Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel was admitted to Medanta hospital on Sunday. (file)Coronavirus India Live Updates: Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel passed away Wednesday morning after he suffered multiple organ failures due to his health condition deteriorating as a result of Covid-19, for which he tested positive a month back.Ā Ahmed Patel’s son, Faisal Patel announced his father’s demise on Twitter this morning. Faisal wrote, ” I regret to announce the sad and untimely demise of my father, Mr. Ahmed Patel at 25/11/2020, 3:30 AM. After testing positive for Covid-19 around a month back, his health worsened further due to multiple organ failures.ā
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday interacted via video conferencing with chief ministers of states that are witnessing a surge in coronavirus cases to review the COVID-19 situation. The Prime Minister urged all the chief ministers to share their feedback in writing on COVID-19 strategy. “No one can impose any view and all have to work together,” Modi said.
Interacting with chief ministers, Modi also cautioned states and union territories against any laxity in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic and called for reducing the positivity rate to at least 5 per cent by focusing on curbing the virus transmission.
A while back, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal informed the prime minister that Delhi saw a peak of 8,600 coronavirus cases on November 10 during the third wave and since then, the number of cases as well as the positivity rate are steadily decreasing, sources said. Kejriwal told the prime minister that the severity of the third wave in the national capital is due to several factors, including air pollution, and sought his help over the issue of stubble burning in neighbouring states. The Delhi CM also sought reservation of an additional 1,000 ICU beds in central government hospitals till third wave lasts.
India saw 37,975 new coronavirus infections being reported in a day taking the country’s COVID-19 caseload to 91.77 lakh, while the recoveries crossed 86 lakh, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Tuesday. The total coronavirus cases mounted to 91,77,840 and the death toll climbed to 1,34,218 with 480 new fatalities, including 121 from the national capital alone. The number of active cases remained below 5 lakh for the fourteenth consecutive day. There are 4,38,667 active cases of coronavirus infection in the country now which comprises 4.78 per cent of the total caseload.
Meanwhile, Oxford-AstraZeneca on Monday announced that interim trial data from the crucial phase 3 trials have shown that its Covid-19 vaccine candidate is 70.4 per cent effective, indicating a high level of protection against novel coronavirus infection. In Pune, Dr Cyrus Poonawalla, founder of the Serum Institute of India (SII), which is testing and manufacturing the candidate under licence, said the vaccine would be available in India āvery soonā.
Workers cleaning Tilak Tank near Deccan Gymkhana after Government decided to allow tanks to open for practice of State, National and International swimmers. The tank will open on Monday, 23rd November. (Express photo by Pavan Khengre)
Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel passed away Tuesday morning after he suffered multiple organ failures due to his health conditions deteriorating as a result of Covid-19, for which he tested positive a month back. Ahmed Patel's son Faisal Patel announced his father's demise on Twitter this morning. Faisal wrote, " I regret to announce the sad and untimely demise of my father, Mr. Ahmed Patel at 25/11/2020, 3:30 AM. After testing positive for Covid-19 around a month back, his health worsened further due to multiple organ failures.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday cautioned states and union territories against any laxity in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic and called for reducing the positivity and fatality rates by focusing on curbing the virus transmission. Interacting with chief ministers, the prime minister also called for more RT-PCR tests, even as he underlined that India's COVID-19 situation is more stable than other countries in terms of recovery and fatality rates. Modi asked them to work towards bringing the positive rate to less than 5 per cent and the fatality rate to under 1 per cent and called for more RT-PCR tests.
Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao Tuesday announced the state’s readiness to administer a vaccine against novel coronavirus to its people, if and when scientifically approved. During a video conference call with prime minister Narendra Modi, Rao opined that a batch of vaccines should be first sent to states to check for side effects if any.
“People are eagerly waiting for the vaccine. A scientifically approved vaccine is the need of the hour. The Telangana state government is ready to distribute and administer the vaccine to people on a priority basis. Accordingly, we have drawn an action plan,” Rao informed the PM. “However, one has to take into consideration whether the vaccine has any side effects?”
India saw 37,975 new Covid infections in a day taking the country’s caseload to 91.77 lakh
The death toll climbed to 1,34,218 with 480 new fatalities
PM Modi cautioned states against laxity in fighting COVID-19 pandemic
Modi called for reducing the positivity and fatality rates to under 5 and 1 per cent, respectively
Pollution played key role in high severity of third wave of COVID-19 in Delhi, says Kejriwal
Globally, more than 59.09 million people have been infected and 1,397,239 have died
Daily Covid-19 cases in France at near two-month low
Spain’s king self-isolating after virus contac
New infections in Gaza spiralling out of control
Hong Kong to shut bars again as Covid cases spike
After Lord Ayyappa pilgrims, a COVID-19 negative test report has been made mandatory for those working in temporary shops operating in Sabarimala and the temple premises now. With the annual pilgrimage season progressing at the Lord Ayyappa temple here, a high level committee, which reviewed the arrangements made for devotees, took a decision in this regard on Monday.
The Madhya Pradesh government has made preparations like cold-chain storage for COVID-19 vaccine and is also imparting training to health personnel, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan told Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday even as he demanded the shots be administered to frontline workers on priority. The CM made this demand during a meeting of chief ministers of eight states, which have reported higher number of COVID-19 cases, addressed by the PM via video conferencing. The chief minister also informed that services of NCC (National Cadet Corps) cadets, local bodies, and NGOs will be taken for vaccination in urban and rural areas of the state. "We have made preparations for training vaccinators (a person who administers a vaccine) and for the cold chain storage of the vaccine. I request you to give a priority to frontline workers to receive COVID-19 vaccine," the CM is quoted as saying by a public relations department official.
"Seeing good recovery rates, many think virus is weak & they'll recover soon, this has led to rampant carelessness. Those working on vaccine are doing it but we need to focus on ensuring that people are alert & transmission is curbed. We've to bring positivity rate under 5%," said PM Modi.
Asserting that mission of Coronavirus vaccination of each citizen is like a national commitment, PM Modi urged all the states to send a detailed on how they plan to take vaccine to lowest levels. " It'll help us in making decisions as your experiences are valuable. I hope for your pro-active participation. Vaccine work is ongoing but I request you there should be no carelessness," PM Modi
PM Modi urged all the States to establish cold storage facilities for COVID19 vaccine. " It is not certain whether there will be one, two or three doses of a vaccine. It is also not decided what will be the price of the vaccine. We still don't have answers to these questions: PM Modi during interaction with CM's on COVID19 situation."
Giving updates on the vaccine development, Prime Minister Modi said, "government of India is keeping a track of each development in vaccine development. We are in touch with Indian vaccine developers and manufacturers. We are also in touch with global regulators, governments of other countries, multinational orgs and international companies."
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday interacted via video conferencing with chief ministers of states that are witnessing a surge in coronavirus cases to review the COVID-19 situation. The Prime Minister urged all the chief ministers to share their feedback in writing on COVID-19 strategy. ” No one can impose any view and all have to work together,” Modi said.
China on Tuesday reported two new coronavirus cases in the cities of Shanghai and Tianjin as it seeks to prevent small outbreaks from becoming larger ones. The National Health Commission said that there were two new locally spread cases in the previous 24-hour period, one in each city. It also reported 20 cases among people who had arrived from overseas.
In Shanghai, the mass testing of 17,719 workers at the city's Pudong aiport found one infection, a Fedex employee. Everyone else tested negative. Three UPS workers at the airport have also tested positive in recent days, along with the wife of one of them. In all, Shanghai has reported eight non-imported cases since Friday.
The Maharashtra government has formed a task force to manage the distribution of COVID-19 vaccine and how vaccination will be carried out in the state, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said on Tuesday. According to an official statement, Thackeray made the
remarks during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's meeting via video conferencing with chief ministers of eight states which have reported higher number of COVID-19 cases.
"A task force has been set up to manage the distribution and vaccination in Maharashtra and the government is in constant touch with Adar Poonawalla of the Serum Institute of India to track development of the coronavirus vaccine," the statement said quoting Thackeray. (PTI)
The Supreme Court Tuesday sought the Centre's response on a PIL seeking direction for fixing the maximum rate for the RT-PCR test for COVID-19 uniformly all over India. A bench comprising Chief Justice S A Bobde and Justices A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian issued notice to the Health Ministry and listed the PIL filed by lawyer Ajay Agrawal for hearing after two weeks. The bench, in a hearing conducted via video conferencing, said that the plea would be heard with another pending plea pertaining to the cost of treatment for COVID-19.
It took note of the submission of Agrawal that the plea needed an urgent hearing. The petition has sought a direction to the governments to fix the maximum rate for the RT-PCR (real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction) test to Rs 400 uniformly across the country, instead of Rs 900 to Rs 2800 as fixed by different state governments, Union Territories and NCT of Delhi.
The provincial authorities in Pakistan have introduced new guidelines to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, including restricting office attendance and shutting down indoor gathering places like cinemas and shrines, as the national tally of infected cases reached 379,883 on Tuesday after 2,954 new cases were detected in the last 24 hours. The health department in the largest Punjab province issued new guidelines for government and private offices to restrict attendance.
It said that only 50 per cent of the staff should come to the office while the rest of the employees should work from home. The Sindh government also imposed more restrictions to control COVID-19. It has made wearing of face masks at government and private offices and public mandatory, saying a fine will be imposed in case of violation.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal informed the prime minister that Delhi saw a peak of 8,600 coronavirus cases on November 10 during the third wave and since then, the number of cases as well as the positivity rate are steadily decreasing, sources said. Kejriwal told the prime minister that the severity of the third wave in the national capital is due to several factors, including air pollution, and sought his help over the issue of stubble burning in neighbouring states. The Delhi CM also sought reservation of an additional 1,000 ICU beds in central government hospitals till the third wave lasts.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a virtual meeting with chief ministers of eight states over COVID19 situation. Home Minister Amit Shah was also part of the meeting.
There are several vaccines for Covid-19 in the works. As some enter the final stages of testing, the next big challenge is storage and transportation. The storage of a vaccine depends on the temperature they need to be kept at for their potency to remain intact. This varies with each vaccine candidate, even if they are developed using the same technology.
We look at the leading vaccines, their optimal temperature for storage, and whether India has the required cold chain.
Starting November 25, people arriving in Mumbai and elsewhere in Maharashtra from Delhi, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Goa by air and train must carry with them a negative Covid-19 RT-PCR test report done three to four days before arrival, or they will be tested on arrival.
The Maharashtra government introduced the requirement a day after Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar hinted at the possibility of putting in place curbs over the movement of people in view of the threat of a second wave of coronavirus cases post Diwali.
Amid a surge in the number of coronavirus cases in the city, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has ordered for an immediate procurement of 1,200 BiPAP machines for the new ICU beds being added in the national capital this week, an official said on Tuesday. He said the move will allow immediate operationalisation of the new ICU beds. A total of 1,200 BiPAP machines will be procured immediately from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), the official said.
On Monday, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain attributed the high COVID-19 death rate in the city to the pollution caused by stubble-burning and said he expects a downtrend in the next two-three weeks. (PTI)
India reported 37,975 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, taking the country’s total tally to 91,77,841, while 480 fatalities pushed the death toll to 1,34,218. There are 4,38,667 active cases of coronavirus in the country at present, while 42,314 people have recovered from the disease in the last 24 hours.
Oxford-AstraZeneca on Monday announced that interim trial data from the crucial phase 3 trials have shown that its Covid-19 vaccine candidate is 70.4 per cent effective, indicating a high level of protection against novel coronavirus infection.
In Pune, Dr Cyrus Poonawalla, founder of the Serum Institute of India (SII), which is testing and manufacturing the candidate under licence, said the vaccine would be available in India “very soon”.
“A vaccine against the coronavirus disease will be available very soon in our country. We are going to ask for special emergency marketing authorisation in 45 days from today,” the 79-year-old chairman of the Poonawalla Group told The Indian Express.
Ahead of a crucial meeting on vaccine administration that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold Tuesday morning with Chief Ministers, top government sources told The Indian Express that one crore frontline healthcare workers have been identified to receive the first dose of whichever vaccine is available against the novel coronavirus infection early next year.
The sources, who are part of the expert group on vaccine administration, said they have “moved into an advance stage” of building a database for the first priority group — “frontline healthcare workers” — who will receive the first dose during the immunisation drive, if and when a particular vaccine is cleared by the Indian regulator for commercial use.
“We have received a substantial response from the states. Ninety two per cent of all government hospitals across all states have provided data. Around 56 per cent of private-sector hospitals have provided data. We are at an advanced stage,” a top government source said.
Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee president Kumari Selja on Monday accused the BJP-JJP state government of failing to control the spread of Covid-19 amid rising cases, and claimed that “the actual number of persons infected is more than the official figures”.“Due to failures and negligence of the government, once again the speed of corona is increasing in the state, which is a matter of great concern. The government should take concrete steps to prevent infection with immediate effect,” she said in a statement.The Congress leader further said, “Despite repeated warnings by Congress, no concrete arrangements were made by the government to deal with the pandemic. As a result, in the past seven days, 17,557 cases have been reported in Haryana and 155 people have died. Haryana has moved from 9th to 3rd place in a month in terms of the rate of increase in new patients. The number of active patients was also increasing. So far 2,209 people have died of Covid in Haryana.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to meet with chief ministers and other representatives of states and union territories via video conferencing on Tuesday to review the COVID-19 situation and discuss the vaccine distribution strategy, sources said. The leaders who would attend the meeting include Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, sources said. The prime minister, till now, has held several virtual meetings with states over the coronavirus situation. While the national daily COVID-19 case count has remained below 50,000 for some time, several urban centres have witnessed a surge, resulting in enforcement of several measures, including curfews in some cities.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday launched a mobile laboratory that will conduct free RT-PCR tests for COVID-19 here and the results will be available in six to eight hours. The Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) testing mobile laboratory, a joint initiative of the SpiceHealth and the government, came up after Shah stepped in to fight the recent spurt in the number of COVID-19 cases in Delhi with a close coordination of various wings of the Centre and the Delhi government. The laboratory was inaugurated by the home minister. The tests would be conducted free of cost for the people of Delhi and the reports will be available in six to eight hours, an official spokesperson said. The cost of the test is Rs 499 and it will be borne by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the official said.
Schools and colleges for classes IX to XII reopened in the rural areas of Pune district on Monday for the first time since the coronavirus outbreak started in March, with officials stating over 9000 students attended on day one. Zilla Parishad Education Officer Ganpat More said 215 of the over 1,200 schools and colleges in the district's rural areas reopened and 9,431 of the 2.38 lakh registered students attended classes. More said parents were apprehensive about the health of their children as it was the first day and institutions in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad civic areas were yet to open. More said, as on Saturday, 6,556 teachers had been tested for novel coronavirus in schools in his jurisdiction, and only 29 reports returned positive, and all of them were asymptomatic.
The Maharashtra government on Monday issued fresh guidelines asking for covid negative report from passengers coming from Delhi, Rajasthan, Goa and Gujarat in trains and aircraft.
The COVID-19 death toll in the Union Territory of Ladakh reached 100 as two more people died due to the infection in Leh district, thereby prompting the civil society to call for a self-imposed week-long shutdown from Monday to contain the spread of the virus. A total of 73 people tested positive for coronavirus during the past 24 hours, taking the virus count in the region to 7,939, officials said on Monday.
The COVID-19 death toll in the Union Territory of Ladakh reached 100 as two more people died due to the infection in Leh district, thereby prompting the civil society to call for a self-imposed week-long shutdown from Monday to contain the spread of the virus. A total of 73 people tested positive for coronavirus during the past 24 hours, taking the virus count in the region to 7,939, officials said on Monday.
The Himachal Pradesh government on Saturday imposed night curfew in Mandi, Shimla Kullu and Kangra districts from November 24 to December 15 amid rising Covid-19 cases. The government has only allowed 50 per cent Class 3 and Class 4 govt employees to attend offices till December 31.
*India reported 44,059 new Covid-19 cases in last 24 hours; country's tally at 91,39,866
*Himachal Pradesh government imposes night curfew in Mandi, Shimla, Kullu and Kangra districts from Nov 24-Dec 15
*SC has sought status report from Delhi, Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Assam on steps taken to control the spread of virus
*Centre dispatched high-level teams to UP, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to help them tackle the spread of Covid-19
*Rajasthan Health Minister Raghu Sharma tested tested positive for coronavirus
*The global coronavirus infections total is 58,563,451. The global death toll is nearing 1.4 million people
*AstraZeneca said its vaccine for coronavirus could be around 90% effective without any serious side effects
*China is imposing lockdowns and shutting down schools after locally transmitted cases were discovered in three cities across the country
*Russia suffers worst daily caseload increase of 25,173 new infections
*Germany may start Covid-19 vaccine programme in December
British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said it was "fantastic news" that data on Monday showed that a Covid-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca with Oxford University could be up to 90% effective and reduce its transmission, Reuters reported.
Hancock said AstraZeneca, Oxford and the medicine regulator would have to study the results to see how best to administer the vaccine once it was found to be safe.
"One of the things that regulator will need to look at is whether the programme for how the doses are done which can lead to the 90% effectiveness figure, whether that is the appropriate way to take the Oxford vaccine forward," he told BBC TV.
He also said there was evidence in the report that the vaccine could reduce transmission of the disease."Now of course that would be very good news if confirmed, because obviously what we want to do is not only stop people from getting the disease but also stop its transmission," he further added.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Monday lauded the contributiin of those involved in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic in the state and said their efforts have also been acknowledged at the global level, reported PTI.
Because of the contribution of those involved in dealing with the pandemic, international organisations like the WHO have praised the coronavirus management of Uttar Pradesh, the chief minister said, after digitally inaugurating BSL laboratories in government and private medical colleges and other facilities in Lucknow.
"When the first COVID-19 case was detected in the state, there were no testing facilities nor beds," Yogi Adityanath said, adding, "The medical colleges, district hospitals as well as private hospitals and central institutes have together worked as a team. From 72 tests per day on March 23, the state's testing capacity has grown and 1.75 lakh COVID-19 tests were conducted on Saturday. Now, there is no problem as far as testing is concerned, he said, adding that a total of 1.80 crore COVID-19 tests have so far been conducted in Uttar Pradesh and the capacity will further improve from Monday."
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Monday lauded the contributiin of those involved in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic in the state and said their efforts have also been acknowledged at the global level, reported PTI.
Because of the contribution of those involved in dealing with the pandemic, international organisations like the WHO have praised the coronavirus management of Uttar Pradesh, the chief minister said, after digitally inaugurating BSL laboratories in government and private medical colleges and other facilities in Lucknow.
"When the first COVID-19 case was detected in the state, there were no testing facilities nor beds," Yogi Adityanath said, adding, "The medical colleges, district hospitals as well as private hospitals and central institutes have together worked as a team. From 72 tests per day on March 23, the state's testing capacity has grown and 1.75 lakh COVID-19 tests were conducted on Saturday. Now, there is no problem as far as testing is concerned, he said, adding that a total of 1.80 crore COVID-19 tests have so far been conducted in Uttar Pradesh and the capacity will further improve from Monday."
AstraZeneca said on Monday its vaccine for the novel coronavirus, developed along with the University of Oxford, could be around 90% effective under one dosing regimen.
“This vaccine’s efficacy and safety confirm that it will be highly effective against COVID-19 and will have an immediate impact on this public health emergency,” Pascal Soriot, Astra’s chief executive, said in a statement.
The measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine may provide protection against Covid-19, according to a study that could also explain why children have a much lower case rate and death rate of the disease when compared to that of adults, reported PTI.
The study, published in the journal mBio, provides further proof by showing that mumps IgG titers, or IgG antibody levels, are inversely correlated with severity in recovered Covid-19 patients previously vaccinated with the MMR II vaccine.
Lead study author Jeffrey E. Gold, president of World Organization in Georgia, US, said, "We found a statistically significant inverse correlation between mumps titer levels and COVID-19 severity in people under age 42 who have had MMR II vaccinations."
"This adds to other associations demonstrating that the MMR vaccine may be protective against COVID-19. It also may explain why children have a much lower COVID-19 case rate than adults, as well as a much lower death rate," Gold added, adding that the majority of children get their first MMR vaccination around 12 to 15 months of age and a second one from 4 to 6 years of age.
An order to close two evening markets in Nangloi in west Delhi for violation of COVID-19 safety measures was withdrawn by the district administration hours after it was issued, officials said on Monday.
The Punjabi Basti Market and Janta Market in Nangloi were closed till November 30 through an order of the West Delhi District Disaster Management Authority(DDMA) CEO and ADM and sealing action was taken by teams of district officials backed by municipal corporation and police personnel on Sunday.
However, the order for closure was withdrawn hours later as the Delhi government proposal for regulation of markets amid the pandemic is pending with the Centre.
Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal Monday gave orders for MBBS students and dentists to be allowed to assist in hospitals and Covid ICUs to meet manpower shortage. Government hospitals can now engage 4th and 5th year MBBS students and dentists to assist doctors in the treatment of Covid-19 patients.
In an order last Wednesday, the state health department had permitted all heads of Covid hospitals under the Delhi government to engage fourth- and fifth-year MBBS students, interns and BDS-pass doctors to assist duty doctors. The decision was taken after the government augmented the number of ICU beds in the hospitals owing to the rise in the daily Covid cases.
However, the Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association (FORDA), an umbrella body of resident doctors, had raised objections to the order.
The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Centre and all states to file status reports detailing steps taken to deal with the current Covid-19 situation, reported PTI.
The apex court said the Covid-19 situation in the national capital has worsened and asked the Delhi government to file status reports on steps taken to deal with it. It further said, "After Delhi and Maharashtra, Covid-19 situation in Gujarat has also worsened and it is going out of control."
Schools reopened in some rural areas of Pune on Monday. Below are visuals from a school in Pune.
Rajasthan Health Minister Raghu Sharma tested positive for Covid-19, he said in a tweet on Monday, and requested those who have come in contact with him in the past few days to isolate themselves.
Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot wished him a speedy recovery, and tweeted, "Wishing my ministerial colleague, Dr. Raghu Sharma ji speedy recovery from #COVID19. May he gets well soon."
Mahatma Gandhi's South African great-grandson, Satish Dhupelia, succumbed to Covid-19 complications in Johannesburg on Sunday, three days after his 66th birthday, a family member said, PTI reported.
Dhupelia's sister Uma Dhupelia-Mesthrie confirmed her brother had died of Covid-19 related complications after he contracted the diease in hospital where he was undergoing treatment for Pneumonia for a month. "My beloved brother has passed on after a month of illness with pneumonia, a superbug contracted in hospital and then COVID-19 also contracted while he was being treated. He suffered a major cardiac arrest this evening," she said in a social media post
Dhupelia, his sister Uma and another sister Kirti Menon are descendants of Manilal Gandhi, who Mahatma Gandhi left behind in South Africa to continue his work after he returned to India after spending two decades.
Barely six days after the degree and engineering colleges were reopened in the state, Karnataka Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar on Sunday said they may be shut again if the coronavirus cases go up. The degree, engineering and diploma colleges were reopened on November 17 after eight months of closure due to coronavirus-induced lockdown. Under the circumstances, reports emerged that at least 130 students got infected by COVID-19.
“If the cases go up, then, as you have said in your (media) reports, we will have to go for a shutdown once again. There is no alternative,” Sudhakar told reporters in Dharwad while responding to queries about the rising coronavirus cases among students. The Minister’s statement came ahead of Karnataka government’s crucial meeting on Monday to decide reopening of schools. Sudhakar conceded that the schools have not been reopened yet in the state for the fear of coronavirus.
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