This Article is From Oct 30, 2020

Coronavirus Highlights: India's New Covid Cases Up By 14 Per Cent In A Day, Tally Past 80 Lakh

Coronavirus Latest News LIVE Updates: India's COVID-19 caseload surpassed the 80-lakh mark on Thursday with 49,881 new cases.

Coronavirus Highlights: India's New Covid Cases Up By 14 Per Cent In A Day, Tally Past 80 Lakh

Coronavirus India Cases: The COVID-19 case fatality rate has further declined to 1.49 per cent. (File)

New Delhi:

The country's one-day coronavirus tally rose by almost 14 per cent with a jump of 49,881 new COVID-19 infections taking India's overall Covid numbers past the 80 lakh mark, the Health Ministry data shows. The country also reported 517 deaths in the last 24 hours. The overall Covid related fatalities now stand at 1,20,527.

India's COVID-19 caseload surpassed the 80-lakh mark on Thursday with 49,881 new cases, while the recoveries have surged to 73.15 lakh pushing the national recovery rate to 90.99 per cent, according to the Union Health Ministry data.

The total coronavirus cases mounted to 80,40,203 and the deaths climbed to 1,20,527 with the novel coronavirus virus claiming 517 lives in a span of 24 hours in the country, the data updated at 8 am showed. The COVID-19 case fatality rate has further declined to 1.49 per cent.

There are 6,03,687 active cases of coronavirus infection in the country which comprises 7.5 per cent of the total caseload, the data stated.

Delhi on Wednesday reported over 5,000 COVID-19 cases in a day, for the first time since the coronavirus struck the country. The national capital, which is battling the third wave of infections, has been logging over 4,000 cases daily for the last few days. With festive season round the corner, the unprecedented spike has raised concerns, especially when the national Covid tally has shown a steady decline.

Here are the Updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19) Cases:

Oct 30, 2020 06:27 (IST)
Coronavirus Update From Odisha: 1,617 New COVID-19 Cases Reported
Odisha's COVID-19 caseload reached 2,87,099 on Thursday as 1,617 more people tested positive for the infection, a health department official said.

Thirteen fresh fatalities pushed the coastal state's coronavirus death count to 1,297, he said.

Oct 30, 2020 04:57 (IST)
Delhi Blames Pollution For Covid Spike At High-Level Health Ministry Meet
At a high-level Covid review meeting with Union Health Ministry officials today, Delhi blamed air pollution besides a host of other reasons for a 46 per cent rise in coronavirus cases over the past month.

"Spike in cases was due to social gatherings during festivities, deteriorating air quality, increasing incidences of respiratory disorders, workplace infection clusters and fatigue among frontline workers," the Delhi state health officials said voicing experts' concerns ahead of the winter months.

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Oct 30, 2020 03:32 (IST)
Rise In COVID-19 Cases Due To Aggressive Contact Tracing, Testing: Delhi Government
Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Thursday said the AAP government has changed its anti-Corona strategy by conducting aggressive tracing and testing in the city, citing it as one of the reasons for a sudden spike in COVID-19 cases in the past few days.

Mr Jain said that this may be a third wave but it's too early to say that conclusively. He said one should wait for another week to see the trends before declaring the surge a third wave.

Amid the festive season and rising pollution levels, Delhi on Wednesday recorded over 5,600 COVID-19 cases, the first time the number crossed 5,000 in the national capital.



Oct 30, 2020 02:34 (IST)
Delhi Records Highest Single-Day Covid Cases At 5,673
The coronavirus graph in Delhi has remained on a relentless climb, registering a new high of 5,739 fresh cases over the last 24 hours. This was the second consecutive day when the national capital logged more than 5,000 new patients of the highly infectious disease.  

Yesterday, the city recorded its 5,673 cases, breaching the 5,000 barrier for the first time since the outbreak reached it.

For two days before that, the national capital has been logging over 4,000 cases a day.

Today, the Union Health Secretary had held a meeting with the Health Secretary of Delhi over the spike in cases.

Read
Oct 29, 2020 23:40 (IST)
Coronavirus news: 2,005 new cases, 53 deaths in Chhattisgarh

Chhattisgarh's COVID-19 count rose to 1,83,588 on Thursday after 2,005 people tested positive, while the number of people who have recovered reached 1,59,268, an official said.

53 new deaths were recorded in the state, taking the count to 1,989, PTI reported.
Oct 29, 2020 23:17 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Depending upon coronavirus vaccine trials, India will expand its cooperation to other countries, says Centre

India's vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic and depending upon the coronavirus vaccine trials, India will expand its cooperation to other countries, including capacity building for vaccine development production and delivery, Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday.
Oct 29, 2020 22:56 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Chandigarh records 80 fresh COVID-19 cases, one more death

Chandigarh's COVID-19 tally climbed to 14,292 on Thursday with 80 fresh cases, while the death count reached 225 as one more person died due to the disease, according to a medical bulletin said.

A 21-year-old coronavirus positive woman died at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research on Thursday, the bulletin said.

She was suffering from chronic kidney disease, PTI reported
Oct 29, 2020 22:17 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Two Covid-19 positive women give birth to triplets, twins at AIIMS; All babies safe
Two corona positive women from Dhamtari and Durg in Madhya Pradesh have given gave birth to triplets and twins at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Raipur, according to officials.

This is the first time that a COVID-19 positive female patient gave birth to triplets at AIIMS. Two of the triplets are with their mother and one is under continuous observation in NICU.

The twins are also kept in NICU for further treatment, ANI reported. 
Oct 29, 2020 21:56 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Centre advises states/UTs to gear up "testing, tracking and treatment" strategy during festivities

Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Thursday reviewed the status of response measures to COVID-19 in West Bengal, Delhi and Kerala and advised the states and Union Territories (UTs) to gear up testing, tracking and treatment strategy during the festive season.

Mr Bhushan has advised these states and UTs to ensure enforcement of precautionary measures like maintaining social distancing, sanitisation, wearing of masks, etc; ANI reported. 
Oct 29, 2020 21:33 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Delhi Records Highest Single-Day Covid Cases At 5,673

The coronavirus graph in Delhi has remained on a relentless climb, registering a new high of 5,739 fresh cases over the last 24 hours. This was the second consecutive day when the national capital logged more than 5,000 new patients of the highly infectious disease.
Oct 29, 2020 20:54 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Social gatherings in festivities, poor air quality among reasons for COVID cases rise in Delhi, says government

Social gatherings during festivities, deteriorating air quality, increasing incidences of respiratory disorders are among a few reasons attributed to the rise in COVID-19 cases in Delhi, the Union Health Ministry said on Thursday.

A review meeting on the status of the infection in Delhi, West Bengal and Kerala was held by Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan in the presence of VK Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog, and Balram Bhargava, DG, ICMR, according to a statement by the health ministry.
Oct 29, 2020 20:36 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Pope to resume remote general audiences over virus rises

Pope Francis will again stop his weekly general audiences with the public because of an increase in novel coronavirus cases, and instead resume a remote, live-streamed version, the Vatican said Thursday.
Oct 29, 2020 20:09 (IST)
Coronavirus news: J&K records 551 fresh cases, 11 more deaths
Jammu and Kashmir recorded 551 fresh COVID-19 cases on Thursday which took its virus count to 93,764, while 11 more fatalities pushed the death count to 1,466, officials said.

Of the fresh cases, 197 are from Jammu and 354 from the Kashmir valley, PTI reported. 
Oct 29, 2020 19:31 (IST)
Coronavirus news: 5,902 new coronavirus cases in Maharashtra, 156 deaths

Maharashtra's coronavirus tally on Thursday increased to 16,66,668 with 5,902 new cases being reported, a health official said.

The state also recorded 156 deaths, taking the death count due to COVID-19 to 43,710, PTI reported. 
Oct 29, 2020 19:03 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Now, sweep road if caught without a mask in a public place in Mumbai

Next time if you are caught without a face mask in public in Mumbai, get ready to sweep roads as part of community service if you fail to pay fine to the city civic body.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is making violators do community service in the form of sweeping roads if they are reluctant to pay Rs 200 as fine for not wearing masks in public places, according to civic officials.
Oct 29, 2020 18:42 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Tunisia imposes tough new virus restrictions

Tunisia said on Thursday it was imposing a nationwide night-time curfew, shutting schools and banning inter-region travel in a bid to halt a resurgence of the novel coronavirus.

Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi called on "all governorates to declare a curfew" from 8:00 pm until 5:00 am on weekdays and starting one hour earlier on weekends.

His statement did not say how long the lockdown would remain in place, AFP reported. 
Oct 29, 2020 18:18 (IST)
Coronavirus news: AI can diagnose asymptomatic COVID-19 patients using cellphone-recorded coughs, says Study

Scientists have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) model that they say can distinguish asymptomatic COVID-19 patients from healthy individuals through their cough recordings, and show the results on a smartphone app.

Researchers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US found that people who are asymptomatic may differ from healthy individuals in the way that they cough, PTI reported. 
Oct 29, 2020 17:57 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Cancer patient recovers from COVID-19

A 62-year-old man who is suffering from third stage cancer has recovered from COVID-19 after a long battle, a private hospital in Pune claimed on Thursday.

The patient, who is suffering from follicular lymphoma, a type of cancer which affects blood cells, tested positive for the viral infection on July 30, PTI reported. 
Oct 29, 2020 17:38 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Singapore allows visitors from mainland China, parts of Australia

Singapore will allow visitors from mainland China and an Australian state hard-hit by Covid-19 from next month in a further easing of pandemic border restrictions, authorities said Thursday. 

Visitors will be required to take a virus test upon arriving in Singapore and will not need to quarantine if they record a negative result when the new rules take effect on November 6, ANI reported. 
Oct 29, 2020 17:18 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Moderna says preparing for launch of experimental coronavirus vaccine

Moderna Inc said on Thursday it was preparing to launch its experimental coronavirus vaccine, which is currently being tested in a large human trial, and was in talks with a WHO-led group for distribution.

Moderna recently finished enrolling participants for a 30,000-volunteer study that is testing whether the vaccine can help prevent COVID-19. Early data from the trial is expected in the coming weeks, Reuters reported.
Oct 29, 2020 16:54 (IST)
Oct 29, 2020 16:26 (IST)
Coronavirus news: 95 Maharashtra Police personnel test positive for COVID-19

As many as 95 police personnel have tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of cases in the force to 26,395, the Maharashtra Police informed on Thursday.

The total number of cases include 1,517 active cases and 24,595 recoveries, ANI reported. 
Oct 29, 2020 15:53 (IST)
Coronavirus news: India performs 1 crore COVID-19 tests in last 9 days, consistent dip in positivity rate

The Union Health Ministry on Thursday informed that the country has conducted about one crore tests to diagnose coronavirus in the last nine days. The government mentioned that on average, nearly 11 lakh COVID-19 tests were being performed every day for the past six weeks, PTI reported. 

Oct 29, 2020 15:38 (IST)
Coronavirus news: Russia registers record 17,717 COVID-19 cases in past 24 Hours

Russia has registered a new record single-day increase of 17,717 COVID-19 cases, up from 16,202 yesterday, taking the cumulative total to 1,581,693, the country's coronavirus response center said on Thursday.

The previous single-day record of 17,347 COVID-19 cases was reported on October 26, ANI reported. 
Oct 29, 2020 14:44 (IST)
Philippines reports 1,761 new COVID-19 infections

The Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) on Thursday reported 1,761 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, bringing the country''s total tally to 376,935.

The DOH said 740 more patients have recovered, raising the total number of recoveries to 329,848. The death toll climbed to 7,147 after 33 more patients died from the coronavirus epidemic.
Oct 29, 2020 14:24 (IST)
Macron announces new lockdown rules amid surge in COVID-19 cases

French President Emmanuel Macron announced new lockdown rules amid a surge in COVID-19 cases through a televised address to the nation.

As per the new rule, people in France will be required to fill out a form to leave their homes, as was the case in the country''s first lockdown, and will be in effect till December 1, reported Euro News.

The new rules will be reassessed every 15 days to check the soaring COVID-19 cases. France's COVID-19 deaths are currently at the highest level since the peak of the pandemic in April and 33,000 new cases of the virus were recorded on Tuesday.
Oct 29, 2020 14:10 (IST)
Two out of five Srinagar residents have COVID-19 antibodies, sero-survey shows

Over 40 per cent people living in Srinagar district have developed COVID-19 antibodies, according to a latest sero-prevalence study which suggests a large fraction of the population in the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir may have been infected by the novel coronavirus.

The results of the study conducted by the Government Medical College Srinagar (GMC) reveal a quantum jump from 3.8 per cent sero-prevalence recorded in a similar study conducted in the city in June.

A sero-survey involves testing the blood serum of individuals to check for the prevalence of antibodies against an infection.

"We have conducted a sero-survey in Srinagar district which has revealed that over 40 per cent of the 2,400 persons tested negative but had developed antibodies," said Dr Muhammad Salim Khan, head of community medicine at GMC Srinagar.
Oct 29, 2020 14:04 (IST)
Self-help groups hold COVID-19 awareness rally in Andhra Pradesh's Krishna district

Some self-help groups (SHGs) held a rally at Gannavaram in Krishna district on Thursday to raise awareness among the people about the safety measures to be taken to fight COVID-19.

District collector AMD Imtiaz also took part in the rally. "Everybody should follow three formulae to prevent the spread of coronavirus - usage of masks, cleaning hands and maintaining physical distance," said the district collector.

"In case there are any health issues, better to get tested for COVID 19. By having tested at the correct time, one can save their life along with other''s. Everyone must wear masks," the district collector added.

Oct 29, 2020 13:36 (IST)
95 police personnel tested positive for COVID19 in Maharashtra

95 police personnel tested positive for COVID19 in the last 24 hours, taking total cases to 26,395 in the force, including 1,517 active cases, 24,595 recoveries, and 283 deaths till date: Maharashtra Police
Oct 29, 2020 13:04 (IST)
Odisha's COVID-19 tally mounts to 2,87,099 with 1,617 new cases; 13 fresh fatalities push deaths to 1,297: Health official
Oct 29, 2020 12:18 (IST)
COVID-19 testing strategy changed in Delhi, says Satyendar Jain

Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Thursday said that the government has changed testing strategy for COVID-19, now the family members and close contacts of COVID-19 positive patients are also being tested, hence, the national capital is witnessing a rise in the number of cases.

"Delhi reported 5,673 COVID-19 cases and 40 deaths yesterday. We have over 10,000 beds vacant with us and over 5,000 beds are occupied. Ahead of the festive and winter season, we have changed our strategy, we are testing family members and close contacts of COVID-19 positive patients. Hence, the number of cases is increasing," said Jain.
Oct 29, 2020 11:36 (IST)
108 new cases push Arunachal Pradesh's COVID-19 tally to 14,580

Arunachal Pradesh's COVID-19 tally rose to 14,580 on Thursday as 108 more people, including three security personnel, tested positive for the infection, a senior health official said.

The Capital Complex region reported the highest number of new cases at 28, followed by Lower Subansiri (12) and Siang (eight), he said.

"Two Army jawans and an Indian Reserve Battalion personnel are among the new patients," State Surveillance Officer Dr Lobsang Jampa said.
Oct 29, 2020 11:11 (IST)
COVID-19: 1,504 new cases, 5 deaths in Telangana

Telangana recorded 1,504 new coronavirus cases taking the tally to 2.35 lakh while five more deaths pushed the deaths to 1,324 in the state. 

Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) accounted for the most number of cases with 288, followed by Medchal Malkajgiri 118 and Rangareddy 115, a government bulletin said on Thursday providing data as of 8 PM on October 28. As many as 17,979 people are under treatment and 41,962 samples were tested on October 28.

Oct 29, 2020 10:36 (IST)
Ready to deal with possible second wave of COVID-19: Pune Mayor

Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) Mayor Murlidhar Mohol has said that the city is prepared to deal with the possible second wave of coronavirus in December and said that current situation is in control.

"Last month, the Central government''s team came to Pune. They gave us information that there is a possibility of a second wave of Coronavirus in December. I hope that such a situation does not occur but if it does, we are prepared," Mohol told ANI.

"The current coronavirus situation in Pune city is in control. Our recovery rate is 93 per cent, doubling rate at 200 days and positivity rate is around 11-12 per cent," he said.

The Mayor said that beds are available in large numbers if cases increased.
Oct 29, 2020 10:15 (IST)
Argentina's COVID-19 deaths cross 30,000

Argentina on Wednesday reported 345 more deaths from COVID-19, pushing the national tally to 30,071, according to the Ministry of Health.

The ministry also reported 13,924 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the nationwide count to 1,130,533 with 931,147 recoveries.

Buenos Aires Province, the largest in the South American country, has so far registered 539,473 infections, remaining the worst hit among all provinces.

Oct 29, 2020 10:03 (IST)
England's COVID-19 infections doubling every nine days: Report

The spread of the coronavirus continues to increase across all parts of England with cases doubling every nine days, according to a new study by Imperial College, putting pressure on the government to introduce more drastic lockdown restrictions.

The respiratory pandemic has killed more than 45,675 people in Britain, the highest death toll in Europe
Oct 29, 2020 09:47 (IST)
510 COVID-19 deaths in Brazil, 28,629 new cases: Health minister

Brazil has recorded 510 new COVID-19 deaths, and 28,629 new cases of coronavirus, the health ministry said on Wednesday.

Brazil has recorded nearly 5.5 million cases of the virus, with a total of 158,456 deaths, according to official data.
Oct 29, 2020 09:21 (IST)
Increase in new COVID-19 cases in Russia may end within 3 weeks: Health Ministry

The increase in the number of new coronavirus cases in Russia may come to an end within three weeks, Vladimir Chulanov, the chief infectiology official in the Russian Health Ministry, told Sputnik.

"We expect this second rise [in the number of coronavirus cases] not to last for a long time. Yes, it will last longer than the first one because it is of a bigger scale, in principle. However, it is unlikely to last longer than two or four weeks ... It is likely to long for three weeks, the situation may stabilize then," Chulanov said.
Oct 29, 2020 09:04 (IST)
Deaths from COVID-19 in Mexico surpasses 90,000

The deaths from the coronavirus disease in Mexico has increased by 495 people within the past 24 hours and has thus surpassed 90,000, Jose Luis Alomia, the director of epidemiology at the Health Ministry, said.

"More than 906,000 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in Mexico, including 90,309 people, who have unfortunately died from the disease's complications," Alomia said.

The number of new coronavirus cases has risen by 5,595 within the same period of time.
Oct 29, 2020 08:47 (IST)
Coronavirus update: 49 new COVID19 cases reported in Mizoram

49 new COVID19 cases reported in Mizoram, taking the total number of positive cases to 2,656 till date. The number of active cases is at 417 while 2,238 people have been discharged so far. Till date, one death has been reported in the state: Government of Mizoram

Oct 29, 2020 08:30 (IST)
Jordan's COVID-19 cases exceed 60,000

The tally of COVID-19 cases in Jordan surpassed 60,000 on Wednesday after 3,087 new infections were recorded.

The total COVID-19 cases in Jordan rose to 61,942, while the deaths from the virus climbed by 32 to 700, the Jordanian Health Ministry said in a statement.

A total of 158 patients were admitted to hospitals, increasing the number of cases receiving treatment in hospitals to 1,266, while the rest of COVID-19 infections are under home quarantine, the statement said.
Oct 29, 2020 08:12 (IST)
Coronavirus: Chhattisgarh records 1,929 new cases, 55 deaths

With 1,929 new COVID-19 cases and 55 deaths, Chhattisgarh's total count rose to 1,81,583 and the deaths to 1,936 on Wednesday, a health official said.

The number of recovered patients went up to 1,57,480 as 249 people got discharge from various hospitals, while 1,022 others completed their home isolation during the day. The state now has 22,167 active cases, he said.
Oct 29, 2020 07:47 (IST)
Andaman and Nicobar reports 15 new COVID19 cases

Total number of cases in the Union Territory rise to 4,289 including 192 active cases, 58 deaths and 4,039 recoveries, the Andaman and Nicobar Administration
Oct 29, 2020 06:59 (IST)
Odisha Reports 1,540 New Covid Cases, 12 Fresh Fatalities
Odisha's COVID-19 caseload mounted to 2,85,482 on Wednesday after 1,540 more people tested positive for the infection, a health official said.

Twelve fresh fatalities pushed the coastal state's coronavirus death count to 1,284, he said.

Odisha also registered recovery of 2,015 COVID-19 patients taking the total number of cured people to 2,70,130, which is 94.62 per cent of the caseload.

Of the new 1,540 cases, 886 were reported from quarantine centres, while 654 were detected during contact tracing, the official said.
Oct 29, 2020 06:21 (IST)
COVID-19: Containment Zones Rise To 3,047 In Delhi
As the national capital witnessed a rise in COVID-19 cases, the number of containment zones has gone up to 3,047, with the maximum 558 in southwest Delhi and the lowest 82 in northeast Delhi, according to official data.

There are 3,047 COVID-19 containment zones as on Tuesday. So far, 6,657 containment zones have been created and of these, 3,610 have been de-contained by authorities since the coronavirus outbreak.

According to data prepared by the Revenue Department, Delhi's seven districts have more than 200 containment zones - southwest (558), south (505), west (333), New Delhi (275), central (267), southeast (247) and northwest (246).

Northeast Delhi has 82 such zones, which is the lowest in the national capital, followed by east (165), north (171) and Shahdara (198).

On Wednesday, Delhi recorded 5,673 fresh COVID-19 cases, the highest single-day spike here till date, as the infection tally in the city climbed to over 3.7 lakh.

This is the first time when over 5,000 cases have been reported in a day in the city. The previous highest single-day spike of 4,853 cases was recorded on Tuesday.
Oct 29, 2020 06:00 (IST)
COVDI-19: Harsh Vardhan Stresses Need For Staying Vigilant As Festive Season Poses "Significant Risk"
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Wednesday reviewed the pandemic situation and preventive measures being adopted in Tamil Nadu and stressed the need for staying vigilant for the next three months as the long festive season poses "a significant risk that may threaten the improvements made against COVID-19 so far".

In the virtual meeting with Tamil Nadu Health and Medical Education Minister C Vijayabaskar and senior state officials, Mr Vardhan emphasised that the prime minister's message of wearing a mask/face cover, maintaining physical distance and frequent handwashing should reach the last citizen, the health ministry said.

Reiterating the prime minister's clarion call of building a "jan andolan" (mass movement) against COVID-19, Mr Vardhan said, "The state needs to enhance the awareness amongst the citizen regarding the need and virtues of using masks/face covers, physical distancing and regular hand hygiene."

"The coming long festive season pose a significant risk that may threaten the improvements made against COVID-19 so far. We should all be vigilant for the next three months. Following simple COVID-appropriate behaviour will be effective in cutting transmission of coronavirus. The prime minister's message of wearing a mask/face cover, maintaining a physical distance and frequent handwashing should reach the last citizen," he was quoted as saying in the statement.

Mr Vardhan said the country has seen significant improvement in the COVID-19 parameters.
Oct 29, 2020 05:45 (IST)
737 New Coronavirus Cases In Pune District
Pune district in Maharashtra reported 737 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, taking the caseload to 3,21,398, a health official said on Wednesday evening.

With 31 fatalities, the death count in the district reached 7,798, he added.

"Of the 737 cases, 288 were detected in the areas under the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), which has recorded 1,60,374 cases so far. However, 441 patients were discharged from the city hospitals during this period," the official said.

The tally in the neighouring industrial township of Pimpri Chinchwad rose to 87,260 with 209 new cases, he said.
Oct 29, 2020 05:24 (IST)
COVID-19 Crisis: Potters In Surat Unsure About Business This Diwali
Potters, who normally have good business during the festive season, especially during Diwali, might get adversely affected due to coronavirus pandemic this year.

They do not expect much footfall this time as compared to last year. They generally make 30,000 to 40,000 earthen lamps every year, and this year too they have made the same quantities and are hoping for business but with a meagre profit margin during the Diwali festivities.

The other reason for their business being affected is the machine-made diyas which are being made easily and sold in the market. This has also impacted the sale of the old traditional earthen lamps.

There are only a few customers who buy the old traditional earthen lamps, but the potters are hoping to do some business.

Paresh, a potter, said, "People prefer to buy handmade diyas. I make over 10,000 pieces every year. I am hopeful that my diyas will be sold this year too."
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