DN&V Correspondent
New Delhi, April 28: The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in India stood just shy of the 30,000-mark after a surge in cases were reported in Maharashtra, Gujarat and Indore, Madhya Pradesh, on Monday. The fatality count, too, is rising fast, with the single-day high of 58 adding to a total of 937 deaths across the country.
Though the day’s 1,709 cases were mostly concentrated in Maharashtra (527), Gujarat (247), Indore (196) and Delhi (190), Bihar, with 68 cases, and Jharkhand, with 28 cases, reported their highest daily numbers. Maharashtra continued to account for most of the fatalities, with 27 reported dead on Monday. Gujarat reported 11 fatalities, Rajasthan 9, Madhya Pradesh 7, West Bengal two, and Punjab and Uttar Pradesh one each.
Prime Narendra Modi on Monday held talks with chief ministers of states on Monday morning, but there was no official communique on the future course of action once the lockdown expires on May 3. The Times of India, citing official sources, said CMs of north-eastern states, Himachal, Uttarakhand, Odisha and Bihar felt it would be premature to lift the lockdown; India had earlier extended the original 21-day lockdown by another 19 days till May 3. The Centre is reportedly in favour of a graded approach, with least restrictions in green zones — districts with low or no Covid-19 cases — and tighter restrictions in red zones such as Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad. The home ministry is expected to issue its revised guidelines in the days to come.
The number of infections globally has crossed 3 million. Russia has now overtaken China to be the ninth worst-hit nation by the coronavirus pandemic after it reported 6,198 new infections on Monday, bringing the total to 87,147. Russia’s official fatality count is, however, a modest 794. Over in Southeast Asia, Singapore continued to report a surge in cases, with Monday’s 799 cases taking its total to 14,423, the worst in the region.
