10.42 pm: Coronavirus cases in Delhi rise to 1,578, the toll climbs to 32, reports PTI.

10.40 pm: World Health Organization Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says they are reviewing the impact of withdrawal of United States funding and will work with their partners to fill any financial gaps.

10.33 pm: Singapore’s health ministry confirms 447 new coronavirus cases in the biggest daily jump, taking the total number of cases in the city-state to 3,699, reports Reuters.

10.30 pm: Mizoram government advises people to wear face masks while stepping out of their houses, reports PTI.

8.55 pm: The Covid-19 pandemic has cost New York City between $5 billion and $10 billion so far, Mayor Bill de Blasio says, according to PTI. New York state is the epicentre of the pandemic in the US. It has nearly 2 lakh confirmed cases. Over 10,000 people have died in the city.

8.50 pm: Germany is set to extend its lockdown restrictions till May 3, PTI reports.

8.45 pm: Goa has only one active case of Covid-19, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant says. He adds that there have been no new cases since April 3.

8.35 pm: In Greater Noida’s Dayanagar village, some people shot at a man for coughing during a game of ludo, ANI reports. “A case has been registered & a hunt launched to nab the accused,” the police say.

8.25 pm: In Maharashtra, 232 new Covid-19 cases were reported on Wednesday, taking the total number of cases to 2,916, ANI reports.

8.15 pm: The number of cases in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore city now up to 591, according to ANI. Across the state, there are 938 cases and 53 deaths.

8 pm: Senior Congress leader M Veerappa Moily says the need of the hour is “universal testing” for Covid-19. “The need of the hour is universal testing for COVID-19, providing PPEs, testing kits, mobilising professionals, biologists, scientists and researchers,” the former Union minister says, according to PTI. “The prime minister has not given any assurances for these basic necessities to tackle the pandemic – be it providing shelter to people or on loss of jobs.”

“I think, the prime minister should stop giving false assurances to the people of the country knowing the gravity of the pandemic world over,” he adds.

7.38 pm: Tamil Nadu reports 38 new Covid-19 cases on Wednesday, taking the total cases to 1,242, ANI reports.

7.35 pm: As many as 22 new Covid-19 cases have been reported in Jammu and Kashmir today, taking the total there to 300, ANI reports.

7.30 pm: Mumbai reports 183 new cases, ANI reports. The total number of positive cases goes up to 1,936.

7.20 pm: Only one new Covid-19 case was reported in Kerala on Wednesday, says Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The total number of cases in the state is now 387.

7.15 pm: The cases in Punjab rise to 186, ANi reports.

7.07 pm: The total number of coronavirus cases in Tamil Nadu rises to 1,224 after 38 more people test positive, PTI reports, quoting the state’s health minister C Vijayabaskar.

7.05 pm: The Delhi government will use plasma enrichment technique to treat severely-ill Covid-19 patients on trial basis, PTI reports.

7.00 pm: Mumbai reports 183 new coronavirus cases and two deaths, PTI reports, quoting the city’s civic body.

6.54 pm: World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says the organisation is continuously working to save lives and stop the coronavirus pandemic, after US President Donald Trump freezes funding.

6.44 pm: In Maharashtra, 70% of the Covid-19 patients are below the age of 50, PTI reports citing data from the state’s health department.

6.40 pm: A hospital in Ahmedabad has been placing its Covid-19 patients in different wards on the basis of their religious identity, claiming it was based on a decision made by the Gujarat government.

Read more here:

Covid-19: Separate wards for Hindu and Muslim patients made in Ahmedabad hospital

6.35 pm: Goldman Sachs reports a 49% drop in first-quarter profits as it sets aside funds for bad loans due to coronavirus shutdowns, AFP reports.

6.30 pm: The police in Kerala file cases against 17 foreigners for bathing in the sea off the popular Kovalam Beach amid the lockdown, PTI reports. The police also register cases against the owners and managers of five hotels where the tourists had been staying since March 22.

6.26 pm: The family of a 60-year-old man in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore city allege that they were forced to carry the suspected coronavirus patient on a two-wheeler after the hospital refused to provide an ambulance. The man died outside the hospital.

Read more here:

Coronavirus: Man dies outside Indore hospital, family alleges hospital refused ambulance

6.20 pm: China urges other countries to import medical equipment to deal with Covid-19 only from firms cleared by the government, PTI reports. Several countries have complained about the low quality of medical materials, including personal protection equipment, testing kits and ventilators, exported by China.

6.17 pm: Here is a graph showing new Covid-19 cases in India as of Wednesday evening:

6.10 pm: The police in Mumbai arrest 25 migrant workers travelling to Uttar Pradesh in a mini-truck. The incident comes a day after a huge crowd of migrants gathered outside Bandra railway station in Mumbai, hoping to board trains to their homes in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Read more here:

Covid-19: Mumbai Police arrest 25 migrant workers travelling to Uttar Pradesh in a mini truck

6.06 pm: A doctor injured in an attack on a medical team in Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad says he was saved by an elderly man before the police arrived.

6.04 pm: He adds that 400 districts in India have not been affected by Covid-19, ANI reports.

6.00 pm: Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan says the next two to three weeks will be crucial in India’s fight against the coronavirus, ANI reports.

5.57 pm: Assam withdraws an order allowing liquor sale during lockdown after Centre’s new guidelines, PTI reports. No relaxation is allowed for liquor manufacturing or retail sales.

5.51 pm: All five patients who died of the coronavirus in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, were survivors of the city’s 1984 gas tragedy. Rachna Dhingra, an activist with the Bhopal Group of Information and Action, which works with survivors of the 1984 tragedy, said that they were at least five times more vulnerable to the coronavirus than other people.

Read more here:

Covid-19: Five patients who died in Bhopal were vulnerable as they were victims of 1984 gas tragedy

5.37 pm: The National Hawkers Federation and National Coalition for Inclusive and Sustainable Urbanisation condemn attacks on Muslim vendors.

“They [the vendors] are a key part of our supply chains who play a crucial role in improving last-mile access for millions of people every day,” the organisations say. “The protection of these hardworking people is of paramount concern.”

5.34 pm: Here is a chart showing the number of coronavirus cases in India so far:

5.26 pm: India’s coronvirus cases rise to 11,933, according to the health ministry’s Wednesday evening update. The Covid-19 toll in India is 392.

5.16 pm: The UK says it is scheduled to receive nearly three million units of paracetamol from India, ANI reports.

5.13 pm: The Bengaluru civic body marks 38 wards across six zones in the city as hotspots.

5.10 pm: Here is how India’s Covid-19 testing figures look until Tuesday

4.47 pm: Union minister Nitin Gadkari interacts with representatives of the micro, small and medium enterprises industry and assures them of all possible help from the government amid the nationwide lockdown, PTI reports.

4.35 pm: The health ministry says India reported 1,173 cases in the last 24 hours.

4.26 pm: Agarwal says that as of Tuesday, the government has identified 170 hotspots. Hotspots are places where the number of cases is more and the rate of growth of cases is faster.

4.20 pm: Agarwal says Covid-19 in India is not in the community transmission phase. “We are focusing on cluster containment,” he says. “We will inform people first when we see community transmission.”

4.18 pm: The health ministry says no movement will be allowed in containment zones except for those related to essential services. The Centre says special teams will undertake contact tracing in these places.

4.10 pm: Agarwal adds that the cabinet secretary on Wednesday held a video conference with state officials and discussed the field-level implementation of containment strategy. He adds that the states have been issued instructions for dealing with Covid-19 hotspots.

4.09 pm: Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal says all the districts in the country will be classified into hotspot districts, non-hotspot districts and green zone districts.

4.01 pm: The Centre begins its daily press briefing on Covid-19.

3.52 pm: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath condemns the attack on a medical team in Moradabad. He adds that the accused will be charged under the National Security Act.

3.45 pm: Union Public Service Commission says its chairman and members will forego 30% of their basic salary for one year, PTI reports. The UPSC adds that all its officers and staff members will contribute one day of their salary to the PM CARES fund.

3.39 pm: The number of coronavirus cases in Maharashtra rises to 2,801, ANI reports.

3.32 pm: Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani goes into isolation, a day after a Congress MLA whom he recently met tested positive for coronavirus, PTI reports.

3.13 pm: The Delhi High Court will remain closed till May 3, Bar and Bench reports.

3.05 pm: Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan says the gathering of migrant workers in Mumbai on Tuesday was an attempt to disrupt communal harmony and negate the state’s efforts to fight the coronavirus pandemic, PTI reports.

“Whatever happened on Tuesday, there needs to be a thorough investigation into it,” he says. “There are some who want to disturb the communal harmony in Maharashtra and negate the state’s efforts to fight coronavirus.”

3.02 pm: Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan holds a high-level meeting with World Health Organization officials via video conference.

2.56 pm: West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar alleges that the Mamata Banerjee-led state government is not enforcing the lockdown effectively. He suggests deployment of paramilitary forces in the state.

2.51 pm: The number of coronavirus cases in Haryana rises to 190 after six people test positive, PTI reports.

2.46 pm: Vistara says it is planning to resume flights in a phased manner when the government allows operation, PTI reports, quoting the airline’s chief executive officer. The airline also announces that its senior employees will go on compulsory leave without pay for up to three days between April 15 and April 30 as a measure to further conserve cash flow.

2.38 pm: The Centre directs all deputy secretaries and above level officers to return to their offices, nearly three weeks after they began working from home due to the lockdown, PTI reports.

2.31 pm: Expert estimates and data show Chinese officials didn’t warn people about the coronavirus pandemic for six days, Associated Press reports.

2.24 pm: The government tells the Supreme Court that it will set up a helpline number to address difficulties being faced by health workers such as salary cuts, delayed payment, non-availability of protective kits and eviction from rented accommodation, PTI reports.

2.18 pm: Authorities at Delhi’s Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital say security has been tightened after patients allegedly misbehaved with a doctor on Tuesday, ANI reports. The hospital suspends a security guard and a supervisor.

2.14 pm: A crowd in Moradabad throws stones at an ambulance carrying a suspected Covid-19 patient, ANI reports.

2.08 pm: China says it is “seriously concerned” about the United States stopping funds to the World Health Organization, AFP reports.

2.03 pm: Germany’s economy ministry says the recession in the country is likely to last until the middle of 2020, Reuters reports.

1.56 pm: Ahmedabad Municipal Commissioner Vijay Nehra says a Congress councillor has tested positive for coronavirus.

This comes after a Congress MLA tested positive on Tuesday. The legislator, Imran Khedawala, had met Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, his deputy Nitin Patel and state minister Pradeepsinh Jadeja.

Also read:

Covid-19: Gujarat Congress MLA tests positive hours after meeting CM Vijay Rupani

1.48 pm: “Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani is fit and fine,” says Ashwani Kumar, the secretary to the chief minister, according to ANI. “Medical experts Dr Atul Patel and Dr RK Patel tested him today [Wednesday] and have confirmed that the chief minister has no symptoms for now. But as per safety measures, no outsider is allowed at his residence.”

1.44 pm: Over 3,300 citizens have urged the Uttar Pradesh government to withdraw the first information report and drop all criminal proceedings against The Wire’s editor Siddharth Varadarajan, which they said was a direct attack on press freedom.

Read more here

‘Drop FIR against The Wire editor, Covid-19 shouldn’t be used to gag press,’ say over 3,300 citizens

1.42 pm: Gujarat’s Chief Minister Vijay Rupani will not meet anyone for one week after a Congress MLA he met tested positive for Covid-19, reports PTI, quoting his office.

Also read:

Covid-19: Gujarat Congress MLA tests positive hours after meeting CM Vijay Rupani

1.41 pm: India has contracted Chinese companies to supply nearly 1.5 crore kits of personal protective equipment, or PPE, comprising gowns, gloves, masks and goggles amid the Covid-19 outbreak, Indian ambassador to China Vikram Misri has said.

Read more here

Also read:

  1. What do epidemiologists do – and why are they crucial to India’s fight against Covid-19?
  2. India is failing on a crucial Covid-19 front: Keeping mild cases away from hospitals

1.40 pm: United Nations General Secretary Antonio Guterres says the world is facing a “dangerous epidemic” of misinformation on Covid-19.

Read more here

1.34 pm: The Union Ministry of Home Affairs directs all states and Union Territories to ensure strict compliance with the “Consolidated Revised Guidelines” on the lockdown measures to contain Covid-19 in the country. The letter highlights that states and Union Territories cannot dilute restrictions imposed through the guidelines issued by the MHA.

1.29 pm: Bihar’s Principal Secretary, Health, Sanjay Kumar says four new Covid-19 cases have been reported in the state, taking the total number of confirmed cases to 70.

1.20 pm: Bharatiya Janata Party leader Kirit Somaiya has written a letter to Mumbai Police Commissioner Parambir Singh, calling for an investigation into Tuesday’s gathering of migrant workers in Bandra, reports ANI.

Also read:

  1. Covid-19: Amit Shah calls Uddhav Thackeray after over 1,000 migrant workers gather in Bandra
  2. Protests in Mumbai, Surat show that Modi address failed to reassure India’s most vulnerable people

1.13 pm: Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma confirms the death of the state’s first coronavirus patient. “I am deeply saddened to inform that the first Covid-19 patient in Meghalaya passed away this morning at 2:45 am,” he tweeted. “My heartfelt condolences to his family and loved ones. May his soul rest in peace.”

12.47 pm: Karnataka’s Health Minister B Sriramulu says a 69-year-old Covid-19 patient from Chikkaballapur district has died in Bengaluru, reports PTI. This increases the toll in Karnataka to 11.

12.44 pm: Chouhan says there was no testing infrastructure earlier, and tests were not being done till March 23. “Now we have nine functional labs,” he says, according to ANI. “We are also sending samples to Delhi for tests. That is why the number of cases is rising.”

12.41 pm: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan expresses solidarity with migrant workers stranded in other states. “They could not return when lockdown was extended,” he says, according to ANI. “We talked to other chief ministers to make arrangements for their food and shelter.”

Chouhan adds that his administration will transfer Rs 1,000 in the accounts of such workers. “They will be able to withdraw it wherever they are,” Chouhan says.

12.38 pm: Joint Magistrate-Sub Divisional Magistrate of Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, Gaurav Sogarwal says the district has been divided into eight zones. “If we provide essential commodities to people, then they will not come outside,” he tells ANI. “We connected with local youth and created online portal. Every order is delivered without any delivery charges.”

12.36 pm: Maharashtra minister Jitendra Awhad releases his coronavirus test report, which is negative. “I am fit and fine,” he tweets. “Working on the streets.... But some channels using me for TRP. Please see the report.”

12.29 pm: Rural industries and some construction work, among other activities, will be allowed from April 20 in non-hotspot areas.

Here is a list of what’s allowed in ‘non-hotspots’ from April 20

12.22 pm: Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma tweets on the situation in the state. “Of the 68 tested so far, six have come out positive who are all family members and helpers of the first Covid-19 positive case,” he tweets. “Six other cases are being retested. All the rest of the cases are negative.”

12.21 pm: Kerala’s Alappuzha district administration has decided to turn houseboats into isolation facilities. “This would increase our bed strength by 1,500 to 2,000,” M Anjana, the Alappuzha district collector tells ANI.

12.14 pm: Andhra Pradesh’s Covid-19 nodal officer reports 19 new cases in the state, according to ANI. This includes eight cases in West Godavari district, six in Kurnool, four in Guntur and one in Krishna district. The total number of coronavirus cases in the state is now 502, including 475 active cases, 16 recoveries and 11 deaths.

Here is a list of the cases:

11.58 pm: Gujarat’s health department says four more Covid-19 cases have emerged in the state, reports ANI.

11.46 am: In India, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain says the administration will receive rapid testing kits in one or two days, adding that the authorities “will begin random testing from the day we receive the kits”, reports ANI.

11.42 am: Ecuadorian city Guayaquil is suffering from the most aggressive outbreak of the coronavirus in Latin America after the pandemic hit the city “like a bomb,” AFP quotes its mayor as saying. There are a total of 7,603 confirmed cases in the country, and 369 people have died.

11.38 am: New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will take a 20% pay cut in solidarity with those struggling financially due to the coronavirus, reports AFP. “While it in itself won’t shift the government’s overall fiscal position, it is about leadership,” she says. “This was always just going to be an acknowledgement of the hit that many New Zealanders will be taking at the moment.”

11.32 am: Despite the pandemic, South Koreans are heading out to vote in the ongoing parliamentary elections, reports AFP. There are 10,591 confirmed Covid-19 cases in the country, and 225 patients have died.

11.28 am: US President Donald Trump has named six Indian-American corporate leaders, including Google Chief Executive Officer Sundar Pichai, and Microsoft’s CEO Satya Nadella, to his Great American Economic Revival Industry Groups. This has been formed to revive the American economy following the impact of the coronavirus, reports PTI.

11.22 am: Delhi’s Health Minister Satyendar Jain takes note of an altercation between a doctor and patients in a hospital in the national Capital. “It is not a case of assault but of indecent behaviour,” he tells ANI. “An FIR is being registered. After treatment the patient will be handed over to the police. We have increased the security in hospitals.”

11.15 am: A first information report has been registered against a journalist for a report that train services would resume, reports PTI. The police have said the report may have prompted the migrants’ gathering in Maharashtra.

Also read:

  1. Covid-19: Amit Shah calls Uddhav Thackeray after over 1,000 migrant workers gather in Bandra
  2. Protests in Mumbai, Surat show that Modi address failed to reassure India’s most vulnerable people

11.12 am: The Delhi Police check identity cards and passes of people amid the movement of vehicles at the Delhi-Ghazipur border, reports ANI.

11.07 am: The Kerala police arrest Father Augustine Palayil, the priest of Stella Maris Church in Willingdon Island in Kochi, for allegedly gathering people and conducting mass. Six devotees have also been arrested for participating in it, reports ANI, citing the station house officer of a local police station.

10.49 am: Gujarat’s State Health Department says 52 new Covid-19 cases have been reported in the state. This includes two deaths in Ahmedabad and Surat. The total number of Covid-19 cases in the state is 695 and 30 patients have died, reports ANI.

10.40 am: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi tweets: “The Covid-19 crisis and shutting of businesses in the Middle East have left thousands of Indian workers in deep distress and desperate to return home. The government must organise flights to bring home our brothers and sisters most in need of assistance, with quarantine plans in place.”

10.23 am: Among other activities and sectors that will be allowed to operate from April 20 are – finance, social, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act works, public utilities, movement, loading/unloading of goods/cargo. The central government’s guidelines also notes encouragement of online teaching/distance learning.

10.20 am: Some activities will be permitted from April 20 onwards, the Centre says in its notification “to mitigate hardship to the public”. The guidelines note that “all health services (including AYUSH) to remain functional”, along with “agricultural and related activities”.

Construction of roads, irrigation works, buildings, and industrial projects in rural areas will also be allowed.

10.11 am: For hotspots and containment zones, the Centre says: “In these containment zones, the activities allowed under these guidelines issues will not be permitted. There shall be strict perimeter control in the area of the containment zones to ensure that there is no unchecked inward/outward movement of population from these zones except for maintaining essential services...”

10.01 am: The Centre has released a revised set of guidelines for states and Union Territories for containment of the coronavirus. The notification notes the activities that will continue to be barred until May 3. “All domestic and international air travel of passengers...all passenger movement by trains...buses for public transport...metro rail services,” the guidelines said.

9.56 am: The national directives also note separate guidelines for work spaces and for manufacturing establishments.

9.55 am: “Gatherings such as marriages and funerals shall remain regulated by the District Magistrate,” the guidelines say. “Spitting in public spaces shall be punishable with fine. There should be strict ban on sale of liquor, gutka, tobacco, etc...”

9.52 am: Under the National Directives for Covid-19 management, wearing of face cover is mandatory in public places, and workplaces. “All persons in charge of public places, work places and transport shall ensure social distancing as per the guidelines issued by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.”

The guidelines say that no organisation or manager of a public place should allow a gathering five or more people.

9.51 am: The Ministry of Home Affairs has issued new guidelines after the extension of lockdown till May 3, reports ANI.

9.41 am: Domestic airlines have refused to refund customers in cash for their cancelled flights, and instead offered them rescheduled tickets without an additional charge, reports PTI.

Aviation consultancy Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation India has said the civil aviation ministry should direct airlines to “halt unfair practice of taking advance bookings until resumption [of services] is certain and an interim transition schedule has been established”.

9.12 am: Five new Covid-19 cases have been found in Dharavi, Mumbai, ANI reports, citing the city’s civic body. The number of positive cases in the area is now 60, including seven deaths.

9.07 am: A hospital in Mumbai where several staff members had tested positive for Covid-19 earlier has now reported 10 more infected employees. The number of such hospital staff is now 35, ANI reports.

8.45 am: Vinay Dubey, who is accused of having a role in the protest by migrant workers in Mumbai on Tuesday, has been arrested under Sections 117, 153A, 188, 269, 270, 505(2) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 3 of the Epidemic Diseases Act, reports ANI.

8.39 am: The number of cases in India has increased by 1,076, while the toll has risen by 38 in the last 24 hours.

8.30 am: The health ministry’s latest update confirms 11,439 positive cases in India so far, including 377 deaths and 1,305 recoveries.

7.50 am: United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres has criticised US President Donald Trump’s decision to cut funding to the World Health Organization. “It is my belief that the World Health Organization must be supported, as it is absolutely critical to the world’s efforts to win the war against Covid-19,” he says, according to AFP.

Read more: Trump stops US funds to WHO for ‘failing in basic duty’; UN chief says ‘now not the time’

7.48 am: The United States has registered a record 2,228 Covid-19 deaths in 24 hours, according to Johns Hopkins University tracker.

7.47 am: France reports 762 more coronavirus deaths. The toll in the country is 15,729.

7.45 am: A case has been registered against 800 to 1,000 unidentified people in connection with Tuesday’s gathering of migrant workers in Bandra, reports ANI. They have been charged under several sections of the Indian Penal Code read with a section of the Epidemic Act.

7.42 am: The Navi Mumbai Police has detained a man, identified as Vinay Dubey, in Airoli for threatening to hold a protest of migrant workers in Kurla, Mumbai on April 18. Dubey has been handed over to the Mumbai Police, reports ANI.

7.40 am: The number of positive cases in Madhya Pradesh has risen to 757, PTI reports, citing health officials. As many as 142 persons were found infected on Tuesday. Indore alone reported 99 new cases on Tuesday, taking its tally to 427.

The toll in the state rose from 50 to 53.

In Telangana, the health department says 52 new cases have taken the total in the state to 644. This includes 18 deaths and 110 patients who have been discharged, ANI reports.

7.35 am: As of Tuesday night, the number of “red zones” or containment zones in Jammu and Kashmir is 90 and that in Delhi is 55. The Bengaluru civic body has declared 38 “hotspots”, ANI reports. Here are the lists of these areas:

Meanwhile, in Odisha, the Ganjam district administration has prohibited residents from spitting in public, and said they will be fined up to Rs 500 for violating the rule.

7.32 am: The Bengaluru Police have imposed prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure in the city from midnight on April 14 to midnight, April 20, ANI reports, quoting the city’s police commissioner.

7.30 am: A total of 2,44,893 samples from 2,29,426 individuals have been tested by 9 pm on Tuesday, says the Indian Council of Medical Research in its latest update. Of these, 26,351 samples were tested on Tuesday.

7.28 am: A Gujarat Congress MLA has tested positive for the coronavirus, hours after meeting Chief Minister Vijay Rupani.

However, Ashwani Kumar, secretary to the chief minister, has said, according to ANI: “In today’s [Tuesday] meeting with Congress MLAs, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani was seated at a distance of 15 to 20 feet and avoided physical contact. Still, after taking directions from medical experts further decision will be taken tomorrow [Wednesday].”

7.27 am: The railways ministry says all passenger trains across India have been cancelled till May 3, and there is no plan to run any special trains “to clear any passenger rush”.

7.15 am: Here are the top updates from Tuesday:

  1. The number of coronavirus cases in India has risen to 10,815, including 353 deaths. So far, this has been the largest spike in cases in 24 hours. With 2,377 Covid-19 cases and 160 deaths, Maharashtra is the worst-hit state in India. Delhi has 1,510 cases of coronavirus and 28 deaths.
  2. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the nationwide lockdown will be extended till May 3. Modi said new guidelines for the second phase of the lockdown will be released on Wednesday.
  3. Thousands of migrant workers gathered outside Mumbai’s Bandra station to protest against the extended nationwide lockdown. They demanded transportation arrangements to go back to their hometowns.
  4. The International Monetary Fund said India’s growth is expected to dip to 1.9% in 2020 and rebound to 7.4% in 2021. The monetary fund, in its 2020 World Economic Outlook, also predicted that the global economy is expected to shrink by 3.0% this year due to coronavirus-driven collapse of activity, adding that this is “much worse” than the 2008-’09 financial crisis.
  5. British brokerage Barclays said India’s decision to extend the nationwide lockdown to combat the coronavirus pandemic till May 3 will inflict an economic loss of $234.4 billion (approximately Rs 18 lakh crore) or 8.1% of GDP.
  6. The Ministry of Railways has extended the suspension of services for all passenger trains till May 3, and all metro, domestic and international flight operations will also remain suspended during the period.