The death toll from China’s new coronavirus epidemic jumped to 1110 on Wednesday after hard-hit Hubei province reported 94 new deaths.
Hubei’s health commission also confirmed 1,638 new cases of the disease in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei is the center of the outbreak that started in December.
The virus was officially named “COVID-19” at a conference held by the World Health Organization (WHO).
WHO head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in a tweet said, “We now have a name for the disease caused by the novel coronavirus: COVID-19. Having a name matters to prevent the use of other names that can be inaccurate or stigmatizing.”
“Today we activated a @UN Crisis Management Team, to be led by @DrMikeRyan. to ensure @WHO focuses on the response to #COVID19 while other agencies bring their expertise on the social, economic and developmental implications of the outbreak,” Ghebreyesus said.
“Researchers from around the world are meeting at @WHO for a research & innovation forum on #COVID19. The first vaccine could be ready in 18 months, In the meantime, there’s a lot we can do to prevent transmission and prepare for any further spread,” Ghebreyesus added.
In India, Preeti Sudan, Secretary (HFW) chaired a meeting with the senior officials of the Ministry to review the actions and preparedness for prevention and management of Novel Coronavirus on Tuesday.
Secretary (HFW) highlighted that while the situation is under control presently, States/UTs shall remain alert and vigilant on a continued basis. The community level awareness activities regarding the updated advisories, guidelines, protocols etc., needs to be enhanced by the States, the statement said.
At present, the screening of passengers is on in all 21 airports, 12 major Seaports and border crossings. In all 2148 flights and 232613 passengers were screened so far. As of now, 1632 samples have been tested of which 3 samples had earlier tested positive (Kerala). All Indian evacuees from Wuhan have tested negative for nCoV. 11527 persons are presently under community surveillance in 34 States/UTs, it said.
