Coronavirus LIVE Updates: India on Wednesday reported 2,08,921 COVID-19 infections, pushing the overall tally of cases to 2,71,57,795, as the country conducted 22,17,320 coronavirus tests, its highest-ever in a day, according to Union Health Ministry data. The death toll also climbed to 3,11,388 with 4,157 fatalities reported in a 24-hour period, the data updated at 8 am showed. A total of 22,17,320 tests, the highest in a day, were conducted on Tuesday taking the cumulative number so far in the country to 33,48,11,496, while the daily positivity declined to 9.42 per cent, the ministry said. This is the second day in a row that positivity rate has remained below 10 per cent, the ministry said. Weekly positivity rate has also declined to 11.45 per cent. The updated data showed that the number of active cases have further come down to 24,95,59, constituting 9.19 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has improved to 89.66 per cent. The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 2,43,50,816, while the case fatality rate was 1.15 per cent, the data showed.
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Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Assam reports 5,699 new cases, 90 deaths today; active cases 52,884, as per state records.
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Madhya Pradesh reports 2,182 new cases and 72 deaths and 7,479 recoveries today; active cases 43,265
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Delhi Fortis Escorts Heart Institute to administer the dose of Covid drug cocktail fast-acting antibodies – Casirivimab & Imdevimab from tomorrow: Prof Dr Ashok Seth, Chairman and Cardiologist, Fortis Escorts, as per ANI reports.
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Takeaway for India from this devastating 2nd COVID-19 wave is global cooperation & mitigation. We've been dealing with challenges such as hospitalization or oxygen. The right response is to help each other. Our conversations are now about decentralized globalization: EAM S Jaishankar (ANI)
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
A court in Bengaluru rejects the bail application of a contract doctor and her assistant who were arrested for allegedly vaccinating people privately for Rs 500/dose. (ANI)
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Our vaccine wastage is 4.65%, not 37%, as is being said. There is no factual basis in it, it's misleading publicity. Our wastage is less than in other states. For vaccines, we've only 1.37 lakh vaccines left for the 18-44 age group, which will be finished soon: Jharkhand Health Minister.
Coronavirus in India LIVE Update |
The onset of COVID-19 pandemic has led to a paradigm shift in the functioning of courts and everyone has to become digitally literate to adapt to the changed scenario, else survival would be difficult, Supreme Court Judge Justice L Nageswara Rao said Wednesday. (PTI)
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Punjab reports 4,124 fresh COVID cases, 6,397 patient discharges, and 186 deaths in the past 24 hours
Active cases: 50,549
Total discharges: 4,87,859
Death toll: 13,827
as per state records
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Six cases of black fungus or mucormycosis have been detected in Himachal Pradesh so far, officials said on Wednesday. The state's first case was reported on May 20 from Hamirpur district. Black fungus was detected near the nose of a woman from the district's Khagar area, they said.
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Using steroids in 1st week of COVID treatment is one of the causes of black fungus infection. This needs to be avoided & it should be used only from 2nd week. A new discharge policy and post-COVID precautions have been formulated for recovered patients: Karnataka Health Minister
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Karnataka reports 26,811 fresh COVID cases, 40,741 patient discharges, and 530 deaths in the past 24 hours
Active cases: 4,09,924
Total discharges: 20,62,910
Death toll: 26,929
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Tamil Nadu reports 33,764 fresh COVID-19 cases, 29,717 patient discharges, and 475 deaths in the past 24 hours
Active cases: 3,10,224
Total discharges: 16,13,221
Death toll: 21,815
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Athlete MilkhaSingh, who won multiple gold medals in sprint at 1958 and 1962 Asian Games and was admitted to hospital after he contracted COVID19, is stable on oxygen support, doctors said.
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Odisha:Vaccination programme for 27th and 28th May under Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) area will be held as per schedule: BMC (ANI)
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Delhi Police says it has arrested two people for cheating COVID patients by making false promises to deliver Remdesivir at exorbitant rates. (ANI)
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
India has become the second country after the US to have crossed 20 crore cumulative COVID-19 vaccination coverage, the Union health ministry said on Wednesday. India achieved this coverage in 130 days as against the USA's feat in 124 days, the ministry said.
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Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates |
Amid the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic, CII President Uday Kotak"strongly" recommended that the government consider another fiscal package to support the lower end of the society as well as small and medium businesses. It could look atincreasing the quantum of the credit guarantee scheme for providing collateral-free loans to small businesses from Rs 3 lakh crore to Rs 5 lakh crore, he said. (PTI)
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates
|They are calling it vaccine wastage without getting proper data. If Centre govt does not believe us, it can send its own team for probe. Their intention is not right and these statements are politically motivated: Chhattisgarh Health Minister TS Singh Deo (ANI)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Black fungus: Doctors in Karnataka advised not to use steroid in the first week of COVID infection
Amid rising cases of black fungus in the state, Karnataka Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar on Wednesday appealed to doctors not to give steroids to patients in the first week of contracting the COVID-19.The state has also decided to set up post COVID care wards in each district hospital to check black fungus infections, the Minister said."We had detailed discussions with the experts and we now have a clear understanding on the topic.I appeal to the doctors to stop giving steroids in the first week of the infection and start only in the second week," Sudhakar told reporters after a meeting with the medical experts at Vidhana Soudha, the State Secretariat.According to him, steroids given to those who have uncontrolled sugar levels in their bodies increases their diabetes further which leads to mucormycosis or black fungus.He claimed those who have piriton also are affected by the fungal attack.He said a discharge policy will be framed where those who are discharged from hospital will have their nasal cavity checked by ENT specialists and physicians.If required, their MRI would also be undertaken, Sudhakar said, adding, those who have been discharged will be asked to revisit the hospital after a week for post COVID care.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | DRDO officials:
The second batch of 10,000 sachets of DRDO-developed 2DG drug to be issued tomorrow by Dr. Reddy’s Lab. The drug would be available commercially now.
Coronavirus in Rajasthan LIVE Updates | Rajasthan reports 3,886 new COVID cases, 13,192 patient recoveries, and 107 deaths in the past 24 hours
Active cases: 78,126
Total recoveries: 8,41,602
Death toll: 8,018
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Baba Ramdev should be booked under sedition charges: IMA in letter to PM Modi
The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding that yoga guru Ramdev be booked immediately under sedition charges for alleged misinformation campaign on vaccination and challenging government protocols for treatment of COVID-19.The apex medical body of modern doctors has also served a defamation notice on Ramdev for his alleged disparaging remarks against allopathy and allopathic practitioners, demanding an apology from him within 15 days, failing which it said it will demand a compensation ofRs1,000 crore from the yoga guru.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin takes a swipe at Centre over supply of vaccines
Chief Minister M K Stalin on Wednesday hit out at the Centre over allocation of vaccines to states and said not only Tamil Nadu but several states faced constraints and to tackle the situation, the government has gone in for global bids to procure vaccines. The state government has been continuously requesting the Centre to increase allocation of vaccines and as of now, an inventory of 3,14,000 vaccine doses meant for the 45-plus age group is available, he said. For the 18-44 age group people, 12.85 lakh vaccine doses have been received and 11.50 lakh doses would be arriving and work is on at full swing to vaccinate high-risk category people and workers of large industries, he said. The purchase of vaccine for those in 18-44 age bracket is done by the state government. As regards supply of adequate doses of vaccines to states by the Centre, he told reporters that not only Tamil Nadu, but several states faced constraints. Only to tackle this situation, Tamil Nadu has floated global tenders for procurement of vaccines. "We also have plan to manufacture vaccines in Tamil Nadu," he said and recalled his visit to the Centre's HLL Biotech at Chengelpet near here on Tuesday. The facility "has been made non-operational" and the state government would continue to prevail upon the Centre to get it working, he said. After inaugurating a vaccination drive at a village in nearby Tiruvallur district, Stalin said the virus spread in cities including Chennai has been witnessing a phased decline and the situation would improve further. (PTI)
Coronavirus in Goa LIVE Updates | Goa records 1,487 new COVID cases, 1,363 recoveries, and 39 deaths in the past 24 hours
Active cases: 15,971
Total recoveries: 1,32,607
Death toll: 2,499
Coronavirus in Himachal Pradesh LIVE Updates | State government:
214 vaccination centers have been established in Himachal Pradesh for vaccinating people above 18 years of age.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | India starts administering antibody cocktail drug to COVID-19 patients. What it is, how it works, pricing, and more
India has begun administering antibody cocktails to COVID-19 patients. On May 26, an 84-year-old Haryana man became the first coronavirus patient to receive the COVID-19 drug cocktail, which gained popularity after it was used to treat former United States President Donald Trump.
Coronavirus in Telangana LIVE Updates | Telangana reports 3,762 new COVID cases, 3,816 patient recoveries, and 20 deaths in the past 24 hours
Active cases: 38,632
Total recoveries: 5,22,082
Death toll: 3,189
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Vaccine mix-up: 20 Uttar Pradesh
villagers get wrong 2nd dose of vaccineIn a major goof-up, health workers in Uttar Pradesh's Siddharthnagar district administered Covaxin to 20 villagers who had been given Covishield in the first dose.The incident has been reported from the primary health centre in Barhni where people from Audahi Kala and another village received Covaxin shots on May 14.Chief Medical Officer Sandip Chaudhary on Wednesday said he has ordered an inquiry into the matter and assured stern action against those found responsible for this negligence.He said that no one has yet reported any health complaints and a health department team has already met them.The incident came to light when one of the villagers, Ram Surat, brought to the notice of the health workers that he received different vaccines in the first and the second dose.Accepting the shortcoming on the part of the health workers, the CMO said 20 people have been administered a mix-up of vaccines and the medical teams are keeping a close watch on them.The people who got different vaccines are under stress but no problem has been reported with any one of them so far, health officials said. (PTI)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | India plans to study effectiveness of AstraZeneca, Bharat Biotech vaccines
India's main health agency will start a study next week to examine the effectiveness of AstraZeneca's vaccine and the homegrown shot Covaxin against coronavirus, a scientist said on Wednesday. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) will review 3,000-5,000 people above 45 years of age, of which up to 80percent will be those who have taken the AstraZeneca vaccine made locally by the Serum Institute of India. The rest will have taken Covaxin jointly developed by local firm Bharat Biotech and ICMR.
Coronavirus in Punjab LIVE Updates | Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner:
Due to decreasing number of COVID cases in Ludhiana, all shops can now remain open till 3 pm and home delivery by restaurants till 9 pm from tomorrow.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Samsung to supply one million LDS syringes to help cut COVID-19 vaccine wastage
Consumer electronics maker Samsung has said it is importing one million innovative Low Dead Space (LDS) syringes from South Korea that will reduce COVID-19 vaccine wastage.LDS syringes minimise the amount of drug left in the syringes after an injection, reducing vaccine wastage, and thereby enabling 20 percent more people to get the dose with the same amount of vaccine.
Read more here
Coronavirus LIVE Updates |
Senior Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan's condition is serious but under control, says private hospital where he is undergoing treatment for COVID-19.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Worst is not behind us until positivity rate is brought below 5 percent, says India's eminent virologist Gagandeep Kang
Dr Gagandeep Kang, one of India's eminent virologists, said that the worst of the coronavirus pandemic will not be behind us until the positivity rate is brought below 5 percent. "Low test positivity rate is important to ensure we are testing enough," she said in an interview with CNBC-TV18, adding that serosurveys and seropositivity rates will be crucial to assess whether cases have risen.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Black Fungus: Over 11,000 Mucormycosis cases in India; Gujarat, Maharashtra worst affected
India has registered 11,717 cases of Black Fungus infection or Mucormycosis till May 25, with maximum cases being reported from Gujarat, followed by Maharashtra.While Gujarat has logged 2,859 Black Fungus cases so far, Maharashtra has reported 2,770 cases, followed by 768 Mucormycosis cases in Andhra Pradesh, 752 in Madhya Pradesh, and 744 in Telangana. Together, these five states account for more than 65 percent of India’s total Black Fungus caseload.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Belgium suspends J&J vaccine for under 41s after death
Belgium on Wednesday suspended the use of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine for people under age 41 following the death of a person who had received the shot.The government said in a statement it was asking for urgent advice from the European Medicines Agency, the European Union’s drug regulator, before it would consider lifting the suspension. It added that the impact on the national vaccination drive would be very limited.Belgium was using the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for elderly with reduced mobility and the homeless since it only takes one shot to be protected. Those shots will be continued.It said it took the action after a single case “where there was serious side effects after administering the Janssen vaccine,” using the local name for the Johnson & Johnson shot.It said a woman was vaccinated through her foreign employer outside the Belgian system and had died in Belgium last week after developing “serious thrombosis and reduced blood platelets.” (AP)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Chief Minister Vijay Rupani:
Night curfew timing has been changed in 36 cities of Gujarat. Now, the curfew will remain in force between 9 pm and 6 am (instead of 8 pm to 6 am).
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Team India must come together to fight COVID-19: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said Team India has to come together to fight coronavirus and urged the Centre to procure vaccines and distribute them to states.In an online briefing, Kejriwal claimed India delayed starting its vaccination programme by six months."World over, countries had started vaccinating their people. But in India, rather than vaccinating our own people, the vaccines were sent abroad. Had we started the vaccination programme earlier, we could have saved many people from the second wave," he said.Kejriwal claimed Centre asked states to procure the vaccines on their own."Every CM has tried to procure vaccines but no state has been able to arrange them. Many states took out global tenders but failed," he said.The chief minister said states are ready to support the Centre in the fight against coronavirus."We cannot afford to lose this fight. If Centre will lose the fight, it won''t be BJP but India that will lose the fight," he said, while urging the Centre to procure the vaccines and distribute them to states. (PTI)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | EU and AstraZeneca battle in court over vaccine delays
The European Union accused AstraZeneca of a "flagrant violation" of its contract to rapidly build-up coronavirus production capacity in the bloc, as it began legal action against the drugs giant Wednesday.The EU member states and their executive, the European Commission, brought the case before a court in Brussels, the union having signed its supply agreement with the British and Swedish firm under Belgian law.The EU is suing the group in a bid to force it to deliver 90 million more doses of its Covid-19 vaccine before July -- arguing that it failed in its contractual duty by handing over only a quarter of the doses it promised for the first quarter of 2021. (AFP)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Jharkhand govt trashes centre charge of 37.3% vaccine wastage; says its below national average
Hitting out at the Centre, the Jharkhand government on Wednesday said it is wrong to project vaccine wastage proportion is as high as 37.3 percent in the state whereas the fact remained that it is much below the national average and currently stands at 4.65 per cent. The Jharkhand government retort comes a day after the centre said despite urging states repeatedly to keep vaccine wastage below 1 per cent, many states such as Jharkhand (37.3 percent) were reporting much higher wastage than the national average (6.3 percent). The opposition BJP latched on the issue to attack JMM- Congress-RJD coalition government and sought to know as who is responsible for such a high wastage of vaccine in the state. Chief minister Hemant Soren lashed out at the centre, saying how can one imagine that Jharkhand will allow its "suraksha kavach" (protective gear) to go waste? Asserting how can a state allow about lakh of doses go waste, Soren said it was explained to the centre that poor connectivity in forest areas and lack of network issues are behind slow updation of data. "However, the centre seems hell-bent to project things in a poor light which is causing problem to poor states like Jharkhand. This is why the state had gone to the Supreme Court for allowing its platform for vaccination," Soren told PTI. Jharkhand's nodal officer for COVID-19 vaccination A Dodde said, "It is wrong to project that the vaccine wastage percentage is as high as 37.3 percent whereas it is 4.65 percent, much below the national average of 6.3 percent. "Jharkhand with its tough terrains, difficulties, geographical complexities and technical glitches has not been able to update data," he told PTI. (PTI)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | BJP MP Gautam Gambhir:
The medicines I distributed were the need of that hour. Not one, even if thousands of PILs are filed against me, I will continue to serve people and try to save their lives.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal says no vaccine in Delhi for 18-44 age group
There's no vaccine in Delhi; for 4 days vaccination centres for the 18-44 age group are shut & not just here but across India, several centres are shut. Today when we should have opened new centres, but now we are also shutting the existing ones, which is not good.As per my knowledge, no state govt has been able to procure a single dose of vaccine till now. Vaccine companies have denied speaking to the state governments.This is the time to unite and work for both State and Centre, and not work separately. We need to work as Team India. It's the Centre's responsibility to provide vaccine, not States. If we delay it more, don't know how many more lives will be lost.Why isn’t this country buying vaccines? We can’t leave it on states. Our country is at war against Covid19. If Pakistan attacks India, will we leave states on their own? Will UP buy its own tanks or Delhi its own arms?(ANI)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Lancet study on urgent actions needed to tackle COVID-19 resurgence in India
A host of recommendations to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on India’s over-stressed healthcare system were published in the Lancet Journal last month in a study titled “Reimagining India’s Health System: A Lancet Citizens’ Commission."This month, in a fresh study titled “India's Resurgence Of COVID-19: Urgent Actions Needed”, Lancet recommended measures such as introducing a centralised system of procuring and distributing COVID-19 vaccines free of cost, identifying priority groups and optimising available vaccine doses, among others to curtail the loss of life due to COVID-19 during the second wave of the pandemic.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Delhi records 1,491 new COVID-19 cases, 130 fatalities; positivity rate 1.93%
Delhi recorded 1,491 fresh coronavirus cases and 130 fatalities on Wednesday, while the positivity rate declined to 1.93 per cent, according to the daily health bulletin. This is the fourth day in a row when the daily cases in the national capital have remained below 2,000. "Positivity down to 1.93% and total positive cases come down to 1491. These are lowest numbers in last 2 months. We still need to take all precautions and follow covid appropriate behaviour," Health Minister Satyendar Jain tweeted.
The national capital had recorded 1,568 cases and 156 fatalities on Tuesday, while the positivity rate came down marginally to 2.14 per cent. According to the latest health bulletin, the 130 new fatalities pushed the death toll to 23,695. On Monday, the national capital had recorded 1,550 fresh cases of COVID-19 and 207 fatalities and the positivity rate was 2.52 per cent. On Sunday, 1,649 cases and 189 deaths were recorded, while the positivity rate had dipped to 2.42 per cent.
Since April 19, both daily cases and single-day death count had been spiralling up with over 28,000 cases and 277 deaths recorded on April 20; rising to 306 fatalities on April 22. On May 2, the city registered a record 407 deaths, according to the official data. A total of 77,103 tests, including 53,542 RT-PCR tests and 23,561 rapid antigen tests, were conducted a day ago, according to the health bulletin on Wednesday. The number of cumulative cases on Tuesday stood at 14,21,477.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Tripura govt extends corona curfew till June 5
The Tripura government has announced extension of the corona curfew in Agartala Municipal Corporation (AMC) areas and all urban local bodies (ULB) till June 5 to contain the spread of the pandemic. Earlier, a corona curfew was imposed in AMC areas and ULBs across the state on May 17, and a night curfew in other parts of Tripura till May 26.
State Education Minister and government spokesperson Ratan Lal Nath said the council of ministers on Tuesday resolved to extend the corona curfew given the COVID-19 surge in the state. 'Strict measures will be taken to implement the restrictions imposed by the administration,' Nath said. In addition, the corona night curfew will continue from 4 pm to 5 am in all areas till June 6.
Tripura Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar in an order said on Tuesday, all private offices will remain closed and for government offices, only those dealing with emergency services will be allowed to function up to 4 pm. Standalone shops and commercial establishments dealing with essential items like groceries, vegetables, milk, meat, fish, animal feed, fodder shall remain open from 6 am to 12 noon. Other shops, including 86 commercial establishments, will remain closed, the order said. Shop owners have to ensure social distancing and wearing of masks among customers, the order said.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Karnataka's global tender for vaccines get response from 2 firms to supply Sputnik
In response to global tender floated by Karnataka to procure two crore COVID-19 vaccines, two suppliers have come forward to supply Russia's Sputnik V and Sputnik Lite vaccines. Mumbai- based Bulk MRO Industrial Supply Pvt Ltd and Bengaluru-based Thulasi Systems have responded to the tender that closed on Monday, and no bids have come from major vaccine manufacturers, official sources said.
While Bulk MRO Industrial Supply Pvt Ltd has offered to supply Sputnik V, Thulasi Systems has said it can also supply the Sputnik Lite, single dose vaccines. The documents including financial bids will be scrutinised, and only after that negotiations on price and other things may happen, an official said, adding that 'the government will take a final decision on procurement after going through all aspects and procedures required.' However, the government is also reportedly mulling over extending the time limit for bids, looking for more response.
With the country battling the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic, several states have called for global tender to procure the vaccines. The Karnataka government had recently approved Rs 843 crore for the vaccine procurement. The state government is also directly procuring domestically manufactured vaccines- Serum Institute of India's Covishield and Bharat Biotech's Covaxin- aimed at increasing the pace of vaccination in the State.
