Maharashtra legislative council polls on 21 May amid pandemic

The much-stalled Maharashtra elections of the nine Legislative Council seats that were vacant since 24 April, will be held on 21 May, the Election Commission announced Friday. This is also decisive election for Udhaav Thackrey, to legitimately run the office as Chief Minister.

Reportedly the election commission had earlier hinted that the poll could be conducted amidst the Coronavirus outbreak and lockdown, if precautions as advised by the Health Ministry are obliged religiously, and MLAs follow social distancing while casting their vote.

Treading a tight rope Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Friday claims that 80 percent patients under the bout of Coronavirus are asymptomatic in Maharashtra, which reportedly has the largest number of COVID-19 patients in the country.

"We have identified some places as containment zones and quarantined some people. The growing cases are in those areas. Fortunately, of the entire count, if you see around 80% are asymptomatic," said Uddhav.

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CM Adityanath urges migrant workers not to travel back to UP on foot

Adding a leaflet in major dailies, UP government assures the stranded migrant workers from the State that all necessary measures will be put in place to ply them back home and appealed not to travel back to the State on foot.

"It has been requested to all states to maintain a record like name, telephone number and medical status of the workers before sending them back to Uttar Pradesh," Aditynath was quoted saying in the leaflet.

The chief minister further shares that he is in a continuous process on bringing back the migrant labourers with all the State authorities and is in constant touch with them.

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Gilead ready to provide global access to Remdesivir for COVID-19, says report

In a hopeful development the US-drug maker, Gilead Sciences shares that it is open to work together with governments and pharmaceutical companies, including from India, and is also considering proposals to provide access to its antiviral drug Remesdesivir for COVID-19 patients across the world, reported Moneycontrol.

"On the supply side, we are working to build a global consortium of pharmaceutical and chemical manufacturers to expand global capacity and production and have pledged to donate all our existing supply for patients in need," Gilead spokesperson was quoted as told to Moneycontrol in an interview.

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All districts in Delhi, 14 in Maharashtra declared red zones

In an alarming development a slew of States and cities are listed as containment zones by the health ministry and divided the States and districts into different categories according to the COVID-19 intensity in these areas.

The ministry has arrived to the decision to put all metro cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, in the Red Zone, consulting the governments and the chief secretaries of the States. Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Ahmedabad also come under the Red Zone.

12 Tablighi Jamaat attendees sent to temporary jail after self-isolation

Twelve Tablighi Jamaat members, including nine from Thailand, were sent to a temporary jail in Uttar Pradesh's Shahjahanpur district after they completed their quarantine, police said on Friday.

The 12 people, including nine from Thailand and two from Tamil Nadu, were held on 2 April from a mosque where they were hiding. Their samples and that of a local were sent for testing, an officer said.

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Kulmeet Makkar, CEO of Producers Guild dies of heart attack

Along with Coronavirus pandemic, time has cast a grim spell on the Hindi film industry. Everyday death news is surfacing-mostly of the stalwarts. Untimely demise of Irrfan Khan, Rishi Kapoor now Kulmeet Makkad, CEO of the Producers Guild of India. The 60-year-old Kulmeet died of a heart attack. As news spread, there has been a wave of mourning in Bollywood. Celebrities are paying tribute to him.

Karan Johar ook to the twitter to express regret, underlining the contribution of Kulmeet Makkad. He wrote - Kulmeet, you were like a pillar for the Producers of Guild of India. He continued to work tirelessly to advance the industry. You left too early. You will always be missed Peace be with you my friend. On this tweet of Karan, director Ritesh Batra wrote - Very sad. He was a very nice person.