New Delhi, January 31: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday thanked his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi for China's cooperation in the evacuation of a group of Indians from Wuhan city in Hubei province, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak. After his telephonic conversation with Wang, Jaishankar, in a tweet, said both sides agreed to stay in touch as China dealt with the challenge of the coronavirus.

India on Friday sent an Air India flight to bring back Indians stuck in Wuhan after China granted the required permission. "Called Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi today to thank him for the cooperation extended by the Chinese government for the departure of Indian students and professionals from Wuhan. As China deals with the #coronavirus challenge, we agreed to stay in touch," Jaishankar tweeted. Coronavirus Outbreak: Kerala Girl, Who Tested Positive for SARS-Like Virus, Stable; Govt Keeps 1,471 Suspects Under Observation.

Here's a tweet by Dr S Jaishankar:

The death toll in the coronavirus outbreak in China has climbed to 213 while the number of confirmed cases rose to 9,692, according to Chinese authorities. Hubei province, the epicentre of the outbreak, reported 5,806 confirmed cases, including 204 deaths. Many countries, including India, have reported confirmed cases of the virus in travellers coming from China.

In the wake of the outbreak of the virus, India reached out to over 600 Indians living in Hubei province to ascertain their willingness to be brought back to India. India approached Chinese authorities to allow it to send two flights to Wuhan and the permission was granted last evening. "We have established contact with over 600 Indians across the province and are individually ascertaining their willingness to be repatriated.

"Our Mission in Beijing is working round-the-clock on the ground to work out the necessary logistics," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said on Thursday. An Air India official said another flight is likely to be sent to Wuhan on Saturday.