Centre bracing for a rapid surge in cases
With the nationwide death toll from COVID-19 touching 273 and the number of positive cases reaching 8,447 on Sunday, the Union Health Ministry said India is preparing for a possible exponential surge in cases.
Top oil producers agree on deal to cut output
Top oil-producing countries agreed on Sunday to cut output in order to boost plummeting oil prices due to the coronavirus crisis and a Russia-Saudi price war. Kuwait Oil Minister Khaled al-Fadhel tweeted that, following extensive efforts, “we announce completing the historical agreement to cut production by nearly 10 million barrel per day by OPEC+ members starting May 1”.
India talking to U.S. over visa sanctions
The government is “engaged” in talks with the U.S. administration to reconsider President Donald Trump’s orders to impose visa sanctions on countries that don’t take back illegal “aliens” in the U.S. within a week. In particular, the order clashed with New Delhi’s decision to restrict all passengers, including Indian citizens from any other country, owing to the coronavirus pandemic .
India to use Chabahar port to send assistance to Afghanistan
An Indian ship on Sunday began its journey to Iran’s Chabahar port, carrying a major consignment for Afghanistan of wheat and anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine, which is being used in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic .
Ashok Gehlot suggests ‘modified lockdown’ after April 14
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Sunday suggested that a “modified lockdown” could be enforced beyond April 14 when the present spell comes to an end, to enable the States to utilise their internal resources for bringing the economy back on track.
11 held for chopping off policeman’s hand in Patiala
Eleven persons were arrested on Sunday for an attack on a police party by a group of Nihangs, a Sikh warrior sect, at a vegetable market in Punjab’s Patiala. The hand of assistant sub-inspector Harjit Singh was severed with a sword in the attack that followed when the Nihangs were asked for curfew passes, the police said.
Data | How quickly are coronavirus infections and deaths increasing in India, compared to the rest of the world?
As of April 11, COVID-19 cases in India were doubling every four to five days. COVID-19-related deaths were doubling every four to six days. In the graphs, each line traces the trajectory of cases/deaths in a country. The darker, dotted lines are plotted to depict the rate at which cases/deaths are doubling in countries.
First batch of Rafales likely to fly in late
The arrival of the first batch of Rafale fighter jets for the Indian Air Force is likely to be delayed by around three months due to the COVID-19 pandemic , as France battles rising infections and deaths, and continuing lockdown restrictions, which have also impacted the training schedule, defence sources said.
In lockdown, the big top collapses in Bengal
Madhusudan Ghosh had built a career around his ability to make audiences laugh in Empire Circus, but when asked if he is coping well in these difficult times, he broke down. “No I am not, none of us are,” the 65-year-old ‘joker’ at one of the oldest circuses in Bengal said.
Centre slow to absorb lockdown impact on the poor, say activists
A response filed by activist Harsh Mander to a Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) status report in the Supreme Court accused the Centre of being slow to absorb the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on the poor.
