The lockdown, which was first clamped on March 25 and spanned for 21 days, had registered 10,877 cases, while the second phase of the curbs that began on April 15 and stretched for 19 days till May 3, saw 31,094 cases.
Celta Vigo's Russia international Fedor Smolov has flouted Spain's lockdown to return to his home country, becoming the second Celta player to break the rules of the state of emergency to fight the coronavirus, Spanish newspaper AS reported. Citing a club source, AS reported that Celta said Smolov had asked permission to return home for personal reasons but they could not grant it as La Liga did not authorise his request.
On May 21, England's pace duo of Chris Woakes and Stuart Broad were among the first cricketers to return to individual training after the Coronavirus hiatus.
While salaried jobs are not lost easily, once lost they are also far more difficult to retrieve. Therefore, their ballooning numbers are a source of worry, notes Mahesh Vyas.
Calling for availability of all necessary equipment for medical professionals, she said the onus lies on the government to ensure that the spread of infection and casualties are not caused owing to lack of infrastructure or preparedness.
News viewership was the biggest gainer during the first full week of lockdown, growing 298 per cent versus the pre-COVID period between January 11 and 31. Ramayana, whose rerun has begun on Doordarshan, was the top-rated show on Saturday and Sunday.
'What I'm really worried about is that the day this lockdown ends, we will all rush to work and we'll kill the lovely environment we are seeing now.'
A paralytic father and a mother who has been rendered jobless due to the coronavirus lockdown has forced promising Nagpur-based athlete Prajakta Godbole to fight extreme hunger with fear of unknown -- from where will the next meal be arranged. The 24-year-old Prajakta, who resides with her parents in a Siraspeth slum in Nagpur, represented Indian Universities in the 5000m race at the World University Games in Italy in 2019. She clocked 18:23.92 and could not qualify for the final round.
To tide over the difficulties due to incessant shutdowns, several farmers in Maharashtra have turned into aggregators and started selling their produce without the help of mandis or agents. They have started contracting with bulk consumers like hypermarkets and co-operative housing societies to sell their produce directly.
As India reached the halfway point in the 21-day coronavirus lockdown on Saturday, some states and rail and airline operators were considering measures to relax restrictions in phases from April 15. Simultaneously, the Centre has drawn up a cluster containment strategy to contain the coronavirus pandemic within a defined geographic area by early detection of cases, breaking the chain of transmission and thus preventing its spread to new areas.
'I will live in a nearby hotel but will not stay at home, that's it for me now, can't bear anymore lockdown days.'
Rediff readers sent us these pictures to show how their kids are making the most of the lockdown.
The two key messages of Modi's over 20 minute-long address was, however, to virtually rule out any immediate nationwide lockdown, a move that had triggered a massive migration of workers from big cities last year and hit the economy hard, and to reach out to migrants.
Johnson revealed that the number of hospital patients has increased to nearly 27,000, almost a third higher than the peak of the first wave of the pandemic in April 2020.
When the lockdown ends, Hasleen plans to come out of it a stronger person.
'The challenge is to put in place a strategy for future courses of action beyond April 14 when the lockdown comes to an end,' notes Brigadier Narender Kumar (retd).
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for Uttar Pradesh, said the state has taken several steps to contain the spread of coronavirus but to "lockdown five cities by a judicial order may not be the right approach".
We've never, ever been confined to our homes for so many days. What has the experience been like? Tell us!
'India has been cleaved into two by a government that has shown amazing consistency in cleaving.' 'One India is gasping for life, and the other is doing yoga and clapping from balconies and WhatsApp groups,' observes Debashish Chatterjee.
Naren from Hyderabad tells us how his family saved money in the lockdown.
Boris Johnson on Tuesday announced July 4 as the date for a significant lifting of lockdown restrictions in the country, with cinemas, museums, bars, pubs and restaurants being allowed to open their doors to the public once again.
According to sources, government officials have asked industry bodies and manufacturers to submit key concerns and requirements to begin manufacturing activity.
'The economic impact of this lockdown is evidently huge.' 'Its impact on the livelihood of vulnerable sections of the society is immeasurably bigger,' observes Mahesh Vyas.
"Confinement is fostering the tension and strain created by security, health, and money worries. And it is increasing isolation for women with violent partners, separating them from the people and resources that can best help them. It's a perfect storm for controlling, violent behaviour behind closed doors," UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka said in a statement calling the violence against women and girls 'a shadow pandemic'.
The Centre has announced an extension for two more weeks in the nationwide lockdown. However, several relaxations will be allowed as per zones.
A new three-day lockdown in Brisbane has put Cricket Australia in a spot of bother as it makes desperate efforts to hold the fourth and final Test against India in the Queensland state capital from January 15
The lockdown in India has been a timely, graded, proactive and pre-emptive public health measure to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and has been part and parcel of the government's overall strategy, Dr V K Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog, and Chairman, Empowered Group 1, said at a media briefing on the COVID-19 situation.
Viren Rasquinha, who is the CEO of Olympic Gold Quest, stressed on the importance of sports psychologists for athletes in the run-up to the Tokyo Olympics, which has been postponed to next year.
A month-long national lockdown to arrest the spread of COVID 2.0 could shave off 100-200 bps of GDP, leading to a 300 bps risk to annual growth, a brokerage report has flagged while expressing doubts over the ability of local lockdowns to control the pandemic. The second wave of the coronavirus inflection has caught the government off-guard with the daily cases jumping over 6.5 times in the past 30 days. With close to 3.53 lakh fresh daily infections, the country is the worst hit globally.
Amarinder said predictions by health experts about the spread of the pandemic are 'horrendous and frightening'.
The six-day lockdown in South Australia to contain COVID-19 cases has improved Adelaide's chances of remaining the venue of the first day-night Test between India and Australia from December 17 even though the situation remains fluid
The Union home ministry on Tuesday allowed opening of shops selling school books and electric fans, services of bedside attendants of senior citizens and public utilities including recharge facilities for prepaid mobile phones during the ongoing lockdown.
This will be the third video conference of the prime minister with the chief ministers after the spread of the COVID-19 in the country. Sources in the government indicated that besides discussing the way forward in dealing with the pandemic, the discussion could also focus on a 'graded' exit from the lockdown which is in place till May 3.
India's boxing icon MC Mary Kom shared her fitness secret with her fans on Monday as the Olympic medallist showed how she is making most of spending time at home during the lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Less than six months ago, Delhi was gasping for breath. Authorities said air quality had reached "unbearable levels". Schools were shut, flights were diverted, and people were asked to wear masks, avoid polluted areas and keep doors and windows closed. But during the lockdown that began on Mar 22, the concentration of poisonous PM2.5 particles in a cubic metre of air averaged at 44.18, according to a Reuters analysis of government data, indicating a rare "good" rating, the safest level on the scale.
'Life has been very stressful and frustrating.'
In a communication to the chief secretaries of the states and Union territories, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla said the guidelines for the fourth phase of the lockdown were issued after taking the views of the states, following a video-conference held by Prime Minister Narendra Modi with chief ministers on May 11.
The nationwide lockdown has robbed several daily wage labourers and households of their incomes. Vrushali Vilas Kadam tells Divya Nair/Rediff.com how her family is struggling to make ends meet.
In his complaint lodged with Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, former Congress MLA Surendra Singh Jadavat alleged that Chittorgarh SDM Tejasvi Rana also snatched currency notes from vendors in the mandi and tore them up. A sitting ruling party MLA, going to Circuit House in a vehicle, too was stopped by her and his driver was fined by police on her directions for not carrying licence.
After months of anticipation (and 31,000 submissions from the British public), the Britain's Duchess of Cambridge's final selection of images for Hold Still is available to view on the National Portrait Gallery's website. Designed to "capture and document the spirit, the mood, the hopes, the fears and the feelings of the nation" during lockdown, the project brings together 100 moving amateur shots of everything from at-home haircuts to make-shift classrooms; exhausted NHS staffers on duty to dedicated postmen in superhero costumes; pensioners FaceTiming with their grandchildren to mothers cradling their newborn babies. Below, see 22 remarkable images from Hold Still - then head to the The National Portrait Gallery website for the full exhibition.
