New Delhi, March 20: The Indian Army on Friday issued a new advisory on Friday to combat the coronavirus outbreak. As per the advisory, 35 percent officers and 50 percent jawans in Army headquarters will work from home adhering to home quarantine for a week starting from March 23. Similarly, the second group will work from home for a week starting from March 30. The decision was taken to reduce attendance in offices in Army headquarters. Meanwhile, Chief of Army Staff General Manoj Mukund Naravane on Friday also reviewed preparation of the force to fight the deadly virus. Kerala Confirms 12 More COVID-19 Cases, CM Pinarayi Vijayan Says Statewide Toll is 40.

However, personnel engaged in essential or emergency services directly involved in taking measures to control the spread of COVID-19 have to come to offices. The Army also deferred postings and transfers of personnel due to the coronavirus outbreak. Catch all the live updates related to coronavirus outbreak in India and abroad.

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Temporary duty of all ranks have also been rescheduled till April 15, 2020. The Indian Army extended leaves till April 15 of personnel who are currently off-duty. The decision about extending leaves will be taken at the discretion of the competent authority. In order to avoid crowding at entry and exit points, personnel attending office in Army Headquarters are ordered to adhere to staggered timings -  0900 hours – 1730 hours and  0945 hours – 1815 hours. Indian Army Soldier in Ladakh Tests Positive for COVID-19, Kept in Isolation Ward.

Meanwhile, the Indian Army has also kept dozens of quarantine centres on standby. As per a Defence Ministry statement, 11 quarantine facilities have been set up by the armed forces across the country. These facilities could be made operational in the next 72 hours, claimed the ministry. Currently, four quarantine centre are operational. Two centres which have been set by the Indian Army are at Manesar and Jaisalmer. The other two quarantine centres are Indian Air Force’s Hindan Facility and Navy’s Mumbai Facility.

India witnessed a steep rise in coronavirus cases on Friday. Till now, 235 positive cases of COVID-19 have reported in the country. Four people also lost their lives. Globally, more than 10,000 deaths have been reported so far.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 20, 2020 08:09 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).