COVID-19: India's death toll reaches double digit

THE total number of COVID-19 cases in India has reached 500 and the death toll touched 10 on Tuesday (24).

Indian government on Tuesday asked the states and union territories to clamp curfew wherever necessary in the wake of people defying lockdown orders in several parts of the country.

Besides, it asked all state governments to release funds for setting up of additional medical facilities like hospitals, clinical laboratories and isolation wards to combat the pandemic.

In Maharashtra, a 65-year-old coronavirus patient died in Mumbai, taking the death toll due to COVID-19 to three in the metropolis.

The man recently returned from the United Arab Emirates(UAE) to Ahmedabad.

The patient was brought to the Kasturba Hospital in Mumbai on March 20 for treatment, but his health condition deteriorated further.

The man also had pre-existing ailments, including high blood pressure and severe diabetes, an official statement said.

The earlier nine deaths were recorded in Maharashtra (2), Bihar, Karnataka, Delhi, Gujarat, Punjab, West Bengal and Himachal Pradesh.

Thirty-seven people have been cured/discharged/migrated, according to the official data.

Meanwhile, Manipur reported first coronavirus case, which is the first case in India’s north east.

With the coronavirus lockdown hitting the Indian industry hard and causing job losses, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said an economic package to help tide over the crisis will be announced very soon.

Two states - Punjab and Maharashtra - and a UT - Puducherry - have already declared curfew in their respective areas.