Coronavirus Live Updates:US Covid-19 deaths top 20,000; global toll crosses 1 lakh

India reported 249 coronavirus-related death as the Union Health Ministry scramble to contain further the Covid-19 spread. At least 1,035 new cases have been reported in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of cases to over 7,000. Meanwhile, 774 people have been cured and discharged.

About 30 per cent of the total cases, are connected to Tablighi Jamaat, an event organised by the Islamic sect in Delhi's Nizamuddin area last month.

According to the latest available data on the World Health Organisation (WHO) website, 1,709,547 people have been infected worldwide, while 103,506 have died from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi imposed a 21-day nationwide lockdown in the country last week in an attempt to curb the spread of the deadly virus. Follow the LIVE BLOG of ibtimes.co.in to get all the latest updates on the coronavirus cases in the country.

• West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee extended the lockdown in the state till April 30, educational institutes to remain shut till June 10. 
• Lockdown to be extended for two weeks, government to issue guidelines, confirmed Karnataka CM.

Taking to twitter Arvind Kejriwal said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken the correct decision to extend lockdown. "Today, India's position is better than many developed countries because we started lockdown early. If it is stopped now, all gains would be lost. To consolidate, it is imp to extend it," Kejriwal said.

During the video conferencing meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal emphasised on extending the nationwide lockdown beyond April 14.

According to Aam aadmi Party (AAP) leader, "The decision to continue the lockdown should be taken at a national level." He also stressed that if the states decide the length of the lockdown on their own, then the fight against the coronavirus would not be effective.

At least seven new confirmed coronavirus positive cases have been reported from April 10, 2020, 5:00 pm to April 11, 2020, at 12:00 pm in Karnataka. 214 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed in the state to date which includes 6 deaths and 37 discharges.

The meeting will be discussing exit strategy and a possible extension of lockdown which is set to end on April 14. The video conference, which began at 11 am, has sought views of state governments on various aspects, including whether more categories of people and services need to be exempted as only essential services are exempted in the current lockdown. READ FULL REPORT HERE 

92 more COVID-19 positive cases have been reported in Maharashtra today, taking the total number of positive coronavirus cases in the state to 1,666, Maharashtra Health Department confirmed.

Norms of social distancing go for a toss at a makeshift vegetable market in Digha area of Patna in Bihar. At least 60 COVID-19 cases and one death have been reported in the state, according to Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds a meeting via video-conferencing with the Chief Ministers over the Covid-19 pandemic.

Around 40 deaths and 1,035 new cases have been reported in the last 24 hours, the sharpest-ever increase in cases. India's total number of coronavirus positive cases rises to 7447 (including 6565 active cases, 643 cured/discharged/migrated and 239 deaths): Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Sanitisation work being done by Municipal Corporation in the containment area of Bammapur Oni in Hubli in Karnataka.

With 21 fresh cases being reported today, coronavirus cases spike to 431 in Uttar Pradesh. Out of the total, 32 have been cured and discharged while four others died. 8,671 people are in quarantine while 459 others are in isolation wards, the State Health Department said.

With 678 new cases in the last 24 hours, total cases in India climbed to 6,412. And, around 33 new deaths have been reported, taking the death toll is to 199 and 503 people have recovered, confirms Lav Aggarwal, Health Ministry.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi to hold a video conference with the chief ministers of all states on Saturday regarding the extension of lockdown.

17 more Covid-19 positive cases detected in Bihar in the last 24 hours, taking total number of coronavirus cases in the state to 60. Siwan district has 29 positive cases, the highest number of cases in a district in the state: Bihar Health Department.

• Department of Health and Family Welfare has further notified 14 more hospitals as dedicated coronavirus hospitals in the state, says Karnataka government.
• Around 10 new coronavirus positive cases have been reported in Karnataka, taking the total number of positive cases in the state to 207, including 6 deaths and 30 discharged. Nine of the 10 new cases are close contacts of people who had tested positive for the virus earlier, confirms the Karnataka government.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi tells Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro that India-Brazil partnership is stronger than ever in these challenging times. "India is committed to contribute to humanity's fight against this pandemic," PM Modi says in his tweet.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu thanks Indian PM Narendra Modi for or sending Chloroquine to Israel. PM Modi responded to his tweet and said, "We have to jointly fight this pandemic. India is ready to do whatever is possible to help our friends. Praying for the well-being and good health of the people of Israel."

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike or BBMP will reportedly distribute more than 5,000 food grain kits in each ward. This decision was made at a meeting, which was chaired by Bengaluru Mayor Goutham Kumar on Thursday. In the meeting, the BBMP officials and members of the ruling and opposition party were in attendance. The BBMP has taken a call on utilizing a programme of works (POW) grants available for corporators and around Rs 25 lakh per ward will be utilized for the distribution of these kits and emergency medicine.

 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked Narendra Modi for giving the five-tonne cargo of medicines, including anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine, seen as a possible coronavirus drug.

Thank you, my dear friend @narendramodi, Prime Minister of India, for sending Chloroquine to Israel.

All the citizens of Israel thank you! pic.twitter.com/HdASKYzcK4

— PM of Israel (@IsraeliPM) April 9, 2020

Addressing a press conference, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare confirmed that India detected 591 new Covid-19 cases and 20 deaths in the last 24 hours. India's total number of coronavirus positive cases have reached to 5,865 (including 5,218 active cases, 478 cured/discharged/migrated and 169 deaths).

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today confirmed that 12 new Covid-19 positive cases have been detected in the state. Total active cases in the state stand at 80. Three patients have recovered and were discharged.

At least 16 more coronavirus cases have been detected in Karnataka in the past 24 hours, including 10 cases with close contact with other patients and three with travel history to the national capital. The total number of coronavirus cases in the state stands at 197, confirms the Karnataka Health Department.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was speaking on the incident where two lady doctors of Safdarjung Hospital in New Delhi were allegedly assaulted by their neighbour in Gautam Nagar. "I'd like to warn people who misbehave with doctors/nurses that it won't be tolerated. They'll be given strictest punishment," Delhi CM Kejriwal said.

The United Nations Security Council will hold a closed video-teleconferencing session today to discuss the coronavirus situation that has killed over 88,500 people globally and infected over 1.5 million others.

Ministers and Members of Legislature in Karnataka will take a 30 per cent cut each in their salaries and allowances to fund the fight against the coronavirus outbreak in the state, for a year.

Around 10 new positive cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed in the state of Karnataka. The state tally now stands at 191. An 80-year-old woman from Gadag district in Karnataka, meanwhile, became the sixth Covid-19 fatality in the state.

"During ongoing lockdown period amid COVID-19 crisis, your discipline and sacrifice has provided us the strength to fight Covid-19. We have decided to extend the lockdown period in Odisha till April 30th," CM Naveen Patnaik.

Karnataka excise minister H Nagesh said that the state government will discuss the sale of alcohol in the cabinet meeting on Thursday, April 9. "But people will have to tolerate the ban as we are fighting a pandemic. We are losing Rs 1800 crore per month for not selling alcohol," the minister told a news channel.

The current cases of coronavirus in India, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, stand at 5,734 with 5,095 active cases, 472 recoveries, 166 deaths and one migrated case.

With 773 new cases in the past 24 hours, India's coronavirus positive cases stand at 5, 194. 32 deaths due to Covid-19 have taken place since Tuesday, says Health ministry official.

"More than 80 per cent political parties have suggested extension of lockdown. PM Modi has said that he is getting information from people that they want to extend lockdown but the final decision will be taken after meeting with CMs and others," Ghulam Nabi Azad said.

14 new COVID-19 positive cases have been reported in Jammu and Kashmir today. Total active cases stand at 130, govt of Jammu and Kashmir confirmed.

One Air Force personnel who visited the Nizamuddin area in Delhi recently have been put under quarantine. "When we came to know that one Air Force personnel visited the Nizamuddin area, we took immediate measures and ensured that he was quarantined. Test was conducted on this sergeant and the preliminary reports are negative," Air Vice-Marshal Surat Singh said.

Coronavirus cases in Uttar Pradesh stand at 343 including 26 people who have completely recovered and discharged. However, out of the 343 cases, 187 are of Tablighi Jamaat attendees, UP Principal Health Secretary Amit Mohan said.

Six new COVID-19 positive cases have been reported in the last 24 hours. Total positive cases in Karnataka stand at 181 now, which includes 5 deaths and 26 discharged: Health Department, Govt of India.

The central government may extend lockdown beyond April 14 to combat the spread of the coronavirus outbreak, says Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury after meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a video conference with all Chief Ministers of states on 11th April.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson spent a second night in intensive care and was in a stable condition after receiving oxygen support for COVID-19 complications while his foreign minister directs the country's battle against the outbreak. FULL REPORT HERE

To help the people alleviate the distress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Union government recently announced the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY), which focuses on benefitting workers in all the sectors, primarily the health workers, senior citizens, farmers, etc. READ FULL REPORT HERE

At least 15 districts of Uttar Pradesh will be sealed completely from midnight to April 13th. Among these are Lucknow, Agra, Noida, Kanpur, Ghaziabad and more. All essential services will be home delivered, directs UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

Check the 15 districts here:

• Lucknow
• Agra
• Ghaziabad
• Gautam Buddha Nagar
• Kanpur
• Varanasi
• Shamli
• Meerut
• Bareilly
• Bulandshahr
• Firozabad
• Maharajganj
• Sitapur
• Saharanpur
• Basti

Till date 181 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed in Karnataka. This includes five deaths and 28 discharges. Six new positive cases have been reported from April 7 to April 8.

The death toll due to COVID-19 in India rises to 149, cases climb to 5,194, Health Ministry confirmed.

• Four new cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Gujarat; state tally reaches 179: Health official said.
• Two more coronavirus cases detected in Dharavi; tally in Mumbai's slum area rises to 9: Civic official.
• Two more people die of coronavirus in Maharashtra's Pune; toll in district climbs to 10: Officials.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh chaired a high-level meeting, including Union Ministers on April 7. After the meet on lockdown, Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said that it is too early to decide on an exit from the 21-day lockdown.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has formed a 5-step plan to curb the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

Here's the plan:

1. Random testing
2. Tracing of contacts
3. Treatment of positive cases
4. Teamwork
5. Tracking and monitoring

Karnataka registered 12 new Covid-19 positive cases, including four Tablighi returnees during the last 19 hours, an official said on Tuesday.

"Till date, 175 Covid positive cases have been confirmed. This includes 25 discharges and four deaths," a health official said.

The 12 new cases emerged from Monday 5 pm to Tuesday noon.

Among the new cases on Tuesday, four are Tablighi returnees and three are contacts of earlier Tablighis.

BBMP Commissioner Anil Kumar, IAS took to twitter stating that the BBMP is extremely grateful to the Karnataka Wakf Board and Muslim community leaders for their decision to suspend the congregational prayers on the occasion of Shab-e-Barat due to the current lockdown. "This is the time for all of us to come together and fight COVID-19," Kumar said.

The total number of global cases is nearing 1.3 million, including over 70,000 fatalities. Over 270,000 patients are reported to have recovered.

• United States death toll surpasses 10,000
• United Kingdom Prime Minister Johnson moved to intensive care unit
• China reports no new deaths for first time since January
• Japan set to declare state of emergency as cases surge
• Kenya bans road, rail and air travel within and out of Nairobi
• South Korea has less than 50 new cases for the second day
• Growth in new cases appears to slow in Spain and Italy

To curb the spread of misinformation through Whatsapp, the Facebook-owned messaging platform on Tuesday narrowed down the limit of frequently forwarded messages to one chat at a time. The move comes as an update to the already existing limit that was allowing users to forward a message for up to five times, but as noted above, only applies to frequently forwarded messages that have been previously forwarded five times or more.

Two more positive cases have been detected in India's Dharavi slum in Mumbai city following which Baliga Nagar area of Dharavi has been sealed. Contact tracing of the new cases is being done. Total coronavirus positive cases in Dharavi now stand at 7, including 1 death.

At least 19 new coronavirus positive cases have been detected in Gujarat - 13 from Ahmedabad, 3 from Patan and 1 each from Bhavanagar, Anand and Sabarkantha. Total now of positive cases in the state are 165, Gujarat Health Department said.

With 693 new coronavirus positive cases in the last 24 hours, the toll now stands at 4,067 in India. Out of which, 1,445 cases are related to Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi. At least 76 per cent cases have been reported in males and 24 per cent in females, Lav Aggarwal, Joint Secretary, Health Ministry confirmed.

In the last 13 days, Indian Railways transported sugar through 1340 wagons, salt through 958 wagons and edible oil through 316 wagons/tanks, to different parts of the country amid coronavirus lockdown, said Lav Aggarwal, Joint Secy, Health Ministry.

The Wockhardt Hospital in Mumbai has been declared a containment zone on Monday, April 6, after 26 nurses and three doctors tested positive for the coronavirus outbreak. BMC took the decision after which a civil official said that nobody would be allowed to enter or leave the Mumbai Central hospital till everyone in it tests negative twice consecutively.

• BJP workers must help the poor and the needy with food
• Homemade masks can be used to protect yourself from coronavirus
• Send thank-you notes to corona warriors, be thankful to people who are serving you
• Install Aarogya Setu application on your mobile phones to stay informed, stay safe
• Donate to PM CARES fund generously

Hailing 130 crore Indians, PM Modi said that India has shown unprecedented maturity during the lockdown. "India is joining forces with countries around the world," said PM Modi.

Modi also said that the World Health Organization (WHO) has hailed India's effort in fighting the deadly virus.

• It's always India first for BJP stalwarts
• India has set an example in fighting the virus
• India is in an all-out war with coronavirus
• We are taking all state govt's along in this fight, says PM Modi
• We took some very difficult decisions: Modi

In view of coronavirus lockdown, Delhi Police has appealed to Muslims not to step out on Shab-e-Barat. The police has also warned that stern action will be taken against the violators

The total number of deaths of COVID-19 in the United States topped 9,000 as of 1.30 pm Sunday local time (1730 GMT), according to the data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University.

• Total 68 patients have tested positive for COVID-19 till now in Punjab. Out of this, one patient is critical and the other one is on ventilator support. At least 4 patients have been cured. Total 6 COVID-19 patients have passed away till now, Department of Health and Family Welfare in Punjab stated.
• Around 13.6 lakh workers are being provided shelter and food by their employers and industry: Punya Salila Srivastava, Joint Secretary, Home Ministry.
• No evidence of COVID-19 being airborne yet, ICMR states.
• A total 3374 confirmed COVID-19 cases reported in India till now. An additional 472 new cases reported since yesterday. Total 79 deaths reported, 11 additional deaths have been reported since yesterday. 267 persons have recovered, Lav Aggarwal, Joint Secy, Health Ministry stated.

Day after Karnataka reported 16 new cases of coronavirus, the largest single-day spike, Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa appealed to the people of the state to not go out unnecessarily and put the health of others' at risk. READ FULL REPORT HERE

A month after India banned the export of Hydroxychloroquine, US President Donald Trump has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to release the amount of drugs ordered by the United States. Donald Trump said that he spoke to PM Narendra Modi on Saturday (April 4) morning and made a request to release Hydroxychloroquine for America. READ FULL REPORT HERE

• Three more people, who were in contact with the earlier cases, have tested positive for COVID-19 in Agra, taking the total number of confirmed positive cases in the district to 48, Agra District Magistrate Prabhu N Singh said.
• The total number of positive COVID-19 cases in Uttar Pradesh stands at 227 including 21 people who have been discharged, UP Principal Health Secretary Amit Mohan confirmed.
• Seven more people test positive in Himachal Pradesh, total cases stand now 14.
• The number of confirmed coronavirus positive cases in Bihar reaches 32.
• COVID-19 cases in Delhi rise to 445; 301 from Nizamuddin congregation, Health Department confirms.

Meerut people shower flowers at police vehicles as a mark of gratitude for police services during the coronavirus pandemic.

• Around 10 Indonesians including 5 women, who attended Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi last month, have been booked under Section 188, Section 269, Section 270 of IPC, sections of Epidemic Diseases Act & Foreigners Act, 1897, Ghaziabad Police said. They have been placed under quarantine.
• The cantonment area in Lucknow has been sealed for 48 hours after 12 Tablighi Jamaat returnees in the Sadar Bazaar area tested positive for COVID-19. Only Quick Response Teams and medical teams will be allowed entry into the area.

At least 16 people have now tested positive for coronavirus in King George's Medical University (KGMU) in Lucknow.

Eleven CISF personnel posted at the Mumbai airport tested positive for the COVID-19 pandemic. At least 142 were under quarantine since the last few days. Out of which, four were tested positive yesterday and others were tested positive today.

Four new confirmed cases of the Covid-19 pandemic was reported in Karnataka today. A 75-year-old man in Bagalkote, a 70-year-old in Belagavi, a 26-year-old in Belagavi and a 20-year-old in Belagavi. The three from Belagavi, who tested positive, had attended Jamaat event in Delhi. The Total positive cases in state is 128.

Madhya Pradesh government has slapped the National Security Act (NSA) against 4 persons involved in violent attack and stone pelting against doctors and health workers in Indore.

Messages displayed outside mosques in Bengaluru's Shivajinagar area requesting people to offer Friday prayers at home due to the coronavirus lockdown in Karnataka.

Saudi Arabia King Salman ordered the disbursement of up to 9 billion riyals which is $2.39 billion in financial support to over 1.2 million citizens who work in private sector firms affected by the economic fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic.

After a doctor of Delhi's AIIMS tested positive for coronavirus, his 9-months-pregnant wife has also tested positive or the same. The wife has been isolated and her delivery will take place at AIIMS, officials said.

"I request all of of you to switch off all the lights of your house on 5th April at 9 PM for 9 minutes, and just light a candle, 'diya', or mobile's flashlight, to mark our fight against coronavirus", Prime Minister Narendra Modi

• Enough PPEs available in India, says Health Minister

• Only 5% patient require ventilators
• At least 9,000 contacts linked to the Tablighi Jamaat event has been identified
• India has 328 new cases, 151 recoveries, 12 deaths in the last 24 hours
• Lockdown effective in all state: Home ministry 

After the video conference meeting of Chief Ministers with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu tweets stating, "Completion of lockdown will end on April 15 next. But it doesn't mean free will to move out on streets. We all must be responsible in slowing down. Lockdown and social distancing is the only way to fight Covid-19.

After several minutes, the tweet was taken down raising speculations about lockdown extension even after April 21.

However, CM Pema Khandu came out with a clarification saying that the tweet with respect to the lockdown period was uploaded by an officer who was not fluent in Hindi. Therefore the same was withdrawn.

Around 391 people who visited the Nizamuddin Markaz have been traced and quarantined. 11 out of 91 persons who were tested in Bidar are COVID-19 positive, Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said today.

A doctor posted at a primary health centre in Dhaurhara tehsil of Lakhimpur district has 'resigned', claiming that he has "contracted coronavirus".

In his resignation letter to the Chief Medical Officer, the doctor Neelesh Kumar Maurya posted at Ranjeetganj PHC, said that he had examined nearly 60 migrant labourers on March 30, without following personal safety guidelines due to limited facilities available at the centre.

The Congress working committee met on the backdrop of country facing the coronavirus pandemic and took feedback from the congress-ruled states, as party has been suggesting various measures to help the marginalised sections and daily wagers. Party president Sonia Gandhi slammed the lockdown as "unplanned" and emphasised that testing could only combat this disease which the country is "lacking" and demanded the government to prepare and publish a "Common minimum relief package".

A three-day-old kid and the mother have tested positive for coronavirus as they caught the virus after they were kept on a bed vacated by a Covid-19 patient.

Even as Maulana Saad Khandhlawi, the chief of Tablighi Jamaat continues to elude the police, sources close to him said that he has gone into quarantine in an undisclosed location. The Delhi Police's crime branch has been conducting raids at several places in the national capital and in Uttar Pradesh also since Wednesday.

After the coronavirus patient who tested positive in Mumbai's Dharavi slum was confirmed dead on Wednesday evening, another person aged 54-year-old sanitation worker has tested positive for the Covid-19 pandemic.