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LIVE: Nearly 48,000 COVID-19 tests conducted in India so far, says Health Ministry

Coronavirus LIVE Updates: The Health Ministry on Wednesday said 386 fresh COVID-19 cases have been reported in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of cases in the country to 1,637, including 38 deaths. Addressing a press briefing, Health Ministry's Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal attributed the rise in the number of cases to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi Nizamuddin's Markaz. However, he said that the incident does not show the national trend.

Earlier today, 43 Markaz attendees from Andhra Pradesh, four from Assam and two from Puducherry tested positive for the novel coronavirus. Fresh cases were also reported in Delhi Maharashtra, Punjab Gujarat, while Mumbai, Madhya Pradesh, and Bengal saw casualties. A nationwide manhunt is underway to identify, quarantine and test all those who attended a gathering in mid-March of almost 4,000 people in Delhi's Markaz Nizamuddin that has emerged as a virus hotspot. The Home Ministry has asked state governments to identify and quarantine all Tablighi Jamaat foreigners and deport them after medical clearance.

In the United States, the death toll from the coronavirus pandemic topped 4,000 early Wednesday, more than double the number from three days earlier, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. President Donald Trump warned Americans to brace for a "hell of a bad two weeks" ahead as the White House projected there could be 100,000 to 240,000 deaths in the US even if current social distancing guidelines are maintained. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the pandemic the most challenging crisis since World War II and one that will bring a recession "that probably has no parallel in the recent past."

(Inputs and image from theindianexpress.com)

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