1. Punjab Goes Odisha Way, Word on National Lockdown Awaited
Setting the stage for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s video-conference on Saturday, 11 April, with chief ministers to discuss exit strategies after the 21-day national coronavirus lockdown period ends on 14 April, Punjab became the second state after Odisha to announce that it would extend the restrictions till the month-end.
Punjab was among the early states to impose a lockdown, on 22 March, two days before the central government imposed restrictions nationwide to contain the outbreak.
On Friday, 10 April, the state government said in a statement that the Cabinet decision to extend the lockdown till 1 May was taken to check community spread and prevent overcrowding at mandis. It said that Chief Minister Amarinder Singh will convey the decision to the Prime Minister on Saturday.
(Source: The Indian Express)
2. 1,00,000 Dead in 101 Days, Half of Them in Just a Week
In the 101 days since the world first heard about the mysterious new virus behind Covid-19, a person has, on average, succumbed to the illness every 90 seconds.
On Friday, the toll surpassed 1,00,000, a milestone that could well be dwarfed soon at the current rate of the pandemic’s growth: fatalities have doubled and the total number of infections grew by 6,00,000 in the last week alone, according to the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Research Center.
In India, national capital Delhi recorded 183 new cases on Friday – the largest single-day jump. Most of these (154), however, were related to the Nizamuddin cluster from where roughly 2,300 have been taken to hospitals and quarantine centres. Overall, the country recorded 855 new cases and 19 new deaths, taking total infections to 7,556 and fatalities to 250.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
3. No Evidence of Community Transmission Yet, Repeats Government
The government on Friday, 10 April, once again reiterated that it has found no evidence yet of any community transmission in India and that the rate of infection remains low with just 2% of 16,002 samples tested on Thursday testing positive.
It also, once again, gave an assurance that the public would be informed if the coronavirus outbreak reached Stage 3 spread.
(Source: The Times of India)
4. Surat: Migrant Workers Resort to Violence, Demand Return to Home States
Thousands of migrant powerloom workers, residing in the labour colonies in Laskana area on the outskirts of Surat city and employed in the factories in Diamond Nagar Industrial area, blocked roads and resorted to arson in violation of lockdown on Friday, 10 April. The workers wanted to go back home after they apparently heard that the lockdown would be extended. .
Sources said that over 20,000 powerloom workers, who are natives of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, broke into a timber godown on the main road and took out wooden blocks and set them on fire. Police reached the spot to control the situation.
The workers had also pelted stones on the vehicles of the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) of the Surat unit that provides cooked food packets to around 500 workers.
(Source: The Indian Express)
5. Unprecedented: Apple, Google Team Up on COVID-19 Contact Tracing
Apple and Google on Friday, 10 April, announced a partnership in which the two tech giants will help governments and health agencies track the spread of the coronavirus using Bluetooth technology. Both companies are launching a tracing tool for iOS and Android through which it would be easier to notify people via smartphone if they come into contact with someone with the COVID-19.
The two companies will launch an API (or developer tool) in May that will “enable interoperability between Android and iOS devices using apps from public health authorities.”
The apps are set to be made available via the iTunes App Store and the Google Play Store. Such collaboration between the two tech giants, both running their own competing smartphones and operating systems, is unprecedented in more ways than one.
(Source: The Indian Express)
6. Indian Army Targets Terror Launch Pads After Pakistan Violates Ceasefire
.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&fmt=webp&width=720)
The Indian Army on Friday, 10 April, said it has caused heavy damage on terrorist launchpads as well as Pakistani army’s gun areas after an unprovoked ceasefire violation by the neighbouring country’s troops in two areas along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir.
A defence spokesperson said there was strong retaliation by the Indian Army to the ceasefire violation in the Keran sector in Kupwara district this afternoon. “Own troops retaliated effectively and strongly. Precision targeting of Gun Areas, terrorist launch pads and ammunition dump carried out. Reports of heavy damage on enemy side,” said Srinagar-based spokesperson Col Rajesh Kalia. “(There are) reports of heavy damage on the enemy side,” he added.
(Source: The Indian Express)
7. Capital Now Has 30 Containment Zones, Nearby Areas Are ‘Buffer’
The Delhi government on Friday, 10 April, declared seven more areas in the national capital as containment zones, taking the total to 30, as authorities stepped up efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease that has infected 903 people in the city-state.
The areas include Nabi Karim and Chandni Mahal in central Delhi, Zakir Nagar in south-east Delhi, upscale residential area DLF Capital Greens in west Delhi’s Moti Nagar, Block B in Paschim Vihar, areas around a property in Ashok Nagar and pocket E of GTB Enclave.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
8. Second Doctor Dies in Indore; City’s Coronavirus Mortality Rate 12%
Another medical practitioner died of coronavirus in Indore on Friday, 10 April. The 65-year-old was among six deaths reported during the day, which took the city’s toll to 29.
In a span of few hours, Indore’s mortality rate from coronavirus shot up from 10% to 12% -- four times the national average. The city accounts for around half of MP’s 455 coronavirus cases, and 74% of its deaths.
On Thursday, a doctor had died in Indore – the first medical practitioner in the state to be killed by the virus. Friday’s victim was a retired Ayush officer of Dhar district about 70 km from Indore. He practiced in Brahma Bagh Colony.
(Source: The Times of India)
9. India Asks US to Extend Expiring H-1B Visas
Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla has taken up with the US the issue of extending the expiring H-1B visas of skilled Indian professionals stuck in the country because of the lockdown in India, sources said.
He raised the issue with the US Deputy Secretary of State Stephen E Biegun on Wednesday-a discussion that comes amid concerns that some H-1B visa holders could lose their jobs due to the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This was about 10 days after External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has asked US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to extend the visas of Indian students and skilled professionals. Many of visas are due to expire in the coming weeks, said sources.
(Source: The Indian Express)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)