Coronavirus: MP reports first COVID-19 death; cases in India cross 600

New Delhi: Two more deaths linked to the coronavirus were reported from Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu on Wednesday while the number of infections soared to 606 from 519 a day earlier as the country entered into a 21-day lockdown in a bid to break the chain of transmission of COVID-19. The Health Ministry, however, is yet to confirm the death of the 65-year-old Ujjain-based woman in Madhya Pradesh.
Meanwhile, interacting with citizens of Varanasi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi warned of tough action against those misbehaving with healthcare professionals and airline crew. “People in whites in hospitals and clinics are our Gods now; they should be respected. They are saving us by risking their own lives,” PM Modi said.
The Home Ministry also put on hold the exercise of updating the National Population Register (NPR) and the first phase of the Census 2021. Both the exercises were supposed to be carried out from April 1 to September 30.