New Delhi, March 14:  In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak in India, the Padma Award ceremony has been postponed. The government will announce the next date and time of the Civil Investiture Ceremony soon. The ceremony was scheduled to be held on April 3 at Darbar Hall at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. The letter informing about the development was issued by Deepak Kumar, Under Secretary (Public), on Saturday.

This year, This year President Ram Nath Kovind has approved conferment of 141 Padma Awards across fields of art, literature and education, medicine, trade and industry, sports, public affairs, social work, and science and engineering. The list comprises seven Padma Vibhushan, 16 Padma Bhushan and 118 Padma Shri Awards.  Kailash Vijayvargiya Makes Bizarre Claim on Coronavirus, Says 'COVID-19 Cannot Harm India as It is Home For 33 Crore God & Goddesses'.

The Indian government on Saturday, declared the outbreak of coronavirus a "notified disaster". It announced to provide ex-gratia relief of Rs 4 lakh to the families who died of the virus under State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF). The Centre said that the cost of hospitalisation for managing COVID-19 patients would be at the rates fixed by the state governments. Gaumutra Party by Hindu Mahasabha in Delhi Today to 'Neutralize Effects' of Coronavirus, Attendees to Get Cow Urine, Cow-Dung Cakes.

Letter Issued by Government:

In India, two deaths have been reported due to COVID-19, while a total of 84 positive cases have been registered so far. The deadly virus claimed over 5,000 lives across the globe. China is the worst affected country with over 3,000 deaths, followed by Italy and Iran. In Italy, more than 1,000 people have lost their lives so far.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 14, 2020 05:39 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).