China tightens restrictions near Russian border after resurgence of coronavirus cases

China on April 22 tightened restrictions on the movement of people near the Russian border as more new cases emerged causing concern among the authorities. According to reports, the Heilongjiang province in China has emerged as the new hotspot for COVID-19 cases after the country was able to bend its curve. The new cases are being reported mostly in Chinese citizens arriving from outside China or from domestic hot-spots. The authorities have asked people who are returning home to go into self-quarantine.  

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According to reports, two new coronavirus clusters have been linked to a hospital in the provincial capital of Harbin city, where wearing face masks has been made compulsory for people. The city of more than 10 million people currently has 537 confirmed coronavirus cases, of which 384 were imported, said the National Health Commission. China reported seven new cases of COVID-19 on April 22 and all of them were in Heilongjiang province. According to authorities, most new cases in the province are linked to people returning from Russia and cash rewards are also being offered for help in catching people who illegally cross the 4,600 km long border. 

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China has reportedly been able to bend its curve and control the outbreak to an extent. The total number of infections in the country hasn't recorded a surge for the fast few weeks, keeping it constant at just over 82,000. Meanwhile, the number of deaths, which was also constant for a few weeks, surprisingly rose by 50 per cent on April 17 taking the toll from nearly 3,300 to 4,632.

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Coronavirus outbreak

The coronavirus outbreak has infected over 2.57 million people globally and has killed nearly 1,79,000 patients since it first broke out in December 2019. The virus is believed to have originated from a seafood market in the Chinese city of Wuhan, the initial epicentre of the disease, where animals were reportedly being traded illegally. Other countries that are currently the worst affected are the United States Italy, Spain, France, Iran, and the United Kingdom, where the death tolls have surpassed 17,000 mark each and in the case of US it has crossed 45,000. 

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(Image Credit: AP)