Covid-19 hinterland digest: Jaipur and Jodhpur, tales of misery in 2 cities

A second extension of the lockdown to contain the coronavirus started on Monday with liquor shops opening after some 40 days. The queues were huge and social distancing was in disarray. India recorded the highest spike in a day in terms of the number of new cases (3,900) and death (195). Human Resource Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal announced the dates for competitive exams. JEE-Mains will take place from June 18-23 and NEET will be held on July 26. 

Business Standard takes a look at regional editions of Hindi newspapers to provide you with a picture of the Covid-19 situation in the hinterland.

Jaipur-Jodhpur conundrum for Rajasthan

Rajasthan's Jaipur and Jodhpur cities have become the hotbeds of coronavirus (Covid-19). There are 3,061 patients in the state. 68 per cent (1,743 cases) of them are in these two cities, reports Dainik Bhaskar. Surprisingly, there were only 20 cases in Jodhpur a month ago. On 2 April, Jaipur had 92 patients, while Jodhpur had 20. On 4 May, the count in Jaipur rose to 1,022, while it touched 721 in Jodhpur. Out of the 77 death in Rajasthan, 44 are from Jaipur and 11 are from Jodhpur. This is 71 per cent of the total deaths in the state. Such is the situation in these two cities that nearly half of the samplings in the state takes place in these two cities. Rajasthan has tested 129,258 samples, out of which 51,666 have been tested in Jaipur and Jodhpur. These numbers highlight the stark reality of the big towns of Rajasthan. 

Sudden spike in cases in Meerut

Meerut city had a setback on Monday with 26 new cases cropping up. Most of these cases have come up from the Naveen Mandi area, reported Dainik Jagran. The count has risen a lot in the past two days and the city is under panic. The total count of patients int the city has gone up to 167. To add to the woes, a positive patient ran away. The patient is an insurance agent from Muzaffarnagar. Late in the night, he was located by the police and then kept in an isolation ward. He has arrived in Meerut to get his mother tested. However, his mother was declared coronavirus free but his report came positive. He is now being monitored. 

MLA arrested for violating lockdown

Najeebabad police arrested independent MLA Aman Mani for violating the lockdown regulations. He was arrested with six of his colleagues. Prior to this, he was stopped from going to Badrinath without a pass on Sunday, Amar Ujala reported. He and his friends have been charged under IPC section 268, 269, 188, and a few others. All the accused will be presented in the court on Tuesday. The newspaper reported that the MLA took the cover of performing rituals for the deceased father of CM Adityanath to go to Badrinath. 

Child born in broken car

When it comes to their sisters, brothers would go miles to make her feel comfortable. Similar was the case with this woman whose brother was trying to get to a hospital in Jodhpur from Barmer in a car to get the baby delivered, reported Dainik Bhaskar. Alas, when they were not very far from the hospital, the car broke down. The pain was too much for the pregnant woman to handle. As soon as the police got the information, DCP Preeti Chandra reached the spot with her team. The male constables made a tent around the car and the DCP with her colleagues delivered the child in the car. Later the mother and child were taken to the hospital where they were declared totally fine.