Coronavirus India update, March 28: COVID-19 claims first victim in Kerala

Coronavirus India latest update today, 28 March: As per the last update from the Health Ministry, 19 people have died while 78 patients have recovered.




Coronavirus India Latest Update: The total number of coronavirus cases in India soared to 873 on Saturday after 149 cases were reported in the last 24 hours. Three new fresh deaths were also reported — one each in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh and Kerala. As per the last update from the Health Ministry, 19 people have died while 78 patients have recovered. The deaths have so far been reported from Maharashtra (5), Gujarat (3), Karnataka (2), Madhya Pradesh (2) and one each from Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Punjab, Delhi, West Bengal, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Kerala.

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 21-day lockdown in India, experts say that it will only delay the transmission of coronavirus in the country and not eliminate it completely.

Follow coronavirus LIVE updates 

According to Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, Ashutosh Sharma, the lockdown period is to be utilised to build up defences, ramp up health infrastructure, and prepare for the worst-case scenario.

Here are key updates on COVID-19 from across the country today: 

Kerala reports first COVID-19 death

After recording 39 fresh cases the previous day, Kerala reported its first death due to the novel coronavirus. The deceased (69) had returned from Dubai and was admitted to Kalamassery Medical College on March 22 following symptoms. He later tested positive.

As the number of cases spiked in Kerala, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had Friday said the state government is considering revealing the names of the patients. He said the new cases reported on Friday had contacted several persons and visited many places and therefore, the government is thinking about publicising their names. Without taking any name, the Chief Minister said, “This social worker had travelled from Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram. The details of his travel are astounding. He had mingled with several persons working in different walks of life. He had even shared the pictures in social media. Is this the manner in which a social worker should behave? This is a warning to all of us that coronavirus is not far away from us.’’

Nipah experience helped us draw protocol: Pinarayi Vijayan interview

Maharashtra records six new cases

Amid tight lockdown, Maharashtra recorded six more new cases taking the tally to 180, the highest in the country. Of these six new COVID-19 patients, five are from Mumbai and one from Nagpur, health department officials said. On Friday, 28 persons were found infected with coronavirus in different parts of the state, 250 people were hospitalised across the state on suspicion of being infected. So far, 3,059 people have tested negative in the state. From stamping the hands of people coming from Mumbai and Pune to barricading entry points, villages across the state have devised various measures amid fear, concern and rumours over coronavirus.

Gujarat tally stands at 53

In Gujarat, six more people were tested positive in Gujarat. The count now stands at 53. The six new cases were reported since Friday evening, the official said. “As many as six new cases were reported since last evening, taking the number of such cases in the state to 53,” Principal Secretary (Health) Jayanti Ravi said. Three COVID-19 patients have so far died in the state-one each in Surat, Ahmedabad and Bhavnagar.

Three suspected COVID-19 cases die in Kanyakumari

Meanwhile, in Tamil Nadu, three people including a two year old child died at Kanyakumari government medical college on Saturday. The state health secretary Beela Rajesh confirmed all three of them had been waiting for their Covid-19 test results. However, the state health department asserted that all of them had underlying health conditions. An official statement said the two year old child among the dead had Osteopetrosis, a bone disease. The 66 year old diseased man had chronic kidney disease, an organic brain disorder called uremic encephalopathy and lymphoma, cancer that affects the immune system. The 24 year old man among the three had pneumonia and sepsis. Till Saturday morning, Tamil Nadu has reported a total of 40 Covid-19 cases. The state has registered one death, seven patients have been recovered, and four Indonesian nationals and two Thai nationals were among those who tested positive.

Bhopal journalist who tested positive booked after attending Kamal Nath’s presser

A week after he attended a press conference addressed by former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath before his resignation, a Bhopal-based journalist, who later tested positive for COVID-19, has been booked for endangering the life of others. A case under IPC sections 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 270 (malignant act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life and 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) was filed against the 55-year-old journalist in Shyamla Hills Police Station. Even after his daughter tested positive, the journalist allegedly moved around and despite being tested positive, he wanted another confirmatory test arguing that he did not show any symptoms of the disease.

Glaring gaps in how Centre, states implement lockdown

Since the 21-day lockdown announced by the Prime Minister on March 24, as many as four clarificatory notes had to be issued by the Home Ministry. The implementation has exposed to glaring gaps by the Centre and states after caravans of migrant labourers were seen walking hundreds of kilometres along highways and across shuttered cities, running out of food. “The lockdown could have been planned better, not at four-hour notice,” said an official citing the South Africa example where a 21-day lockout that began Friday midnight got a notice of three days.

Here’s a quick Coronavirus guide from Express Explained to keep you updated: Are smokers at high risk form coronavirus? | Can Vitamin-C prevent or cure coronavirus infection? | What exactly is community spread of coronavirus? | How long can the Covid-19 virus survive on a surface? | Amid the lockdown, what is allowed, what is prohibited?

? The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines

For all the latest Coronavirus Outbreak News, download Indian Express App.

Source: Read Full Article