India's COVID-19 cases rise to 8,447; 273 deaths reported

The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in India has risen to 8,447, including 273 deaths. Of these, over 900 fresh cases were reported in last 24 hours.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) on Sunday said that 765 people have so far recovered from the infection.

To this end, Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) said the government was increasing the testing capacity in private and government medical colleges.

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"We have a detailed discussion with the health minister and home minister according to which we are increasing testing capacity in private and government medical colleges," he said, adding, "to support this effort, 14 mental institutes have been identified including AIIMS and Nimhans, through which we will increase our testing capacity in government medical colleges."

The ministry added that a resurge in the cases of novel Coronavirus cases in countries such as China, Japan and South Korea was a cause for concern.

Agarwal suggested that people should follow social distancing even after the lockdown is lifted.

"Not much is known about this virus. Different facts about it are continuously coming before us on a daily basis and we are reacting accordingly. A resurge of cases in China, Japan and South Korea in the last few days, is a cause for concern. It is very important to ensure that we continue to follow our containment and social distancing measures like we are following today," he said.

(with inputs from agencies)