Coronavirus News Highlights: Today is the 336th day since India implemented a nationwide lockdown to help curb the novel coronavirus pandemic. So far, India has recorded 1,10,30,176 confirmed COVID-19 cases, including 1,56,567 deaths. A total of 1,07,26,702 people have recuperated from COVID-19 so far. There are 1,46,907 active cases in the country as of date, which comprises 1.33 percent of the total caseload, the data stated. India's recovery rate continues to rise and now stands at 97.25 percent. Globally, more than 11.2 crore people have been infected by the coronavirus and 24.83 lakh have died so far. India, along with many countries, has granted emergency use authorization for COVID-19 vaccines and has started the process of vaccinating healthcare workers and high-risk groups. India's regulator has granted restricted emergency use approval for two vaccines -- Covishield and Covaxin. More than 1.19 crore people have been given the COVID-19 vaccine in India so far.
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Coronavirus Vaccine LIVE Updates | Serum Institute hails first supply of COVID-19 vaccine under COVAX initiative
Serum Institute of India (SII) on Wednesday said it has initiated supplies of COVID-19 vaccine Covishield to COVAX, the global initiative to ensure rapid and equitable access to the vaccine for all countries.
"It is a historic moment for all of us as COVAX receives its first doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured by SII, COVISHIELD. We are delighted to see the combined efforts of everyone result in saving the lives of millions," SII CEO Adar Poonawalla said in a tweet.
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates |
Over 18K beneficiaries vaccinated on February 24in Delhi; total 3.4 lakh
Over 3.4 lakh beneficiaries have received COVID-19 vaccine till date in Delhi since the start of the inoculation drive a month ago, with more than 18,000 people receiving the jabs on Wednesday, according to data shared by officials. Of these, more than 1.41 lakh are healthcare workers and over 2 lakh are frontline workers, as per the data.
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates | Flight passengers from 4 states need to produce negative COVID-19 report: West Bengal govt
Amid a spike in coronavirus infections in Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka and Telangana, the West Bengal government on Wednesday made it mandatory for passengers travelling in flights from these states to produce negative COVID-19 reports.
According to a notification issued by the health department, passengers should undergo RT-PCR tests within 72 hours of the flight departure.
"In view of the increasing trend of COVID cases in the states of Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka and Telangana and in continuation of earlier order issued last August, this is to inform you that the state government has decided that from February 27, all passengers coming to the state from the four states shall mandatorily carry a COVID negative RT-PCR report," it said.
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates | Over 1.23 crore healthcare, frontline workers vaccinated against COVID-19: Govt
The cumulative number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered to healthcare and frontline workers has crossed 1.23 crore in the country, the health ministry said on Wednesday.
A total of 1,23,66,633 vaccine doses have been administered through 2,63,224 sessions till 6 pm on Wednesday, according to a provisional report.
These include 65,24,726 healthcare workers (HCWs) who have taken the first dose, 14,81,754 HCWs who have taken the second dose and 43,60,153 frontline workers (FLWs) who have taken the first dose.
While the countrywide vaccination drive was rolled out on January 16, the inoculation of FLWs started from February 2.
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates | Maharashtra sees record spike of over 8,800 new Covid-19 cases, total tally crosses 21.21 lakh
Maharashtra registered 8,807 new coronavirus cases and 80 deaths in a span of 24 hours. The numbers are significantly higher compared to Tuesday when the state had recorded 6,218 new infections.
The state Health Department said the total count of cases reported in the state has gone up to 21,21,119, including 59,358 active cases.
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates | India resiliently fought back COVID-19 pandemic; economy, life on path to normalcy: SC
The Supreme Court Wednesday said India resiliently fought back the unprecedented situation created by the COVID-19 pandemic and the economy as also life of the common man is on the path towards normalcy in a shorter period of time than expected.
Citing disaster management laws, the apex court noted that the country already had in place legal and administrative instruments to empower the State to contain and manage the several crisis that would arise from the pandemic.
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates | Kerala reports 4,106 new COVID-19 cases, 17 deaths
Kerala logged 4,106 new cases of COVID-19 and 17 deaths on Wednesday, taking the caseload to 10,45,358 and toll to 4,136.
State Health Minister K K Shailaja said the state tested 70,568 samples in the last 24 hours and the test positivity rate was 5.82 per cent.
She said 5,885 people recuperated from the disease, taking the total recoveries in the state to 9,87,720.
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates | China ponders approving 2 more COVID-19 vaccines
China is moving ahead with two more COVID-19 vaccines in the regulatory process, one from state-owned company Sinopharm and another from a private company CanSino.
Both vaccines have been submitted to regulators for approval this week.
CanSino said that Chinese regulators are reviewing its application for its COVID-19 vaccine, in a stock filing on Wednesday.
Sinopharm's subsidiary the Wuhan Institute of Biological Products announced on Wednesday that it had submitted an application on Sunday and that regulators were reviewing it.
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates | Goa records 52 fresh COVID-19 cases; 35 recoveries
As many as 52 persons tested positive for coronavirus, while 35 were discharged from hospitals after recovering from the infection in Goa on Wednesday, an official from the health department said.
With the addition of the latest cases, the state''s COVID-19 tally has reached 54,700, of which 53,416 patients have recovered so far, the official said.
Following the death of one patient during the day, the toll stood at 789, he said.
Coronavirus in Puducherry LIVE Updates |
Puducherry added 28 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, pushing the caseload to 39,656. A release from the Director of Health and Family Welfare S Mohan Kumar said the new cases were identified at the end of examination of 2,069 samples. A 79-year-old man, hailing from Uppalam village here, succumbed to infection during the last 24 hours raising the toll to 666, the director said.
The deceased had co-morbidities like diabetes,hypertension and coronary artery disease (CAD).The cause of death was covid pneumonia, acute respiratory disorder syndrome and septic shock, the release said.
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates | Dharavi reports double-digit COVID-19 case count after 37 days
After a gap of more than a month, Mumbai''s slum colony of Dharavi reported a double-digit count of COVID-19 cases at 10 on Wednesday, the city civic body said.
A senior Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) official said the slum-dominated area, spread over 2.5 sq km, recorded 10 new cases in the last 24 hours, taking the tally to 4,041.
On Janaury 17, ten new COVID-19 cases were found in Dharavi and since then daily infection counts have been in single digits and even zero.
In the first week of February, single-day COVID-19 cases in Dharavi were in the range of 0 to five.
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates | Exhausted by COVID-19 fight, Portuguese nurses want pay not applause
At midnight nurse Ines Lopes and her colleagues are about to start the night shift taking care of patients in a COVID-19 intensive care unit in the heart of Lisbon. Nursing is a job they love but it barely pays the bills.
Politicians, celebrities and people across Portugal have spent much of the coronavirus pandemic praising frontline health workers, sometimes emerging from their homes to clap and cheer on the medics.
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates | Punjabi singer Sardool Sikander dies in Mohali hospital, was diagnosed with COVID-19
Noted Punjabi singer and actor Sardool Sikander died on Wednesday at a Mohali hospital where was undergoing treatment for COVID-19. He was 60.
Sikander, who had undergone a renal transplant in 2016 and was admitted to hospital on January 19, passed away at 11.55 am, sources at Fortis Hospital said.
They said his condition worsened in the last few days and he was put on life support systems.
Sikander, regarded an icon in the Punjabi music industry, is survived by his singer-wife Amar Noorie, and music composer sons Sarang and Alaap Sikander.
Coronavirus in Maharashtra LIVE Updates | Hotels, eateries to stay shut in Nagpur on weekends
Considering the recent rise in COVID-19 cases, the civic body in Maharashtra's Nagpur city today directed that restaurants, hotels and eateries will remain closed on weekends till further orders, an officialsaid. This comes after the district administration on February 22 ordered the shutting of schools and colleges till March 7. (PTI)
Coronavirus Vaccine LIVE Updates |
From March 1, Indians about the age of 60 (an estimated 10 crore people) and those above 45 years of age with co-morbidity will get access to COVID-19 vaccine shots at more than 10,000 government health centres and more than 20,000 private hospitals and clinics, the government announced on February 24.
Read more | Vaccinations for 60-plus group, people above 45 with comorbidities from March 1: Government
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates | India warns states of worsening COVID-19 situation if rules ignored
India has warned that a breach of guidelines on testing and other measures to contain the coronavirus could worsen a recent spurt in infections in many states, particularly after it detected several variants. Nearly a month after the health minister declared that COVID-19 had been contained, states such as Maharashtra in the west and Kerala in the south have reported a surge in cases, as reluctance grows over mask-wearing and social distancing norms. India's tally of infections stands at 11.03 million, swelled in the past 24 hours by 13,742, health ministry data shows, while deaths rose by a two-week high of 104 to 156,567. (Reuters)
Coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh LIVE Updates | CM Yogi Adityanath in State Assembly:
Discussions over COVID-19 situation continue to this day. Active cases in state are around 2000, hospital has below 500 positive cases, recovery rate is best in the country. Due to our constant efforts, WHO also praised UP's COVID management.
Coronavirus Vaccine LIVE Updates | Problem of plenty: Nepal has more Covid vax than it can administer
Nepal has been one of the swiftest countries to procure the coronavirus vaccines for its citizens, faster than it is able to give them the jabs.Of the two million Covishield vaccines it purchased from the Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII), one million have already arrived in the Himalayan country on February 21. The other one million are likely to arrive very soon. Nepal was able to get these vaccines at subsidised rates with help from the Government of India.
Coronavirus Vaccine LIVE Updates | Malaysia launches COVID-19 vaccination drive as PM gets first shot
Malaysia launched its COVID-19 inoculation programme today, which authorities hope will rein in a spike in infections and help revive an economy that recorded its worst slump in over two decades in 2020. Malaysia has set an ambitious target of vaccinating at least 80 percent of its 32 million people by February next year. Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin was the first to be given the vaccine, developed by US drugmaker Pfizer and German partner BioNTech, as part of government efforts to reassure people of the vaccine's safety. (Reuters)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | First COVID-19 vaccine doses dispatched by COVAX arrive in Ghana
The World Health Organization's global vaccine sharing schemeCOVAXdelivered its first COVID-19 shots on Wednesday, as the race to get doses to the world's poorest people and tame the pandemic accelerates.A flight carrying 600,000 doses of theAstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine produced by the Serum Institute of India landed in Ghana's capital Accra, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), said in a joint statement.The delivery comes almost a year after the WHO first described the novel coronavirus as a global pandemic and eight months after the launch of theCOVAXinitiative, aimed at pooling funds from wealthier countries and non-profits to develop a COVID-19 vaccine and distribute it equitably around the world. (Reuters)
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates | As many as 19 states and union territories have not reported any COVID-19 deaths in the last 24 hours, says the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
Coronavirus in Andaman and Nicobar Islands
LIVE Updates | Andamans reports one new COVID-19 case
The coronavirus tally in Andaman and Nicobar Islands rose to 5,016 as one more personhas tested positive for the disease in the union territory, a health department official said today.The new case was detected during contact tracing, he said. The archipelago now has five active COVID-19 cases and all the patients are in the South Andaman district. The othertwo districts of the union territory North and Middle Andaman and Nicobar are COVID-19 free as both don't have anyactive coronavirus case at present. (PTI)
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates | Rs 5,000 crore annual loss to Western Railway due to COVID-19 crisis: Official
The Western Railway is facing an annual revenue loss of about Rs 5,000 crore due to COVID-19 crisis, which affected services and led to a drop in the number of train travellers, a senior official has said.Many people are still reluctant to travel by train due to fear of the coronavirus, Western Railway's General ManagerAlok Kansal told reporters. (PTI)
Coronavirus in Arunachal Pradesh LIVE Updates | No new COVID-19 case in Arunachal Pradesh for 5 days
Arunachal Pradesh did not report any fresh COVID-19 case in the last five days, a seniorhealth department official said in Itanagar today. The COVID-19 tally in the state remained at 16,836,State Surveillance Officer Dr Lobsang Jampa said. One more person recuperated from the infection yesterday, taking the total number of coronavirus recoveries in the state to 16,776, he said.Arunachal Pradesh currently has four active COVID-19 cases, while 56 people have succumbed to the infection so far. (PTI)
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
As many as 13,742 new cases of novel coronavirus were reported, with India’s total COVID-19 cases above 1.10 crore, as per the health ministry’s February 24, 2021 update. New cases reported up 30 percent over the previous day. India reported 104 new deaths and 14,037 new recoveries in the last 24 hours, the latest release show. Active cases drop to 1,46,907 with a fall of 399 cases on February 24. As many as 1,21,65,598 beneficiaries have been vaccinated across India according to the update.
Read more |COVID-19 cases explained in charts
Coronavirus in Maharashtra LIVE Updates | 463 new COVID-19 cases in Thane, 3 more deaths
Thane has added 463 new cases of coronavirus, raising the infection count in the Maharashtradistrict to 2,61,667,an official said today. Three more deaths due to the viral infection were also reported in the district yesterday, taking the toll to 6,246, he said.The COVID-19 mortality rate in the district is 2.39 percent, the official said. So far, 2,50,748 patients have recovered from the infection in the district, reflecting a recovery rate of 95.83percent. There are 4,673 active COVID-19 cases in the districtat present, the official said. (PTI)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates |
New COVID-19 strains detected in India and the United Kingdom strain are highly transmissible. We should take all possible precautions to prevent the rise in cases. Currently, we have 55 COVID-19 cases at the hospital. The cases have gone up in the last two weeks: Director, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh (ANI)
Coronavirus in India LIVE updates | JUST IN:
Total confirmed COVID-19 cases in India have risen to 1,10,30,176, according to the latest update from the Union Health Ministry. This number includes cases involving foreign nationals, patients who have recovered and the death toll.
Coronavirus in India LIVE updates | JUST IN:
As many as 1,07,26,702 COVID-19 patients have been cured and discharged so far, the Union Health Ministry has said in its latest update.
Coronavirus in India LIVE updates | JUST IN:
The reported active COVID-19 cases in India stand at 1,46,907, according to the Union Health Ministry.
Coronavirus in India LIVE updates | JUST IN:
The death toll in India due to the novel coronavirus pandemic has risen to 1,56,567, the Union Health Ministry has said.
Coronavirus in India LIVE updates | JUST IN:
The death toll in India due to the novel coronavirus pandemic has risen to 1,56,567, the Union Health Ministry has said.
Coronavirus Vaccine LIVE Updates |
The Serum Institute of India, the world's largest vaccine manufacturer, despatched its first batch of vaccine shots for the Covax global inoculation programme. The global vaccine procurement and equitable distribution effort aims to secure vaccines for at least the most vulnerable 20 percent in every country.
Coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh LIVE Updates | COVID-19 crisis not over, following protocols must for protection: UP CM Adityanath
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has said that the coronavirus crisis is yet to be over and the laid down protocol should be followed to prevent it. A UP government spokesperson said Adityanath, while reviewing the COVID-19 management and steps towards preventing its infection, said, "The corona crisis is yet to be over. Hence it should be ensured that every precaution is taken and the laid down protocol is adhered to." (PTI)
Coronavirus Vaccine LIVE Updates |
A total of 42,319 people were given the COVID-19 vaccine in Maharashtra yesterday, taking the state's overall tally of inoculations to 10,28,271, reported news agency PTI citing an official. Of those who got the vaccine jabs during the day, 30,789 received the first dose, comprising 23,018 frontline and 7,771 health workers, while 11,530 got the second dose, he added.
Coronavirus Vaccine LIVE Updates |
Over 3.2 lakh beneficiaries have received COVID-19 vaccine till date in Delhi since the start of the inoculation drive a month ago, with more than 20,000 people receiving shots yesterday, according to data shared by officials. Out of these, more than 1.37 lakh are healthcare workers and over 1.86 lakh frontline workers, as per the data. Three minor cases of AEFI (adverse events following immunisation) were reported, officials said. (PTI)
Coronavirus in West Bengal LIVE Updates | Bengal logs 2 fresh COVID deaths, 189 new cases
West Bengal registered two COVID-19 deaths taking the toll to 10,253 yesterday, thehealth department said in a bulletin. One fatality each was reported from Purulia andKalimpong districts, it said adding that one of the two deaths was due to comorbidities where COVID-19 was incidental.The tally mounted to 5,74,099 after 189 fresh cases were recorded in the state, it said.The discharge rate improved to 97.62 percent after 228 recoveries were registered in the state. Till date, 5,60,447people have been cured of the disease in West Bengal. The number of active cases currently is 3,399, thebulletin said. (PTI)
Coronavirus in Maharashtra LIVE Updates | Nagpur sees 691 cases, 8 deaths, 477 recoveries
Nagpur's COVID-19 tally rose by 691 yesterday to reach 1,44,534, while the death tollincreased by eight and the recovery count by 477, an official said. The district has so far seen 4,291 deaths and 1,33,775 people have recovered, leaving it with 6,468 active cases, headded. (PTI)
Coronavirus in Maharashtra LIVE Updates | Parbhani imposes travel restrictions
Travel restrictions to Parbhani district and closure of places of worship were amongthe measures taken yesterday by the Parbhani district administration to stem the recent spike of COVID-19 cases, a senior official said. Travel from 11 districts in Vidarbha to Parbhani hasbeen placed under certain restrictions so that the spike in cases in that part of the state does not have an impact here, Collector Deepak Muglikar told PTI.
Hello and welcome to Moneycontrol’s LIVE coverage of the novel coronavirus pandemic and its socio-economic impact.
The COVID-19 outbreak has spread across 192 countries and territories. Today is the 336th day since India implemented a nationwide lockdown.
Stay tuned to this LIVE blog for the latest updates through the day.
