Coronavirus Outbreak: 25 Indian Students Trapped In China, Running Out Of Food

Around 25 Indian students, mostly from Kerala, are trapped in the Chinese city of Wuhan following the lockdown to contain the deadly coronavirus that has killed at least 41 in the country. The family of one of the students stuck in Wuhan said that they were running out of food as shops and transportation services in their area were shut.

"They are running out of food. We are told that shops and transportation services in the area have been shut down. Whatever little food they had is almost over. They are also told not to come out of the places where they are staying," Kumaran J, father of a sixth-year medical student of Wuhan University, was quoted as saying by The News Minute.

Kumaran said that some of the students were about to leave Wuhan when the Chinese authorities announced the shut down of transport services on Wednesday. "My daughter along with her batch mates from India were standing in a queue to get boarding passes for the bullet train to get to another city. Just when she was fourth in the line from the counter, they closed issuing the passes and unfortunately four of them including her were not able to get into the train. The remaining 14 of them were able to get out of Wuhan and I heard they will be reaching India soon," said Kumaran.

Responding to the queries of concerned family members, the Indian embassy in China said that it was in touch with the authorities in Beijing, Wuhan and Indians living in Hubei province. They said that Chinese authorities have assured them of all assistance to residents of Wuhan, including food supply. The embassy has also made operational two hotlines for those who want to get in touch with queries related to coronavirus. Those who are trapped in China can contact embassy by dialling the following numbers: +8618612083629, +8618612083617.

China To Build Another Hospital To Treat More Cases Of Coronavirus

Meanwhile, China has announced plans to build a second hospital within half a month to treat more cases of the deadly coronavirus as the fast spreading virus continues to wreak havoc in the country and abroad with 41 people dead and more than 1,300 infected, dampening the Chinese New Year celebrations.

The confirmed cases for the first time crossed the 1,000 mark and rose sharply to 1,287 as of Friday with 237 people in critical condition battling for their lives in China, the National Health Commission said on Saturday. Almost all provinces, including Beijing, are reporting steady rise in the number of cases mostly of people who travelled from Wuhan, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak.

The pneumonia situation had resulted in 41 deaths, including 39 in central China’s Hubei province and one in north-eastern province Heilongjiang, the health commission said on Saturday.