The total positive cases in India has now climbed to 74,281, including 47,480 active cases and 24,386 cured ones. The death toll has reached 2,415.
Here are the top 10 developments in India this Wednesday:
1. PM CARES Fund Trust on Wednesday allocated Rs 3,100 crore for the fight against COVID-19. Out of Rs 3100 crore, a sum of approximately Rs 2000 crore will be earmarked for the purchase of ventilators, Rs 1000 crores will be used for the care of migrant labourers and Rs 100 crores will be given to support vaccine development.
2. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday announced a slew of measures to help businesses, including MSMEs, recover from the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. For struggling MSME sector, she said that the government announced collateral-free automatic loans worth Rs 3 lakh crore.
3. The government reduced the rates of Tax Deduction at Source (TDS) and Tax Collection at Source (TCS) by 25%, with effect from May 14, 2020 to March 21, 2021.
4. It has extended the date for filing income tax returns to November 30, 2020, and tax audit to October 31, 2020.
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5. The headquarters of the Indian Railways in Central Delhi, Rail Bhavan, has announced to the closure of two days after an RPF staffer tested positive for coronavirus on Wednesday.
6. With 1,495 new COVID-19 cases and 54 deaths reported in Maharashtra today, the state has now crossed 25,000-mark with 25,922 cases and deaths to 975: Maharashtra Health Department
7. 364 new COVID-19 positive cases reported in Gujarat in the last 24 hours; the total number of positive cases rise to 9,268: Gujarat Health Department
8. The number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 4,173 in Madhya Pradesh, with 187 more people testing positive today. Number of active cases and deaths stands at 1937 and 232, respectively: Madhya Pradesh Health Department
9. “Today’s announcements by FM @nsitharaman will go a long way in addressing issues faced by businesses, especially MSMEs. The steps announced will boost liquidity, empower the entrepreneurs and strengthen their competitive spirit,” PM Modi tweeted on the announcements made by FM Nirmala Sitharaman today.
Today’s announcements by FM @nsitharaman will go a long way in addressing issues faced by businesses, especially MSMEs. The steps announced will boost liquidity, empower the entrepreneurs and strengthen their competitive spirit. #AatmaNirbharBharatAbhiyan
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 13, 2020
10. Hundreds of passengers from Gujarat and Rajasthan reached New Delhi on Wednesday on the first train to arrive here since railway services were resumed on May 12, and a large number of them gathered on roads outside the station with no transport available for onward journeys, PTI reported.