NE NEWS SERVICE
AHMEDABAD, MARCH 21
Six new coronavirus positive cases were reported in Gujarat on Saturday, which took the tally of such patients to 13 in the state, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said here. Twelve of these patients have a history of travel abroad, while one person in Surat had visited Delhi and Jaipur recently, he said.
“Four of these cases were reported in Ahmedabad city, one in Ahmedabad rural, three each in Surat and Vadodara, and one each in Rajkot and Gandhinagar,” Rupani said. Appealing to the people to stay indoors and follow the guidelines related to social distancing and cleanliness, he said the state government was prepared to tackle the “worst-possible” situation.
Rupani was talking to reporters after visiting Ahmedabad Civil Hospital. He also announced that the 1,200-bed super speciality new block of the hospital will be kept exclusively for the treatment of coronavirus patients. Similar facilities will be set up in Rajkot, Vadodara and Surat, he said.
Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel visited SSG Hospital in Vadodara to review the situation and met top officials. The government has appointed senior officials in four zones of the state to deal with the outbreak of such cases. State Home Minister Pradipsinh Jadeja warned those trying to spread false information about coronavirus on social media platforms.
CM Shri @vijayrupanibjp visits Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad and announces to spare the entire 1200-bed super specialty new block of the hospital exclusively for #COVID19 treatment and similar facilities at Rajkot, Vadodara and Surat as an advance measure#IndiaFightsCorona pic.twitter.com/x6gQeYRSk2
— CMO Gujarat (@CMOGuj) March 21, 2020
“Action will be taken against the people who are spreading fake WhatsApp messages to create panic and confusion among the public. Cases will be registered against them and action will be taken,” Jadeja said. The state had reported its first two coronavirus positive cases on Thursday. A day later, another five cases had been detected.
The state government has already ordered the closure of schools, colleges, private coaching classes, gyms, water parks, multiplexes and other public places. To prevent the gathering of people, the authorities in some districts have imposed section 144 of the CrPC.
State Election Commission cancels local body byelections
The State Election Commission has cancelled by-elections for 29 vacant seats in different local bodies in Gujarat. While the polling was to be held on March 22, counting of votes was scheduled on March 24. New dates of by-elections and counting will be announced later, said the commission in a release.
205 GTU affiliated colleges adopt e-learning
Nearly 205 colleges affiliated to Gujarat Technological University (GTU) have decided to conduct classes using social media and digital platforms. There are close to 402 colleges affiliated to GTU that have shut down from earlier this week after the state education department’s directive to do so. As many as 103 colleges are holding virtual classroom studies.
