1. The Centre sanctioned Rs 15,000 crore as part of a Covid-19 “Emergency Response and Health System Preparedness Package” as confirmed cases rose to 5,865 on Thursday evening. Out of the total cases in the country, 169 patients have died, and 5,218 are being treated. There are 477 people who have recovered from the disease.
  2. The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare asserted that there were enough personal protective equipment kits in the country, and that all those working with Covid-19 patients should use it based on risk profile. The ministry added that 20 domestic manufacturers have been developed for PPEs, orders for 1.7 crore PPEs were made, and the supplies had begun. The ministry has also requisitioned 49,000 ventilators.
  3. The Indian Council of Medical Research has said nearly 1.3 lakh samples have been tested for coronavirus in the country. It added that the rate of those testing positive ranged between 3% and 5% in the last one-and-a-half months without displaying any significant spike. The organisation updated its testing strategy to include people in health ministry-designated “hotspots” or “clusters” who show influenza-like symptoms.
  4. Maharashtra has confirmed 1,346 infections, and 197 people in total have tested positive in Karnataka. In Gujarat, there are 241 Covid-19 patients.
  5. International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said global economic growth will “turn sharply negative in 2020”. She cited an IMF projection that more than 170 nations will “experience negative per capita income growth this year”.
  6. The Reserve Bank of India said the outlook for India’s economic recovery has been “drastically altered” by the coronavirus outbreak. “Covid-19 hangs over the future, like a spectre,” the central bank said in its Monetary Policy Report. “The actual outturn would depend upon the speed with which the outbreak is contained and economic activity returns to normalcy.”
  7. Odisha became the first state to extend the 21-day lockdown till April 30. Madhya Pradesh has contained 15 districts, designating them as “hotspots”. These places will be sealed which means that entry and exit will be barred. Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has directed to seal areas in ​​Korba district’s Katghora where seven cases have been reported.
  8. World Health Organization Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for an end to the “politicisation” of the Covid-19, a day after United States President Donald Trump threatened to cut funding to the global body.
  9. India’s fuel consumption in March decreased by 18%, the biggest decline in over a decade as the government suspended transportation and imposed a 21-day nationwide lockdown to control the spread of coronavirus.
  10. In the United States, 6.6 million people sought unemployment benefits last week. Approximately, one in 10 workers have lost their jobs in just the past three weeks The figures collectively constitute the largest and fastest series of job losses in history, dating back to 1948.