Corona India update: Nation nears 63000 mark with more than 2100 deaths; PM to hold meeting with all state Chief Ministers

INDIA: India is ready to enter in the last week of the lockdown 3.0 which is scheduled to end on 17th May. However, the number of COVID-19 cases in the country has started to rise at a faster pace which is worrisome. The nationwide tally of confirmed COVID-19 cases has neared the 63,000-mark including 2,109 deaths and 19,358 recoveries. Of the 62,939 cases, 41,427 are active. 3,277 new cases and 128 new deaths were reported in the last 24 hours.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has scheduled a video conference meeting with state Chief Ministers on Monday at 3 pm. This will be his fifth meeting with the Chief Ministers to discuss the strategy regarding further plan of action. The meeting is expected to discuss the post-lockdown plan.

Although the cases of coronavirus have been doubling at a faster speed since the first week of the third phase of the lockdown yet the economic downturn and unavailability of jobs is affecting the country severely. The high level meetings within the government and new advisories issued for COVID-19 management in the past few days indicate that the government is in a mood against rolling back the relaxations towards a gradual un-lockdown. 

On Saturday, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) issued guidelines to states on “restarting manufacturing industries after lockdown”.

According to the health ministry, the latest data of top 10 states of the country :

Sr.No.	States	Confirmed Cases	Active Cases	Deaths
1.	Maharashtra	20,228	15,649	779
2.	Gujarat	7,796	5,233	472
3.	Delhi	6,542	4,449	73
4.	Tamil Nadu	6,535	4,667	44
5.	Rajasthan	3,708	1,576	106
6.	Madhya Pradesh	3,614	1,723	215
7.	Uttar Pradesh	3,373	1,800	74
8.	Andhra Pradesh	1,930	999	41
9.	West Bengal	1,786	1,243	171
10.	Punjab	1,762	1,574	31

With nearly 1,200 new cases and 48 deaths reported in the last 24 hours, Maharashtra registers 15,649 active cases in the state. 330 people recovered in the state taking the tally of the patients cured to  3,800. However, the state continues to struggle in controlling the virus as new cases from different parts of the state continue to emerge.

For more than 3 continuous days, Tamil Nadu has been reporting the second highest new cases. On Saturday, 526 new infections were detected in the state. Meanwhile, the deaths reported have been comparatively lower than its counterparts.

Gujarat remains at the second position with second highest cases as well as deaths. 23 new fatalities have been reported in the state. There are 219 patients who have recovered in the state today.

Madhya Pradesh has reported the third highest number of new cases in the state with active cases higher than that in Rajasthan which has more confirmed cases. Deaths reported in MP also exceed that of Rajasthan. Today, 327 people have recovered in MP whereas 110 in Rajasthan.

Uttar Pradesh reported more than 150 cases and 8 deaths in the last 24 hours taking the count of active cases in the state to 1,800.

The condition in West Bengal continues to deteriorate and its place has been rising in the list. West Bengal replaced Punjab and jumped by one position. The active cases in the state have risen by 89 ,totalling it to 1,243. Meanwhile, the state became the one reporting fourth highest deaths after Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh & Rajasthan. 

Among the north-eastern states, Tripura has become the worst performing state with 16 new cases taking its total count to 134 with just 2 recovered patients.

With no new cases in the state for the past few days and a good recovery rate, Kerala reported 2 new cases on Saturday. 

Meanwhile, the effect of Kerala government’s order of total shutdown on Sundays could be seen in the state as the shops remained shut and vehicles were off the roads in the state. The order was issued as a preventive measure to control the further transmission of the virus in the state.