Ahead of ’Janta Curfew’, confirmed coronavirus cases in India rise to 315
- More than 60 fresh cases were reported in various parts of the country on Saturday
- While addressing the nation on Thursday, PM Modi urged citizens to follow 'Janta Curfew' from 7 am to 9 pm on Sunday to contain the spread of coronavirus
New Delhi: Novel coronavirus cases in India rose to 315 Saturday after more than 60 fresh cases were reported in various parts of the country, the Union Health Ministry said.
"Total number of confirmed cases so far in the country as on 21 March including foreign nationals is 315," the Health Ministry said late Saturday.
A total of 16,911 samples from 16,021 individuals have been tested for SARS-CoV2as as on March 21, 6 PM, the Indian Council of Medical Research said in a statement.
"A total of 315 individuals have been confirmed positive among suspected cases and contacts of known positive cases," the ICMR said.
The figure of 315 includes 39 foreign nationals, including 17 from Italy, three from the Philippines, two from the UK, one each from Canada, Indonesia and Singapore.
It also includes four deaths -- reported from Delhi, Karnataka, Punjab and Maharashtra.
The data includes 63 cases in Maharashtra (three foreigners), followed by Kerala at 40, including seven foreign nationals.
As in the wake of coronavirus scare people are fleeing the cities and taking refuge in their villages, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted on Saturday saying that people should refrain from leaving cities as they will pose a risk of spreading the deadly virus to the villages.
"Many of my brothers and sisters are leaving the city where they earn a living and returning to their villages. Travelling in a crowd increases the risk of COVID19 infection. Wherever you're going, it'll pose danger to people there too. It'll increase difficulties for them.," PM Modi tweeted.
In the following tweet, he said, "I appeal to all that in whichever city you're in, stay there for a few days. By doing so, we can control the spread of coronavirus."
"We're playing with our health by crowding railways stations and bus-stands. Please think about yourself and your family; don't move out of your house, unnecessarily," he added.
While addressing the nation on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged citizens to follow 'Janta Curfew' from 7 am to 9 pm on Sunday to contain the spread of coronavirus.
Delhi has reported 27 positive cases, which include one foreigner, while Uttar Pradesh has recorded 24 cases, including one foreigner.
Telangana has reported 21 cases, including 11 foreigners. Rajasthan has reported 17 cases, including two foreigners.
In Haryana, there are 17 cases, which include 14 foreigners.
Karnataka has 15 coronavirus patients. Punjab and Ladakh have 13 cases each. Gujarat has seven cases while Jammu and Kashmir has four.
Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttarakhand and West Bengal have reported three cases each. Odisha has two cases.
Puducherry, Chhattisgarh and Chandigarh have reported one case each.
Earlier today, Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary, Health Ministry said that a total of 111 labs for testing coronavirus across the country will be functional from today.
Agarwal also said that the states have been asked to use the National Health Mission funds for their health sector preparedness.
"As of today, we are contact-tracing around 7,000 cases. Once we get factual information on community transmission cases we will let people know," he added.
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First Published:22 Mar 2020, 01:07 AM IST
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