Beneficiaries of Covid-19 vaccine wait at the observation area after receiving their jabs at Tagore Hall in Ahmedabad.
(Express photo by Nirmal Harindran)Coronavirus India Highlights:The World Health Organziation (WHO) said on Monday that the B.1.617 variant first identified in India last year was being classified as a variant of global concern. “We classify it as a variant of concern at a global level,” Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO technical lead told reporters.
Meanwhile, the number of daily coronavirus positive cases in Maharashtra dropped below the 40,000 mark to 37,236 on Monday for the first time since March 31.
Addressing the media at the end of the Congress Working Committee’s meeting, Congress leaders Randeep Surjewala and K C Venugopal briefed them about the party’s latest resolutions on the Covid-19 pandemic. Blaming the central government’s ” indifference, insensitivity, incompetence” for the aggressive second wave of the pandemic, the CWC raised several concerns about the Modi government’s strategy to combat the spread of the deadly infection.
India, in the last 24 hours, recorded 3,66,161 fresh Covid-19 cases and 3,754 related deaths. This is for the first time after four straight days that India’s Covid-19 count has risen by less than 4,00,000 fresh infections. The country’s daily death toll, too, was more than 4,000 in the last two days. However, only 14.74 lakh samples were tested on Sunday, compared to the usual 18-19 lakh samples a day.
No long queues or mad scramble for registrations, the first day of phase 3 Covid jabs for construction workers in the age group of 18-44 got off to a slow start in Punjab on Monday, with only 852 workers opting to get inoculated. Nearly 2.19 lakh construction workers in the age group of 18-44 years are registered with the state's labour department.
Vaccine hesitancy, coupled with communication gaps — many construction workers claimed that they were not even aware that a vaccination drive had started especially for them — and lack of coordination between the labour and health departments were the main reasons for Day one’s poor show. Read more
Nearly 1,200 weddings were held in Himachal Pradesh over the last three days, including 26 which violated Covid-19 norms set by the state government, according to police data.
According to police, a total of 1,117 permitted and 54 non-permitted weddings took place between Friday and Sunday. Officials said that in order to ensure compliance of rules, most of the weddings were checked by the police, and Rs 1.02 was collected as fine from the organisers of 26 weddings which violated norms.
Himachal Pradesh is currently under a 10-day curfew, which became stricter starting Monday, with public transport suspended, private transport restricted and timings of essential shops cut down to three hours a day. Read more
THE committee appointed by the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation, to look into the deaths of Covid-19 patients at five civic-run hospitals and suggest measures to reduce them, has recommended some steps to ensure early treatment for patients.
"We have recommended to the civic administration certain steps to ensure early treatment...," said Dr Pravin Soni, head of Department of Medicine at YCM Hospital and a key member of the committee.
"Jumbo hospital has the highest number of deaths. Every day, it has been recording more deaths than other civic hospitals," said Dr Soni. In April, while the Auto Cluster facility recorded around 100 deaths, jumbo hospital registered more than 400 deaths and YCM Hospital registered 300 deaths. Read more
AN ALARMING rise in mucormycosis, a fungal infection, as a post-Covid-19 complication or as a co-infection, in Gujarat has emerged as a new challenge for patients already struggling to get access to medicines and doctors.
More than 400 patients are currently undergoing treatment at major government hospitals in Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Vadodara, Surat and Jamnagar even as experts are yet to understand why Gujarat was reporting higher mucormycosis cases as compared to other states.
Dr RS Trivedi, the medical superintendent at PDU Hospital in Rajkot, told The Indian Express on Monday that the hospital was currently treating 150 mucormycosis patients while it has provisioned a total 250 beds for such cases. Read more
For the second consecutive year, the tourism industry is staring at a complete washout as advance bookings get cancelled, once again, due to surging Covid-19 cases. With estimates about the loss incurred by the industry ranging from Rs 200 to Rs 500 crore, insiders say it will take minimum two years before things return to normal for them.
Tourism, along with the hospitality industry, has been among the sectors worst hit by the pandemic. Now, for the second year in a row, as travel becomes restricted and complete lockdowns become more common across states, people have started shelving their holiday plans for summer.
Summer seasons of April and May are usually the peak months for the industry as schools are shut and several people travel with their families. Read more
Maharashtra has received six lakh Covishield vaccine doses and 36,000 Covaxindoses, state Additional Chief Secretary Dr Pradeep Vyas told The Indian Express on Monday morning. Of the six lakh Covishield vaccine doses, a total of 2.5 lakh doses are for the 45+ age group while 3.5 lakh doses will be allocated for the 18-44 age group.
The state pays for the procurement of vaccine doses for the 18-44 age group while the Centre allocates vaccines procured from Serum Institute of India and Bharat Biotech for the 45 years and above age group to the states.
Till May 9, a total of 1.8 crore beneficiaries have been administered Covid-19vaccine doses across the state. Of this, 4.36 lakh beneficiaries are among the 18-44 age group who have been administered the vaccine since the drive began on May 1. Read the full report here.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has classified the B.1.617 coronavirus variant spreading across India as being "of concern", AFP reported. There is available information to suggest "increased transmissibility," and also possibly some increased resistance to vaccine protections, Maria Van Kerkove, WHO's lead on Covid-19, said in a press conference.
"As such, we are classifying this as a variant of concern at the global level," she told reporters.
The number of daily coronavirus positive cases in Maharashtra, which has been reeling under the resurgent pandemic, dropped below 40,000 to 37,236 on Monday for the first time after March 31.
Maharashtra's overall caseload now stands at 51,38,973 while 549 fatalities pushed the toll 76,398, the state health department said. Maharashtra had reported 39,544 cases on March 31. The state had reported 54,022 cases on May 7, 53,605 on May 8 and 48,401 on May 9.
Of the 549 fatalities, 302 had occurred in the past 48 hours. While 113 deaths had occurred last week, 134 people had died before the last week, the department said. (PTI)
POLICE HAVE arrested three persons, including a chemist, for the alleged illegal sale of remdesivir at higher prices. Police said they have seized 21 injections from the accused.
The three accused were identified as Krushna Ramrav Patil (22), who works as a nursing staff at a hospital in Thergaon; Nikhil Keshav Neharkar (19), a resident of Bijli Nagar, Chinchwad; and Shashikant Raghunath Panchal (34), who runs Ayushri medical shop in Thergaon.
A press release issued by deputy commissioner of police Anand Bhoite on Monday stated that during a surprise nakabandi operation, a team from Wakad police station, comprising sub-inspector Avdhut Shingare, policemen Dattaprasad Chaudhary, Jitendra Ugale, Atish Jadhav, and home guards Nikhil Sapkal and Rohan Gund, intercepted Patil and Neharkar while they were riding on separate two-wheelers at Kalewadi Phata on Sunday. Read the full report here.
Addressing the shortage of coronavirus vaccines in the state, Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray said that after consulting with his father and Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, he has urged the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to look into the possibility of procuring Covid vaccines from foreign countries.
Days after the Supreme Court set up a national task force for Covid response and oxygen allocation, the Shiv Sena on Monday said it had certified the Centre’s failure in tackling Covid. The BJP hit back, saying that the Centre itself had suggested setting up a task force.
An editorial in Saamana said that the Supreme Court set up a national committee after the Union government failed to tackle the Corona crisis. “The SC has certified the Centre’s failure by setting up the task force. Now, what does the BJP’s Goebbels system have to say on it?” asked the editorial.
It further said that the second wave of Covid has spread across the country and there is daily confusion about medicines, vaccination and oxygen supply in the states. “Many patients and their relatives are knocking on the door of the court as they are not getting oxygen and beds. Since the last few days, the courts have taken up the task of oxygen, bed distribution with others. Read the report here.
The cyber police Imphal on Monday registered an FIR against a fake notification circulated in the social media claiming that examination for Class 11 and 12 have been cancelled owing to Covid-19 pandemic.
The FIR was registered following a complaint lodged by Ch. Biren, secretary Council of Higher Secondary Education Manipur (COHSEM) to arrest the culprits involved in the forgery.
In his complaint, Ch. Biren stated that the notification is a forged and fabricated document including the signature of the secretary.
“A serious crime has been committed hurting the sentiments of all the students involved including their parents as well as the public at large. At the same time, the reputation and image of the council has also been seriously harmed and tarnished”, stated Biren.
The COHSEM secretary clarified that the examinations are being postponed for the time being in view of Covid-19 pandemic. The decision for cancellation of the examinations or otherwise is yet to be taken, he added.
According to the fake notification, it cited that the reason behind the cancellation of the examinations due to the “influenced of the Government, parents, and students” in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic. Moreover, it stated that all the students who are to appear in the examinations have been promoted. Jimmy Leivon reports.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday expressed concern over the rising cases of COVID-19 in rural Kerala. Addressing a press conference, he said there are 72 panchayats in the state with a test positivity rate of over 50 per cent with 19 of them being in Ernakulam district, and in 300 panchayats, it's above 30 per cent.
"There are 57 panchayats with 500 to 2,000 active cases.This is a serious situation.The number of confirmed cases continues to be high in Kannur, Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam districts," he said. He said stronger preventive measures would be taken in these districts. In other districts, it is gradually declining, Vijayan added. (PTI)
Jharkhand is set to launch free vaccinations for people between the ages of 18 and 44 from May 14 onwards, Chief Minister Hemant Soren announced on Monday.
Facing an acute shortage of COVID-19 vaccines, the Odisha government on Monday decided to float a global tender for procuring the vaccine to inoculate the states entire population, Chief Secretary S C Mohapatra said. The decision was made at the Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, PTI reported.
With 3,50,370 new Covid-19 cases, Bengaluru’s 10 wards are reporting more than 4,000 new infections daily for the last 10 days. Most of these wards are on the outskirts of the city and are on the watchlist of Bruhath Bengaluru Mahnagara Palkie (BBMP) officials.
The top 10 wards reporting the highest cases are: Shantalanagar: 4390, Bellandur: 3593, Horamavu: 3036, Hagadur: 2524, RR Nagar: 2522, New Tippasandra: 2486, Varthur: 2287, HSR Layout: 2270, Begur: 2204, Arekere: 2137
In the past 10 days, out of 198 BBMP wards, these 10 wards have reported a total of 27,449 Covid-19 cases. Read the full report here.
As many as 1,952 employees of the Indian Railways have succumbed to coronavirus so far and around 1,000 are getting infected on a daily basis, a senior official said on Monday.
The Railways is one of the largest employers in not just the country but the world with around 13 lakh employees.
'Railways is not different from any other state or territory and we are also getting COVID cases. We are in the business of transport and have to move freight and people. Around 1,000 (COVID) cases are reported daily,' Railway Board Chairman Suneet Sharma said.
'We have our hospitals. We have augmented the number of beds, we have built oxygen plants in rail hospitals. We take care of our staff. As of now, we have 4,000 beds occupied by staff and their families. Our effort is to see that they recover quickly. As of yesterday, 1,952 rail employees have died due to COVID-19 since March last year,' he added. (PTI)
AAP leader Atishi Monday said the Delhi government will have to close vaccination centres where Covaxin is being administered to beneficiaries in the 18-44 age group after Tuesday evening if its stocks are not replenished. Delhi's Covaxin stock for this category would last till Tuesday evening, she said, adding Covishield doses for this age group can last up to four days.
"On Monday morning, Delhi had 2.74 lakh vaccine doses for people in the 18-plus category," she said, releasing the city's 'Vaccination Bulletin'. "After Tuesday evening, the Delhi government will have to start closing down the vaccination centres where Covaxin is being administered (to the 18-44 age group). We will also have to shut down Covishield inoculation centres after four days," she said. (PTI)
Strict lockdown-like restrictions will be clamped in Nashik district of Maharashtra for 12 days beginning May 12 given the surge in COVID-19 cases, guardian minister Chhagan Bhujbal said on Monday.
As part of the new curbs, people will not be allowed to step outside except for essential and medical reasons. Shops selling grocery, sweets, and bakeries will remain open from 7 am to 12 noon for the next 12 days but only for home deliveries.
The new restrictions will come into force from noon. As of May 9, the COVID-19 tally in Nashik stood at 3,56,084 while the death toll stood at 3,865. Bhujbal said the number of coronavirus positive cases has risen significantly in the district compared to the previous year. (PTI)
As a devastating second wave of COVID-19 raged across the country, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah of being on "silent mode" at a time when they need to "act decisively".
In a Facebook post, the Left leader alleged that the prime minister and the home minister "are hiding in their silent mode". It is time to act decisively and not take refuge under silent mode, he said. "...You wasted public money on superstition and dhongis, rejecting scientific advice. You prioritise building a palace for yourself over public hospitals. You ignored all warnings about the pandemic. You invited people to super-spreader events and organised mega election rallies in this second wave.
You failed to manage flow of oxygen properly. You let foreign aid lie in godowns for weeks. You did not buy enough vaccines," Yechury alleged. After recording over four lakh fresh cases for four consecutive days, India witnessed a single-day rise of 3,66,161 COVID-19 cases on Monday, which pushed its infection tally to 2,26,62,575, according to the health ministry. (PTI)
Four temporary jails were set up for people violating the coronavirus curfew in Ludhiana, Deputy Commissioner Kumar Sharma told ANI. "Anyone seen roaming after 12 pm without curfew pass to be fined and kept in temporary jails set up in four zones. New curfew timing from 12 pm - 5 am that has been put in place today will be effective till further orders," he said.
Several bodies, decomposed, bloated and suspected to be of people who succumbed to COVID 19, were on Monday found floating in the river Ganga in a Bihar district.
Officials in Chausa block of Buxar, which borders Uttar Pradesh, rushed to the spot of the unseemly sight upon hearing the news.
“We were alerted by the local chowkidar that many bodies have been spotted floating from upstream. We have so far recovered 15 of these. None of the deceased happens to be a resident of the district,” Chausa BDO Ashok Kumar told PTI over phone. Read the full report.
Days after the Kerala High Court expressed concern over the high fees levied by private hospitals on COVID-19 patients, the State government said on Monday it has put a cap on the charges and introduced a universal pricing system for its treatment. The state government said this in the Court when it considered a plea alleging that private hospitals and testing centres were charging high bills to "exploit the pandemic situation and fear of people in the society."
The petitioner, a lawyer, had sought directions from the court to take remedial measures to regularise the high charges imposed by private hospitals for COVID-19 treatment.
On Monday, the government counsel informed the court that it has decided to put a ceiling on prices to be charged by private hospitals for COVID-19 treatment.
The counsel said government has issued an order on Monday in this regard. (PTI)
The Congress Working Committee unanimously decided on Monday to defer the crucial election to the post of party president until the COVID-19 situation in the country improves, sources said.
After a section of leaders had last year pressed for an organisational overhaul, the Congress had decided to hold elections for the new party president by June-end and its central election authority chaired by Madhusudan Mistry proposed June 23 for the exercise.
The CWC, the apex decision-making body of the Congress which met in the backdrop of the recent drubbing in four assembly polls, considered the schedule for electing the AICC president prepared by the party's election authority.
However, top Congress leaders at the meeting were of the view that holding the election right now would not be proper as the coronavirus situation in the country was very grim, the sources said. (PTI)
Addressing the Covid-19 situation in Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said, "Oxygen Express is being run, tankers being sent on large aircraft of Air Force. Y'day, we supplied 1000 MT of oxygen in the state. But it shouldn't remain restricted to supply, Oxygen Plants should be established too. Work is underway to set up 300 Oxygen Plants in state."
Andhra Pradesh reported 14,986 new Covid-19 cases and 84 deaths in the last 24 hours. Meanwhile over 16,000 Covid positive patients recovered from the infection, according to official figures released by the Andhra Pradesh government.
Accusing the central government of denying vaccines to state government's and selling them to abroad instad, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said, "In what greed were 6.50 crore vaccines supplied to foreign countries when people in our own country are dying?"
He further accused the BJP of 'lying' that the Delhi government had only ordered 5.5 lakh Covid-19 vaccine doses, when it had in fact ordered 1.34 crore.
In the last 24 hours, Delhi reported 12,651 new Covid-19 cases and 319 deaths. With this the total number of cases soared to 13,36,218, while the death toll rose to 19,663.
"At a time when nation’s resources should be devoted to ensuring expansion of vaccination coverage and supply of essential medicines and oxygen, Modi Government is indulging in criminal waste of money by continuing with personal vanity project of PM in the national capital," the CWC resolution read.
Citing the CWC's concerns about the Centre's strategy to vaccinate citizens that fall between the 18-44 age group, Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal said: "Vaccine supplies are grossly insufficient, yet the government denies the hard facts. The pricing policy is opaque and discriminatory. And contrary to economic and all other logic, the government has passed on the financial responsibility for vaccinating the 18-44 year population to the State governments, which are already facing severe financial stress."
"Worse, the mandatory online registration without a walk-in option will exclude — and may have already excluded —millions of our citizens, particularly those in rural areas and those belonging to the weaker sections of society," he added.
Addressing the media at the end of the Congress Working Committee’s meeting, Congress leaders Randeep Surjewala and K C Venugopal briefed them about the party’s latest resolutions on the Covid-19 pandemic as well as the upcoming elections for party president. Blaming the central government’s ” indifference, insensitivity, incompetence” for the aggressive second wave of the pandemic, the CWC raised several concerns about the Modi government’s strategy to combat the spread of the deadly infection.
"The CWC noted with concern that the data on Covid deaths is horribly wrong and afflicted by massive non-reporting of deaths. The solution lies in facing the challenge and stopping the casualties from Covid-19 and not in concealing the truth by burying the data on deaths and infections,” the resolution read.
Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury wrote to President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday, urging him to convene a special session of Parliament to discuss the ensuing Covid crisis. “Corona pandemic in the country is in a grave situation and you must be well informed about the exact scenario,” the letter read.
The first shipment of Covishield vaccines directly procured by the Kerala government arrived at Kochi airport today. Take a look.
The ruling NCP and Congress in Maharashtra on Monday hit out at the Centre over its handling of the COVID-19 situation in the country and called for "one nation, one policy" to fight the pandemic.
State Minority Affairs Minister and NCP leader Nawab Malik also demanded that the Narendra Modi government convene an all-party meeting to chalk out the policy. "The coronavirus cannot be eradicated only through advertisements at a time when there is a need to work out 'one nation, one policy' considering the current COVID-19 situation in the country," a statement said quoting Malik.
He claimed the situation in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar was such that the last rites of COVID-19 victims were being performed in rivers instead of crematoriums. (PTI)
Three Indian Navy warships are bringing to India on Monday 80 tonnes of liquid oxygen, 20 cryogenic oxygen tanks, 3,150 cylinders and a large amount of other medical supplies from abroad as the country reels under a severe second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.
The medical supplies being brought by the ships included 900 oxygen-filled cylinders and 10,000 rapid antigen COVID-19 test kits, 54 oxygen concentrators, 450 PPE (personal protective equipment) kits, Indian Navy spokesperson Commander Vivek Madhwal said. Indian Navy ship Airavat is reaching Visakhapatnam from Singapore carrying eight cryogenic oxygen tanks each having a capacity of 20 metric tonnes of oxygen and other supplies.
Another warship, INS Kolkata, is arriving at New Mangalore port carrying 40 metric tonnes of liquid oxygen, 400 Oxygen cylinders and 47 oxygen concentrators from Qatar and Kuwait, Commander Madhwal said. INS Trikand is reaching Mumbai with 40 tonnes of oxygen from Qatar, he said. Last week, the Indian Navy deployed nine warships to bring liquid medical oxygen and other supplies from several countries in Persian Gulf and south-east Asia. (PTI)
Odisha's Covid-19 caseload on Monday rose to 5,44,873 after 10,031 more people tested positive for the infection, while 17 fresh fatalities pushed the toll to 2,197, a senior health department official said. Monday was the fifth consecutive day when the state registered more than 10,000 new cases.
Of the 10,031 new cases, 6,623 were reported from various quarantine centres, and the rest detected during contact tracing, the official said. Khurda district, of which the state capital Bhubaneswar is a part, recorded the maximum number of new cases at 1,329, followed by Sundergarh at 824, Cuttack at 720 and Cuttack at 708. (PTI)
The Covid-19 death toll in Himachal Pradesh rose to 1,906 on Monday with 34 fresh fatalities, while 1,340 new cases pushed the infection tally to 1,32,763, a senior official said. According to the data updated till 2 pm, the number of active cases in the state stands at 31,629. The official said the total recoveries in the state have climbed to 99,188 with 2,143 more people recovering from the infection. (PTI)
Due to the aggressive second wave of coronavirus cases, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) has decided to further postpone elections for the party's president, sources told ANI. In the previous CWC meeting, the Central Election Authority had proposed 23rd June as the poll date.
The new schedule for elections is yet to be ascertained, sources said.
In a first, the Delhi Police has directed the DCPs of all 15 district to get data of cremations and burials — Covid or non-Covid — directly from cremation grounds. Senior officials claimed they are doing it to know the ground reality.
The indianexpress.com has confirmed from five to seven DCPs and their senior officials at police headquarters (PHQ) that they have started compiling data from May 1.
“The message to collect data to all the DCPs came from their concerned JCPs, and they received orders from their Special CPs of zones. All the SHOs are sending their concerned beat constables to the cremation ground of their area to collect data from the in-charge of cremation/burial ground, covering rural areas as well. After collection, all DCPs are providing details to their seniors during morning diary briefing, and later it is given to the Crime Records Office (CRO),” a senior police officer said. Read Mahender Singh Manral's report here.
Medicines and equipment required for treatment of Covid-19 patients should be treated as essential commodities, a PIL urged in the Delhi High Court which on Monday sought response of the Centre and Delhi government on the issue. A bench of Justices Vipin Sanghi and Rekha Palli issued notice to the Union Health Ministry and Delhi government on the plea which has also sought setting up of fast track courts to deal exclusively with cases of black marketing and hoarding of medicines and equipment.
The petition by Delhi resident Manisha Chauhan has also sought appointment of special public prosecutors for dealing with such cases before the special fast track courts. (PTI)
Covid-19 situation in Assam is alarming. We've seen that our daily cases have crossed almost 5000. Tomorrow, when we the Cabinet meets for the first time, we'll discuss the Covid situation from all perspectives and undertake all measures required to contain the outbreak: Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma. (ANI)
The Indian Army on Monday clarified that there are certain messages circulating on social media soliciting contributions for providing aid to the Indian Army in its fight against Covid-19, but the Army “does not endorse these messages”.
The Supreme Court Monday said it will go through the compliance affidavit filed by the Centre on its vaccination and hospitalisation policies. The top court, which is hearing a suo motu case on the management of Covid-19 pandemic, will take up the matter next on May 13.
The Centre filed the affidavit after the top court had asked the government to rethink its vaccine and healthcare policy during the Covid-19 pandemic. The top court had also directed the Centre to formulate within two weeks a national policy on admissions to hospitals in the wake of the second Covid wave.
In its affidavit, the central government has said that given the limited availability of vaccines, inoculating the entire population was not possible in one go due to the suddenness of the pandemic but it will ensure its “equitable distribution”.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has expressed concern with the Centre over 'low' allocation of Remdesivir, used in Covid-19 treatment, to the state and urged increased supply of the drug to meet the demand, the government said on Monday. Stalin raised the matter with Railway and Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal over the phone, an official release said Monday. "The Central government has been doing the allocation of this medicine to all states. Accordingly, so far, 2.5 lakh vials have been allotted to Tamil Nadu, which is a low allocation of 7,000 per day," the release said.
There was a minimum requiremet of 20,000 vials a day and only such a quantity could be useful to meet the requirements of government and private hospitals in the state, Stalin told Goyal. (PTI)
An ‘Oxygen Express’, carrying 224.67 tonnes of liquid medical oxygen arrived at Delhi Cantt Railway station from Hapa in Gujarat on Monday. (ANI)
As part of efforts to decongest jails in view of the second wave of Covid-19, as many as 568 prisoners, lodged in various prisons across the state, have been released on parole in Kerala. Besides them, 932 other convicted prisoners may also be released temporarily soon while around 350 remand prisoners would be freed on interim bail, according to official sources here.
The decision was taken based on a recent Supreme Court directive ordering the immediate release of prisoners with an aim to avoid overcrowding in jails in the wake of the unprecedented spread of the pandemic. (PTI)
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday asserted that strict measures have been taken to control the spread of Covid-19 in the state, while also maintaining that a total lockdown, if imposed, will hamper livelihood of people.
She urged the central government to facilitate free-of-cost vaccination for all. "We have taken strict measures, a total lockdown will hamper livelihood of people," Banerjee said, while addressing a press conference at the state secretariat following the first cabinet meeting of her newly formed government. (PTI)
A huge crowd was seen at New Gardiner Road Hospital Covid-19 vaccination centre in Patna on Monday. “The facility is overcrowded and nobody is here to manage. Due to the lack of information, people are coming to the centre early,” a local said. (ANI)
Defying Covid protocols, farmers gathered in Barnala district’s Mehalkalan area on Monday to march towards Singhu border in protest against the Centre’s farm laws.
India spinner Piyush Chawla, who was part of the 2011 World Cup-winning team, lost his father Pramod Kumar on Monday due to Covid-19 complications. Piyush’s father was undergoing treatment at a hospital in Delhi after testing positive for coronavirus.
“Life won’t be same without him anymore, lost my pillar of strength today,” wrote the Mumbai Indians spinner on his official Instagram account. “With deepest grief, we announce that my beloved father, Mr Pramod Kumar Chawla, left for the heavenly abode on 10th May 2021. He was suffering from covid and post covid complications. We invite your kind thoughts and prayers in this difficult times. May his noble soul rest in peace.”
The Delhi High Court on Monday asked AAP MLA Imran Hussain to show documents that he procured oxygen which he was distributing, from outside Delhi. "We are giving you opportunity to show you're not doing anything bad. We'll pat your back if you show you're getting it from outside," the court said. (Inputs from Sofi Ahsan)
India is the fastest country globally to administer 17 crore Covid-19 vaccine doses, the Union Health Ministry said on Monday. China took 119 days while the US took 115 days for reaching the same landmark. The vaccination drive in India was rolled out on January 16 with healthcare workers getting inoculated and vaccination of frontline workers started from February 2. Subsequently, it was opened for different age groups.
The cumulative number of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered in the country has crossed the landmark of 17 crore. A total of 17,01,76,603 vaccine doses have been administered through 24,70,799 sessions, according to the provisional report till 7 am. (PTI)
Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa has appealed to the people to abide by the strict lockdown- like restrictions in Karnataka from Monday for the next fortnight to contain the spread of coronavirus, which is spreading in the state at an alarming proportion. "As we begin the 14-day strict restriction to break the chain of infection, I request all citizens to follow the guidelines in letter and spirit. Your cooperation is crucial to contain the spread of the virus. Together we can defeat the pandemic," the Chief Minister tweeted.
Policemen wielding lathis were seen at places in an effort to implement the stringent restrictions. The roads were barricaded and motorists were warned and allegedly got the stick for venturing out without valid reasons.
Former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy came down heavily on the government for the police excesses saying that the government thought stopping people's movement was the only way to prevent the spread of the virus. In a series of tweets, the JD(S) second-in-command expressed his anger over the way lockdown has been implemented.
"Strict lockdown and not just lockdown, where people will be beaten up like cattle has been implemented from today. It is a tragedy that the government thought lockdown means stopping vehicular movement. It forgot the woes of citizens in distress," the JD(S) leader tweeted. (PTI)
Maharashtra received six lakh doses of Covishield and 36,000 doses of Covaxin on Monday, state Additional Chief Secretary Dr Pradeep Vyas told The Indian Express.
Of the six lakh doses, 2.5 lakh are for the 45+ age group while 3.5 lakh have been allocated for people between 18 and 44 years of age.
The state pays for the procurement of vaccines for the 18-44 age group while the Centre allocates vaccines procured from Serum Institute of India and Bharat Biotech for those above 45. (Read Anuradha Mascarenhas’s report)
Maharashtra, Karnataka and Delhi are among 10 states that account for 73.91 per cent of the 3,66,161 new COVID-19 cases registered in a day, the Union Health Ministry said on Monday. Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Rajasthan and Haryana are the other states in the list of 10.
Maharashtra has reported the highest daily new cases at 48,401. It is followed by Karnataka with 47,930 while Kerala reported 35,801 new cases. India's total Covid-19 active caseload has reached 37,45,237 and now comprises 16.53 per cent of the country's total infections. (PTI)
A PIL seeking Rs one crore as ex-gratia to the family of each judicial member who succumbed to Covid-19 and to declare them as frontline warriors was heard on Monday by the Delhi High Court which sought response of the Delhi government. A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Jasmeet Singh issued notice to the Delhi government and sought its response to the plea by a lawyer who also sought collating information of the staff of subordinate courts and of high court who have lost their lives due to Covid-19, while performing their duties and to pay their families Rs 50 lakh as ex-gratia relief.
The petition by advocate Tanveer Ahmed Mir has stated that a considerable number of officers of the lower judiciary, court staff and registry officials "are further undergoing a harrowing experience" of not being able to meet the medical expenses of their near and dear ones and also the loss of their immediate relatives. (PTI)
A total of 1,80,88,042 people have so far received Covid-19 vaccine doses in Maharashtra, the state government said on Monday. On Sunday, 1,10,448 beneficiaries received the jabs in the state, it said.
According to an official statement, 4,36,302 individuals aged between 18 and 44 years received the vaccine doses in the state till Sunday since the inoculation drive for this age group began on May 1. So far, 11,27,341 health care workers have been administered the first dose of the vaccine, while 6,68,901 of them have got their second dose. Similarly, 15,04,578 frontline workers in the state have till now received their first vaccine dose and of them, 6,19,622 got their second dose. (PTI)
INS Trikand reaches Mumbai with two 27 metric tonnes of oxygen-filled containers from Qatar. “The ship entered Hamad Port, Qatar, on May 5 and embarked its maiden shipment of oxygen containers which was facilitated by French Mission as part of oxygen solidarity bridge,” says CO Capt Harish Bahuguna. (ANI)