"All existing visas, except diplomatic, official, UN/International organisations, employment and project visas stand suspended till 15th April 2020. This will come into effect from 1200GMT on 13th March 2020 at the port of departure," said a statement from the Indian government. Visa-free travel facility granted to OCI card holders is also kept in abeyance till April 15.

NEW DELHI - The number of novel coronavirus patients in India are fast rising and by Wednesday stood at 60, with 10 more positive cases—eight from Kerala and one each from Delhi and Rajasthan, prompting the Central government to suspend all visas, except a few categories such as diplomatic and employment, till April 15 in a bid to contain the spread of novel coronavirus, according to an official statement.

The suspension will come into effect from 1200 GMT on March 13 at the port of departure.

The decision was taken at the meeting of a group of ministers held here under the chairmanship of Health Minister Harsh Vardhan.

"All existing visas, except diplomatic, official, UN/International organisations, employment and project visas stand suspended till 15th April 2020. This will come into effect from 1200GMT on 13th March 2020 at the port of departure," the statement said.

Visa-free travel facility granted to OCI card holders is also kept in abeyance till April 15.

Any foreign national who intends to travel to India for compelling reason may contact the nearest Indian Mission, the release said, adding that all incoming travellers, including Indian nationals, arriving from or having visited China, Italy, Iran, Republic of Korea, France, Spain and Germany after February 15 will be quarantined for a minimum period of 14 days. 

Meanwhile, the Union Health Ministry said five new positive cases had been reported in Delhi while nine persons were diagnosed with the infection in Uttar Pradesh till Wednesday evening.

Karnataka and Maharashtra have reported four and two confirmed cases of COVID-19, respectively. Ladakh has recorded two positive cases.

Rajasthan, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Jammu and Kashmir, and Punjab have reported one case each, the ministry said.

Kerala has till now reported 17 cases, including the three patients who were discharged last month following recovery.

The total number of 60 confirmed cases includes 16 Italians tourists, the ministry said.

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, who spoke to a few COVID-19 patients admitted at Medanta and Safdarjung hospitals through video calls on Tuesday, said all those infected by the disease were stable and showing signs of recovery.

India will be sending a team of doctors to Italy on Thursday to collect and bring swab samples of Indian students stranded there so that they can be tested before being brought back to the country, health ministry officials said on Wednesday.

The ministry further said the government of India is undertaking measures to ensure safety and security of its citizens in Iran after it became clear that the country was facing a COVID-19 outbreak.

Indian nationals in Iran include pilgrims, students and fishermen, the ministry said.

On March 7, as many as 108 samples were received from Iran. These samples are being tested at the laboratory of AIIMS. Also, six scientists from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) have been stationed in Iran and they so far have collected swab samples of over 400 Indians stranded there.

Equipment and reagents have also been dispatched to enable them to setup a lab.

“The first batch of 58 evacuees from Iran has arrived on March 10 with 25 men, 31 women and 2 children on board. All evacuees are asymptomatic at present,” the ministry said.

So far, India has evacuated 948 passengers from COVID-19 affected countries. Out of these, 900 are Indian citizens and 48 belonging to different nationalities, including Maldives, Myanmar, Bangladesh, China, USA, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, Nepal, South Africa and Peru, it said.

The ministry further said a total number of 1,057,506 passengers have been screened so far at the airport.