Wednesday 19 August 2020

India

Coronavirus Updates: Three SC courts to start physical hearing in a week’s time on pilot basis

23:58 (IST)

Coronavirus in Maharashtra LATEST Updates

Pune reports 2,724 new cases, 90 deaths

 
Pune district reported 2,724 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, taking its count to 1,32,293 on Wednesday, a health official said. He said the death toll reached 3,290 with 90 more patients succumbing to the infection. Also, 1,089 patients were discharged from hospitals in the western Maharashtra district following recovery, the official said.
 
PTI

23:41 (IST)

Coronavirus in Kerala LATEST Updates

Onam should be celebrated at home, says Pinarayi Vijayan

People should celebrate the upcoming Onam festival within their homes and use locally available flowers for the traditional floral carpet in view of the COVID-19 situation, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said.Participating in a video conference with the district collectors,police chiefs and medical officers, he said police should ensure people maintained social distancing when they go shopping for Onam, the harvest festival of the state, which falls on August 31 this year.  
"There are some people who trivialise the current COVID- 19 situation. We must not stand helplessly in front of them. The aim is to contain the number of cases and reduce the death rate. Precautionary measures should be location specific. As of now, we are able to control the deaths but that may not be the situation if the cases increase," he said.

PTI

23:23 (IST)

Coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh LATEST Updates

Dadri MLA among 104 new cases in Gautam Buddh Nagar

 
Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddh Nagar on Tuesday recorded 104 new COVID-19 patients, including an MLA, as the district's caseload rose to 6,700, official data showed.  So far, the district has reported 43 infection deaths. The number of active cases climbed to 785 from 774 on Tuesday, according to the data released by the UP Health Department for a 24-hour period.   Dadri MLA Tejpal Nagar said on Twitter that he tested positive for COVID-19. He asked people who may have come in his contact recently to get themselves tested for the virus and follow related guidelines.  
 

22:56 (IST)

Coronavirus in Haryana LATEST Updates

Haryana reports 994 new cases, highest in one day

 
Haryana recorded its highest jump of 994 novel coronavirus cases, taking the total near the 50,000 mark on Wednesday, while the toll rose to 567 with 10 more deaths, the Health Department said.  It was for the third straight day that the state had a record spike in cases. On Tuesday, the state had registered 896 cases, and it was 887 a day earlier. There are 7,307 active cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), while 42,056 have recovered. The total cases rose to 49,930, according to a health bulletin. Out of the 10 more fatalities, two each were from Faridabad, Rewari and Ambala, while a person each died in Gurgaon, Hisar, Kurukshetra and Sirsa, the department said. The recovery rate is 84.23 per cent, while the fatality rate is 1.14 per cent, it said.

22:35 (IST)

Coronavirus in Delhi LATEST Updates

Delhi HC asks state govt to ramp up testing

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday called for a concentrated focus on ramping up laboratory testing for COVID-19 in the National Capital as 1,300-odd cases are still reported daily. The high court also raised the question of migrant labourers returning to Delhi after Unlockdown-3 has been declared by the government and construction and industrial activity have picked up. A bench of justices Hima Kohli and Subramonium Prasad asked whether adequate arrangements have been made by the Delhi government at the borders and other places, where industries or construction sites exist in the national capital, for large scale testing to detect COVID-19 cases and for segregating them without causing any inconvenience.  The bench directed the Delhi government to file a detailed status report on this aspect.

21:50 (IST)

Coronavirus in Bihar LATEST Updates

Recovery rate in Bihar rises to 75%

The toll due to coronavirus rose to 568 in Bihar on Wednesday with 10 new fatalities, while the tally of positive cases has spiked to 1.12 lakh,a health department bulletin said. The recovery rate has increased to 75.01 percent, it said. The state witnessed 2884 fresh confirmed cases in last 24 hours, taking the tally to 1,12,758.

PTI

21:28 (IST)

Coronavirus in West Bengal LATEST Updates

IIT Kharagpur student tests positive for COVID-19, all hostels to be sealed

 
An IIT Kharagpur student staying in its campus on Wednesday tested positive for COVID-19, following which the institute decided to seal all the hostels, reports PTI quoting unnamed officials. The institute had in June asked all students stranded due to the lockdown, to leave the campus by June 30 and return two months later for the next semester, but a few of them remained there. The student who was infected with coronavirus was one of them, said the official who does not want to be quoted. "The student was sent to Kolkata," he said without elaborating. The hostel where the student was staying was sanitised, the official said.

21:02 (IST)

 

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

COVID-19 vaccine's emergency authorisation could be considered if govt decides: ICMR tells panel

 
A top ICMR official told a parliamentary panel on Wednesday that phase-two clinical trial of two indigenously developed COVID-19 vaccine candidates have
almost been completed and emergency authorisation of a vaccine could be considered if the Centre decides so. Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Director General Balram Bhargava informed members of the parliamentary standing committee on home affairs that the vaccine candidates developed by Bharat Biotech, Cadila and the Serum Institute of India are at different stages of trial, said an MP present in the meeting. The COVID-19 vaccine candidates coordinated by Bharat Biotech and Cadila are nearing completion of phase-two trails. The one being handled by the Serum Institute of India and developed by Oxford University will enter phase-2 (b) trials this weekend for which 1,700 patients have been identified at 17 centres across the country, the MP said. According to MPs who attended the meeting, when asked how long people will have to live with the pandemic, Bhargava replied that normally the final trial takes about six to nine months but if the governments decides, an emergency authorisation could be considered.

20:51 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

Mumbai's cases up by 1,132 to 1,31,542

Mumbai records 1,132 new cases, 864 recoveries and 46 deaths, reports ANI quoting the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). Total number of positive cases increase to 1,31,542 in Mumbai, including 17,917 active cases, 1,06,057 recovered cases and 7,265 deaths.

20:37 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

Seven-judge SC committee recommends resumption of physical hearings on pilot basis

A seven-judge committee of the Supreme Court has asked court officials to prepare three big courtrooms for physical hearing within a week on" an experimental basis and as a pilot scheme", reports Bar and Bench. The SC registry has written to the President of the Bar Council  and suggested that cases be listed after 10 days of such courtrooms being readied. "Only specific matters will be taken up for physical hearing while miscellaneous matters will continue to be heard through virtual means," the committee said.

20:20 (IST)

Coronavirus in Karnataka LATEST Updates

Karnataka reports 8,642 new cases, 126 deaths

Karnataka reports 8,642 new  cases (including 2,804 cases from Bengaluru Urban), 7,201 discharges and 126 deaths, taking the total number of cases to 2,49,590 including 81,097 active cases, 1,64,150 discharges and 4,327 deaths, reports ANI quoting the state health department

19:52 (IST)

Coronavirus in Maharashtra LATEST Updates

Maharashtra registers spike of 13,165 new cases

Maharashtra saw a spike of 13,165 new COVID-19 cases and 346 deaths today while a total of 9,011 patients were discharged. The total cases in the state rose to 6,28,642, while the toll mounted to 21,033 deaths .As many as 4,46,881 patients have  recovered so far and the number of active cases stands at 1,60,413, reports ANI quoting the state public health department.

19:34 (IST)

Coronavirus in Nagaland LATEST Updates

Nagaland reports more recoveries than deaths for fifth straight day

 
Nagaland reported more recoveries than new COVID-19 cases for the fifth consecutive day on Wednesday, said Health and Family Welfare Minister, S Pangnyu Phom. A total of 42 people recovered from COVID-19 while 38 people tested positive for the infection during the day. The state's COVID-19 caseload rose to 3,558 with the detection of the 38 new cases. Of the total 3,588 cases, 1,838 are active as 1,706 people have recovered from the disease, eight have died and six have migrated to other states, Health departmet officials said.
 
PTI

19:06 (IST)

Coronavirus in Tamil Nadu LATEST Updates

Tamil Nadu records 5,795 new cases, 116 deaths

 
Tamil Nadu reports 5,795 fresh cases, 6,384 recoveries and 116 deaths, reports ANI quoting the state health department. The total count of COVID-19 cases in the state rises to 3,55,449 and toll mounts to 6,123. The state now has 53,155 active cases as 2,96,171 persons have so far recovered from the disease. Chennai accounts for 1,186 new cases and 16 deaths reported in the state today.

18:49 (IST)

Coronavirus in Tamil Nadu LATEST Updates

SP Balasubrahmanyam continues to be critical, on ventilator and ECMO support

Star singer SP Balasubrahmanyam continues to be critical and is on ventilator and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support (ECMO), a heart- lung assistance machine, the Chennai  hospital treating him said  on Wednesday. "Thiru S P Balasubrahmanyam who had been admitted at MGM Healthcare due to COVID-19 continues to be critical and is on ventilator and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support in the Intensive Care Unit. "The expert medical team treating him is closely monitoring his vital parameters which are satisfactory at this point of time," Assistant Director (Medical Services), Dr Anuradha Baskaran said in a statement.

PTI

 The 74-year old popular playback singer was admitted to the hospital on 5 August after he tested positive for coronavirus and suffered a setback days later, prompting doctors to put him on life support. 

18:34 (IST)

Coronavirus in Maharashtra LATEST Updates

Dharavi reports four new cases for third straight day

The number of coronavirus cases in Mumbai's slum-dominated Dharavi area rose to 2,680 on Wednesday with four new patients coming to light, said a Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) official. The area, considered to be Asia's largest slum, reported a rise of four cases on the third consecutive day.Spread over 2.5 square kilometres, Dharavi has a population over 6.5 lakhOut of 2,680 COVID-19 patients recorded in Dharavi, 2,340 have already recovered and there are only 80 active cases at present, the BMC official said. Since June, the civic body has stopped sharing the toll from the area.
PTI

18:17 (IST)

Coronavirus in Sikkim LATEST Updates

Sikkim reports third COVID-19 fatality

 
Sikkim on Wednesday reported the  third fatality due to COVID-19 when a 57 year-old man succumbed to the disease at the STNM hospital, reports PTI quoting  Director General (DG)-cum-secretary in the department of health, Pempa T Bhutia. The official said  that the victim, a native of Pelling was admitted to STNM hospital on 14  August for cellulitis in his right leg with multi-organ dysfunction syndrome. He tested positive in RT-PCR test and died on Wednesday. The cremation will take place on Wednesday as per the COVID-19 protocol, he further said.

18:05 (IST)

Coronavirus in Delhi LATEST Updates

Delhi reports 1,398 new cases, nine deaths

Delhi registers 1,398 new COVID-19 cases, 1,320 recoveries and nine deaths in 24 hours, taking the total number of cases to  1,56,139 and toll to 4,235, reporter ANI quoting a state govt bulletin. As many as 1,40,767 persons have been dischraged/recovered/migrated till date and the National Capital now has 11,137, it said.

17:43 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

DDMA allows hotels to re-open, gyms to remain shut

The Delhi Disaster Management Authority has allowed hotels to re-open and has also given its nod for resuming weekly markets on a trial basis. Gyms in the National Capital will however remain shut, the DDMA decided in a meeting on Wednesday, according to reports.  The AAP government had  recently written to the LG, pointing out that although the COVID-19 cases have been increasing in several states and situation is deteriorating, hotels, gyms and weekly markets have been allowed to open there. The government had also sought to know from the LG as to why Delhiites are being stopped from earning their livelihood despite the fact that the number of coronavirus cases has been decreasing in the national capital

Delhi LG Anil Baijal had opposed the reopening of hotels and weekly markets,which had been allowed in the state government's Unlock guidelines.

17:24 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

India tests over eight lakh samples of second consecutive day, says health ministry

"Focusing on the "test, track and treat"strategy, India has tested more than eight lakh samples for COVID-19 for the second consecutive day in a row, taking the cumulative tests to3,17,42,782 so far, the Union Health Ministry said on Wednesday. With a strong resolve to rapidly increase the number of tests done per day to touch 10 lakh per day testing capacity, 8,01,518 samples were tested in a span of 24 hours on Tuesday."The cumulative testing as on date has reached 3,17,42,782. The Tests Per Million too have seen a sharp rise to 23,002," the ministry said. "It is only by aggressive testing that positive cases can be identified, their contacts tracked and isolated as well as prompt treatment can be ensured through timely medical care. The sustained level of high testing has played a key role in India's increasing rate of recovery, widening gap between the recovered and active cases, and also progressively declining fatality rate," the ministry said.
 
PTI
 

17:08 (IST)

Coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh LATEST Updates

Uttar Pradesh's CFR now at 1.57%, toll now 2,638

 
The number of deaths due to COVID-19 reached 2,638 in Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday with the state's case fatality rate (CFR) coming down to 1.57 percent, Additional Chief Secretary Amit Mohan Prasad said. A total of 2,638 people have died in the state due to coronavirus infection. The CFR of the state has come down to 1.57 pe cent which is below the national average of 1.97 percent, he said, adding that the recovery rate of the state presently was 68.78 percent. As many as 1,15,227 people have recovered and been discharged from hospitals while the number of active cases was 49,645, he said, adding that in the past three days since August 16, the number of active cases has come down by almost 2,000 indicating that more people are recovering from the infection than those falling prey to it. With this the total cases of coronavirus infection in the state has gone up to 1,67,510.
PTI

17:00 (IST)

Coronavirus in Andhra Pradesh LATEST Updates

Andhra Pradesh records 9,742 new cases, 86 deaths

Andhra Pradesh records 9,742 fresh infections, 86 deaths, taking the total cases count to 3,16,003 and toll to 2906, said reports. As many as 22,3672 persons have recovered till date and the state now has 86,725 active cases.

16:37 (IST)

Coronavirus in Australia LATEST Updates

Australia signs deal with AstraZeneca for COVID-19 vaccine


Australia has announced a deal to manufacture a potential coronavirus vaccine being developed by British-Swedish pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca."Under the deal, every single Australian will be able to receive the University of Oxford COVID-19 vaccine for free, should trials prove successful, safe and effective,," Prime Minister Scott Morrison said in a statement Wednesday. Morrison said the Oxford University trial was in a phase-three stage and more work was needed to prove its viability. "If this vaccine proves successful, we will manufacture and supply vaccines straight away under our own steam and make it free for 25 million Australians," Morisson said.

Morrison said there was no guarantee that the vaccine would be successful, "which is why we are continuing our discussions with many parties around the world while backing our own researchers at the same time to find a vaccine."

AP

16:14 (IST)

Coronavirus in Maharashtra LATEST Updates

Maharashtra to resume inter-district bus transport from tomorrow

 
The Maharashtra government has allowed resumption of inter-district bus services of the state transport corporation, a senior official said on Wednesday. After the lockdown was enforced in the state following the outbreak of COVID-19 in March, inter-district bus operations of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) were suspended. "The state government has allowed to re-start inter- district bus operations, and we are planning resume the services from tomorrow," MSRTC's Vice Chairman and Managing Director Shekhar Channe told news agency PTI.
 
According to the state government's directive, passengers would not require an e-pass, permission or approval for inter-district travel in the MSRTC buses, but the transport undertaking will issue standard operating procedures for such travel.
 

15:57 (IST)

Coronavirus Outbreak LATEST Updates

US hands over second shipment of ventilators to India

 
The US on Wednesday handed over to India 100 ventilators, as part of President Donald Trump's offer of assistance to New Delhi in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. The ventilators are manufactured in the US and are compact, easy to deploy and provide India with flexibility in treating patients affected by the virus, the US embassy said in a statement. The US government, through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), in coordination with the Indian government and the Indian Red Cross Society, donated the second shipment of 100 new, state-of-the-art ventilators to assist India in its fight against COVID-19, the statement said.
 
PTI

15:44 (IST)

Coronavirus in Maharashtra LATEST Updates

Former MLA, under treatment for COVID-19, dies

Former MLA of Chamarajanagar Assembly constituency C Guruswamy, undergoing treatment for coronavirus, died of a heart attack at a hospital in Mysuru
on Wednesday, Health Department said. Guruswamy (68) was admitted to the private hospital on August 5 after testing positive for COVID-19, the
officials of the department said. A lawyer by profession, he entered politics with Janata Dal and later switched to the BJP. He defeated Kannada activist Vatal Nagaraj contesting from Chamarajanagar constituency in 1999.

15:25 (IST)

Coronavirus in Maharashtra LATEST Updates

Shops on either sides of road open in Kalyan, Dombivli

Shops on either sides of the road in Kalyan and Dombivali towns in Thane in Maharashtra opened on Wednesday after the local civic body allowed commercial establishments, barring malls, gymnasiums and swimming pools, to operate on all days outside COVID-19 hotspots.

The Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC) also extended the timings for shops to remain open. Earlier, shops on two sides of the road were allowed to open on alternate days from 9 am to 5 am.

14:59 (IST)

Coronavirus in Puducherry LATEST Updates

Six more die of COVID-19 in Puducherry; toll mounts to 129

Six people, including a 26-year-old woman, succumbed to COVID-19 while 368 fresh infections were recorded in Puducherry on Wednesday, taking the overall tally to 8,762, reports PTI.

Director of Health and Family Welfare S Mohan Kumar said in a release that 368 new cases were reported after examination of 1,235 samples during the last 24 hours. The Director said 8,762 overall COVID-19 cases included 3,321 active cases.

14:42 (IST)

Coronavirus in Odisha LATEST Updates

Odisha's COVID-19 total rises to 67,122; toll mounts to 372

As many as 2,589 new cases pushed Odisha's COVID-19 tally to 67,122 on Wednesday, while its death toll mounted to 372 as 10 more patients succumbed to the infection, a health official told PTI.

A total of 1,574 new infections were detected in quarantine centres, while 1,015 people tested positive for the coronavirus during contact tracing, he said. Wednesday's spike in COVID-19 cases is the second- highest in the state after the detection of 2,924 infections on August 16, the official said.

14:22 (IST)

Coronavirus in Rajasthan LATEST Updates

Rajasthan reports 10 new deaths, takes toll to 908

Rajasthan recorded 10 more fatalities due to COVID-19 on Wednesday, taking the state's death toll to 908, while 699 fresh cases pushed its tally to 64,676, a health department official told PTI.

Of the latest fatalities, three each were reported from Jaipur, two from Nagaur and one each from Ajmer, Bikaner, Ganganagar, Kota and Udaipur, the official said.

14:11 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

Dr Reddy's launches Avigan (Favipiravir) in India for COVID-19

Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd On Wednesday announced the launch of Avigan (Favipiravir) 200 mg tablets in India, reports PTI.

The launch is part of the global licensing agreement with Fujifilm Toyama Chemical Co. Ltd. that grants the Indian drug maker the exclusive rights to manufacture, sell and distribute the tablets in India, Chief Executive Officer of Branded Markets (India and Emerging Markets), Dr Reddy's Laboratories, MV Ramana said.

Avigan(Favipiravir) has been approved by the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) for the treatment of patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 disease.

14:05 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

Hong Kong suspends Air India after passengers test COVID-19 positive

Hong Kong has banned Air India flights till the end of August after some passengers on one of its flights tested positive for COVID-19 post arrival, a senior government official said on Wednesday.

Passengers from India can arrive in Hong Kong only if they have a COVID-19 negative certificate from a test done 72 hours prior to the journey, according to rules issued by the Hong Kong government in July.

Read full report here

13:21 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

Rahul Gandhi targets Centre, says 2 crore jobs lost in last 4 months

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday alleged that around two crore people lost their jobs in the last four months amid the coronavirus pandemic and asserted that the "truth about unemployment" can not be hidden from the country.

Citing a media report, he said in a tweet in Hindi, "In the last 4 months, around 2 crore people have lost their jobs. The future of 2 crore families is in the dark. The truth about unemployment and destruction of the economy cannot be hidden from the country by peddling fake news and hatred on Facebook."

The news report cited by Gandhi claimed that around 1.89 crore jobs were lost due to the coronavirus pandemic from April onwards.

13:13 (IST)

Coronavirus in Maharashtra LATEST Updates

COVID-19 total in Aurangabad rises to 19,258

The number of COVID-19 cases in Aurangabad rose to 19,258 on Wednesday after 106 more people tested positive for the disease here in Maharashtra, the district administration said, reports PTI.

Among the new cases, 42 were reported from Aurangabad city and 64 from rural parts of the district. Seven more deaths were also reported, taking the total number of COVID-19 fatalities here to 602, the district administration said in a release.

13:09 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

COVID-19 recoveries cross 2 million; case fatality rate declines to 1.91 pc

With a record 60,091 people recuperating from coronavirus infection in a day, the total recoveries on Wednesday crossed 2 million pushing the recovery rate to 73.64 percent, while the COVID-19 case fatality rate hit a new low of 1.91 per cent, the Union Health Ministry said.

The recoveries have surged to 20,37,870 in the country, while there 6,76,514 active cases of COVID-19, according to the data updated at 8 am.

12:40 (IST)

Coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh LATEST Updates

Union Minister Sanjeev Balyan goes into quarantine

Union Minister of State for Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries Sanjeev Balyan, 63, has gone into self-quarantine after meeting Uttar Pradesh Minister Atul Garg, who tested positive for the disease. Balyan, a Lok Sabha MP from Muzaffarnagar, had lunch with Garg on Tuesday in Ghaziabad. He is now in quarantine at his residence in New Delhi, reported PTI.

12:37 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

India's recovery rate now at 73.63%

The recoveries from COVID-19 has crossed the 20-lakh mark in the country, pushing the recovery rate to 73.64 percent, according to the Union Health Ministry data.

12:36 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

Pranab Mukherjee has developed lung infection, says army hospital

The Army Research and Referral Hospital in Delhi says former President Pranab Mukherjee has developed a lung infection, ANI reports. He continues to be on ventilator support.

The president had tested positive for coronavirus earlier this month.

11:41 (IST)

Coronavirus in Telangana LATEST Updates

Telangana reports over 1,700 new cases, 8 deaths today

Telangana reported 1,763 new coronavirus cases and eight deaths on Tuesday. The state’s tally rose to 95,700 and the toll reached 719

11:36 (IST)

Coronavirus in Arunachal Pradesh LATEST Updates

Highest single-day spike of 133 COVID-19 cases pushes Arunchal's total to 2,875

Arunachal Pradesh reported its highest-single day spike in COVID-19 cases as 133 people, including 29 security personnel, tested positive for the infection on Wednesday, a health official said.

The fresh infections have pushed the state's caseload to 2,875, he said. The northeastern state had reported its previous highest-single day spike of 107 COVID-19 cases on 1 August.

11:05 (IST)

Coronavirus Outbreak LATEST Updates

Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine may be the first shot available in India by 2020-end

India looks for Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine candidate to be the likely first shot available for Indians by the end of 2020, reported Times of India.

The Pune-based Serum Institute, manufacturing Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, has started advanced phases of human trial (Phase 2 and 3) in India with around 1,600 people aged above 18 years in across 17 selected sites across the country.

Whereas, the other two indigenously developed vaccine candidates — Bharat Biotech's Covaxin, jointly developed with ICMR, and Zydus Cadila’s Zycov D are both in early phases 1 and 2.

10:44 (IST)

Coronavirus Outbreak LATEST Updates

WHO says COVID-19 cases being driven by people under 50 in Asia-Pacific countries 

Coronavirus cases in Asia-Pacific countries are now being driven by people under the age of 50 who may not know they are infected, the World Health Organization said Tuesday, warning of a "new phase" in the pandemic.

Many have mild or no COVID-19 symptoms and risk infecting the elderly and other vulnerable populations, the WHO's Western Pacific regional director Takeshi Kasai told a virtual briefing.

"The epidemic is changing. People in their 20s, 30s and 40s are increasingly driving the threat," Kasai said.

Read full article here...

10:27 (IST)

Coronavirus in Jharkhand LATEST Updates

Jharkhand Health Minister Banna Gupta tests COVID-19 positive

10:26 (IST)

Coronavirus in Karnataka LATEST Updates

Karnataka minister tests COVID-19 positive

Karnataka BJP MP V Srinivas Prasad tested positive for the coronavirus on Tuesday, according to PTI. Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa’s son BY Vijayendra, who had met Prasad earlier in the day, went into home quarantine.

09:58 (IST)

Coronavirus in Odisha LATEST Updates

Naveen Patnaik stresses location-specific strategy to contain spread of COVID-19

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday directed officials to adopt a location- specific strategy to curb the spread of the coronavirus outbreak in Khurda, Cuttack, Sundargarh and Rayagada, as these districts are emerging as COVID-19 hotspots in the state.

About 32 percent of 20,388 active cases in the state are in these four districts, an official said. During a review meeting, the chief minister also asked officials to increase the number of tests for the infection across the state.

09:47 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

India reports over 64,000 new cases, 1,092 deaths in past 24 hours

India on Wednesday reported a spike of 64,531 cases and 1,092 deaths reported in India, in the last 24 hours.The COVID19 tally in the country now rises to 27,67,274 including 6,76,514 active cases, 20,37,871 discharged/migrated & 52,889 deaths.

09:38 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

Over 8 lakh samples tested yesterday, says ICMR

The Indian Council of Medical Research has tested 3,17,42,782 samples so far, ANI reports. Of this, 8,01,518 samples were tested on Tuesday.

09:22 (IST)

Coronavirus in Maharashtra LATEST Updates

Pune overtakes Mumbai in number of cases

Pune has reported more number of cases due to a large number of tests being conducted in Pune, which is more than Mumbai. Also, more number of people are being discharged after recovery, said Pune Mayor to ANI.

09:20 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

Global COVID-19 total rises to 2,2 crore; toll at 7.78 lakh

Globally, the coronavirus has infected 2,20,46,135 people and claimed 7,78,557 lives, according to the Johns Hopkins University’s tracker. More than 1.4 crore people have recovered from the infection so far.

08:20 (IST)

Coronavirus in India LATEST Updates

Nearly 50 lakh salaried persons lost their jobs in July, says report

Nearly 50 lakh salaried persons lost their jobs in July, the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy has said. This was the impact of a continuing partial lockdown imposed to combat the coronavirus pandemic. India began its “Unlock” procedure on 1 June, to restart all economic activities.

The number of jobs lost in July paled in comparison with April, when 1.77 crore salaried individuals fell out of work. However, the job loss in July was higher than the 10 lakh jobs lost in May. In June, salaried persons actually gained 39 lakh jobs, however, the net result of the last four months is that 1.89 crore salaried individuals are out of work, reports Scroll.in

Coronavirus LATEST Updates: After nearly five months of restricted functioning due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Supreme Court has decided to start physical hearing of cases within a week's time, though in a limited manner.

The US on Wednesday handed over to India 100 ventilators, as part of President Donald Trump's offer of assistance to New Delhi in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday alleged that around two crore people lost their jobs in the last four months amid the coronavirus pandemic

India on Wednesday reported a spike of 64,531 cases and 1,092 deaths reported in India, in the last 24 hours. The COVID19 tally in the country now rises to 27,67,274

Pune has reported more number of cases due to a large number of tests being conducted in Pune, which is more than Mumbai. Also, more number of people are being discharged after recovery, said Pune Mayor

The number of jobs lost in July paled in comparison with April, when 1.77 crore salaried individuals fell out of work. However, the job loss in July was higher than the 10 lakh jobs lost in May.

The daily new cases of COVID-19 and deaths due to the disease have shown a downward trend from 13 August, the Health Ministry said on Tuesday, but warned against any laxity, emphasising that five days was a short period in the context of a pandemic.

Addressing a press briefing, health secretary Rajesh Bhushan said that in spite of a sustained level of 7-8 lakh coronavirus tests a day, the positivity rate has come down from 10.03 percent to 7.72 percent. The case fatality rate has also come down to below two percent, he added.

India's total coronavirus cases on Tuesday crossed 27 lakh with 55,079 and 876 deaths reported in 24 hours. However, the country also reported its highest daily recoveries with 57,937 recuperating from the disease. With this, India has 6,73,166 active cases — which is less than 25  percent of the total cases reported so far in the country, the ministry said.

In Uttar Pradesh, Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Atul Garg and two lawmakers tested positive for the novel coronavirus infection, as the state reported its highest spike of 77 COVID-19 fatalities. Andhra Pradesh became the third state in the country to report over three lakh cases.

Active cases account for only 25% of India's total cases, says health ministry

Addressing a press briefing, the health secretary said that India witnessed a declining trend in deaths and new cases over the past five days but warned against slackening the guard against the pandemic.

"The daily new cases from 13 August are down from over 64,000 to 55,079 now. There is a declining trend. But five days are a short span in the context of a pandemic and there is no room for laxity on containment, testing and surveillance," said  Bhushan.

"Absolute deaths have also declined during the same period. These two parameters do give us some satisfaction but there is no reason for us to slacken our guard," he said.

He further said the number of recovered patients has reached close to 20 lakhs, which is 2.93 times the active COVID-19 cases.

The average daily recovered cases are now more than 55,000 and active cases are just 25 percent of the total COVID cases which means just 25 percent of the cases are either in hospital or home isolation, he said.

"The daily case fatality rate has reduced to 1.92 percent and the weekly average fatality rate is 1.94 percent. Both are below two percent," he said.  "In its interaction with state and UT governments, the health ministry has repeatedly underlined the fact that our aim should be to bring down the case fatality rate to one percent or below that," Bhushan said

India on Tuesday reported 55,079  new cases taking the countrywide case count to 27,02,742, just a day after it crossed the 26-lakh mark, while the toll mounted to 51,979 with 876 people succumbing to the disease in a span of 24 hours.

As many as 19.77 lakh people have so far recuperated from the disease during the same period pushing the recovery rate to 73.18 percent, the Union Health Ministry said in its morning update.

The health secretary attributed the high number of recoveries and low fatality rate to the high number of tests (both RT-PCR and rapid antigen tests) being conducted daily.

"All these results are because we are conducting a very high number of tests every day using both RT-PCR and rapid antigen tests. Both the tests have a role to play. Through a high number of testing we are able to identify the cases fast... When cases are identified early they can be taken to hospitals early. Because of all that the recovery rate is also rising," he said.

Bhushan said more than three crore tests have been conducted and for the first time, nearly nine lakh tests were conducted in the last 24 hours which is a new peak.

"If we look at the week-wise trend of testing of COVID-19, we will find that in the first week of July ( 1 to 7 July) nearly 2,30,751 tests were conducted and now that number has increased to 8,08,488 (12 to 18 August) and in the last 24 hours, we conducted a record number of tests at 8,99,864," he said.

Andhra Pradesh's cases cross three lakh

Meanwhile, several states and Union Territories added fresh cases and deaths to their tallies.

Andhra Pradesh reported 9,652 new cases and 88 deaths, taking the overall case count to 3,06, 261 and toll to 2,820. After Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, it is the third state in the country to cross the three lakh in the overall number of coronavirus cases.

It took 160 days for the state to go from one to three lakh (cases) after the first person tested positive for the contagion on 12 March but the last one lakh came at quicker pace in just 11 days. The state reached the 10,000 cases mark on 24 June, 50,000 on 20 July, one lakh on 27 July, 1.50 lakh on 1 August, two lakh on 7 August and 2.50 lakh mark on 12 August.

However, the number of active cases is only 85,130 with 2,18,311 patients having recovered so far, according to the latest government bulletin.

Maharashtra reported 11,119 new coronavirus patients which pushed the state's case count to 6,15,477. With 422 COVID-19 patients succumbing, the toll reached 20,687. A total of 9,356 patients were discharged from hospitals, taking the number of recovered patients to 4,37,870 and active cases to 1,56,608.

Delhi recorded 1,374 fresh COVID-19 cases pushing the city's total caseload to 1,54,741, while the toll rose to 4,226 with 12 fatalities.

Uttar Pradesh sees record deaths; health minister tests positive

Uttar Pradesh recorded its worst daily fatality count with 77 more people succumbing to coronavirus, taking the toll to 2,585 .The number of COVID-19 cases reached 1,62,434 with 4,336 fresh cases in the past 24 hours.

Additional Chief Secretary (Health) Amit Mohan Prasad said the number of those who have been discharged from hospitals after recovery has reached 1,09,607. The state has 50,242 active cases, he said.

Meanwhile, Minister of State for Health Atul Garg tweeted that he tested positive for COVID-19. Garg (63), an MLA from Ghaziabad, requested all those who came in his contact recently to get themselves tested for the disease.

"On August 15, an RT-PCR test was done and I had tested negative. Yesterday, in the rapid test conducted around 9 pm, I tested positive. People who came in contact with me from August 16 to 18 should get themselves tested," he said in a tweet.

Garg was admitted to the private Yashoda Superspeciality Hospital, Kaushambi, Ghaziabad, where doctors stated his condition is stable.

"The minister was admitted to the hospital on Tuesday. According to preliminary investigations done at the hospital, his condition is stable now. He is under observation and a team of doctors attending to him as he is a known diabetic and hypertensive," a hospital official told news agency PTI.

BJP MP of Sant Kabirnagar Pravin Nishad tested coronavirus positive on Monday and has gone into home quarantine at his residence in Delhi. A Shahjahanpur report said the BJP MLA from Dadraul, Manvendra Singh, tested positive in a rapid antigen test conducted on him and he will be going in for a RT-PCR test soon.

In Himachal Pradesh, 12 security personnel and a driver of Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur were among the 56 new cases detected on Tuesday. They were in institutional quarantine after a security guard and a driver of Thakur had contracted the infection a few days ago.

With this, the state's COVID-19 tally has reached 4,231, while the toll is 18.

Amit Shah admitted to AIIMS Delhi for post-COVID care

In a separate development, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who had on Friday recovered from the coronavirus infection, was admitted to AIIMS Delhi for post-COVID care. According to a statement issued by AIIMS, he is comfortable and is continuing his work from hospital.

"Home Minister Amit Shah has been complaining of fatigue and body aches for the last 3-4 days. He has tested negative for COVID-19.He has been admitted to AIIMS for post COVID care. He is comfortable and is continuing his work from hospital," the statement said.

ILO-ADB report says 41 lakh Indian youth lost jobs

A joint report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) showed that41 lakh youth in the country lost jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with construction and farm sector workers being the worst-affected.

"For India, the report estimates job loss for 4.1 million youth. Construction and agriculture have witnessed the major job losses among seven key sectors," said the ILO-ADB report, titled 'Tackling the COVID-19 youth employment crisis in Asia and the Pacific', released on Tuesday.

The young people's employment prospects in Asia and the Pacific are severely challenged due to the pandemic, it added. Youth (15-24 years) will be hit harder than adults (25 and older) in the immediate crisis and risk incurring higher longer-term economic and social costs, said the report.

It said that in India, two-thirds of firm-level apprenticeships and three-quarters of internships were completely interrupted during the pandemic.

The report is based on regional assessment of the 'Global Survey on Youth and COVID-19' and arrived at estimates based on available unemployment data in different countries.

The report calls on governments in the region to adopt urgent, large-scale and targeted measures to generate employment for the youth, keep education and training on track in order to minimise future scarring of more than 660 million young people in the region.

With inputs from PTI



source https://www.firstpost.com/health/coronavirus-vaccine-news-india-highlights-covid19-russia-united-states-corona-cases-deaths-recovered-amit-shah-pranab-mukherjee-health-aiims-flight-train-latest-updates-8725351.html
Satish Kumar at
Labels:

No comments:

Post a Comment

Shri ram tech

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)