India reports 75 coronavirus cases: Health ministry

The number of coronavirus patients in the country is 75, including the death of a 76-year-old man in Karnataka, the Union Health Ministry said on Friday. The man from Kalaburagi had recently returned from Saudi Arabia.

"His sample has been confirmed for #COVID19", Karnataka Health Minister B Sriramulu said on Thursday.

Delhi has reported six positive cases and Uttar Pradesh 10 so far. Karnataka has five coronavirus patients, Maharashtra 11 and Ladakh three.

Besides, Rajasthan, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Jammu and Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab have reported one case each. Kerala has recorded 17 cases, including three patients who were discharged last month after they recovered from the contagious infection with flu-like symptoms.

The total number of 75 confirmed cases includes 17 foreigners -- 16 Italian tourists and a Canadian, the ministry officials said.

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Amid rising coronavirus cases in India, the government on Thursday asked people not to panic, saying no community transmission of the virus has been observed and there has only been a few cases of local transmission so far.

Asserting that the safety and welfare of its citizens abroad have always been a priority for India, the government said three flights will be sent to Iran to bring back Indians from Iran.

With the novel coronavirus being declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation, Health Ministry officials said around 1,500 people who came in contact with the 75 infected people were under rigorous observation while over 30,000 people across the country under community surveillance.

"India presently has around 1 lakh testing kits. More testing kits have been ordered and they are in procurement," the official said.

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