The number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 873 in India on Saturday as the country entered the third day of a national lockdown, according to the Union Health Ministry.

The Health Ministry has confirmed 19 deaths due to the deadly virus till Saturday. Later in the day, Kerala reported its first death, taking the countrywide toll to 20.

So far, deaths have been reported from Maharashtra (4) Gujarat (3), Karnataka (2 ) and one each from Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Punjab, Delhi, West Bengal, Jammu and Kasmir and Himachal Pradesh.

The total number of deaths in the world due to the novel coronavirus has crossed the 27,000-mark, while the tally of those infected is nearing 6,00,000.

(Follow all the live updates here)

9:00 PM: Five new positive cases — 2 in Srinagar, 3 in Jammu — have been reported in Jammu and Kashmir. Total number of cases in the UT reaches 33, officials said.

7:18 PM: Four migrant workers from Rajasthan were crushed to death and three seriously injured when a tempo ran over them as they were walking along a highway in Maharashtra’s Palghar district on Saturday.

The victims were among hordes of migrants who were stopped at Maharashtra-Gujarat border and sent back as they were trying to return to their home states amid lockdown to contain the coronavirus pandemic.

7:17 PM: Number of COVID-19 cases rises to 918; active cases stand at 819, says Health Ministry.

6:35 PM: The number of deaths of coronavirus patients in Maharashtra rises to six as an 85-year-old doctor who died the day before is confirmed to have contracted the virus.

6:19 PM: Six more COVID19 positive cases in Kerala– 2 from Thiruvananthapuram and 1 each from Kollam, Malappuram, Kasaragod and Palakkad, said Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

“Total 165 COVID19 cases are under treatment; Rapid tests to be conducted to understand whether there is any community spread,” Vijayan said.

6:10 PM: Uttar Pradesh Government said it will release 11,000 prisoners from 71 jails on parole for eight weeks to prevent the spread of coronavirus. These are convicts serving a prison sentence of less than 7 years.

6:05 PM: Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar has pledged to donate Rs 25 Crore to help fight coronavirus. “I pledge to contribute Rs 25 crores from my savings to PM Modi ji’s PM-CARES Fund. Let’s save lives, Jaan hai toh jahaan hai,” he said on social media.

6:00 PM: Government is committed to providing all support to migrant workers during lockdown period: Home Minister Amit Shah

5:10 PM: “Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund has been constituted. This will go a long way in creating a healthier India. People from all walks of life can donate to this fund”: PM Narendra Modi.

5:05 PM: Congress constitutes task force to intensify efforts in party-ruled states to deal with situation arising out of coronavirus pandemic.

4:52 PM: Tata Trusts has committed Rs 500 Crores to fight coronavirus. Tata Trust chairman Ratan Tata said, “urgent emergency resources need to be deployed to cope with the needs of fighting the COVID19 crisis.”

4:45 PM: More than 600,000 coronavirus cases recorded globally: AFP tally.

4:40 PM: Four new Coronavirus positive cases (including 2 nursing staff of Bangar Hospital, Bhilwara) reported in Rajasthan today; total number of positive cases in Rajasthan now stands at 54: Health Department, Rajasthan

4:35 PM: Eight new coronavirus positive cases found in Maharashtra today – 7 in Mumbai and 1 in Nagpur. The total number of positive cases in the state rises to 167: Maharashtra Health Ministry.

4:30 PM: 400 people have been tested in private labs so far: Dr. Raman R Gangakhedkar, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)

4:25 PM: BJP President JP Nadda said on Twitter: “All MPs of BJP will release 1 crore rs from their MPLADS fund to the Central Relief Fund in support to fight against Covid-19.”

4:20 PM:  Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said aircraft are crisscrossing the Indian airspace to ensure that the COVID-19 testing kits of the ICMR reach their destinations on time amidst a 21-day nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

4:16 PM: The US government is making arrangements to airlift over 2,000 American citizens stranded in India due to the suspension of flights and the lockdown in the country to limit the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, the US State Department has said.

4:14 PM: Doctors across the country being trained on management of COVID-19 patients with the help of AIIMS, Delhi: Health Ministry

4:13 PM: 149 new cases, including two deaths, reported since Friday; overall positive cases 873: Health Ministry

4:05 PM: University Grants Commission has decided to contribute one day’s salary to Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund to combat COVID19. UGC has also appealed to VCs of Universities and principals of colleges to urge their teaching and non-teaching colleagues to also contribute.

3:56 PM: Central Railway said Railway Protection Force (RPF) in Mumbai has provided food to more than 200 needy and destitute persons at 13 locations in Mumbai division on its own initiative.

3:35 PM: Five more people test positive for coronavirus in UP’s Gautam Buddh Nagar–3 in Noida, 2 in Greater Noida: Officials.

3:30 PM: Addressing the issue of migrant workers stranded without resources in different states, MHA has directed states/UTs to include “Provisions for temporary accommodation, food, clothing, medical care etc. for homeless people, including migrant labourers, stranded due to lockdown and sheltered in relief camps” under SDRF fund allocations, officials said.

3:20 PM: Iran reports 139 new coronavirus deaths, raising total to 2,517.

3:15 PM: Everyone who deals in essential commodities and does not have a pass yet can now apply online through the Delhi Police website. People can also apply for the passes physically through the Deputy Commissioner of Police’s office, says Delhi police PRO MS Randhawa.

3:05 PM: “Everyone who deals in essential commodities and does not have a pass yet can now apply online through the Delhi Police website. People can also apply for the passes physically through the Deputy Commissioner of Police’s office,” says Delhi Police PRO MS Randhawa.

2:45 PM: Four people test positive for COVID-19 in Rajasthan taking the total number of confirmed cases in the state to 54.

2:44 PM: Medical care, clothing to be provided to migrant workers during lockdown from State Disaster Relief Fund, says Ministry of Home Affairs. The MHA changed rules for State Disaster Relief Fund and said the money will be made available for food, accommodation for migrant workers.

2:33 PM: Six more people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Gujarat, said Jayanti Ravi, Principal Secretary, Health and Family Welfare Department of the state.

2:29PM: Landlords can take rent from tenants only after a month in Gautam Budh Nagar in wake of Coronavirus lockdown. No exodus of workers because of the non-payment of rent  will be allowed in present circumstances, says District Magistrate BN Singh’s order.

2:10PM: Maharashtra minister Amit Deshmukh has said that facilities will be created at three hospitals in the state for the treatment of coronavirus patients. In Mumbai, a 300-bed facility with 60-bed ICU will be set up at St George Hospital for treatment of coronavirus patients, while the G T Hospital will have 250 beds and 50-bed ICU for this purpose, the Medical Education Minister said.

2:00PM: In Uttarakhand, 15 inmates of Pursadi District Jail in Chamoli will be released on six-month parole. Inmates who have been sentenced to less than seven years of imprisonment are being released on parole in the light of coronavirus outbreak. Currently, there are 89 inmates at the jail.

1:45PM: All the employees of General Post Office (GPO) in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, have decided to help the needy amid coronavirus lockdown by giving the food, prepared at their homes, to Trivandrum Corporation which would then provide it to the needy people.

1:35PM: A 10th standard student of a government school, who appeared for the SSLC examination this month, is among the positive cases detected in Kerala.

1:17PM: Tamil Nadu has reported two new positive cases. A 42-year-old man who had returned from West Indies and a 49-year-old man who had returned from UK, are admitted at  Vellore Pvt Hosp. Both had travelled via Middle East. They’re in isolation and stable, says  Tamil Nadu Health Minister

1:05PM: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi shared photos of what appears to be a crowd of migrant labourers trying to get home and said the “government is responsible for this dangerous situation.”

12:30 PM: Kerala reported its first COVID-19 death from a hospital in Kochi, according to the state government. The patient was a 69-year-old man The state has 165 confirmed cases of coronavirus.

12:15 PM: Northern Railway has manufactured the first prototype of isolation ward for COVID-19 patients by converting non-AC coaches.

“The idea is to reach hinterland to treat infected patients”: Railways on converting coaches into isolation wards.

11:45 AM: The United Nations says 86 of its staff members around the world have reported cases of COVID-19.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said most of the infected staff members are in Europe, but there are also staffers in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and the United States that have the coronavirus. To try to reduce transmission, he said the vast majority of U.N. staffers are working from home.

11:35 AM: Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal said Union Home Minister Amit Shah has been keeping mum while the country is going through an unprecedented lockdown and migrants are struggling.

11:25 AM: Uttar Pradesh government said the arrangement of 1000 buses has been made to take the migrant workers to their respective hometowns amid lockdown. Transportation Officers, bus drivers and conductors were called by the CM last night to make all the arrangements, officials said.

10:55 AM: As the Cannes film festival got postponed to the end of June, the management has now transformed the location that has seen thousands of red carpet galas, into a homeless shelter.

As per The Hollywood Reporter, Cannes Mayor David Lisnard said the measure was needed to protect both the homeless and the entire population from the spread of the coronavirus.

10:50 AM: Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan writes to PM Modi saying the action of Karnataka Police has resulted in blocking of Thalassery-Coorg State Highways-30 where essential items are not finding a smooth passage. The CM, in his letter, has requested PM Modi to intervene in the matter to ensure smooth flow of essential commodities to Kerala amid lockdown.

10:40 AM: Six new coronavirus positive cases in Gujarat; the state tally rises to 53.

10:30 AM: Two more coronavirus positive cases were reported in Rajasthan today. One was a 23-year-old man in Ajmer, who travelled to Punjab and the other a 21-year-old woman in Bhilwara. The total number of positive cases in the state now rises to 52, according to Rajasthan Health Department.

9:58 AM:Coronavirus cases in India rise to 873, the death toll stands at 19, says the home ministry. 

8:57 AM: Meanwhile, a large number of migrant workers and labourers continue to make efforts to reach home in the middle of a nationwide lockdown.

8:51 AM: The Maharashtra health ministry on Saturday morning informed that 6 new COVID-19 positive cases — 5 in Mumbai and 1 in Nagpur — were found in the state today. The total number of positive cases in the state rises to 159. 

8:40 AM: Two more persons from Rajouri district of J&K have tested positive raising the number of COVID-19 patients to 18 in the union territory. Late last evening, Rohit Kansal, spokesman of J&K government posted on his twitter page, “As we end the day, two more positive cases confirmed -both from Rajouri District. One a family member of yesterday’s confirmed case, the other has a contact history with a confirmed (now deceased) case.”

8:00 AM: The coronavirus pandemic has driven the global economy into a downturn that will require massive funding to help developing nations, IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva said Friday.

“It is clear that we have entered a recession” that will be worse than in 2009 following the global financial crisis, she said in an online press briefing.