Sun 14 June 2020:
India reported another record daily spike in coronavirus infections as the country passes the grim milestone of 300,000 cases.
The Health Ministry reported 11,458 new cases Saturday and 386 deaths, driving the toll of fatalities up to 8,884.
India’s total caseload reached 308,993, the fourth-highest in the world, including more than 150,000 recoveries.
Confirmed cases in the worst-hit western state of Maharashtra moved past the 100,000 mark, data showed on Saturday. The national capital New Delhi, where the health system has also been reeling, saw more than 2,000 new cases.
Mumbai, the country’s commercial capital, has crossed the 55,000 mark and the death toll has reached 2,044. According to official data, the COVID-19 tally in Mumbai showed 55,451 cases and 2,044 deaths.
The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) on Sunday will make a decision on closing Delhi markets.
According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), out of a population of 1.35 billion, some 5.58 million samples in the country have been tested for COVID-19 so far.
The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi imposed a nationwide lockdown in late March. India’s caseload jumped by about 100,000 cases in a week, which coincided with the reopening of shopping malls, houses of worship and restaurants.
In the capital of New Delhi, most public hospitals are full, and crematoriums and graveyards are struggling to manage a rash of bodies. Delhi’s government has projected that cases in the capital area alone could expand to more than half a million by late July, and is considering taking over luxury hotels and stadiums to convert into field hospitals.
Bangladesh surge in coronavirus cases and fatalities
Bangladesh on Saturday reimposed restrictions on mosques and other places of worship amid a surge in coronavirus cases and fatalities.
Limits have been set on the number of people allowed at places of worship in areas designated as “red zones,” the Religious Affairs Ministry said in a statement.
In the capital Dhaka, areas with over 60 COVID-19 patients per 100,000 people have been classified as red zones, while the number is down to 10 for other areas around the country.
Urging residents of these zones to pray at home, the ministry said only 10 people will be allowed to offer Friday congregational prayer at mosques, and only five will be allowed for daily prayers.
They will include the imam (prayer leader), muezzin (person who makes the call to prayer), and two other mosque officials.
The ministry said Muslims living in the red zones can offer regular afternoon, or Dhuhr, prayer at home instead of the Friday congregational prayer at mosques.
Other religious groups will also have to follow the directives and abstain from religious functions at places of worship in red zones, the statement added.
The ministry warned that legal action will be taken against anyone who violates the rules.
The government’s decision came as Bangladesh registered 2,856 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, taking its total past China’s to 84,379.
The country’s death toll increased by 44 to 1,139, according to authorities.
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