India 11th most infected, crosses China in Covid count as cases near 86,000

Cases in Maharashtra are nearing 30,000 with 1,068 deaths so far, highest among all states. Sharp spike puts Tamil Nadu in second spot with 10,108 infecions, 71 deaths

India has surpassed China in terms of confirmed of Covid-19 cases with nearly 86,000 coronavirus positive cases as of Saturday morning, becoming the 11th most infected country. 

During the past one day, 3,970 new cases were added taking the total count to 85,940. The total death count on Saturday was 2,752, of which 103 were registered in a single day, according to health ministry data. 

China which has dropped two spots in the global tally at 13th position, has so far reported 84,038 Covid-19 cases, 4,637 of whom have died.   

Cases in Maharashtra are nearing the 30,000 mark with 1,068 deaths so far, the highest among all states. Covid-19 cases have seen a sharp rise in Tamil Nadu, now reporting the second highest number of cases in the country with 10,108 infecions and 71 deaths.

Gujarat, with a doubling time of over two weeks, has 9,931 coronavirus positive cases of whom 606 have succumbed to the disease. 

The third-highest number of cases are in Delhi with 8,895 testing positive. It has recorded 606 deaths so far. 

India has ramped up its testing capacity to nearly 100,00 tests a day. In the past one day more than 94,000 tests were conducted taking the total number conducted so far to over 2.1 million. 

INDIA IMPACT

• 30 municipal areas contribute 80% cases, officials told to focus on timely tracing 
• Railways ready to run 'Shramik Special' trains from any district, says Union Minister Piyush Goyal
• District collectors should give list of stranded migrants, their destinations to Railways' officers, Goyal said
• Surveillance system in urban areas should be strengthened: Health ministry guidelines  
• Delhi HC, district courts’ functioning restricted till May 23
• First repatriation flight from Bangladesh to land in Kolkata on May 18
• Rs 60-lakh aid for kin of deceased cops in Maharashtra
• Centre launches online dashboard for monitoring movement of migrant workers
• PIL in HC for ensuring immediate treatment of Covid patients
• Punjab extends lockdown till May 31, but curfew restrictions to go
• CAPFs report 24 fresh Covid-19 cases; over 150 recoveries
• Govt relaxes norms to boost N95 mask production 
• Migrants ransack food dispensing machine in Madhya Pradesh: Official
• Govt permits exports of non-medical, non-surgical masks
• Noida Metro restart plan: Aarogya Setu app, body temp below 37.8 degrees C must for passengers 
• Flight carrying 181 Indians from Dubai lands in Kochi 
• Automobile shops, AC outlets can remain open: Telangana govt
• 140,000 migrants ferried to Maharashtra border by state transport
• Ahmedabad: 700 'super spreaders' found in a week
• Liquor home delivery allowed only within municipal limits in Thane
• HRD ministry postpones board exams’ schedule
• Kerala tourism incurred Rs 15,000-cr loss due to Covid-19 crisis: Minister
• Non-migrant workers in Delhi see income drop by at least 57 per cent during lockdown: Study
• 15 inmates, 1 staff of Delhi's Rohini jail test positive 
• J&K sees its highest 1-day spike of 108 cases

The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is working with Intel India and International Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), Hyderabad to develop faster and cheaper Covid-19 testing and coronavirus genome sequencing. 

The health ministry has also issued guidelines for the safety of health workers in covid and non-covid areas of hospitals. It has suggested a “buddy system” where two of more hospital staff will form a team and share responsibilities for their partner’s safety in terms of safety gear and hygiene, among other things.

25 migrant workers killed, 40 injured in UP

At least 25 migrant workers were killed and 40 others injured when a trailer and a stationary truck, on which they had hitched rides, collided on a highway near UP’s Auraiya in the early hours of Saturday, the latest in a string of accidents involving migrants returning to their states.

Most of the victims were sitting on sacks of wheat flour loaded on the trailer, and were crushed when the vehicles overturned.

PMO announces Rs 2-lakh ex-gratia for victims 

The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs 2 lakh each to the next of kin of the migrant workers killed in the road accident. It also announced Rs 50,000 each for those injured in the trailer-truck collision.

Aviation minister reacts

Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said he was deeply pained by the accident, and stressed that the incident underlines the necessity for states receiving migrants to allow limited air, road, and rail travel.

Migrant workers a neglected lot, says Madras HC

The Madras High Court (HC) has said it is not only the duty of the native states of migrant workers but also the duty of the states where they work to take care of them, but this has not been the case.

The court, while observing that the migrant workers and agricultural workforce are a neglected lot in the crisis, asked the central and state governments to file a report on such workers by 22 May.