United News of India
New Delhi, Apr 5: The Novel Coronavirus graph of India rose steeply on Sunday as 505 fresh cases and 11 more deaths were reported in the past 24 hours, taking the total cases to 3,577, while casualties reached 83.
In a twist, Delhi became the worst-affected with 503 cases and seven deaths. Till recently, it was rallying behind Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.
Joint Secretary in the Union Health Ministry Lav Agarwal, in his daily press briefing, predicted that had the Tablighi Jamaat congregation not happened, the number of COVID-19 cases would have doubled in India in 7.4 days, not 4.1.
The active Coronavirus cases stood at 3,219, while cured or discharged were at 274.
As per the Ministry, more than 1,000 COVID patients are directly or indirectly linked to the religious congregation organised by Tablighi Jamaat ar Markaz Nizamuddin, which has since become a hotspot of Coronavirus infection.
While cases continued to rise, the government again denied that COVID-19 virus was airborne.
Agarwal stated that the strategy of the government was to chase the virus, instead of virus chasing the people. Informing more about the steps taken by the government, he said under the National Rural Livelihood Mission, in 399 districts of 24 States, nearly 14,522 self-help groups have deployed to prepare 65,000 masks.
Over 28,000 relief camps and shelters have been set up for migrants to provide food and shelter.
“Total 12.5 lakh people are being sheltered, while 75 lakh are being fed and 13.6 lakh workers are being fed by employers and industry,” said a Home Ministry spokesperson.
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