India tally nears 300 as Gujarat, Karnataka report 9 more cases

The total number of cases in India has reached 290 on Saturday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed with chief ministers ways and preparedness of the states to check and prevent the spread of coronavirus, which has claimed more than 10,000 lives globally.

A spike in numbers prompted the states and UTs to reinforce its efforts to contain the spread.

Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh joined the list of coronavirus positive states in India with four positive cases and two positive cases reported in each state respectively.

As coronavirus continued its upward trajectory across the country, authorities faced double-barrel challenge –strengthening its check and prevention mechanism, and addressing public panic, leading to hoarding of essential items.