Covid-19 cases rising, but rate seems to have stabilised: Health Ministry

Coronavirus India Live Updates: As the total number of novel coronavirus cases in India mounted to 649, the Health Ministry on Thursday said that the rate at which the numbers are increasing appears to be relatively stablising. "However, this is only the initial trend," said Lav Aggarwal, Joint Secretary, Health Ministry.

With India undergoing a 21-day lockdown till April 14, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a economic package worth Rs. 1.7 lakh crore to help those who have been affected directly due to the nationwide lockdown.

In the evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will join a virtual summit of G-20 leaders, chaired by Saudi King Salman, to discuss the coronavirus pandemic.

Globally, the death toll has reached 21,287 with Italy reporting the highest number of casualties at 7,503 followed by Spain, which crossed China's toll on Wednesday, at 3,647, China at 3,163, Iran at 2,077 and France at 1,331 deaths so far. While the total number of confirmed cases across the world has reached 471,407 today.

(Inputs and image from theindianexpress.com)