Gianchandani, the secretary of Delhi Gramin Samaj.

The Shahpur Jat Society in a letter to the chief minister said even though almost all commercial units in Delhi are shut, the electricity companies are sending provision bills to residents of Shahpur Jat, Munirka, Ber Sarai, Kishangarh, Mehrauli and others.

Shahpur Jat Society has also demanded the power discoms to not issue bills during the lockdown period.

First special train carrying nearly 1,200 migrant labourers reaches Patna

The first 'Shramik Special' train carrying 1,187 stranded migrant labourers from Jaipur reached the Danapur railway station here on Saturday afternoon.

The 24-coach train departed at 10 pm on Friday from Jaipur and reached the Danapur railway station around 2 pm, East Central Railway, Hajipur, Chief Public Relation Officer (CPRO), Rajesh Kumar told PTI.

Medical screening of all the passengers will be carried out first for which 20 medical teams have been deployed.

'After medical examination, they will be served food and sent to their respective districts by buses,' Patna Divisional Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Agarwal told PTI.

Around 100 buses have been stationed at the Danapur railway station for the purpose of sending these passengers to their home districts, he said.

With three more fatalities, death toll rises to 65 in Rajasthan; total cases 2,720

The coronavirus death toll climbed to 65 after three more people, including a minor, succumbed to the infection in Rajasthan, which reported 54 fresh cases on Saturday.

So far, 2,720 virus cases have been reported from the state.

According to an official, two of the deaths were reported from the worst-hit Jaipur and one from Jodhpur.

Jaipur alone accounts for 36 coronavirus deaths in the state.

The official said a 55-year-old man from the Ramganj area was brought dead to the government-run Swai Man Singh hospital in Jaipur on Friday.

His sample was taken and he was found infected with the virus.

The other victim was a 15-year-old boy from the Jaipur's Chandpole area. He died at the J K Lon hospital on Friday after he was brought there with symptoms of coronavirus.

The boy's test report came after his death, confirming it to be a case of coronavirus.

In Jodhpur, a 67-year-old man died at the M G hospital on Thursday, according to a state government official.

Of the fresh cases, the maximum 30 were reported from Jodhpur, 17 from Jaipur, three from Ajmer, two from Alwar, and one each from Kota and Chittorgarh.

Of the virus 2,720 patient so far, 1,121 have recovered, of which 714 have been discharged from hospitals.

The state has 1,534 active cases now.

Functioning of Delhi HC, district courts restricted till May 17

The Delhi High Court on Saturday decided to restrict its and the district courts' functioning to urgent matters only till May 17, in view of the extended lockdown announced by the Centre in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to government data, the novel coronavirus has so far infected 37,336 people and claimed 1,218 lives in the country.

The Administrative and General Supervision Committee of the High Court, headed by Chief Justice D N Patel, decided that the restriction would be in place till May 17 and only urgent matters would continue to be heard via video-conferencing.

The administrative order said the progress of hearing urgent matters in the high court has been tremendous and all the courts in Delhi, including the high court, have already dealt with more than 11,427 urgent matters after the announcement of the lockdown.

Bihar reports fourth death

A 45-year-old COVID-19 patient died at a hospital here on Saturday, taking the death toll in the state to four, a top official said.

Principal Secretary, Health, Sanjay Kumar said the patient, who hailed from Sitamarhi district, had been suffering from 'terminal stage' lung cancer and died of cardiorespiratory arrest.

He had visited Mumbai recently for cancer treatment and returned to Sitamarhi on April 28, the officer said.

Migrants from Jaipur arrive by Shramik Special train at Danapur junction, during the nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus, in Patna, Saturday, May 02, 2020. PTI

Health workers wearing protective gear during a door-to-door thermal screening at a slum area to detect Covid-19 positive cases, amid the ongoing nationwide lockdown, in Kolkata, Saturday, May 02, 2020. PTI

MHA reconstitutes empowered groups

The eleven empowered groups of officers created by the central government to implement Covid-19 containment measures in the country have been reconstituted, an official spokesperson said on Saturday.

The reconstitution of the groups, first created on March 29 under the Disaster Management Act, was necessitated as some members either retired, appointed or were transferred from their earlier posting.

An order for reconstituting the empowered groups was issued by Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla on Friday, the spokesperson said.

'Empowered groups under Disaster Management Act, 2005, reconstituted for planning and ensuring implementation of Covid-19 activities,' the spokesperson added.

Their terms and conditions will remain the same, according to the order.

With Goa getting green zone tag, plan to reopen OPDs: Minister

After being classified as a green zone in connection with the coronavirus outbreak, Goa will work towards restarting out-patient departments (OPDs) in its district and sub district hospitals, state health minister Vishwajit Rane said on Saturday.

These facilities were closed down when the outbreak began in order to stall the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Rane said the OPDs will be opened in a phased manner, though the one at the Goa Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), the state's nodal COVID-19 facility, will continue to remain closed till further notice.

The state has a district hospital each in north and south Goa while the sub district facility is in Ponda.

Bengal to seek written statements from ration dealers over receipt of adequate foodgrains

To check misappropriation of items in the public distribution system, the West Bengal government is planning to seek written undertakings from ration dealers stating they are receiving adequate quantities of good quality foodgrains for distribution among beneficiaries, officials said on Saturday.

The initiative will start from Purulia district, where such written undertakings will be sought from 1,000 ration dealers, they said.

State Food and Supplies Minister Jyotipriyo Mullick said the initiative will be gradually expanded throughout the state to ensure smooth functioning of the PDS.

'We have planned this initiative to ensure that the dealers are receiving good quality foodgrains and other items in adequate quantities. As of now, it will start from Purulia and will be gradually expanded to Bankura and Birbhum and then to the entire state,' Mullick told PTI.

The minister had recently held an emergency meeting with Purulia district officials regarding immediate procurement of paddy for keeping the stocks ready for distribution.

The state government requires around five lakh tonnes of rice every month to serve the huge number of beneficiaries in the state around nine crores, department officials said.

Since the lockdown was imposed, around six lakh people in the state are also being served five kg of rice per head every month under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana, they said.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has also announced free foodgrains and ration to 7.5 crore people in the state till September.

She said an additional two kg of rice is also being delivered to the residences of the students under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) and the midday meal scheme.

3 SRPF jawans among 5 new cases in Jalna; tally 8

Five persons, including three SRPF jawans, have tested coronavirus positive, taking the overall tally of such patients in Jalna district of Maharashtra to eight, an official said on Saturday.

Two of the total eight patients have recovered from the infection so far, the official said.

'The test reports of the five new patients, including three jawans of the State Reserve Police Force (SRPF), were received on Friday night,' district civil surgeon Madhukar Rathod said.

The three SRPF jawans, who are natives of Jalna, were posted at Malegaon, which has emerged as the Covid-19 hotspot in Nashik district.

A medics collects samples for swab tests from a Covid-19 mobile testing van, during the nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus, at Ramakrishna Mission area in New Delhi, Saturday, May 2, 2020. PTI

The death toll due to Covid-19 rose to 1,223 and the number of cases climbed to 37,776 in the country on Saturday, registering an increase of 71 deaths and a record jump of 2,411 cases in 24 hours, according to the Union health ministry.

The number of active Covid-19 cases stood at 26,565, while 10,017 people have recovered and one patient has migrated, the ministry said.

'Thus, around 26.52 per cent patients have recovered so far,' a senior health ministry official said.

The total number of cases includes 111 foreign nationals.

A total of 71 deaths were reported since Friday evening -- 26 from Maharashtra, 22 from Gujarat, eight from Madhya Pradesh, four from Rajasthan, three from Karnataka, two each from Delhi and Uttar Pradesh and one each from Bihar, Haryana, Punjab and Tamil Nadu.

Of the 1,223 deaths, Maharashtra accounts for the maximum with 485 fatalities, followed by Gujarat (236), Madhya Pradesh (145), Rajasthan (62), Delhi (61), Uttar Pradesh (43) and West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh at 33 each.

The death toll reached 28 in Tamil Nadu, 26 in Telangana, while Karantaka has reported 25 fatalities due to the disease.

Punjab has registered 20 Covid-19 deaths, Jammu and Kashmir eight, Kerala and Haryana have reported four deaths each, and Jharkhand and Bihar have recorded three Covid-19 deaths each.

Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha and Assam have reported a fatality each, according to the ministry data.

According to the health ministry data updated in the evening, the highest number of confirmed cases in the country is from Maharashtra at 11,506, followed by Gujarat (4,721), Delhi (3,738), Madhya Pradesh (2,719), Rajasthan (2,666), Tamil Nadu (2,526) and Uttar Pradesh (2,455).

• Andaman & Nicobar 33
• Andhra Pradesh 1525
• Arunachal Pradesh 1
• Assam 42
• Bihar 476
• Chandigarh 88
• Chhattisgarh 43
• Delhi 3738
• Goa 7
• Gujarat 4721
• Haryana 369
• Himachal Pradesh 41
• Jammu & Kashmir 666
• Jharkhand 110
• Karnataka 601
• Kerala 499
• Ladakh 22
• Madhya Pradesh 2715
• Maharashtra 11506
• Manipur 2
• Meghalaya 12
• Mizoram 1
• Odisha 156
• Puducherry 10
• Punjab 772
• Rajasthan 2720
• Tamil Nadu 2526
• Telangana 1044
• Tripura 4
• Uttarakhand 58
• Uttar Pradesh 2455
• West Bengal 744

'Our figures are being reconciled with the ICMR,' the ministry said on its website, adding, '179 cases are being assigned to states for contact tracing.'

Statewise distribution is subject to further verification and reconciliation, it said.

First special train to Bihar carrying nearly 1,200 migrant labourers arrives at Patna

The first 'Shramik Special' train to Bihar, carrying 1,187 stranded migrant labourers, reached the Danapur railway station here from Rajasthan's Jaipur on Saturday afternoon after a 16-hour journey.

The 24-coach train left Jaipur at 10 pm on Friday and reached the Danapur railway station around 2 pm, Chief Public Relation Officer (CPRO), East Central Railway, Hajipur, Rajesh Kumar told PTI.

The train ran point-to-point non-stop, he said.

A medical screening of the passengers was carried out on arrival at the station by 20 medical teams.

'After the medical examination, they will be served food and sent to their respective districts by buses,' Patna Divisional Commissioner Sanjay Kumar Agarwal told PTI.

Around 100 buses have been stationed at the Danapur railway station to send these people to their home districts, he said.

The seating arrangement in these buses has been made keeping in mind social-distancing norms. The buses will ply with a half of their seating capacity, Agarwal added.

This is the first run of a special train to Bihar to bring back migrants stranded during the nationwide lockdown to contain the coronavirus spread.

Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi had recently estimated the count of migrants from Bihar held up during the lockdown in different parts of the country at around 27 lakh.

These passengers will be quarantined for 21 days at their respective block-level quarantine centres, Agarwal said while making it clear that the train carried only migrant labourers who were working in Rajasthan.

Patna District Magistrate Kumar Ravi, Senior Superintendent of Police Upendra Sharma and a host of other senior district administration officials were present at the Danapur railway station, on the outskirts of the state capital, to keep a close tab on the operation.

Train leaves Kerala with 1100 migrant workers for Jharkhand

A non-stop train carrying around 1,100 stranded 'guest workers' from Kerala left for Hatia in Jharkhand on Saturday. Four more trains are expected to leave with the workers from Tirur, Kozhikode, Ernakulam South and Aluva stations later this evening for Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha.

The train left the central station here at around 3.25 PM, railway sources said.

The passengers, including women, children and the elderly, are expected to reach Jharkand on Monday, the sources said.

This is the second train which left with the guest workers, a day after around 1,100 migrant workers from Aluva in Kochi departed for Bhubaneswar in Odisha on Friday night.

Maharashtra: 20 people from Nanded gurdwara test positive

Twenty persons currently residing in Gurdwara Langar Sahib at Nanded in Maharashtra have tested coronavirus positive, an official said on Saturday.

Swabs of total 97 people residing in the gurdwara had been collected for testing. Of them 20 have tested positive for the infection, civil surgeon Dr Neelkanth Bhosikar said.

'They have been admitted to NRI Bhawan Covid Care Centre,' he said. The samples had been collected on April 30 and May 1, he said.

Reports of 25 others have tested negative, while those of 41 others are awaited. Reports of 11 others are undecided, Bhosikar said in a statement.

With this, the number of Covid-19 patients in Nanded has reached 26, he added.

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3 deaths, 12 new cases reported in Rajasthan

Three fresh deaths and 12 new positive cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Rajasthan, officials said Saturday.

Two deaths were reported from Jaipur and one from Jodhpur.

A 55-year-old man from Ramganj was brought dead to SMS hospital in Jaipur and a 15-year-old boy from Chandpole died at JK Lon hospital of the city on Friday. In Jodhpur, a 67-year-old man died in MG hospital on Thursday, according to a state government official.

Of the 12 new cases, five are from Jaipur, two each from Jodhpur and Dholpur and one each from Ajmer, Chittorgarh and Kota.

A total of 2,678 people have been tested positive for the virus in the state and 65 of them have died.

Delhi: 41 people from same building in Kapashera test positive

Forty one people residing in a building in southwest Delhi's Kapashera area tested positive for coronavirus on Saturday, an official said.

A case of Covid-19 had been reported from the building situated in theke wali gali on April 18, the official said.

'Keeping in mind the high density of population in this particular building, the district administration took the proactive decision of sealing and containing the building on April 19,' official said.

The guidelines mandate sealing an area when minimum three cases have been reported.

122 men from single CRPF battalion in Delhi test positive

The number of COVID-19 personnel in a Delhi-based battalion of the Central Reserve Police Force, the country's largest paramilitary, has risen to 122, officials said on Saturday.

The men belong to the 31st battalion of the paramilitary, based in Mayur Vihar Phase-III area of the national capital, that has been entirely sealed after the huge numbers of the COVID-19 infection started building up over the last few days.

'A total of 122 troopers of this battalion have tested positive for the virus. Results for over 100 more are awaited,' a senior official said.

The brighter side is that the maximum of these infected troopers are asymptomatic, he said.

The personnel are admitted to an isolation facility of the Delhi government at Mandoli.

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