Coronavirus in India: 478 new cases in 24 hours, total reaches 2547, 62 dead

The number of confirmed coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases in India crossed 2,500 till Friday evening with 62 deaths.

India saw the highest one-day spike in the number of cases as 478 cases were reported in the last 24 hours. As per data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, 157 people have been cured of the disease and discharged.

The highest number of cases so far has been recorded in Maharashtra (335 cases, 16 deaths), followed by Tamil Nadu (309 cases, 1 death), Kerala (286 cases, 2 deaths), Delhi (219 cases, 4 deaths) and Uttar Pradesh (172 cases, 2 deaths).

Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary Health Ministry, during a press conference on Friday evening said that 647 confirmed cases related to the Tablighi Jamaat event have been found in 14 states. "If we look at cases related to Tableeghi Jamaat, in last 2 days around 647 confirmed cases related to it found in 14 states-Andaman & Nicobar, Assam, Delhi, Himachal, Haryana, J&K, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttarakhand & UP," he said.

President Ram Nath Kovind also expressed concern over two incidents, the gathering of migrant workers in Anand Vihar and the congregation of Tablighi Jamaat in Nizamuddin, both in Delhi, that caused a setback to the efforts.

The President also noted with concern the incidents of attacks on doctors, health workers and police personnel in some parts of the country and endorsed the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's appeal to all citizens to switch off lights in homes at 9 PM on Sunday and instead switch on their mobile flashlights, torches or lamps in an expression of people’s solidarity to fight against coronavirus. 

Meanwhile, Union Minister for Home Affairs Amit Shah on Friday approved the release of Rs 11,092 crore under the State Disaster Risk Management Fund (SDRMF), to all states to battle the coronavirus pandemic. The move comes a day after the assurance given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday during his video conference meeting with chief ministers of the states.

"The Central Government has released in advance its share of the first instalment of State Disaster Risk Management Fund for the year 2020-21, amounting to Rs. 11,092 crores, with a view to augment funds available with the State Governments," a press release said.