1,823 new cases since Wednesday

In its evening update, the Union Health Ministry said 1,075 people have died due to COVID-19 so far across the country after 67 deaths were reported since Wednesday evening. The number of cases has increased to 33,610, including 1,823 new cases detected in the last 24 hours.

However, a PTI tally of the death toll reported by various states and union territories, as of 6.45 PM, showed at least 1,093 people have lost their lives.

There are more than 24,000 active patients across the country, while more than 8,300 people have recovered and one patient has migrated. The total number of cases include 111 foreign nationals.

Among states, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Karnataka and West Bengal have reported new cases, while more people have died in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal, among other places since Wednesday evening.

At a press briefing on the COVID-19 situation, Health Ministry's Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said that the current fatality rate among detected is 3.2 per cent, with 65 per cent being males and 35 per cent females.

'If we divide it on the basis of age, then 14 per cent fatality has been seen in those aged below 45 years, 34.8 per cent between 45-60 years and 51.2 per cent in those above 60 years,' he said.

Agarwal further said that the recovery rate for COVID-19 has improved from 13.06 per cent to over 25 per cent in the past 14 days.

Agarwal also said the doubling rate for COVID-19 cases has improved to 11 days as against 3.4 days before the lockdown was imposed.

‘Open up economy’

As the nation awaited further clarity on the government's next move on the lockdown, whose second phase ends this Sunday, former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan said India should open up its economy in a measured way soon to save jobs.

He estimated that Rs 65,000 crore would be needed to support the poor amid the crisis.

Interacting with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi through video conferencing, Rajan said it is 'all too easy to have a lockdown forever', but that is not sustainable for the economy and India does not have the capacity to support people across the spectrum for too long.

A nationwide lockdown has been in place since March 25. First it was announced for 21 days till April 14, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi later extended it till May 3 to contain the coronovirus pandemic.

Several states requested the Centre to allow running of trains to facilitate transportation of migrant workers on Thursday with the Union home ministry insisting on strict adherence to its guidelines that allowed travel only by road.

On Thursday, at least three states, including Punjab, Kerala and Telangana, iterated requests that railways be allowed to run special trains so that migrant labourers, tourists, students and pilgrims could be sent back to their homes.

As per the Union Home ministry order issued on Wednesday, buses would be used for transporting the stranded persons and these vehicles would be sanitised and will have to follow safe social distancing norms on seating.

On Thursday, a senior official said all states and UTs will have to 'strictly follow' these guidelines.

But the Kerala government renewed its demand for special non-stop trains to transport those who are keen to leave for their respective homes states. There are 3.60 lakh workers in over 20,000 camps in the state and majority of them, hailing from West Bengal, Assam, Odisha, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, wanted to return home.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh also urged the Prime Minister to arrange special trains for transportation of migrant workers, while he directed all deputy commissioners to prepare data of migrant labourers stranded in the state due to the lockdown.

Some states have already brought back some migrant workers from other places. The Madhya Pradesh government said it has brought back over 20,000 migrant labourers, who were stranded in other states due to the COVID-19 lockdown.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath asked officials to ready quarantine centres, shelter homes and community kitchens as the state readied for the return of migrant workers stranded in different parts of the country.

Other states began taking administrative measures to begin the process. Maharashtra issued a notification designating all the district collectors as the nodal authority for the movement of stranded people into or outside the state and also within the state, while the Gujarat government appointed 16 bureaucrats as nodal officers to facilitate the movement of such people across borders

An elderly man sells toy balls during ongoing Covid-19 lockdown, on the outskirts of Amritsar, Thursday, April 30, 2020. PTI

People at a quarantine centre, in wake of the coronavirus pandemic, during the nationwide lockdown in Kolkata, Thursday, April 30, 2020. PTI