69 COVID-19 Deaths In India, Confirmed Cases Near 3,000 With 601 New Patients Reported In Last 24 Hours: 5 Points

Coronavirus cases have reached an alarming level in India. According to the latest bulletin by the Union Health Ministry on Saturday morning, 69 people have died across India due to the COVID-19 infection. The number of confirmed cases stood at 2,902. However, there has been no confirmation or denial from the Centre on community transmission. There are cases where the person infected with novel coronavirus had no travel history. The government maintains that the rise in the number of cases is due to the Tablighi Jamaat cluster in Delhi's Nizamuddin. So far, over 600 Jamaat members have tested positive for the novel coronavirus. With nearly 9,000 people linked to Markaz under watch, the cases will see an exponential rise. In the biggest rise in a single day, over 600 cases were reported in the last 24 hours. Amid this worrying data, there is a ray of hope also. The health ministry said that 183 people have been cured of coronavirus. Here are five latest updates on coronavirus pandemic in India: (Coronavirus Outbreak Live Updates)

1. Maharashtra has registered the highest number of coronavirus deaths in India. As of Saturday, 26 people have died in Maharashtra. Telangana recorded 11 deaths; COVID-19 deaths in Gujarat stood at 10; 9 in Madhya Pradesh, 6 in West Bengal, 6 in Delhi, 5 in Punjab, 4 in Karnataka, 2 in Himachal Pradesh, 2 in Uttar Pradesh, 2 in Bihar, 1 each in Bihar, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
2. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has issued orders for the manufacture of 66 crore triple-layer special masks made of ‘khadi’. These masks will be washable and reusable. The poor will get it free of cost and for others, it will be sold at a nominal price, the state government said in a statement.
3. Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope has said that the 21-day lockdown may be extended if needed. This is the first time any official from any state has spoken about the extension of the lockdown. This contradicts what the Centre has been saying.
4. Congress secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra took to Twitter to raise concerns on aggressive testing across the country. "It is imperative that India immediately ramps up its rate of testing. Extremely valuable information about the severity of the disease, disease clusters, and focal points is gained from testing. In order for this lockdown to yield results, it has to be backed up by large scale testing and other measures to support the medical infrastructure systems in this country. The government must act now scale testing and other measures to support the medical infrastructure systems in our country. The government must act now," she said in a series of tweets on the micro-blogging site.
5. Addressing media on Saturday, Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain said that, "till now, there are 386 Coronavirus positive patients incl 259 from Markaz Nizamuddin; We have only 7000-8000 PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) kits left in our stock which will last 2-3 days. We've demanded 50,000 PPE kits on an urgent basis."