Coronavirus Pandemic LIVE Updates: Mumbai's Tally Inches Closer to 6,000 after 393 New Cases, 25 Deaths

Coronavirus Pandemic LIVE Updates: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has said 393 persons have tested positive for the coronavirus today, taking the total number of positive cases to 5,982 in India's financial capital. Meanwhile, he Gujarat Health Department today said the state has recorded 226 positive cases in the last 24 hours, taking the total number in the state to 3,774. The central government today said 1,594 new cases and 51 deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours, taking the country's total number of positive cases to 29,974 and the death toll 937. The numbers include 22,010 active cases and 7,027 patients who have been cured or discharged or have migrated, said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Lav Agrawal, Joint Secretary in the ministry, said plasma therapy is being experimented with, but there is no evidence this can be used as a treatment and that a national-level study has been launched by the ICMR to study its efficacy. "Until ICMR concludes its study and robust scientific proof is available, plasma therapy should be used only for research or trial purpose. If plasma therapy is not used in proper manner under proper guidelines, it can also cause life-threatening complications," he said.

A medical worker sits inside a mobile test van on the outskirts of Ahmedabad. (Reuters)

The building of the Niti Aayog, government's top think-tank, was sealed for 48 hours today as per the protocol of the health ministry after an official tested positive for Covid-19. The contacts of the infected official have been asked to quarantine themselves as a precautionary measure and disinfection and sanitisation of the building are underway.

According to the latest updates of the Health Ministry, total cases in India have crossed the 29,000-mark at 29,435, with active infections at 21,632. Total casualties are at 934, while 6,868 people have recovered.

With 190 fresh cases reported in Delhi, the total number of coronavirus cases climbed to 3,108 in the city but no fresh death was reported for the second successive day, according to Delhi government authorities. The cases also include the private secretary of southwest Delhi District Magistrate Rahul Singh, prompting the IAS officer to go into self-quarantine, an official said.

Two Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) volunteers engaged in food distribution at a Delhi government-run centres in Mehrauli also tested positive, following which several localities in the area have been declared as containment zones. The number of containment zones in the national capital rose to 99 on Monday.

After an increase in the number of patients recovered last week - more than 800 in a week - the day saw no fresh recovery of patients. So far, 54 people have died of coronavirus in the city, officials said.

To ensure proper protection of all those at the forefront of the fight against COVID-19, Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal directed the Delhi government and police, saying there should be no compromise on their safety.

As the cases rise across the country, the entire Pune city was declared a containment zone. In view of the order issued by Pune municipal commissioner Shekhar Gaikwad to this effect, police also extended the restrictions already imposed on residents. "We have already imposed a curfew in Pune city to check the spread of the coronavirus," said Joint Commissioner of Police Ravindra Shisve.

With the detection of 84 fresh COVID-19 cases in Pune, the tally in the district increased to 1,348 on Monday, while the death toll rose to 80, an official said.

Pune authorities attributed the mounting numbers to increased testing capacity, with health officials now testing over thousand samples a day.

Maharashtra on Monday, meanwhile, reported 522 new COVID-19 cases, taking the total number of the infected people to 8,590, a Health department official said. With 27 more fatalities, the overall COVID-19 death toll mounted to 369, he said