INDIA’S DAILY COVID-19 CASES SOAR TO 352,991 AS SEVERAL COUNTRIES PUT TRAVEL BAN

Mon 26 April 2021:

India’s daily coronavirus cases hit another global record Monday after the country registered 352,991 new infections, said the Health Ministry.

The country’s total caseload rose to over 17 million while the death toll stood at 195,123, including a record 2,812 new fatalities.

India has registered an exponential increase in daily cases to over 300,000 since Thursday last week, taking the country’s health system to the verge of collapse and leading to a shortage of oxygen at hospitals.

The worst hit is the capital New Delhi, which is facing an acute shortage of oxygen in hospitals. The Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal, on Sunday also announced the extension of the lockdown for another week.

Facing tough questions, the government has now taken more steps to tackle the second deadly wave, pressing railways, the air force and the navy to transport oxygen across the country.

The government said Sunday that nearly 4,000 COVID care coaches with 64,000 beds positioned at various railway stations can be made available for quick deployment.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Sunday during his radio address that after successfully confronting the first wave of the coronavirus, the country was full of enthusiasm and self-confidence, but “this storm has shaken the country.”

Modi’s office in a separate statement said the Prime Minister’s CARES fund has given “in-principle approval” for the allocation of funds for the setting up of 551 dedicated Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) medical oxygen generation plants inside public health facilities in the country.

Netherlands Bans India Flights

The Dutch ministry in charge of aviation said Sunday that flights from India would be banned until at least May 1 amid concerns about a new coronavirus variant.

“A flight ban will take effect for passenger flights from India at 6 p.m. on Monday, April 26… The flight ban will be in place until at least 00:01 a.m. on May 1,” a statement read.

Cargo flights and planes carrying medical personnel and equipment will be exempted.

The flight ban comes on top of an entry ban for non-EU residents. The cabinet decided to double up on it for fear that the Netherlands could become a preferred port of entry for Indians going to the EU.

Bangladesh Shuts Land Border With India

Bangladesh will close the land border with India for two weeks starting Monday to avoid a coronavirus spillover, the Foreign Ministry said Sunday.

“From 6am of 26 April 2021 to 6pm of 9 May 2021, general movements of humans between Bangladesh and India will temporarily stay suspended through the land ports,” a statement read.

Bangladeshi citizens going to India for treatment will be allowed back in through designated border crossings if they present a negative COVID-19 test.