BEIJING — China has stepped up efforts to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. Here are the latest developments:

— Vice-Premier Sun Chunlan extended greetings to women fighting the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at the frontline on March 8, the International Women's Day.

— China has sent 415 psychological counselors to Hubei province to offer mental counseling services to patients and medical workers fighting in the center of the COVID-19 outbreak.

— Lactating women diagnosed with the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) are advised not to breastfeed their infants, a Chinese obstetrician said on March 8 at a news conference.

— Wuhan has suspended the operation of 11 makeshift hospitals, which were converted from public facilities for the treatment of patients with mild symptoms in the city.

— A total of 28,000 female medical workers have been sent to the central Chinese province of Hubei, including its capital Wuhan, to help battle the COVID-19 epidemic.

Up to now, China has sent 346 medical teams with 42,600 medical staff to Hubei.

— Two production lines of meltblown non-woven fabric went into operation in Beijing on March 8, according to Sinopec Beijing Yanshan Petrochemical Co Ltd.

— A total of 44 new confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infection and 27 deaths were reported on March 7 on the Chinese mainland. The deaths were all reported in Hubei province.

Among the 44 new infections, 41 were in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province and epicenter of the outbreak. The other three cases outside Hubei were imported from outside the Chinese mainland, including two in Beijing and one in Gansu province. By the end of March 7, 63 imported cases had been reported.

— The overall confirmed cases on the mainland had reached 80,695 by the end of March 7, including 20,533 patients who were still being treated, 57,065 patients who had been discharged after recovery, and 3,097 people who had died of the disease.

— China's transport system is expected to see millions of migrant workers finish their return to their workplaces in early April after a prolonged Spring Festival break due to the novel coronavirus outbreak.

The latest official data showed that 78 million migrant workers have already returned to their jobs. In the provinces of Guangdong and Zhejiang, 70 percent of migrant workers from other provinces had made it back to their workplaces.

— The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said March 7 that more will be done to ensure that the country's livestock and poultry businesses will meet their output and supply targets this year despite the novel coronavirus epidemic.

Since the outbreak, measures have been taken to boost production resumption and help firms in accessing feed and finding buyers.