UP Govt Starts Bringing Back Workers; Infections in India Near 25,000-mark

With 25 new coronavirus cases in Rajasthan, the number of infections in the state has now risen to 2,059, of which 493 have recovered and 32 have deceased till date.

A seven-member committee has recommended to push the beginning of 2020-21 academic year to September, which has been already delayed due to the ongoing coronavirus-induced lockdown.

Set up by University Grants Commission (UGC), the panel also recommended that the year-end or semester-end examinations that could not be held on schedule should be held in July, according to the Indian Express.

Universities and schools across the country have been closed since March 16.

In the coming days, the UGC will frame guidelines on university examinations, and the academic calendar based on the committee’s report.

In the wake of coronavirus outbreak in the country, as many as 101 former bureaucrats wrote to Chief Ministers of states expressing anguish over “harassment” of Muslims in parts of country.

In an open letter, the bureaucrats termed the media action as “utterly irresponsible and reprehensible” in fuelling hostility towards the Muslims.

“The fear and insecurity generated by the pandemic is sought to be channelled into the "othering" of the Muslim community in different places to keep them out of public spaces, purportedly to protect the rest of the population,” they said, while also calling the action of Tablighi Jamaat as “misguided and condemnable” in organising a meeting in Delhi.

With 61 fresh cases in last 24 hours, total positive COVID-19 cases in Andhra Pradesh has crossed 1000-mark, standing at 1,016. Of these, active cases climbed to 814, while 31 have so far succumbed to the viral infection.

BJP MP Ravindra Kushawaha said on Saturday that he would give a cash reward of Rs 11,000 to anyone providing specific information about people, including Tablighi Jamaat members, who hid information about their travels and avoided screening for COVID-19, PTI reported.

The MP from Salempur constituency claimed in a statement that several people, who had been to Tablighi Jamaat congregations or any foreign country, did not report to the authorities and "are living without proper testing".

Such people need to inform the administration about their travel history and undergo test for the novel coronavirus, he said, adding that anyone providing specific information about such people would be rewarded.

The Retailers Association of India (RAI) on Saturday said the government’s order to allow reopening of neighbourhood and standalone shops needs more clarity for easier implementation, saying it is open to interpretation as terms like “market complexes” are not easily understood, PTI reported.

The retail industry body said keeping in mind the current environment and lessons learnt by opening up of essential retail through the lockout, “we would recommend that the government open up all channels of retail on a date that it feels safe with the social distancing norms clearly defined” while also asking for malls to be allowed to open.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has directed officers that no public gathering be allowed till 30th June, his office confirmed on Saturday, according to according to ANI.

Day after the Ministry of Home Affairs issues an advisory on opening non-essential shops, the Assam government confirmed that “no relaxation of ongoing lockdown has yet been decided by the Govt of Assam like opening of shops, beauty parlours etc.”

In a tweet by the state’s Directorate of Information and Public Relation, it was informed that decision in this regard will be taken only on April 27.

Hours after issuing an order easing lockdown in parts of country, Ministry of Home Affairs clarifies that

• in rural areas, all shops, except those in shopping malls are allowed to open
• in urban areas, all standalone shops, neighborhood shops & shops in residential complexes are allowed to open. Shops in markets/market complexes and shopping malls are not allowed to open
• sale by e-commerce companies will continue to be permitted for essential goods only
• sale of liquor and other items continues to be prohibited
• shops will not be permitted to open in areas, whether rural or urban, which are declared as containment zones by respective States/ UTs.

Education activists in Tamil Nadu calls online teaching during times of pandemic “discriminatory”, and demand withdrawal of government orders encouraging such teaching methods.

“The guidelines issued by the MHA and followed by AICTE, UGC and various States / UTs and Universities that facilitate online teaching – learning is to bailout the institutions from discharging their academic responsibility. Through online teaching the institutes may say that they have completed required (contact hours) classroom days. It’s more an add-on nominal approach of learning, but cannot be construed as complete,” said State Platform for Common School System – Tamil Nadu (SPCSS-TN) in a statement.

More than 70,000 people, stranded in different districts of Assam due the lockdown, have been allowed to move within the state either by ASTC buses or personal vehicles to their homes or workplace during the next three days, starting Saturday, PTI reported.

The call centre has received 41,651 calls from people in different districts who want to take buses to reach their home and the Assam State Transport Corporation (ASTC) is making arrangements for their travel which will be free of cost, Health Minister Himanta Biswa said at a press conference here on Friday.

Union Human Research Development (HRD) Ministry asks universities and research institutions across the country to research how 1918 H1N1 pandemic (also known as Spanish flu), which left 12-17 million dead in the country, was handled and what measures were taken to boost the economy after the pandemic, The Hindu reported.

The letter, written by B.V.R.C Purushottam (IAS officer currently private secretary and chief of staff to Union HRD minister Ramesh Pokhriyal “Nishank”), also tells university departments to set up research teams and study the levels of awareness of COVID-19 in villages near university campuses.

An 18-year-old has been tested positive for novel coronavirus in Puducherry on Saturday. According to media reports, officials have informed that the patient, hailing from Moolakkulam, was admitted to the Indira Gandhi Government Medical College and is being treated.

Moolakkulam area has been sealed and the number of confirmed cases in the Union Territory has now risen to four.

Uttar Pradesh Government on Saturday said that it would suspend six types of allowances including DA (Dearness Allowance) being provided to the government employees and pensioners, reported India TV news.

These allowances will now remain suspended for a period between January 1 2020 to June 30, 2021.

This has come after the Centre earlier decided to freeze DA, DR till July 2021, drawing flak from employee organisations and opposition parties.

Gujarat government on Saturday confirmed that all standalone shops will be allowed to open across all districts in the state from Sunday, selling essential and non-essential items, with 50 per cent staff.

"Those shops registered under the Shops and Establishment Act will be able to open. There are three conditions. Firstly, the shop should be outside the containment area. Secondly, social distancing and use of masks will be mandatory for the shop owners and the employees working inside the shop. Thirdly, they have to operate with 50 percent of their existing staff to ensure that there is no crowding inside the shop," the Indian Express reported Ashwani Kumar, secretary to chief minister Vijay Rupani, as saying.

Officials confirmed on Saturday that cases of novel coronavirus rose to 1,778 in Uttar Pradesh after 157 more people test positive in the state.

40 new COVID-19 cases were also detected in Jammu and Kashmir, taking the total figure in the state to reach 494.

Meanwhile, after 5 more cases of virus in Bihar, the cumulative figure in the state now stands at 228.