Coronavirus News Highlights: Today is the 321st day since India implemented a nationwide lockdown to help curb the novel coronavirus pandemic. So far, India has recorded more than 1.08 crore confirmed COVID-19 cases, including over 1.55 lakh deaths. A total of 1.05 crore people have recuperated from COVID-19 in the country so far. However, there are 1.48 lakh active cases. India's recovery rate continues to rise and now stands at 97.16 percent. Globally, over 10.63 crore people have been infected by the novel coronavirus and 23.21 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. Nearly 59 lakh people have been given their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in India so far.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates |
Chandigarh reports 14 new COVID-19 cases, one fatality, and 21 recoveries. Infection tally rises to 21,154, death toll 342. The number of active cases stands at 168.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Haryana reports 93 new COVID-19 cases, 4 deaths
Haryana reported 93 new coronavirus infections and four COVID-19 deaths in the past 24 hours. The COVID-19 tally of Haryana has risen to 2.69 lakh and the total death toll is now 3,033. There are 854 active COVID-19 cases in the state at present.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Madhya Pradesh reports 167 new COVID-19 cases, 2 deaths
Madhya Pradesh reported 167 new COVID-19 cases, two fatalities, and 219 recoveries in the past 24 hours. The total Infection tally in the state rose to 2,56,758, and the death toll increased to 3,825. The number of active cases in MP stands at 1,987.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates |
There are 7,860 cases per million in India at present and the case positivity rate for last week is 1.68 percent. Only two states -- Kerala and Maharashtra –still have more than 35,000 coronavirus cases. Together, these states contribute 71 percent of India’s total COVID-19 cases, says Health Secretary
Coronavirus in Rajasthan LIVE Updates |
Rajasthan reports 90 new COVID-19cases, 125 recoveries in the last 24 today. Total cases: 3,18,384, Total recoveries: 3,14,175, Death toll: 2,772, Active cases: 1,435.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Indians advised against travelling to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait via UAE amidst growing coronavirus cases
India has asked its nationals not to travel to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait via the UAE and get stranded in this country, in view of the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the region. In a statement posted on Twitter on Monday, the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi said: "It has been brought to the attention of the Embassy of Indian in Abu Dhabi and the Consulate General of India, Dubai that several Indian nationals intending to travel to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have got stranded in the UAE.""Due to COVID-related restrictions on incoming passengers, currently it is not possible for Indian nationals to transit via Dubai and Abu Dhabi to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait," the statement said.The UAE has recorded a slight uptick in its daily count of COVID-19 cases in the last one month, when the economy reopened.In total, the coronavirus has claimed 947 lives, along with 332,603 confirmed cases, in the UAE, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Coronavirus in Andhra Pradesh LIVE Updates |
Andhra Pradesh reports 70 new COVID-19cases and 115 recoveries in the last 24 hours. Total cases: 8,88,555, Total recoveries: 8,80,478, Death toll: 7,160, Active cases: 917.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | COVID-19 vaccination | Majority of Indians willing to take vaccine, ready to pay: Survey
Majority of Indians are in favour of getting vaccinated against COVID-19, and ready to pay for vaccines if the government's free vaccination programme gets restricted to only vulnerable sections of the population, found an online survey.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Kerala's COVID-19 cases nearing 10 lakh mark; 5,214 new cases reported
Kerala recorded 5,214 COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, pushing the caseload to 9,77,394, while the toll mountedto 3,902 with 19 additional fatalities. As many as 6,475 people were cured of the infection, taking the total recoveries to 9,09,102.The active cases touched 64,131, Health minister K K Shailaja said in a press release.In the last 24 hours ending 2 pm, 69,844 samples were tested and the test positivity rate was 7.47 per cent.A total of 1,02,14,097 samples have been examined so far, according to the release.Among the 14 districts, Ernakulam reported 615 fresh cases today, the highest, while Kollam logged 586, Kottayam 555 and five districts accounted for over 400 cases.No UK returnee has tested positive for the virus in the last 24 hours.Of the positive cases, 29 were health workers, while 61 had come from outside the state and 4,788 infected through contact.At least 2,33,664 people were under observation in various districts, including 10,230 in hospitals, the release added.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | 80% Gujarat cops inoculated under COVID-19 vaccination drive
At least 80 per cent personnel of the Gujarat police have so far been covered under the ongoing COVID-19 vaccination drive, an official said on Tuesday.As per an official release, 1.32 lakh personnel, including 81,000 from the regular police force, 22,000 home guards, 22,000 jawans of gram rakshak dal and around 4,000 traffic brigade personnel, have received the vaccine.Personnel from the prisons department, CID, State Reserve Police and Anti-Corruption Bureau were also being inoculated across the state, the release from the office of the Gujarat Director General of Police (DGP) stated.The state health department and civic bodies have set up booths exclusively to administer shots to policemen, the statement said.While the COVID-19 vaccination drive began in Gujarat on January 16, immunisation for frontline workers, including police personnel, started from January 31.At least 80 per cent of police personnel were already covered and the remaining will get the shots in the next two to three days, the release said.State DGP Ashish Bhatia had taken the vaccine on the first day to clear all doubts surrounding the vaccine, it was stated.Till February 8, as many as 6.04 lakh ''Corona Warriors'', including healthcare and frontline workers, were covered in the immunisation drive.According to the health department, 49,000 persons were inoculated at 976 session sites across Gujarat on Monday.
Coronavirus in Maharashtra LIVE Updates | COVID-19: Maharashtra minister Satej Patil tests positive
Maharashtra minister Satej Patil on Tuesday informed that he had tested positive for novel coronavirus.Taking to social media, the minister of state for home in the MVA government said, "I have tested positive for COVID-19. My health condition is good and have started medication as advised by doctors."Sources close to the minister said he had recently come back from the United States of America and had got himself tested as a precautionary measure, and the report returned positive.
Coronavirus in Tamil Nadu LIVE Updates |
Tamil Nadu reports 469 new COVID-19cases, 491 discharges and 4 deaths today. Total cases: 8,42,730, Total discharges: 8,26,011, Death toll: 12,391, Active cases: 4,328.
Coronavirus in Kerala LIVE Updates |
5,214 new COVID-19cases, 6475 recoveries and 19 deaths reported in Kerala today. Number of active cases now at 64,131; so far 9,09,102 persons have recovered.
Coronavirus in Odisha LIVE Updates |
Odisha's COVID-19tally mounts to 3,35,797 as 105 more people tested positive for the disease. The coastal state now has 803 active cases.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Iran starts COVID-19 vaccination, awaits more vaccine deliveries
Iran launched a vaccination drive against COVID-19 on Tuesday, focussing initially on hospital intensive care personnel as the hardest-hit country in the Middle East awaits enough vaccines for its general population.State television showed Parsa Namaki, son of Health Minister Saeed Namaki, receiving the first jab, in an apparent effort by officials to boost public confidence in Russia's Sputnik V vaccine.Iran has received 10,000 of the 2 million doses of Sputnik V it has ordered and plans to vaccinate some 1.3 million people by March 20, the television said. The country also expects to receive more than 4 million doses of AstraZeneca's shot.Iran's top authority, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has banned the health ministry from importing U.S.- and British-made vaccines, which he said were unreliable and may be used to spread the infection to other nations. Officials have refrained from referring to the Anglo-Swedish Astrazeneca’s British ties.Iran is participating in the COVAX scheme, co-led by the World Health Organization, that aims to secure fair access to vaccines for poorer countries. (Reuters)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | No new COVID-19 deaths 7 states/UTs in 3 weeks: Govt
Seven states and UTs have reported no new COVID-19 deaths in the last three weeks, while 15 have not registered any such fatality in the past 24 hours, the Centre said on Tuesday, underlining that from the pandemic point of view consistent gains are being made in terms of declining new cases and casualities.The Centre, however, noted that the last national serosurvey findings have shown that over 70 per cent of the population is still susceptible to the disease.The seven states and UTs -- Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Mizoram, Nagaland and Lakshadweep -- have reported no new COVID-19 deaths in last three weeks, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said.Addressing a press briefing, he said India was the fastest country to reach 6 million vaccination doses of COVID-19 in 24 days.Bhushan said within the country also some states have performed well while other need to improve their vaccination coverage. (PTI)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Farooq Abdullah in Lok Sabha:
Our numbers are less than US, UK & others. Still we reported many deaths. Our medical services aren't that good that cause of deaths can be ascertained in villages. Still, vaccines have been developed for which I congratulate those in Pune (SII).It is essential to distribute these vaccines in India. Even now, very few people are getting vaccines. Efforts should be made to vaccinate the maximum number of people so that people can be protected from this disease.It is essential for the govt to make up for the losses caused due to COVID-19& lockdown. Tourism sector, industries, shopkeepers in my state suffered, there is rampant poverty. Promises were made that 50,000 jobs would be provided - not even one job given.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Govt:
There is no evidence of presence of South Africa variant of SARs-CoV-2 in India so far, but we are keeping a watch.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Dr VK Paul, Member, Niti Aayog:
As of yesterday, this particular variant is not in the country.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Dr VK Paul, Member, Niti Aayog:
South Africa variant of COVID19 is under the watch. It has come forward that this variant spreads faster.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Govt:
Eleven states/UTs, including Delhi, Puducherry, TN and Punjab, have given COVID-19 vaccine to less than 40 pc of healthcare workers.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Govt:
Twelve states/UTs, including Bihar, MP, UP, HP, Rajasthan and Kerala, have given COVID-19 vaccine to more than 65 pc healthcare workers.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Health Ministry:
There has been 55 per cent decline in average daily COVID-19 deaths in last 5 weeks.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Rajesh Bhushan, Secretary, Union Health Ministry:
National level AEFI committee first meeting held on 5 February, 2021, they discussed 8 AEFI cases.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Rajesh Bhushan, Secretary, Union Health Ministry:
97% people satisfied with overall vaccination experience.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Rajesh Bhushan, Secretary, Union Health Ministry:
We have advised states & UTs that all front line workers must be scheduled for vaccination at least once by 1st March. We have advised states & UTs that all front line workers must be given an opportunity of mop up rounds by 6th March.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Rajesh Bhushan, Secretary, Union Health Ministry:
States & UTs have also been advised that mop up rounds for healthcare workers must be organized by Feb 24. It's aim is to ensure that those workers who couldn't come during scheduled vaccination sessions will avail the benefit to get vaccine dose.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Rajesh Bhushan, Secretary, Union Health Ministry:
We can't indefinitely keep on scheduling & rescheduling healthcare workers. States/UTs have been advised that all healthcare workers must be scheduled at least once for vaccination by Feb 20. Timelines are communicated to states.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Health ministry:
Till Tuesday 1.30 pm, 63,10,194 COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in India.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | WHO mission says lab leak virus theory 'extremely unlikely
Experts from the WHO on Tuesday all but eliminated a controversial theory that COVID-19 came from a laboratory in the Chinese city of Wuhan."The laboratory incident hypothesis is extremely unlikely to explain the introduction of the virus into the human population," said Peter Ben Embarek, the head of the WHO mission."Therefore is not in the hypotheses that we will suggest for future studies." (AFP)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates |
World Health Organisation's Ben Embarek says team did not find evidence of large outbreaks that could be related to COVID-19prior to December 2019 in Wuhan or anywhere else: Reuters
Coronavirus LIVE Updates |
World Health Organisation's Ben Embarek says team found evidence of wider circulation outside the Wuhan Huanan market in December 2019: Reuters
Coronavirus LIVE Updates
|World Health Organisation's Ben Embarek says team did not find evidence of large outbreaks that could be related to COVID-19prior to December 2019 in Wuhan or anywhere else: Reuters
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | No indication of Covid-19 virus in Wuhan before December 2019: WHO mission
There is insufficient evidence to determine that Covid-19 was being spread in China's central Wuhan before December 2019, a joint WHO and Chinese expert mission into the origins of the pandemic in Wuhan said Tuesday."There is no indication of the transmission of the Sars-Cov-2 in the population of the period before Dec 2019," said LiangWannian, head of the China team, at a press conference, adding that there was "not enough evidence" to determine if the virus had spread in the city prior to that.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Overall Covid-19 seropositivity among healthcare workers over 25 percent: MoS for health
The overall Covid-19seropositivityamong healthcare workers is assessed to be 25.7 percent as per the thirdseroprevalencestudy,Minister of State for HealthAshwiniChoubeytoldRajyaSabhaon Tuesday.Serosurvey orSeroprevalencestudies are based on analysis of antibodies collected through blood sample collection.Responding to a question on how many healthcare workers have contracted Covid-19 virus till date,Choubeysaid health being a state subject,centraliseddata on number of healthcare workers who have contracted Covid-19 virus till date is not maintained by the Ministry of Health."However, the Indian Council of Medical Research is undertaking periodicsero-surveillanceto monitor the trend of Covid-19 infection. As per the thirdseroprevalencestudy (December 2020 to January 2021) results the overall Covid-19seropositivityamong healthcare workers is assessed to be 25.7 per cent," he said in a written reply.Seroprevalenceis highest among doctors and nurses (26.6 per cent), followed bypara-medicalstaff (25.4 per cent), field staff (25.3 per cent) and administrative staff (24.9 per cent),Choubeysaid in a written reply.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates |
No indication of Covid-19 virus in Wuhan before December 2019: WHO mission
More than 50 lakh healthcare, frontline workers given COVID-19 vaccine in 21 days, says Centre
More than 50 lakh healthcare and frontline workers have been vaccinated against coronavirus in 21 days in India which is the fastest rate in the world, Minister of State for Health Ashwini Choubey told the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
Responding to a question on vaccine hesitancy, he said at the start of COVID-19 vaccination drive, fewer than planned beneficiaries attended the vaccination sessions due to transient technical issues in CoWIN portal, vaccine hesitancy, among others, which have progressively been addressed.
A total of 93.6 lakh healthcare and 77.9 lakh frontline workers had been registered for the vaccination till January 31, the minister said in a written reply. He said 37.58 lakh workers were vaccinated till January 31. Read more here
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | These states are reopening schools in February: Check list here
Several schools, colleges, and other educational institutions that had been shut across India since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, are set to reopen in February 2021, in view of the lowering daily COVID-19 tally of the country.
Most states have decided to reopen schools for higher classes, i.e., classes 9 to 12, with the exception of a few that will be reopening schools for lower classes (classes 5 to 8) also. While classes will resume in these states soon, authorities will have to ensure strict COVID-19 protocols, such as maintaining social distancing inside classrooms and staff rooms, use of face masks, sanitisers, etc.
Here’s a list of states that are reopening schools from February 2021
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Coronavirus testing collapses in Myanmar after coup
Testing for coronavirus has collapsed in Myanmar after a military coup prompted a campaign of civil disobedience led by doctors and mass protests swept the country, official testing figures showed.
The number of daily tests reported late on Monday stood at 1,987, the lowest number since Dec. 29, compared with more than 9,000 a week earlier and an average of more than 17,000 a day in the week before the Feb. 1 coup. Since the coup, tests per day have averaged 9,350.
The number of cases found on Monday was just four - compared with an average of 420 a day in the last week of January.
A health ministry spokesman declined to comment. In a statement on Monday, the ministry appealed to health workers for help with a vaccination campaign that began late last month.
It said all staff members "are strongly urged to return to their duties with taking the wellbeing of patients into consideration."
Myanmar has suffered one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in Southeast Asia with a total of 31,177 deaths from more than 141,000 cases.
Health workers have been at the forefront of a civil disobedence campaign against the coup, stopping work to demand the release of elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and recognition of her party's big win in a November election.
Suu Kyi's government had instituted lockdowns which helped reduce the spread of the virus and the number of fatalities from their peak in October, but also had a hard economic impact on one of the region's poorest countries.
Junta leader Min Aung Hlaing, whose removal and detention of the widely popular Suu Kyi prompted mass protests, promised in his first televised address on Monday to make the fight against COVID-19 a priority - including vaccinations for all.
The army seized power alleging fraud in last year's election, a claim the electoral commission had rejected. (Reuters)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | One new COVID-19 case in Arunachal Pradesh, tally rises to 16,831
One more person tested positive for COVID-19 in Arunachal Pradesh, pushing the total caseload in the northeastern state to 16,831. The new case was reported from West Siang district. Meanwhile, three more persons recuperated from the disease on Monday taking the total number of recoveries in the state to 16,770, State Surveillance Officer (SSO) Dr Lobsang Jampa
said.
Arunachal Pradesh currently has only five active COVID-19 cases, while 56 people have succumbed to the infection so far. The recovery rate in the state has touched 99.63 percent, while the positivity ratio stands at 0.02 percent and the fatality rate at 0.33 percent. Altogether, 3,97,038 samples have been tested for COVID-19, including 1,044 on Monday, the SSO said.
Meanwhile, State Immunization Officer (SIO) Dimong Padung said that 19,142 health workers have received vaccine shots so far in the state. The health department has been carrying out the inoculation drive four days a week -- Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Seven persons reportedly developed after-effects following immunization, the SIO said. (PTI)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | India orders 10 million more doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from Serum Institute
India's government has ordered 10 million more doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine from the Serum Institute of India, a company spokesman told Reuters on Tuesday. The world's biggest vaccine-making company had earlier supplied 11 million doses to the government's inoculation campaign that began on January 16.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | COVID-19 Vaccine Tracker: Over 2.23 lakh beneficiaries receive coronavirus vaccine on February 8
A total of 60,35,660 beneficiaries have so far been vaccinated for COVID-19 through 1,24,744 sessions held till the evening of February 9, the 24th day of the immunisation drive, according to a provisional report of the Union Health Ministry.
On February 8, 2,23,298 beneficiaries were vaccinated till 6 pm through 8,257 vaccination sessions, the ministry said.
India has become the fastest country to vaccinate 6o lakh beneficiaries countrywide. This feat was achieved in just 24 days. The USA took 26 days to reach this mark whereas the UK achieved this in 46 days, it said. Read more here
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Pfizer vaccine can neutralise coronavirus variants first reported in UK, South Africa: Study
The COVID-19 vaccine co-developed by the American pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and the German biotechnology company BioNTech can neutralise variants of the novel coronavirus that were first reported in the UK and South Africa, a new study suggests.
The research, published in the journal Nature Medicine, noted that the vaccine is effective against coronavirus variants carrying the N501Y and E484K mutations.
According to the scientists, including those from the University of Texas in the US, these variants have a substitution of the amino acid building blocks that make up the viral spike protein -- the part of the virus which enables it to enter human cells. They said these mutations in the 501st and 484th positions of the protein's amino acid molecule chain appeared in the UK and the South African variants, and could potentially increase the affinity of the viral spike for the receptor on the human cell through which the virus enters cells.
In particular, they said the N501Y mutation may also expand the range of hosts the virus can infect to include mice.
In the current study, the scientists, Pei-Yong Shi and his colleagues engineered combinations of mutations found in these circulating variants and tested a panel of human sera from 20 participants. Read more here
Coronavirus LIVE Updates |
A total of 20,25,87,752 samples tested for COVID-19 till February 8. Of these, 6,87,138 samples were tested yesterday: Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | India 24 hour Update
New COVID-19 cases - 9,110
Discharges - 14,016
Deaths - 78 deaths
Active cases - 143,625
Total cases - 10,847,304
Total discharges - 10,548,521
Total deaths - 155,158
Vaccinations completed - 6,259,008
(Source: Union Health Ministry)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | 200 new COVID-19 cases in Thane, 2 more deaths
Thane has reported 200 new cases of coronavirus, raising the infection count in the Maharashtra district to 2,55,949, an official said on Tuesday.
Besides, two more persons also died due to COVID-19, taking the toll in the district to 6,185, he said.
The COVID-19 mortality rate in the district currently stands at 2.42 percent. So far, 2,46,626 patients have recuperated from the infection, taking the recovery rate to 96.36 percent. As of now, there are 3,138 active COVID-19 cases in the district, the official said.
In neighbouring Palghar district, the COVID-19 case count has gone up to 45,365,while the death toll is 1,199, an official from the district administration said. (PTI)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | 149 new coronavirus cases, 1 death in Telangana
Telangana added 149 fresh cases to its COVID-19 tally, taking the total infection count to nearly 2.96 lakh while one related fatality pushed the toll to 1,612. The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) accounted for the most number of cases with 25, followed by Medchal Malkajgiri with nine, a government bulletin said on Tuesday providing details as of 8 pm on February 8. The total number of cases stood at 2,95,831 while recoveries were 2,92,415.
As many as 1804 patients are under treatment and 31,831 samples were tested on Monday. Cumulatively, over 81.54 lakh samples have been tested. The samples tested per million population was over 2.19 lakh, the bulletin said.
The case fatality rate in the state was 0.54 per cent, while it was 1.4 per cent at the national level. The recovery rate in Telangana was 98.84 per cent, while it was 97.2 per cent in the country. (PTI)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | New cases fall below 10,000 for second time in February
The daily new COVID-19 cases fell below 10,000 for the second time this month taking India's tally of cases to 1,08,47,304, while fresh fatalities remained below 100 for the fourth consecutive day, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Tuesday.
A total of 9,110 new infections were reported in a span of 24 hours,while the death toll increased to 1,55,158 with 78 daily new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed. The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 1,05,48,521 pushing the national COVID-19 recovery rate to 97.25 per cent,while the COVID-19 case fatality rate stands at 1.43 percent.
The COVID-19 active caseload remained below 2 lakh. There are 1,43,625 active cases of coronavirus infections in the country which comprise 1.32 percent of the total caseload, the data stated.
India's COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7,30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29,90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.
According to the ICMR, 20,25,87,752 samples have been tested up to February 8 with 6,87,138 samples being tested on Monday. (PTI)
