WHO praises India for preventive measures against COVID-19

New Delhi, Mar 17: With the death of a 64-year-old man in Mumbai, the death toll due to the COVID-19 virus has risen to 3 in India with 126 plus cases being reported as COVID-19 infected all over the country. The global count of infected patients is nearly two lakh while 7158 people have died due to this virus attack all over the world.

As a preventive measure, the Government of India has banned the entry of passengers from European Countries, Turkey, and the UK till March 31 to check the further spread of Coronavirus pandemic.

Meanwhile, the WHO Representative to India on Coronavirus Henk Bekedam praised the Indian government for impressive preventive measures. He said, “The commitment from Indian govt, the Prime Minister's Office has been enormous, very impressive. It is one of the reasons why India is still doing quite well. I am very impressed that everyone has been mobilized.”

One more patient died in Karnataka due to COVID-19 and two more cases were reported from Noida taking the total number of infected patients to 126 in India. Globally, the virus has engulfed 157 countries affecting 182, 731 people and the global death toll has reached 7174.

The Union health ministry has activated a toll-free 24x7 national helpline number, 1075, to address queries related to the infection. The government also prohibited the entry of passengers from EU countries, Turkey and the UK from March 18 till March 31.

The Maharashtra Government has ordered the closure of all educational institutes, universities, colleges, malls, theatres, and invoked the Epidemic Act of 1897. The state has reported 37 cases – highest in the country – and advised the people to take enough care to guard them against the virus attack. University exams are also suspended till March 31 in the state.

The southern state of Tamil Nadu also followed the suit and ordered the closing of all malls, theatres and liquor bars till March 31.

The COVID-19 has its impact on the budget sessions of some of the states. The budget session of West Bengal state assembly has been curtailed over the novel coronavirus pandemic and the House will not meet today, Speaker Biman Banerjee said.

The beleaguered chief minister of Madhya Pradesh has found a good excuse in coronavirus to stall the floor test ordered by the Governor Lalji Tandon to be held today in the wake of the resignation of 22 MLAs owing allegiance to Jyotiraditya Scindia. The Speaker has suggested having the coronavirus test conducted on the MLAs before conducting the floor test to prove the majority of the Kamal Kamal Nath government.

The Karnataka government has decided to start thermal scanning of all the visitors to select government offices and courts from today as a preventive measure, an official said.

The Bombay High Court and its benches at Nagpur, Aurangabad, and Goa shall function for only two hours in a day from March 17 until further orders in view of the novel coronavirus outbreak.

The virus has impacted the sports world globally. The International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach has planned emergency talks with member organizations on Tokyo Olympics. It is less than five months to go before the Tokyo Olympics. This step is initiated to “keep the international federations informed of the situation, as well as the national Olympic committees and athletes, according to media reports.

Meanwhile, the emergency meeting of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) is scheduled to be conveyed via video conferencing. There is speculation that the Champions League could be concluded with a four-day final.

At home, the BCCI has decided to shut down the office from today in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic and employees are directed to work from home. The novel coronavirus outbreak has forced the BCCI to close its headquarter in Mumbai from today and told the employees to work from Home.

Meanwhile, the European Union leaders are expected to hold a video conferencing summit on efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19. European nations are the most affected after China due to the attack of this virus affecting nearly 50,000 people across the continent. It has claimed more than 2000 lives so far with Italy topping the number of deaths anywhere in the world except China. Countries sharing borders with Italy like Austria and Slovenia have moved to slow traffic. Other European countries like Germany, Poland, Slovakia, and Cyprus have also introduced restrictions.