TIMESOFINDIA.COM | Apr 23, 2020, 20: 06 IST
NEW DELHI: The finance ministry on Thursday decided to put on hold increment in dearness allowance for 50 lakh central government employees and 61 lakh pensioners till July 2021 due to the COVID-19 crisis. However, DA and DR at current rates will continue to be paid. Meanwhile, with an increase of 1,229 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, the total number of cases reached 21,700 and the death toll climbed to 686, according to the Union home ministry.
Here are the top developments:
1
India
- The government said that it has been able to “cut coronavirus transmission”, minimise its spread and increase the doubling time of Covid-19 cases in the country during the 30-day period of the nationwide lockdown.
- The government said that the rise in coronavirus cases in the country has been more or less linear, not exponential. The country is experiencing 4.5% positive cases among the tested people, which are similar to the situation a month ago before the lockdown was imposed.
- Nearly 20 per cent Covid-19 patients have recovered so far in the country, said the Union ministry of health officials.
- The Union ministry of home affairs clarified that in-house caregivers of senior citizens and prepaid mobile recharge utilities are exempted from lockdown restrictions.
- The MHA also informed that the food processing units in urban areas have also been exempted from the restrictions and the ministry has also allowed activities related to import and export of horticulture produce.
- President Ram Nath Kovind approved to promulgate The Epidemic Diseases (Amendment) Ordinance, 2020 which provides stricter punishments for attacks against health workers even as the country battles the coronavirus outbreak.
- Measures to “speed up” economic and industrial activities were reviewed by a high-level group of officials comprising the Union home secretary and his counterpart in the Department for Promotion of In