New Delhi: The number of coronavirus cases in the country reached 107 on Sunday, with Maharashtra having the highest number of cases – 31. Most of the 14 new cases are from the state. Kerala has reported 22 cases of the virus and Uttar Pradesh 11. All 14 patients in Haryana are foreign nationals.
Delhi has reported seven cases so far, two of them are dead. Most schools and colleges in the country have shut down, offices are encouraging their employees to work from home, cinema halls are shut and festivals and convocations stand cancelled. Parliament has barred visitors.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a video conference with other SAARC nations on Sunday to evolve a joint strategy to fight the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, outbreak that has killed more than 5,000 people worldwide. “Our coming together will lead to effective outcomes,” he said.
In Kerala’s Kochi, 270 passengers of a Dubai-bound Emirates flight were offloaded after a British national among them tested positive for novel coronavirus, airport officials said.
On Sunday, actor Amitabh Bachchan asked his fans to not gather at his bungalow, Jalsa, due to the coronavirus scare. The Sunday meet and greet outside the actor’s Mumbai residence has been long-standing ritual.
The COVID-19 outbreak began in a market in China’s Wuhan district in December last year. The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak a pandemic, meaning it has spread worldwide and affected huge number of people.