Government of India and the Asian Development Bank on Tuesday signed a $1.5 billion loan that will support the government’s response to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, focusing on immediate priorities such as disease containment and prevention, as well as social protection for the poor and economically vulnerable sections of the society, especially women and disadvantaged groups. The ADB’s Board of Directors approved the lån-pengar direkt lan loan to provide budget support to the government to counter and mitigate the adverse health and socio-economic impact of the pandemic.As of now, 6,868 people have been cured of Covid-19, with a recovery rate of 23.3%. A total of 29,435 people have been confirmed positive as of now for COVID-19 in India.

While India continues to battle Covid 19 , success on some fronts is visible there are 17 districts in the country where earlier cases had come, but now no new case has been reported for the last 28 days. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has issued guidelines on home isolation for very mild / pre-symptomatic patients. Patients who have a requisite facility at their residence for self-isolation will have the option for home isolation.Regarding plasma therapy for COVID-19, ICMR has already stated clearly that currently there are no approved therapies for COVID-19 including plasma therapy. It is one of the many therapies which are being experimented with. However, so far there is no evidence to support it as a treatment. However, it needs to be clarified that until ICMR concludes its study and robust scientific proof is available, it should not be used except for research and trial purposes.

Meanwhile as the conflict between Lockdown and the restarting of economic activity continues to be debated, Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways and MSMES ShriNitinGadkari called upon all the States/UTs to take urgent action so that blockades of trucks and lorries at inter State/UT borders is cleared at the earliest possible,as smooth movement of essential goods to various parts of the country is essential. Speaking at the meeting of State/UT Road Transport Ministers held via Video Conference, ShriGadkari urged the Ministers to intervene in such matters and ensure resolutions through the local/district administrations. He further pointed out that transportation of labour to factories etc may be facilitated by duly following the health protocols. He pointed out that providing food and shelter to labour may be ensured while fully observing the norms of social distancing and hygiene.

Meanwhile as urgent supplies of medicines and protection equipment continues to be a challenge , The government said that 403 flights have been operated under Lifeline Udan in domestic sector by Air India, Alliance Air, IAF and private carriers. 235 of these flights have been operated by Air India and Alliance Air. Lifeline Udan flights covered a distance of over 3,97, 632 km to deliver essential and medical supplies of around 748.68 tons till 27th April 2020 for people across the country. Lifeline Udan flights are being operated by MoCA to transport essential medical cargo to remote parts of the country to support India’s war against COVID-19.Private Operators SpiceJet, Blue Dart, Indigo and Vistara are operating cargo flights on a commercial basis.