Tag: Coronavirus Outbreak

As a preventive measure against novel coronavirus (COVID-19), the railways on Tuesday increased prices of platform tickets from Rs 10 to Rs 50 for 250 stations in the country to minimise the footfall at the stations. A senior Railway Ministry official said that the zonal railways have decided to increase the prices of platform tickets. […]

By Sandeep Sahu For others, a disaster is something to dread. But for them, it is an opportunity of a lifetime to make a fast buck by cashing in on the people’s fear, misery and helplessness during times of calamity. We have seen it during the Super Cyclone in 1999, the worst natural calamity to […]

New Delhi: A 34-year-old soldier has tested positive for novel coronavirus in Leh, Army sources said on Wednesday. This is the first COVID-19 case in the armed forces. The soldier, a resident of Chuhot village in Leh, came in contact with his father who had already contracted the infection. His father had returned from a […]

Coronavirus has hit the world badly. To restrict the spread of this deadly virus, countries have cancelled many international flights and travelling even locally for long-distance has been banned in the affected nations. It has certainly affected the Indians who are overseas either studying or for work. One person who seems to be highly affected […]

Bhubaneswar: The State Finance Department on Tuesday issued an advisory for all the banks operating in Odisha asking them to implement various guidelines to prevent the spread of the infectious coronavirus (COVID-19) disease. Through the State Level Bankers’ Committee (SLBC) Convenor, the regulator directed the Controlling Heads of the Banks operating in the State to […]

Puri/Bhubaneswar: The district administration of the pilgrim town of Puri on Wednesday has asked tourists to vacate hotel rooms within two days in view of the preventive measures put in place by the Odisha government over novel coronavirus, a senior official said. Hotels and lodges have been directed not to make fresh bookings till March […]

By Sandeep Sahu I must confess I was completely floored. I was watching it live as Subroto Bagchi, the chief Odisha government pointsperson for COVID-19, began his daily press briefing this afternoon. I was struck by the sheer ingenuity of comparing self/home quarantine with Lord Jagannath’s 14-day ‘anasara’ after Snana Purnima! The simile was just […]

New Delhi: In wake of coronavirus (Covid-19) breakout, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Wednesday postponed all board examinations for Class 10 and 12 scheduled between March 19 and March 31. The decision comes in compliance of the instruction received by the CBSE from Secretary of Department of Higher Education. School Education and […]

Bhubaneswar: The National Testing Agency (NTA) on Wednesday postponed JEE (Main) April 2020 examination which was earlier scheduled to be held from April 5 to 11. The decision by the Human Resources Development (HRD) Ministry is part of the ongoing preventive measures to check the spread of coronavirus infection. As per the latest notification issued […]

Rome: Italy on Wednesday reported 475 new deaths from the novel coronavirus, the highest one-day official toll of any nation since the first case was detected in China late last year. However, China on Thursday said no new domestic cases of the coronavirus were reported for the first time in the country, three months after […]

Bhubaneswar: Even as Odisha has reported only one confirmed case of coronavirus infection so far, the technical committee on Wednesday recommended suspension of Inter-State bus services as a precautionary measure. Chairman of the technical committee constituted to combat coronavirus, Subrat Acharya said, “There will be no problem and if we can contain it for a […]

New Delhi: Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan on Wednesday said 75 crore beneficiaries under the public distribution system will be allowed to lift their quota of subsidised foodgrains for six months in one go, amid the coronavirus outbreak. Currently, beneficiaries are lifting grains in advance for maximum two months, while the Punjab government is already […]

New Delhi: Railways on Thursday cancelled 84 trains, which will not operate between March 20 and March 31, in view of low occupancy and the novel coronavirus pandemic, officials said. With this, the total number of cancelled trains has climbed to 168. Railway officials said the trains were identified last night and the decision will […]

Bhubaneswar: Despite a lot of awareness and clarification by World Health Organisation (WHO), instances of people abandoning their pets out of fear of getting infected with Coronavirus has now emerged as a major concern not only for animal lovers but also for the Odisha government. In a letter to all chief district veterinary officers, Fisheries […]

New Delhi: The University Grants Commission (UGC) directed all universities and affiliated colleges on Thursday to postpone examinations till March-end due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The evaluation work will be suspended during the period too. “All universities and affiliated colleges should postpone exams till March 31 and suspend evaluation work. Further schedule should be […]