Coronavirus updates for May 5
Here's a roundup of YourStory's coverage today of how India and the world are dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.
India saw its biggest jump in coronavirus cases as the Health Ministry reported more than 3,900 new cases and 195 deaths in the last 24 hours. This takes the total number of cases to over 46,000, with 1,571 confirmed deaths, according to Worldometer.
Civil Aviation Ministry has stated that 64 repatriation flights will be operated from May 7 to May 13 to bring back stranded Indians from 13 countries. The passengers will be charged for the repatriation flights, with the tickets ranging from Rs 12,000 to Rs 50,000.
Meanwhile, states continue to ease lockdown restrictions. Private buses in Goa have started operating with reduced capacity. Delhi imposed a 70 percent tax on liquor to deter tipplers and ensure the vends aren't crowded. Chhattisgarh government has even allowed home delivery of liquor in green zones.
The economic ramifications of the lockdown, which has been extended till May 17, is being felt by many industries. Health and fitness startup CureFit has laid off hundreds of employees, as well as downsized its operations. Vistara Airlines announced that senior employees will go on leave without pay for four days a month in May and June. According to a report by Korn Ferry, 36 percent companies are considering a freeze in salary hikes to manage their costs.
Here's a roundup of YourStory's coverage today of how India and the world are dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.
This Bengaluru startup has developed a device to monitor multiple COVID-19 patients simultaneously
Cardiac Design Labs has developed ‘Telemetric Patient Monitoring System’ to help healthcare workers monitor multiple patients simultaneously from a central location.
Archit Gupta started Atom Aviation Services Pvt Ltd in 2015 to lease out services of air ambulances, private jets, and helicopters. Today, the company helps in disinfecting coronavirus hotspots through its drones.
In a conversation with YourStory, Dilipkumar Khandelwal, MD and Head of Deutsche Bank Technology Centre, speaks about the impact of coronavirus on startups, fintech firms, and financial services.
Coronavirus: Bounce to sanitise police bikes in Bengaluru and Hyderabad with antimicrobial solution
Bike-sharing platform Bounce is now going to be disinfecting and sanitising police bikes with an antimicrobial solution to ensure the safety of the police personnel in Bengaluru and Hyderabad.
Wipro to convert one of its Pune campuses to COVID-19 hospital
Wipro will repurpose one of its IT campuses in Pune to a 450-bed intermediary care COVID-19 hospital in four weeks and hand it over to the state government.
Ecommerce expert explains how small businesses can survive COVID-19
B2B ecommerce marketplace TradeIndia.com’s COO Sandip Chhettri explains how consumer behaviour will change post-COVID-19 pandemic, and why going digital will be paramount to the survival and success of MSMEs.
Headmistress of the Panchayat Union Primary School at Thuppapuram, Tamil Nadu, along with a teacher distributed Rs 1,000 to the students in distress.
Atria Foundation launches app that enables individuals to feed the hungry amid coronavirus lockdown
Atria Foundation has already served 35 lakh meals in five weeks and hopes to serve six lakh people with the help of people registering on the app.
‘The Future is now’ says startups on how COVID-19 has accelerated changes in market dynamics
The startups – LogiNext, HealthVectors, FlytBase, Clinikk, Drona Maps and CabDost – have developed solutions to address the multi-pronged challenges of the novel coronavirus epidemic.
Employment trends Post-COVID-19
Working from home, digital adoption, and realigning policies and processes will greatly help companies in the post-COVID-19 era.
These labourers can now read and write their names, count till 10, and dial and save phone numbers.
Coronavirus: Aarogya Setu app registers nine crore downloads: Niti Aayog CEO
Aarogya Setu, a government app for tracking coronavirus patients, has recorded close to 90 million (nine crore) downloads till date, and is being updated with features like telemedicine, Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant said on Monday.
Kerala showcases itself as the "safest destination", woos investors
The manner in which Kerala has been fighting COVID-19 has made it desirable and a safe place for investment, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said and assured that the state government would grant licences for setting up new ventures within a week.
Coronavirus: Ola, Uber see low demand after resuming services in green, orange zones
According to a senior industry executive, who did not wish to be named, user demand was minimal across various cities as people stepped out only for essential travel.
Coronavirus: Centre working on agro MSME policy, says Union Minister Nitin Gadkari
The agro policy will focus on entrepreneurship development in rural, tribal, agricultural, and forest areas for manufacturing products using local raw materials, amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Indian retail sector loses Rs 5.50 lakh Cr in last 40 days: CAIT
CAIT says out of seven crore traders in the country, around 1.5 crore traders will permanently down the shutters in a few months.
The company, offering digital payments solutions to shopkeepers and merchants, got into the lending business around eight months ago and disbursed around Rs 140 crore till the lockdown began in the third week of March.
Lockdown 3.0: People turn to e-commerce for non-essential items; staff crunch may delay deliveries
E-commerce companies have been permitted to sell all items in orange and green zones starting from Monday, the first day of the third phase of the nationwide lockdown that began on March 25.