The death toll from the outbreak of novel coronavirus in China rose to 81 on Monday, while the number of confirmed cases is 2,744. To safely evacuate Indians currently in China, Air India has kept a Boeing 747 jet on standby in the Wuhan city, where the epidemic broke out and claimed the most number of lives. The aircraft is awaiting Centre's decision regarding the evacuations, according to an Air India official quoted by news agency ANI. "Air India Boeing 747 is on standby for the evacuation of Indians from Wuhan (China) due to scare of Coronavirus. The virus is said to have originated in a seafood market in Whan, a Chinese city, illegally selling wildlife.

Source: dna January 27, 2020 09:11 UTC