Coronavirus News Highlights: India is witnessing a second wave of COVID-19 pandemic. So far, the country has recorded over 2.91 crore confirmed COVID-19 cases, including 3,59,676 deaths. A total of 2,76,55,493 people have recuperated from COVID-19 so far. There are 11,67,952 active COVID-19 cases in the country, which comprises 4 percent of the total caseload, the data stated. India's recovery rate now stands at 94.77 percent. Globally, more than 17.43 crore people have been infected by the coronavirus and 37.54 lakh have died so far. India has begun the third phase of the vaccination drive in which everyone above 18 years of age will be able to get the COVID-19 vaccine. India's drug regulator has granted restricted emergency use approval for three vaccines - Covishield, Covaxin and Sputnik V. The cumulative number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in India has crossed 24.27 crore, according to the Union Health Ministry.
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Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Maharashtra government hasn't hidden number of COVID-19 deaths: Tope
Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Thursday asserted that the state government has not hidden the number of COVID-19 deaths. Talking to mediapersons over reports that 11,000 fatalities in the state have not been reported as COVID-19 deaths, Tope said the government was functioning in a transparent manner."Every district has private and government COVID-19 hospitals. The update on coronavirus deaths in government hospitals is done regularly, while the update from private hospitals is delayed and hence there is a discrepancy in the numbers. All private hospitals have been asked to submit their list of COVID-19 deaths regularly," he said. (PTI)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Haryana reports 539 fresh COVID19 cases, 1221 recoveries, and 32 deaths today
Active cases 6365
Case tally 7,64,633
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Manipur reports 730 new COVID19 cases, 668 recoveries and 10 deaths in the last 24 hours
Total cases 58,081
Total recoveries 47,797
Death toll 925
Active cases 9359
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Over 24.58 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses administered so far: Govt
The cumulative number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country has exceeded 24.58 crore, the Union health ministry said on Thursday. It said 18,64,234 and 77,136 beneficiaries in the 18-44 age group received their first and second dose of COVID-19 vaccine.Cumulatively, 3,58,49,328 people in the 18-44 age group across states and union territories have received their first dose and 4,84,740 beneficiaries have received their second dose since the start of Phase-3 of the vaccination drive on May 1. Bihar, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal have administered the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine to more than 10 lakh beneficiaries in the 18-44 age group, the ministry said.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Telangana reports 1798 new COVID19 cases, 2524 recoveries and 14 deaths in the last 24 hours
Total cases 5,98,611
Total recoveries 5,71,610
Death toll 3440
Active cases 23,561
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Mumbai reports 660 fresh cases, 22 deaths and 768 discharges today; Recovery rate at 95%
Coronavirus LIVE Updates |
In the view of COVID19 situation, Jharkhand Academic Council has decided to cancel the class 10th & 12th examinations for this session: State's Directorate of Information and Public Relations
Coronavirus LIVE Updates |
Haryana to launch the third round of the Sero survey on June 15, to determine the prevalence of SAR-CoV-2 antibodies in the community and to estimate the prevalence in the children aged 6-17 years: CMO
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Maharashtra reports 12,207 new COVID19 cases, 11,449 discharges, and 393 deaths in the last 24 hours
Active cases 1,60,693
Case tally 58,76,087
Death toll 1,03,748
Total recovered cases 56,08,753
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Karnataka reports 11,042 new COVID19 cases, 15,721 recoveries and 194 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Total cases 27,39,290
Total recoveries 24,96,132
Death toll 32,485
Active cases 2,10,652
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Additional enhanced stringent restrictions are imposed on 12th and 13 June. On these dates, take away parcels not allowed from hotels. Home delivery of food is permitted. Construction activities following strict social distancing norms are permitted: Kerala Govt
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | New COVID19 Guidelines for Karnataka
Chikmagalur, Shivamogga, Davanagere, Mysore, Chamarajanagar, Hassan, Dakshina Kannada, Bengaluru rural, Mandya, Belagavi & Kodagu are in complete lockdown till June 21. From June 14, these 11 districts will have some relaxation like opening of essential shops.There will be relaxation for parks as well till 10 am. The night curfew is going to be continued. Similarly, weekend curfew which starts from Friday 7 pm till Monday 5 am will continue till June 21: Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar
Coronavirus LIVE Updates |
Yoga guru Ramdev, who had earlier said he does not need Covid vaccine as he has protection of yoga and ayurveda, says he will soon get the jab and described doctors as "God’s envoys on earth" (PTI).
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | COVID-19 guidelines relaxed in Bengaluru
Based on positivity rate, districts that have more than 15% of positivity rate (about 11 districts ) we've continued with the existing lockdown guidelines. In the remaining districts including Bengaluru city we've relaxed the guidelines: Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Delhi gets 28,900 more Covaxin doses for 18-44 age group
Delhi received 28,900 more doses of Covaxin on Wednesday for the 18-44 age group and the stock is enough to cover those eligible for the second dose in the next four days, AAP MLA Atishi said on Thursday. At present, Delhi has more than 50,110 doses of Covaxin in stock for this category, she said.
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Goa reports 413 COVID-19 cases, 13 deaths.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | WHO says 9 in 10 African countries to miss COVID-19 vaccination goal
About 90% of African countries will miss a September target to vaccinate at least 10% of their populations against COVID-19 as a third wave of the pandemic looms on the continent, a World Health Organisation (WHO) official said on Thursday. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa, said the continent required an extra 225 million doses to be able to vaccinate a tenth of its people by September this year. Africa has hit 5 million COVID-19 cases, with the southern Africa region the worst affected, accounting for 37% of total cases, according to a Reuters tally. South Africa is the worst affected African country, with about 34% of the total cases and about 43% of all deaths.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Tamil Nadu reports 16,813 new COVID19 cases
Tamil Nadu reports 16,813 new COVID19 cases, 358 deaths, and 32,049 discharges today; active cases at 1,88,664
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | 24 air passengers quarantined in Pakistan after trained dogs identify them as COVID-19 carriers
Twenty four people, who arrived at the airport here on Thursday from a flight from the UAE, were sent to quarantine centres after trained dogs identified them as carriers of the coronavirus, according to authorities.The Pakistan International Airlines flight PK-218 from Abu Dhabi landed at Peshawar''s Bacha Khan International Airport with 128 passengers on board.The rapid swab tests of 128 passengers were conducted at the airport.Out of the 128 passengers, tests of 24 people identified by the trained dogs confirmed that they were COVID-19 positive, the airport authorities said.Trained dogs deployed at the airport helped detect the COVID-19 positive patients arriving by flights, they said.The affected patients were immediately shifted to the quarantine centre in Peshawar despite protests by the passengers.The airport authorities immediately called the police and administration officials to shift them to the quarantine centre.According to a new research in the UK, specially trained dogs can rapidly and non-invasively detect COVID-19 with up to 94.3 per cent sensitivity and up to 92 per cent specificity.The dogs were able to detect odour from individuals who were asymptomatic, as well as those with two different strains of COVID-19, and with both high and low viral loads, the study released last month said.“With the threat of new variants entering the country, the need for testing means we face potential continued disruption for some time to come. That’s where these amazing dogs could play a role,” said Professor James Logan, Head of the Department of Disease Control at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, who led the project.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Africa likely to miss September vaccination deadline: WHO
Nearly 90 percent of African countries will miss a target of vaccinating a tenth of their population by September unless they urgently receive more than 200 million jabs, the WHO warned Thursday."Only seven African countries (out of 54) are likely to reach the target," the World Health Organization's director for Africa, Matshidiso Moeti, said in an online briefing. At least 225 million jabs are urgently required if the majority of the countries are to meet the deadline, she said.Africans have received less than one percent of the over 2.1 billion doses administered globally, according to the WHO.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Moderna seeks US authorization for Covid vaccine in teens
American biotech company Moderna said Thursday it was asking the US Food and Drug Administration for an emergency use authorization for its Covid-19 vaccine to be given to adolescents.The move was widely expected after the company announced in May early results from a trial of 3,700 12-to-17-year-olds that found the two-dose regimen was safe and highly effective.On Monday, Moderna made similar requests to the European and Canadian regulators."We are encouraged that the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine was highly effective at preventing COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2 infection in adolescents," said the company's CEO Stephane Bancel.Vaccine efficacy was shown to be 100 percent after two doses when using the same definition of symptomatic disease that was applied to the adult trial.It fell to 93 percent after one dose when using a more stringent definition used by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that requires just one symptom in addition to a positive test.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Alpha, Delta COVID-19 variants found in Sri Lanka
The highly contagious Alpha and Delta variants of the coronavirus have been detected in Sri Lanka, which is facing a third wave of the pandemic, a top health official said on Thursday.Patients carrying the Delta variant, or the B1.617.2 variant first identified in India, and the Alpha strain, formerly called the B.1.1.7 strain, which was first detected in the UK, have been found at around nine locations of different districts in Sri Lanka, said Dr Chandima Jeewandara, the Director of the Department of Immunology and Molecular Medicine of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura.According to the sequencing report issued on Wednesday, 80 people were infected with the Alpha variant in multiple locations while the Delta variant was found in one person from a quarantine facility.The Alpha variant cases were also reported in healthcare workers who were fully vaccinated.Sri Lanka has witnessed an increase of positive cases and deaths since April, partly caused by celebrations and shopping during last month's traditional new year festival. Sri Lanka has registered more than 210,000 cases and 1,843 confirmed deaths.In view of the pressure on the health sector with the raging third wave, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has issued instructions to reinstate retired health workers on contract basis to battle the pandemic.Sri Lanka continues with its vaccination programme with the arrival of another million doses of China's Sinopharm vaccine out of a total 13 million which the country had ordered this year. The first batch of one million doses of Sinopharm arrived early this month.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Mizoram Reports 346 New Covid-19 Cases:
Mizoram has registered its highest single-day spike of 346 fresh Covid-19 cases, which took the tally in the state to 14,533, an official said. The death toll rose to 61 as three more persons have succumbed to the coronavirus infection, he said. Of the new cases, 246 were reported fromAizawldistrict, followed by 50 fromKolasib, 31 fromLawngtlaiand 12 fromLunglei. The remaining cases were recorded in several other districts.
Coronavirus in Maharashtra LIVE Updates | 2.5 Crore People Vaccinated in Maharashtra:
Maharashtra has crossed another mileston by vaccinating 2.5 crore people in the state, the highest in the country so far. Over50 lakh people have completed both the doses of Covid-19 vaccine.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Kerala reports 14,424 fresh cases, 17,994
Kerala logged 14,424 new COVID-19 cases and 194 deaths on Thursday, taking the caseload to 26,58,565 and the toll to 10,631. A total of 17,994 people recuperated from the disease today, pushing the tally of those cured in the state to 25,42,242.Currently there are 1,35,298 people under treatment.State health ministerVeenaGeorge said the state tested 1,07,250 samples in the last 24 hours and the test positivity rate was 13.45 per cent.Till now, the state has tested 2,09,10,418 samples.Among the districts,Thiruvananthapuramrecorded the highest number of cases--2,030, followed byKollamwith 1,605 andMalappuram(1,597).
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | US to donate 500 million vaccines, pay Pfizer $3.5 billion: says senior official
The United States will donate 500 million Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines to the 100 lowest income countries in the world and will seek no favors in exchange for the doses, a senior Biden administration official said. The United States will pay Pfizer about $3.5 billion for the doses and the contract will be finalized in coming weeks, the official said.The official said the United States expects to deliver 200 million doses this year, starting in August, and 300 million in first half of next year.
Coronavirus in Karnataka LIVE Updates |
Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa chairs meeting with Dy CM Dr. CN Ashwathnarayan, Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai and other senior ministers, on the COVID19 situation in the State
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | 82 deaths, 642 fresh virus cases in Uttar Pradesh
Eighty-two more people died from coronavirus inUttarPradesh on Thursday as 642 fresh cases surfaced, taking the state’s infection number to 17,01,072, according to a Health Department bulletin.Since the outbreak of the pandemic last year, the virus has claimed 21,597 lives in the state.Of the fresh 82 deaths, 15 were reported from KanpurNagar, eight fromGorakhpur, five from Bareilly, four each from Saharanpur, Agra,Deoria, Jhansi,Gonda, three each fromGhaziabad, Meerut,LakhimpurKheriand two each from RaeBareli,Pilibhit, Shahjahanpur,HapurandBalrampur.One death each was reported from Varanasi, Allahabad,Bulandshahr,Ayodhya, Mathura,Siddharthnagar,Maharajganj,Amroha,Unnao,Bijnor,Mirzapur,Auraiya,Chandauli,HathrasandKannauj, the bulletin said.The maximum 38 cases surfaced in Varanasi, 37 in Lucknow, 30 inGorakhpur, 24 each inAzamgarh,GautamBuddhNagarand Agra and 23 each inGhaziabadand Meerut, it said.In the past 24 hours, 1,231 patients have recovered from the disease, taking the number of cured people to 16,67,232.
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Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma hands over FD certificates, laptops to children orphaned due to COVID-19
Coronavirus in Goa LIVE Updates | Goa reports 413 new COVID-19 cases, 585 recoveries and 13 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Active cases 5605
Total recoveries 1,52,657
Death toll 2891
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | India's Olympic team to be fully vaccinated, says Sports Chief Narinder Batra
India's Olympic contingent will be fully vaccinated by early July ahead of their journey to Tokyo for the Games, the country's top sports official Narinder Batra told AFP.India will send nearly 200 athletes, coaches and support staff to the Tokyo Games scheduled to run from July 23 to August 8 after last year's event was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
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Union Health Secy chaired a high-level meeting today with States/UTs to review progress of vaccination in the light of revised guidelines for implementation of National COVID Vaccination Program.States advised to focus on 2nd dose coverage of healthcare workers& frontline workers
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Paytm, MakeMyTrip, Infosys offer to help India with COVID vaccine bookings
Paytm, Infosys and MakeMyTrip are among companies seeking approval in India to provide online COVID-19 vaccine bookings, the head of the government's tech platform said, as the country tries to make it easier for its huge population to book shots.The government relaxed rules last month to potentially allow third-party apps to offer vaccine bookings and has taken back control of procurement from states following delays and shortages. It also faced initial problems with its own vaccine booking platform.
Coronavirus in Karanataka LIVE Updates |
The chief minister today held a meeting with the districts where the number of cases is high. The next course of action will be decided by the CM by either today evening or tomorrow morning, says KarnatakaDy CM Dr. CNAshwathnarayanon a decision on graded unlock in the State.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | India close to giving indemnity to foreign vaccine makers like Pfizer: Report
India is close to agreeing to grant foreign COVID-19 vaccine makers such as Pfizer Inc protection against legal liability so that it can use their shots in an immunisation campaign that is facing acute shortages, three government sources told Reuters."Indemnity will be granted," said one of the sources. "If one company gets it then all of them get it."India invited Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson in April to sell their vaccines after infections rocketed. However, no deal has been signed.
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Tourism, hospitality suffer losses due to COVID lockdown & suspension of Char Dham Yatra in Uttarakhand. Cab & hotel operatorSandeepGupta says, "Drivers are on verge of hunger, they're in a pathetic state. April,May,June are main seasons but they've been ruined in last 2 years.""We don't see things back on track for next 10 years, we request govt to not charge interest on loans, give us subsidy on electricity. Situation is so bad that people are on verge of suicide. Since cases are below 300, govt should resume CharDhamyatrawithCOVIDrules," he adds.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Meril receives nod from ICMR for its indigenous COVID-19 self-test kit
MedtechfirmMerilon Thursday said it hasreceived approval from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for its self-use rapid antigen test kit for COVID-19.The company's indigenous home-use rapid antigen test kits'CoviFind' will expand access to COVID-19 testing, while also helping the nation meet the demand for increased and frequent screening to curb the spread of the pandemic,Merilsaid in a statement.The test delivers results swiftly, providing accurate results in 15 minutes, it added."By making reliable rapid antigen testing available to all through a convenient format,Meril'sCoviFindtest will facilitate early detection, isolation, treatment and contact tracing,"MerilSenior Vice-President (Corporate Strategy)SanjeevBhattsaid.The test kit is equipped with testing materials including a test device, one sterile nasal swab and a pre-filled buffer tube with a cap and is priced at Rs 250 as an affordable single-pack, the company said.The test kits will be available in two weeks at retail pharmacies, e-pharmacies and through e-commerce platforms including Amazon andFlipkart, it added.Merilsaid it has also supplied a large number of tests across its COVID-19 diagnostics offerings across India, which include a multiplexRT-PCRtest,Kavachantibody tests in partnership withICMR.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Singapore relaxes few COVID restrictions from Jun 14 as number of new cases see dip
Singapore will increase the limit on group sizes for social gatherings from two to five people per household from June 14, as the country begins to ease restrictions after recording a fall in number of new COVID-19 cases in the community.However, social gatherings should be limited to no more than two a day, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Thursday, announcing the first step in Singapore''s plan to move back to Phase III, also called "Heightened Alert", from June 14, which is a stage of controlling people movement to manage the spread of coronavirus. Also working from home will remain the default arrangement, even as Singapore transitions to Phase III (Heightened Alert) in the coming weeks, according to a Channel News Asia report."Employers should ensure that employees who are able to work from home continue to do so," co-chair of the COVID-19 Multi-Ministry Task Force Lawrence Wong said at a press conference.More restrictions will be eased in the second step from June 21, when dining in can resume if the COVID-19 situation remains under control in the coming weeks.On why dining-in will only be allowed later, co-chair of the COVID-19 Multi-Ministry Task Force Gan Kim Yong said that the Government wants to make sure thatthe situation is “stable” before allowing dining-in to resume.“Dining is considered a high-risk activity because masks are off,” he said.Food and beverage outlets must strictly observe at least 1-metre safe-distancing between groups of diners of no more than five people, said theMOHin a media release.“We will be significantly stepping up enforcement and will take firmer enforcement action for any breaches," it added."Patrons are reminded to keep their masks on at all times, except when eating or drinking.”
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Apollo Hospitals launches book on COVID-19
Apollo Hospitals on Thursdayunveiled a book on COVID-19, with contributions from 80 healthcare workers across specialties, covering allaspects of the dreaded disease.The book titled ''Comprehensive Textbook ofCOVID19''has been put together on the basis of statistical insights, scientific data and a plethora of new reports gathered from World Health Organization and advisories issued by National Health Services of some of the severelyCOVID-impactedcountries across the globe, Apollo Hospitals said."The book covers all aspects ofCOVIDthat you can think of,"IndraprasthaApollo HospitalsDepartment of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep MedicineSenior ConsultantM SKanwarsaid in a virtual press conference on the launch of the book.With rapid developments and new guidelines every month on modalities and management of COVID-19, "we thought it is essential to put together a guide that could givehealthcare workers an in-depth understanding of the disease and everything associated to pre and post management along with related aspects like side-effects, long term health problems and vaccination," he added.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | BJP chief:
Today 1 cr vaccines are produced every month. In July-Aug it'll be increased to 6-7 cr per month.We hope for 10 cr doses per month by Sept. Earlier there were 2prodcuers, there are 13 now & it'll be 19 by Dec. 200 cr vaccines will be available by Dec, it's our roadmap.
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates |
The World Health Organization (WHO) warned on June 10 that vaccination rates in Europe were still far off what was needed to stop a virus resurgence and called on countries to maintain protective measures.
Read more | COVID-19 vaccination in Europe 'far from sufficient' to avoid resurgence: WHO
Coronavirus News LIVE Updates | Doctors urge Delhi HC to postpone June 18 FMG Test due to COVID-19
The Association of MD Physicians has urged the Delhi High Court to postpone the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE) screening test scheduled for June 18 due to the prevailing COVID-19 situation in the country. The association, which also has as members some foreign medical graduates who have completed their primary medical courses in institutions abroad, said there are a limited number of cities being notified as centres for the FMGE screening test and a large number of candidates will be forced to travel without having received even one dose of COVID-19 vaccine. (PTI)
Coronavirus in India LIVE Updates | Odisha logs 6,097 new COVID cases, 44 more fatalities
Odisha's COVID-19 caseload mounted to 8,37,226 today as 6,097 more peoplepositive for the infection, a health department official said. Forty-four fresh fatalities pushed the coronavirusdeath toll in the state to 3,167, he said. At least 8,032 people were cured of the disease yesterday, taking the total number of recoveries to 7,64,673. Odisha now has 69,333 active cases, he said. The state has conducted over 1.24 crore sample tests for COVID-19, including 69,638 yesterday, and the positivity rate stands at 6.71 percent. (PTI)
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | UK, Indian scientists develop low-cost sensor to detect COVID-19 in wastewater
UK and Indian scientists have jointly developed a low-cost sensor that can detect fragments of the virus responsible for COVID-19 within wastewater, paving the way for health officials to get a better understanding of how prevalent the disease is in a larger area.The technique, developed by researchers from the University of Strathclyde and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, could be used to enable widespread monitoring of COVID-19 prevalence in low- and middle-income countries which struggle to conduct mass human testing.The sensor can be used with portable equipment that uses the standard Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test to detect the SARS-CoV-2 virus, without the need for the expensive chemicals and lab infrastructure needed for real-time quantitativePCRtests, according to the research published recently in the journal, Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical.The sensor was tested with wastewater collected from a sewage treatment plant in Mumbai spiked with SARS-Cov-2 Ribonucleic Acid (RNA).Dr Andy Ward, Chancellor’s Fellow in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, said: “Many low- to middle-income countries face a challenge in tracking COVID-19 in people because of limited access to the necessary facilities for mass testing."Looking for traces of the virus within wastewater would enable public health officials to get a better understanding of how prevalent the disease is in a larger area."
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Odisha Special Relief Commissioner Pradeep K Jena:
Only COVID-19 negative and fully vaccinated servitors will be allowed to take part in the rituals.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Odisha Special Relief Commissioner Pradeep K Jena:
Puri Rath Yatra will be held this year following COVID restrictions, without the participation of devotees, only with servitors. Supreme Court guidelines, issued last year, to conduct the RathYatrawill be followed.
