The Congress on Sunday criticised the Delhi government’s decision to reopen the Capital’s border, sealed last week, for inter-state movement from Monday. The administration will also withdraw the 70% extra tax on liquor, dubbed as “special corona fees” from June 10.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra’s overall count crossed the 85,000-mark to reach 85,975. Ninety-one more deaths were reported, taking the state’s toll to 3,060.

India’s Covid-19 tally rose to 2.46 lakh this morning after 9,971 cases were reported in 24 hours, the highest single-day rise yet. The toll rose to 6,929. It is now the fifth most-affected country in the world, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker. The increase in cases came as restaurants, malls and places of worship gear up to re-open on Monday.

Globally, the coronavirus has infected more than 69.27 lakh people and claimed over four lakh lives so far, according to the Johns Hopkins University. As many as 31.06 lakh people have recovered.

The national helpline number for the coronavirus is 011-23978046, and a toll-free number 1075.

These are the helpline numbers for states and the Union Territories.

8.16 pm: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation records 1,421 more coronavirus cases and 61 deaths in Mumbai today, reports ANI. The overall tally in the city is now at 48,549, of which 25,717 cases are active, 21,196 have recovered and 1,636 patients have died.

7.52 pm: Pope Francis has said that the worst of the coronavirus crisis is over in Italy, addressing devotees for the first time in Saint Peter’s Square since the outbreak, reports AFP.

7.51 pm: A minute of silence will be observed before all La Liga games in memory of the Covid-19 victims of coronavirus, the league and Spanish football Federation have announced on Sunday, reports AFP

7.44 pm: An Indian naval ship has reached Port Victoria in Seychelles today with the second consignment of essential medical supplies at the request of the Government of Seychelles, reports ANI.

7.20 pm: The number of cases in Maharashtra increases by 3,007 to 85,975, reports ANI. Ninety-one more deaths are also reported, taking the total toll to 3,060.

7 pm: Here are updated numbers from some of the states, as reported by ANI:

  • Kerala: 107 more cases, takes total to 1,095
  • Himachal Pradesh: Seven new cases, takes total to 407
  • Tamil Nadu: 1,515 more cases, takes total to 31,667
  • West Bengal: 449 new cases, takes total to 8,187
  • Punjab: 93 new cases, takes total to 2,608

6.13 pm: Rajasthan’s Health Minister Raghu Sharma says out of 10,385 coronavirus cases in the state, 7,606 people have recovered – a 73.24% recovery rate, reports PTI.

6.10 pm: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami says 86% of the state’s coronavirus cases are asymptomatic, reports PTI.

6.06 pm: The Indo-Tibetan Border Police says they have recorded one new coronavirus case in the last 24 hours, according to ANI. Twenty-six of its personnel are being treated right now and 186 have recovered so far.

5.39 pm: Ajay Maken says Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government is focusing more on “image-making and event management” rather than tackling the novel coronavirus.

5.35 pm: The Delhi Congress says now is not the right time to open up the Capital and calls the decision “premature”. Congress leader Ajay Maken says the decision to open the city’s borders, malls and other areas is “shameful”, reports PTI. He says the number of positive cases in Delhi is the highest in the country while the rate of recovery is the lowest, which is due to the hospitals “being in bad shape”.

5.10 pm: Shah again claims that some people lost patience and started walking. “When it came to our notice, buses were deployed to bring them to railway stations,” the home minister adds. “85% of the cost [of travel] was borne by central government and 15% by state governments.”

5.07 pm: Home Minister Amit Shah says the Centre started running Shramik Special trains since May 1, after all arrangements were made and quarantine centres set up. “They were named ‘shramik trains’, as a tribute to the migrants,” Shah says. “Around 1.25 crore migrants have been safely brought to their places by BJP’s Narendra Modi-led government.”

He salutes the “corona warriors” of the country and claims his rally is not a political one, but to bring people together to fight Covid-19.

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5.02 pm: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami says that 86% of the state’s coronavirus cases are asymptomatic, PTI reports. He says the state’s mortality rate is the lowest when compared to some foreign countries, besides other Indian states. Tamil Nadu is one of the worst-hit states in India with 30,152 cases and 251 deaths.

4.52 pm: The police register a first information report against a resort in Gujarat’s Rajkot district for violating lockdown norms and opening the resort for Congress MLAs, PTI reports. The Congress has lodged over 65 legislators in the resort to protect them from poaching by the Bharatiya Janata Party, ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections on June 19.

4.44 pm: Referring to Rashtriya Janata Dal leaders’ protest, the home minister says that some people welcomed the rally by clanging thalis. “I am glad they finally heard Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal to show gratitude towards those fighting Covid-19.”

4.41 pm: Union Home Minister Amit Shah begins his first virtual rally to address the people of Bihar. He says that it is not an election or political rally, but it aims to bring the people of the country together in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, ANI reports.

3.58 pm: A widely shared video of Puducherry officials dumping a body of a coronavirus patient from into a pit has triggered outrage, with showcause notices being sent to them. The video purportedly shows the frontline workers, wearing personal protective equipment, taking the body in a stretcher and throwing it into the pit dug up for the burial.

Read more: Covid-19: Video shows Puducherry frontline workers dumping patient’s body into pit, sparks outrage

3.30 pm: Uttarakhand registers 38 new cases of the coronavirus, taking the state tally to 1,341, ANI reports, citing the state health department.

3.15 pm: Manipur records 15 new coronavirus cases, taking the state’s tally to 172, reports PTI.

3.04 pm: Madhya Pradesh’s Bhopal administration decides to not reopen places of worship from tomorrow. “Religious leaders have sought more time for preparations to reopen religious places so we have decided not to reopen religious places in Bhopal from tomorrow,” District Collector Tarun Pithod tells ANI. “They will be reopened next week after reviewing the preparedness.”

2.39 pm: Chhattisgarh continues to see a rise in coronavirus cases with 74 new infections, taking the state’s overall count to 997, reports PTI, citing a health official.

2.37 pm: In India, the Calcutta High Court has asked the Centre and the West Bengal government to submit separate reports on allegations that the state lockdown was being eased without taking the required steps to contain the spread of the coronavirus, reports PTI.

2.33 pm: In Japan’s Nikko city, students return to schools wearing face shields and taking precautions against the coronavirus, reports AFP.

2.20 pm: Ten people who had recently returned from Delhi test positive for the coronavirus in Mizoram, taking the state’s tally to 34, reports PTI, citing an official.

2.01 pm: The number of Covid-19 cases in Chhattisgarh rises to 997 after 74 more people, mostly migrant workers, test positive for the disease, PTI reports.

1.55 pm: All shops are shut and streets are deserted in Kottayam district of Kerala, as the country observes a complete lockdown today to contain the spread of the coronavirus, ANI reports.

1.52 pm: Sri Lanka’s election commission decides to hold back the mock poll in the southern Galle district organised to test the country’s preparedness to conduct the parliamentary polls amid the coronavirus pandemic, PTI reports. Elections are likely to be held between late July and August.

1.51 pm: At least 15 more people test positive for the coronavirus in Manipur, raising the total number of cases in the state to 172, PTI reports. Of these, eight had recently returned from Mumbai and seven came back from Delhi.

12.22 pm: State-run hospitals in Delhi will be reserved for the residents, while all central hospitals and facilities will remain open for all, Kejriwal says. Meanwhile, all private hospitals except those where special surgeries are performed, are also reserved for Delhi residents, he adds.

12.13 pm: “By the end of the month of June, Delhi would need 15,000 beds for treating Covid-19 patients,” Kejriwal says. “If we open Delhi hospitals for everyone, where will the residents go? Therefore we have decided that some private hospitals in the city will be reserved only for citizens.”

12.11 pm: The Delhi government is also opening all borders that were sealed to contain the outbreak from tomorrow, Kejirwal adds. With rising coronavirus cases in the city, the chief minister had last week sealed its borders, restricting the inter-state movement of non-Delhi residents while permitting only the operation of essential services.

12.10 pm: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announces that all places of worship, restaurants, malls and offices will open in the Capital from Monday. Hotels and banquet halls, however, will remain closed, he adds.

11.59 am: The Delhi government withdraws the “special corona fee” levied at 70% of the maximum retail price of all categories of liquor, ANI reports. The order will come into effect from June 10.

11.57 am: The Indian Council of Medical Research says that a total of 46.66 lakh samples have been tested for the coronavirus so far. Out of these, 1.42 lakh tests were done in the past 24 hours.

11.53 am: Rajasthan reports 48 more cases of Covid-19 and three deaths, taking the state’s total tally of infections to 10,385, ANI reports, quoting the state health department. The toll due to the outbreak rises to 2,545.

11.50 am: The number of infections in the Maharashtra Police rises to 2,652 after one more officer tests positive for the coronavirus in the past 24 hours, ANI reports. The toll is 33.

11.48 am: A senior officer of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority tests positive for the coronavirus, ANI reports.

11.32 am: China upgrades the protection of the pangolin, believed to be the intermediate host of the coronavirus, to that of “first-class protected animals” at par with endangered species such as giant pandas, PTI reports.

11.17 am: The Jammu and Kashmir administration is thinking of holding this year’s Amarnath Yatra through a shorter Baltal route, even as the Union Territory witnessed a sharp jump in the number of coronavirus infections, The Indian Express reports.

“The work of trek clearance and repair is on,” Shafqat Iqbal, district commissioner of Kashmir’s Ganderbal district, through which Baltal route passes, says. “Tentative dates have not been communicated to us, but we are expecting it [the yatra] may happen in July. This time, there will be less yatris and it is likely to take place only via Baltal route.”

11.15 am: The Uttar Pradesh Police file a chargesheet against 83 Tablighi Jamaat members, including 57 foreign nationals, who were arrested in six different cases registered against them in Saharanpur, The Indian Express reports. The members are accused of spreading the coronavirus and not informing the district administration about their participation in the Jamaat’s congregration in Delhi in March.

11.11 am: Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi says the Congress is “misleading, misinforming and confusing people” amid the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, NDTV reports. This came after party leader Rahul Gandhi accused the Centre of enforcing a “failed lockdown”.

11.09 am: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accuses the Centre of “actively destroying the country’s economy” by refusing to provide cash support to people and small and medium enterprises.

Sharing a report on the impact the pandemic would have on the country’s economy and on the MSMEs in particular, Gandhi writes, “This is demon 2.0,” referring to the Centre’s demonetisation policy of 2016.

11.02 am: Churches and mosques in Goa will not reopen from June 8 despite the permission from the Centre as religious leaders from the respective communities feel the situation there is still not “conducive for reopening of places of worship,” Hindustan Times reports.

10.57 am: Several private hospitals in Delhi claim that they are running at full capacity and do not have any beds available, even as the mobile app launched by the Arvind Kejriwal-led government shows a list of vacancies, NDTV reports. This includes prominent facilities such as the Max Hospitals, the Fortis Hospitals and the Holy Family Hospital.

10.53 am: Haj Committee of India Chief Executive Officer Masood Ahmed Khan announces that all pilgrims who wish to cancel their Haj pilgrimage for this year amid the coronavirus outbreak, will be given a 100% refund, PTI reports.

10.50 am: An eight-month pregnant woman died in an ambulance in Delhi on Saturday after eight hospitals allegedly denied her treatment, PTI reports. The woman and her husband spent 13 hours in search of a bed, before she died outside a facility in Greater Noida. The Gautam Buddh Nagar district administration has ordered an inquiry into the matter.

10.40 am: The Tamil Nadu government caps the per day charges for Covid-19 treatment at the intensive care units and general wards of private hospitals, NDTV reports.

“In private hospitals [which have been divided into four grades], the per day charge for treatment in ICUs shall not exceed Rs15,000,” Health Minister C Vijayabaskar said in a statement.“In general wards, for asymptomatic patients and those with mild symptoms, the maximum is Rs 7,500.”

10.36 am: West Bengal’s Health Department on Saturday amended the standard operating procedure, allowing family members of those who died of the coronavirus to pay their last respects, ANI reports.

9.37 am: There are now 1,20,406 active cases, while 1,19,292 people recovered.

9.32 am: India’s coronavirus tally rises to 2,46,628 on Sunday morning after 9,971 cases are reported in 24 hours. This is the country’s highest single-day rise yet. The toll rises to 6,929, an increase of 287 deaths.

9.25 am: The Maharashtra government spent Rs 100 crore on transporting over 11 lakh migrant labourers to their home states, Home Minister Anil Deshmukh said on Saturday, PTI reports.

“The Central government had assured to provide 85% subsidy [on tickets of labourers travelling in shramik special trains], but the state government didn’t wait for the financial aid and spent Rs 100 crore for transporting over 11 lakh migrant labourers,” Deshmukh said.

9.15 am: China would increase global cooperation if it succeeds in developing a vaccine, Science and Technology Minister Wang Zhigang says in Beijing.

9.05 am: Places of worship in Britain will open partially on June 15, Reuters reports.

8.55 am: Brazil on Saturday took down its data on the pandemic, Reuters reports. It also stopped providing a count of cases as the number rose over 6,72,000, second only to the US. Brazil has reported nearly 36,000 deaths so far. Neither Bolsonaro nor the country’s health ministry have provided reasons for taking down the data.

“The cumulative data ... does not reflect the moment the country is in,” President Jair Bolsonaro said, citing a note from the ministry. “Other actions are underway to improve the reporting of cases and confirmation of diagnoses.”

8.50 am: The number of confirmed cases in Germany rises to 1,83,979, Reuters reports.

8.40 am: The pandemic has killed 749 people in the US in the past 24 hours, AFP reports. This takes the country’s toll to 1,09,791. Over 1.9 million people have been infected.

8.30 am: Assam reported 230 fresh cases in a day, taking the state’s tally to 2,473 on Saturday, PTI reports. Four people have died so far.

8.20 am: The West Bengal government issued a new notification on Saturday, allowing family members of a person who died of the coronavirus to see the body and pay their respects, PTI reports.

“The dead body should be kept at a suitable place for 30 minutes during which the family members shall be allowed to pay their last respects,” said the notification. “In case of death of a patient, the hospital shall inform the family members within one hour of death. A body cover with transparent face area shall be used. The body cover supplied earlier shall not be used.” The last rites, however, will be performed by civic authorities.

8.10 am: The number of coronavirus cases in Tripura rose to 750 on Saturday with 55 new cases, PTI reports.

8 am: Jharkhand on Saturday reported 116 cases, taking the total number of cases to 1,028. The active cases rose to 548, while 473 people have recovered. The toll is seven.

7.46 am: “Hospitals are backbone of healthcare and are serving the patients COVID or non-COVID,” the Delhi Medical Association added. “They are being penalised and government instead of praising their efforts is issuing new diktats daily. Doctors of Delhi are already overworked and overstressed in this hour of pandemic crisis and the state government is unnecessarily putting pressure on healthcare systems.”

7.43 am: The Delhi Medical Association on Saturday condemned the FIR filed against the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, a leading facility for coronavirus treatment in the Capital, for allegedly violating the government’s guidelines related to testing, PTI reports.

“Delhi Medical Association strongly condemns the way Delhi CM (chief minister) is warning the doctors and threatening the hospitals about COVID-19 patients admissions and tests,” the association said. “Doctors who are serving the people of Delhi tirelessly from last two months in this pandemic crisis risking their lives feel insulted by the way they are being treated.”

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Coronavirus: Delhi Police file FIR against hospital for allegedly violating testing guidelines

7.40 am: Globally, the coronavirus has infected more than 68.55 lakh people and claimed over 3.98 lakh lives so far, according to the Johns Hopkins University. As many as 30.71 lakh people have recovered.

The top four countries with the most cases are:

  • US: 19,19,430
  • Brazil: 6,45,771
  • Russia: 4,58,102
  • United Kingdom: 2,86,294

7.35 am: India, with 2,46,622 cases has now become the fifth most-affected country after it surpassed Spain, which has 2,41,310 infections, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker. India’s Union Ministry of Health, however, has confirmed only 2,36,657 cases and 6,642 deaths till 8 am on Saturday.

According to the tracker, India is in the 12th position with 6,946 deaths.

7.30 am: Here are the top updates from Saturday:

  • India’s coronavirus infections crossed 2.36 lakh on Saturday. The number of cases rose by 9,887, in the highest single-day increase so far. India’s tally rose to 2,36,657 and the toll reached 6,642, according to the Union health ministry.
  • The World Health Organization changed its guidelines about the use of protective face masks in public, saying that they must be worn at all places where physical distancing is not possible. The global health body had said in April that there was not enough evidence to show that healthy people should wear masks to shield themselves from the coronavirus.
  • Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal alleged that some private hospitals were involved in the black marketing of beds and said that suspected coronavirus patients cannot be turned away.
  • The World Health Organization said that India’s coronavirus count of over 2 lakh cases was “modest” given its size but warned that the number of infections could explode as the country gradually emerges from the weeks-long lockdown.
  • The Delhi Police filed a first information report against Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, a leading facility for coronavirus treatment in the Capital, for violating the government’s guidelines related to testing. The complainant alleged that the hospital had not been following the Delhi government’s instruction to register coronavirus tests on an official software programme.
  • Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accused the Centre of inflicting damage to the Indian economy by refusing to shell out cash to support people and micro, small and medium enterprises. He termed Narendra Modi’s second term as “Demon 2.0”.
  • The Bombay High Court, in an interim order, allowed airlines to keep middle seats on planes occupied, but in accordance to the safety guidelines issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation that mandate provision of extra protective equipment to the occupant.
  • The Punjab government issued the standard operating procedure for the reopening of malls and religious places from June 8. Entry into malls will be restricted so that physical distancing guidelines can be followed and only 20 people will be allowed inside places of worship at the same time.
  • United States President Donald Trump said that countries like India and China would have more coronavirus cases than America if they conducted more tests.