INDIA REOPENS AMID RISE IN VIRUS CASES
People wearing masks trickle into malls, places of worship in an easing of the lockdown despite a record single-day rise in infections
Malls and temples reopened in several cities across India yesterday despite the country recording a record daily number of new coronavirus infections, with the pandemic expected to ravage the country for weeks to come.
After a 10-week lockdown the government has risked lifting some restrictions in a bid to ease the devastating blow to the economy dealt by the coronavirus.
But the number of new cases rose by 9,983 to 265,090, according to government figures announced yesterday, putting the country of 1.3 billion on course to overtake Britain and Spain among nations with the highest number of infections.
The reported death toll of 7,463 is much lower than reported in other badly-hit countries, but the epidemic is only expected to peak locally in July, according to health experts.
Still, in the capital Delhi, shopping malls, restaurants, temples and mosques were allowed to reopen for the first time since March 25.
Disinfection tunnels
Delhi is one of India’s worst coronavirus hotspots, accounting for more than 27,600 cases and 761 deaths — although media reports say the real figures are much higher.
Disinfection tunnels were installed at the entrance to
Delhi’s shopping malls, due to open later yesterday.
Mumbai, which accounts for around a fifth of India’s cases and hospitals have been overrun, was more cautious. Roadside shops were allowed to reopen, but malls, restaurants and hair salons remained shuttered.
Despite restrictions being eased last month, India’s manufacturing sector is struggling to restart because of an exodus of migrant workers prompted by the virus lockdown.
Big cities — once an attractive destination for workers from poor, rural regions — have been hit by reverse migration as millions of labourers fled to their village homes.
Manufacturing hit badly
“A lot of the manufacturing industry is actually located in the very states where the pandemic’s impact has been great,” Professor Santosh Mehrotra at Jawaharlal Nehru University told AFP last week.
“Now these are the areas where naturally workers have left in large numbers ... They will not return in a hurry.”
Maharashtra has reported 85,975 cases of Covid-19. There are 43,601 active cases in the state, while 39,314 people have been cured or discharged. The death toll due to the virus is 3,060.
Tamil Nadu reported 31,667 cases of which there are 14,399 active cases, 16,999 people have been cured or discharged and 269 persons have died in the state. Gujarat has reported 20,070 cases of coronavirus.
There are 5,186 active cases, 13,635 persons have been cured while 1,249 have died.
Madhya Pradesh has reported 9,401 cases and the active cases stand at 2,658. The number of people cured or discharged is 6,331. The death toll due to the virus is 412 in the state.
Chinese leave
Meanwhile, the first special flight with hundreds of stranded Chinese nationals departed from India yesterday morning, Chinese state media reported.
Four more chartered flights taking Chinese nationals back home will depart from India in the coming days, Global Times reported citing a New Delhibased source familiar with the matter surnamed Hu.
Hu said that “four chartered flights will depart from the Indian cities of Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata and arrive in China in the coming days”.
There were about 3,000 Chinese people doing business or studying in big cities in India.