Coronavirus Update: Cases Rise Across The Globe Including India, Here’s All About The Current Situation

India

Cases in India have risen to 60 with Kerala reporting eight new Covid-19 patients. One new case is being reported in Delhi and one in Rajasthan since yesterday.

United States

The number of Covid-19 cases in the United States is now in four figures. 34 people have died. Washington State, California and New York State are the worst hit.

New York governor Andrew Cuomo has announced a one mile radius of “containment zone’ in NY’s badly hit suburb Rochelle in Westchester County and called in the National Guard to implement it.

The members will help clean public premises and deliver food to the 80,000 quarantined population. Large gatherings have been banned in the area. Some counties in California are following suit.

The outbreak is having an impact on the 2020 US Presidential Elections too with both Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden, who are contesting for the Democratic Party nomination, cancelling public appearances.

Italy

The figure for infected people in Italy stands in five figures now with over 10,150 patients. While over 100 patients are being starting to add everyday in the US, the figure for Italy is now over 1500.

On Sunday (8 March), Italy’s Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced travel restrictions in the Northern part of the country, it’s economic powerhouse. But these were soon extended to include everyone, all of its 60 million people.

Outdoor gatherings have been banned. Anyone who is travelling must show reasons for health, work and emergencies. Those who lie can be jailed. The whole country is under lock-down, the only one in the Europe to do so.

631 people have died so far. Italian doctors have warned medics across Europe to “get ready” for Coronavirus in a letter revealing up to 10 per cent of all those infected with Coronavirus need intensive care, with hospitals becoming overwhelmed. Many hospitals in Italy are housing patients in open tents outside their premises due to lack of capacity.

South Korea

The country witnessed a jump in Coronavirus cases on Wednesday as 242 new cases were reported. It’s a big reversal given that the cases in the country had been slowing down for the last 11 days so much so that only 35 cases were reported on Tuesday (10 March). This could be a one off instance because the authorities tested hundreds of staff members at a call centre where disease was detected this week.

Total cases in the country stand at 7,755 with 60 dead. With these low mortality figures, South Korea has become a model to emulate. Its testing facilities are being hailed across the world, especially the drive through centres where one can simply drive through a makeshift camp on the road and give their sample for testing and get results within hours. South Korea has now tested around 2 lakh people, a record.

United Kingdom

Health minister and Conservative MP Nadine Dorries has tested positive for coronavirus. As of today, there are 382 cases in the country and six people have died.

The Bank of England announced cut in interest rate from 0.75 per cent to 0.25 per cent in response to the coronavirus outbreak. The cost of borrowing is now down to the lowest level in history.