Coronavirus India Highlights: Congress presses for national lockdown to stem Covid spread

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday hit out at the centre for pushing the country to "threshold of COVID destruction" as the union ministers didn't do any work in the last six months except for visiting Bengal daily to capture power.

She reiterated that BJP was unable to accept the mandate of the people and inciting violence after completion of elections in Bengal.

Attacking Election Commission, the TMC supremo alleged that had the poll panel not "directly" helped the saffron party, they could not have won even 30 seats in the just-concluded assembly elections. (PTI)

With Kerala's positive cases touching nearly 42,000 on Saturday and over four lakh people undergoing treatment for the virus, the Kerala government decided to form ward level committees in each panchayat to ensure proper COVID-19 treatment activities. 

The state was facing more challenges in the present second wave, as the pathogen strain was more virulent and was spreading fast, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters here.

He said the role played by local governments in controlling and preventing the first wave of the Covid outbreak was unparalleled. "During this second phase also, they have an important proactive role to play by being at the forefront of Covid prevention," he said. (PTI)

In the last 24 hours, Punjab has recorded over 9,100 fresh Covid-19 cases and 171 deaths.

Punjab: In highest ever single-day case count, 9100 fresh Covid cases in past 24 hours in the state. 171 more deaths. Max cases continue to be reported from Ludhiana and SAS Nagar (Mohali) districts @IndianExpress @iepunjab

— Divya Goyal (@divya5521) May 8, 2021

Andhra Pradesh reported 20,065 fresh cases of Covid-19, 19,272 recoveries and 96 deaths in the 24 hours ending 9 am on Saturday.

Saturday's toll was the highest after the 97 during the first wave on August 22 last year.

The latest health bulletin said the gross coronavirus positives touched 12,65,439 from 1.72 crore tests.

The total recoveries increased to 10,69,432 and toll to 8,615. The state now has 1,87,392 active cases, it said. (PTI)

Tamil Nadu reported its biggest single day spike of COVID-19 cases and fatalities on Saturday, with 27,397 infections and 241 deaths, taking the tally to 13.51 lakh and the toll to 15,412. The state touched the new high just a day after logging a record 26,465 cases and 197 deaths.

A medical bulletin said 23,110 people were discharged today, taking the tally to 11,96,549, leaving 1,39,401 active cases.

Chennai accounted for most number of new infections at 6,846, totaling 3,83,644 till date, and also fatalities, which now stands at 5,153. (PTI)

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) Saturday announced that tankers and containers carrying liquid medical oxygen (LMO) will be exempted from user fee at toll plazas on national highways across the country. In view of the current unprecedented demand for the medical oxygen due to the COVID-19 surge, containers carrying LMO will be considered at par with other emergency vehicles like ambulances for a period of two months or till further orders, NHAI said in a statement.

The European Union cemented its support for Pfizer-BioNTech and its novel COVID-19 vaccine technology Saturday by agreeing to a massive contract extension for a potential 1.8 billion doses through 2023.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen tweeted that her office "has just approved a contract for a guaranteed 900 million doses (+900 million options)." (AP)

Over 100 medical staff members at the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences here tested positive for COVID-19. A total of 110 doctors and nursing staff here tested positive for the infection, AIIMS PRO Harish Thapliyal said, adding that they were all vaccinated.

Being in direct contact with COVID patients daily may have been the reason behind such a large number of them testing positive for the infection, he said.

Chief Medical Superintendent of dedicated COVID hospital here, Vijayesh Bhardwaj, was also found infected with the infection. (PTI)

The IIM Ahmedabad Alumni Association, Hyderabad Chapter, has launched a campaign to raise funds to purchase oxygen concentrators. The Chapter has joined hands with volunteers from IIMs/IITs/NITs/ entrepreneurs based out of Hyderabad to improve the Oxygen infrastructure in the states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

"The Chapter intends to raise funds and effectively deploy them to reach the poor and weaker sections of the society. To increase donation efficiency, we have already tied up with 'State Covid Command and Control Centre (Oxygen Cell) – Government of Andhra Pradesh' for possible collaboration and 'Mission Oxygen' for procurement and deployment of hospital grade Oxygen concentrators and in talks with various other organization for partnering to fight against Covid19 pandemic," said a statement. 

To enable this, the Chapter has opened a fund-raiser on Milaap page. "We request your help, support and contribution towards this noble cause. Every rupee you donate will go towards supporting the hospitals and patients in need," the statement said. The Chapter has been known for successfully executing many philanthropic activities over the past 20 years.

Reported by Sreenivas Janyala

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday hit out at the UP government, saying had it paid attention to the medical system in the state, the coronavirus infection would not have spread to villages and resulted in a huge number of deaths.

In a statement, the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister also accused the government of diverting its entire machinery to hide the number of deaths caused by the pandemic. "The BJP is committing the sin of telling lies. It has spent all its time in shattering the work done by the previous Samajwadi Party government," he said.

"Had the state government paid attention towards the medical system in time, the infection would not have spread to villages and there would not have been such a large number of deaths," the statement said. (PTI)

The Supreme Court has set up a 12-member National Task Force for the scientific allocation of oxygen to the states and UTs.

With centre consenting, Supreme Court sets up 12-member National Task Force to formulate a methodology for the scientific allocation of oxygen to the States and UTs. @IndianExpress

— Ananthakrishnan G (@axidentaljourno) May 8, 2021

The Union Health Ministry has said positive Covid-19 test report not mandatory for admission to a health facility. (PTI)

Sri Lanka on Saturday detected its first case of the Indian variant of coronavirus, also known as B.1.617, in a person who recently returned from India and was in a quarantine centre here.

The Department of Immunology and Molecular Medicine of the University of Sri Jayewardenapura here in a report released on Saturday said the infected person had returned from India and was found at a quarantine center for returnees in Colombo.

The sample was among several other samples obtained for testing until April 30, the Colombo Gazette reported. (PTI)

A shipment of 50 ventilators and 25,000 vials of Remdesivir arrives at Delhi airport from Canada.

Delhi: A shipment of 50 ventilators and 25,000 vials of Remdesivir arrives from Canada.#COVID19 pic.twitter.com/9UnWFv0pZp

— ANI (@ANI) May 8, 2021

The Centre has approved an anti-Covid drug developed by DRDO for emergency use, the Union Defence Ministry Saturday said. The drug, 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG), has been developed in collaboration with Dr Reddy's Laboratories.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi called him to take note of the state's covid situation. On the call, Chouhan discussed the declining positivity rate and rising recovery rate in the state.

?????????? ???? ?? ???????? ?? ?????? ??? #COVID19 ?? ?????? ???? ??????? ?? ?? ???????????? ???? @narendramodi ?? ????? ?????? ???? ??? ??????????? ???? @ChouhanShivraj ?? ?? ???????????? ?? ?????? ??? ?????? ?? ??????? ?????? ?? ???? ?? ????? ?? ???? ??????

— CMO Madhya Pradesh (@CMMadhyaPradesh) May 8, 2021

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inquired about the status of coronavirus in Himachal, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur said. “We made the Prime Minister aware of all the work being done by the State Government including oxygen for the convenience of covid patients, capacity of beds in hospitals, vaccination campaign,” Thakur wrote on Twitter. 

?????? ???????????? @narendramodi ?? ?? ?? ??? ?? ?????? ?? ?????? ??? ????? ?? ?????? ?? ???? ??? ??????? ???

???? ???????????? ?? ?? ????? ?????? ?? ????????? ???????,????????? ??? ??????? ?? ??????,??????? ?????? ???? ?????? ????? ?????? ??? ?? ??? ??? ??????? ?? ???? ???????

— Jairam Thakur (@jairamthakurbjp) May 8, 2021

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday spoke to Tamil Nadu Cheif Minister M K Stalin on the coronavirus situation in the state. M K Stalin on Saturday announced a complete lockdown across the state to curb the spread of Covid-19. The lockdown will be in force from 4 am on May 10 till 4 am on May 24. 

Modi has been interacting with chief ministers over telephone for the last couple of days to take stock of the pandemic situation in their states.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Saturday announced a complete lockdown across the state to curb the spread of Covid-19. The lockdown will be in force from 4 am on May 10 till 4 am on May 24.

In view of the full lockdown, shops and other entities will be open this weekend (May 8 and 9) from 6 am to 9 pm. The government had previously announced a curfew on Sundays, which has been relaxed on May 9 in view of the impending lockdown.

E-registration is mandatory for travellers entering Tamil Nadu from other states and countries by flights, trains or by road.

Read complete guidelines here 

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday said the number of COVID-19 vaccination centres will be increased three times in Delhi and demanded that the Centre supply of around 2.6 crore vaccine doses for inoculation of all people in the national capital in the next three months. Currently, vaccination is going on at 100 centres in Delhi. The number of centres will be increased to 250-300 by the Delhi government, he said in an online briefing. In order to vaccinate all people in Delhi, over three crore doses will be required, out of which around 40 lakh have already been received, he said. (With PTI inputs)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday spoke to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on the coronavirus situation in the state, government sources said. After reporting an uptick in infections initially, the state has not started recording a decline with covid cases. Infections reduced by over 8,000 in the last 24 hours. Maharashtra is yet to induce a covid-19 lockdown, but has strict curbs in place.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said that his government can inoculate people within 3 months if 80-85 lakh doses of vaccine are given to Delhi every month. “To complete vaccination within 3 months, we need to vaccinate 3 lakh people every day. Currently, we are inoculating 1 lakh people in a day, he said.

Delhi needs at least 85 lakh vaccines per month for the next three moths to vaccinate people within the next 3 months, saud Delhi CM @ArvindKejriwal
Delhi has got 40 lakh vaccines so far.
Appeals to the centre to provide more vaccines urgently @IndianExpress

— Mallica Joshi (@mallicajoshi) May 8, 2021

Urging Centre to provide more vaccines to Delhi, CM Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said that Delhi has only 5-6 days of vaccinations left. “We have vaccines only for 5-6 days now. In Delhi, around 1 lakh people are getting a jab everyday. People from NCR are also coming to get vaccines. We are going to scale up the number of vaccination centres in schools from ~ 100 to 300," he said.

"We have vaccines only for 5-6 days now. In Delhi, around 1 lakh people are getting a jab everyday. People from NCR are also coming to get vaccines. We are going to scale up the number of vaccination centres in schools from ~ 100 to 300," said @ArvindKejriwal @IndianExpress

— Mallica Joshi (@mallicajoshi) May 8, 2021

THOUGH COVID-19 cases and deaths have been rising in Pimpri-Chinchwad for the last two months, the industrial city has also seen over lakh citizens defeating the coronavirus in 14 months. The recovery rate is close to 90 per cent, which is highest in Pune district, health officials said.

According to the figures released by the PCMC health department, till May 8, as many as 2,00,633 people recovered from coronavirus since the first positive case was reported on March 10, 2020. Officials said till date, 2,26,072 people in the city have been infected with coronavirus, giving the city a recovery rate of close to 90 per cent.

Health officials said till date, 11,42,191 tests have been conducted. Of these, 9,12, 234 have tested negative. Officials said till Friday evening, Pimpri-Chinchwad had around 23,000 active cases. Of these, just over 15,000 are in home isolation and around 7000 hospitalised. 

Stating that over-reliance on imported drugs must be avoided, the Bombay High Court has asked the Centre and the Maharashtra government to create awareness about suitable alternatives to foreign-manufactured medicines, such as Tocilizumab, that can be used for treating COVID-19 patients.

A bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice G S Kulkarni said that in light of the shortage of Tocilizumab, the government must tell the citizens about other locally- manufactured, cheaper, and widely-available drugs that can be used instead. "The Government of India, having placed on record its stand that Itolizumab, Dexamethasone, and Methylprednisolone are equivalent and/or better than Tocilizumab, it is high time all-out efforts are made by it as well as the state to remove the incorrect public perception that has since been created that only Tocilizumab can treat the inflammatory burst conditions in COVID-19 patients," the high court said. (PTI)

Actor Kangana Ranaut on Saturday said she has tested positive for the novel coronavirus and is under home quarantine. The 34-year-old actor, whose Twitter account was permanently suspended for repeated violations of rules earlier this week, shared her diagnosis on Instagram. "I was feeling tired and weak with slight burning sensation in my eyes for past few days, was hoping to go to Himachal so got my test done yesterday and today the result came I am covid positive. "I have quarantined myself, I had no idea this virus is having a party in my body," she wrote.

Days after eight Asiatic lions in the Hyderabad zoo tested positive for COVID-19, authorities in Punjab announced that all zoos and wildlife sanctuaries in the state will remain closed till May 31 as a precautionary measure. Zoo officials said animals were being closely monitored. All zoos and wildlife sanctuaries in Punjab will remain closed for the public till May 31, state officials said. At Mahendra Chaudhary Zoological Park, popularly known as Chhatbir Zoo, about 20 km from here and spread over 505 acres, officials said the animals were being closely monitored.

A disconcerting feature of the second wave of Covid-19 is the surge in cases in rural India. Compared with the first peak in September last year, the number of cases in India’s hinterland or backward regions has quadrupled, and so has the number of the dead.

The districts covered by the Backward Region Grant Fund (BRGF) — 243 of the 272 for which data are available — had more than 39.16 lakh people infected with the disease as on May 5. This is more than four times the 9.5 lakh infections at the peak of the first wave on September 16, 2020.

The burden of active cases in these districts is also much higher in the second wave, which is yet to peak. The active caseload right now is more than 4.2 times the peak active caseload in the first wave. More than 7.15 lakh people in these districts are currently infected with the disease, putting under extreme stress the sub-optimal healthcare infrastructure in rural districts.

India recorded over 4 lakh new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours ending 8 am Saturday, taking the country's total caseload to over 2.18 crore. Out of these, over 37 lakh cases are currently active while over 1.79 crore people have recovered. With 4,187 new deaths, the toll now stands at over 2.38 lakh.

As coronavirus cases continue to soar in the country, the new DMK government in Tamil Nadu on Saturday announced a complete lockdown in the state from May 10 to May 14, becoming the latest state to do so. Before this, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa Friday evening announced a complete lockdown across the state to arrest the spread of Covid-19. Kerala, Rajasthan are some of the other states to go under complete lockdowns in the second wave.

The second wave of coronavirus in India has seen oxygen turning into gold as every other state has urged the Centre to increase their supply. Not only Delhi but states such as Kerala, Punjab, West Bengal and Karnataka have put forth a demand before the Centre to increase their quota of medical oxygen. However, during a hearing in the Supreme Court over Delhi’s oxygen shortage, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, had submitted that if the central government increases the supply of a certain state, it will have to divert it from other states’ quota.

Delhi

On Friday, the Supreme Court Friday directed the Centre to supply 700 metric tonnes of medical oxygen to Delhi every day, meeting the capital city’s longstanding demand which has seen over 7,000 people losing the battle to Covid-19 since April.

Karnataka

Following the lines of the Delhi High Court, the Karnataka High Court also directed the Centre to increase the medical oxygen allocation to the state to 1200 MT per day from the present 965 MT.

West Bengal

Days after assuming office for a third successive term, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Friday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking an increased supply of medical oxygen for Covid-19 treatment. 

Tamil Nadu

Newly sworn-in chief minister of Tamil Nadu M K Stalin Friday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to increase the oxygen supply to the state besides making available containers and trains to transport the life saving gas.

Kerala

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also wrote to the PM, asking him to provide at least 1,000 tonnes of imported Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO).

Punjab

On April 25, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh wrote to Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan, asking him to increase the state’s medical oxygen quota.

Uttar Pradesh on Friday reported the highest number of deaths due to Covid, with 372 people succumbing to the virus in 24 hours across the state. The single-day jump in deaths had hit a record high of 357 on Wednesday. The state reported a total of 28,076 fresh Covid cases in the past 24 hours taking the total number of active cases in the state to 2,54,118.

The highest number of deaths were reported from Kanpur Nagar with 31, while Hapur reported 30 deaths in the past 24 hours. The district’s total death toll due to Covid was 141 after the 30 fresh deaths on Friday. The state has now reported a total of 14,873 deaths due the virus.

Amid growing calls for lockdown alongside a sharp rise in Covid cases across the country, there has been a continuing rise in cash with public as it hit an all-time high of Rs 28.03 lakh crore in the fortnight ended April 23, 2021.

According to the data released by the Reserve Bank of India, the currency with public rose by Rs 15,919 crore in the fortnight ended April 23 to cross the Rs 28 lakh crore mark for the first time. In the previous fortnight ended April 9, cash with public had risen by Rs 30,191 crore. Since February 1, the cash with public is up by Rs 96,776 crore.

Describing the surge of COVID-19 infections and deaths in India as "nothing short of heartbreaking", Vice President Kamala Harris said on Friday that India's welfare is critically important to the United States.

Pledging that the Biden administration is determined to help India in its hour of need, Harris said that the entire government machinery has been galvanised to help the country in this hour of crisis.

"At the beginning of the pandemic, when our hospital beds were stretched, India sent assistance. And today, we are determined to help India in its hour of need," Harris said in her remarks at the State Department's Diaspora outreach event on US COVID Relief for India.

"We do this as friends of India, as members of the Asian Quad, and as part of the global community. I believe that if we continue to work together " across nations and sectors " we will all get through this," she said. (PTI)

Countries worldwide wrestling with new coronavirus surges are trying to ensure they aren’t hit by an India style disaster They face many of the same risks including large populations that have shirked restrictions and fragile health systems shaken under the strain.

In a province along the Nile in southern Egypt hospitals have been flooded with COVID19 patients a main hot spot in a third spike swelling across the country Doctors in Sohag province warn the health system there could collapse even as the government rushes in new supplies.

“My estimate is that there is no family in Sohag that does not have a corona case,” said Dr. Mahmoud Fahmy Mansour head of the provinces doctors union. “We lost five physicians in one week.”

He said a scenario like India was a possibility but God willing it is a very far possibility. Read more

Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh Friday authorised deputy commissioners of all districts to declare curfew in their respective jurisdictions after the state reported a new record highest single-day spike with 600 positive Covid-19 cases.

The development comes following a virtual meeting chaired by the chief minister to review the prevailing pandemic situation in the state. The meeting was attended by DCs, superintendents of police, chief medical officers of different districts and doctors of RIMS, JNIMS and Covid care centres.

Singh expressed serious concern over the sudden rise in the number of casualties and positive cases in the past couple of days. He urged the district administrations and the doctors to strengthen measures to save lives and put in their best efforts to flatten the Covid curve. Read this report by Jimmy Leivon

The second wave of coronavirus in India has seen oxygen turning into gold as every other state has urged the Centre to increase their supply. However, during a hearing in the Supreme Court over Delhi's oxygen shortage, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, had submitted that if the central government increases the supply of a certain state, it will have to divert it from other states' quota.

At the time of the first coronavirus lockdown in the country in March 2020, the Centre had taken over the power to allocate oxygen to states based on their demand by invoking the Disaster Management Act, 2005. This means that even if a state has the required infrastructure to produce, store, and transport oxygen, it will have to ask the Centre to provide the required supply of oxygen.

Which states have raised the issue of oxygen shortage with the Centre? Read here

Revised guidelines issued by Karnataka government on #karnatakalockdown ? @IndianExpress pic.twitter.com/fYTPflEO1Y

— Darshan Devaiah B P ? (@DarshanDevaiahB) May 7, 2021

The Karnataka government has announced the extension of Covid-lockdown already in place in the state from May 10 to May 24. Essential services allowed from 6 am to 10 am every day. All commercial activities prohibited.

#JUSTIN: #karnatakalockdown announced by @CMofKarnataka BS Yediyurappa starting from 10 May 6 am to 24 May. @IndianExpress

— Darshan Devaiah B P ? (@DarshanDevaiahB) May 7, 2021

Delhi government has decided to organise a mass Covid vaccination drive for all the media houses (Electronic Media/Digital Media/Print Media) free of cost. The inoculation drive will be carried out at their offices.

Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan: "Nobody will go hungry during the lockdown. Next week onwards free food kits will be distributed for all families and guest workers. Food will be delivered to the needy from People's Restaurants and Community Kitchens through Local Self Government Institutions."

Nobody will go hungry during the lockdown. Next week onwards free food kits will be distributed for all families and guest workers. Food will be delivered to the needy from People's Restaurants and Community Kitchens through Local Self Government Institutions.

— Pinarayi Vijayan (@vijayanpinarayi) May 7, 2021

Some 4,000 government health care workers in Indore in Madhya Pradesh on Friday evening withdrew their stir that began over the district collector allegedly misbehaving with a senior woman doctor.

The workers' stir was called off after Collector Manish Singh expressed regret to district health officer Dr Purnima Gadariya post several rounds of meetings during the day.

The truce was hammered out by state water resources minister Tulsiram Silawat, who is in charge of the COVID-19 containment efforts in Indore, said officials.

"I had a telephonic talk with Gadariya over problems at the fever clinic in Khudail and expressed displeasure. Today, I told her I regret it if any of my words hurt her. We are here to serve the people and there is no place for personal ego and prestige," Singh told reporters after the meeting. (PTI)

As many as 1.84 lakh people in the 18-44 age group have received the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine since the inoculation of this category started on May 3, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said on Friday.

According to Delhi government's health bulletin, 1,14,657 beneficiaries were vaccinated in the last 24 hours, of which 80,306 received their first dose.    

"In Delhi 1.84 lakh youth have got the 1st dose of vaccine, in first 4 days of 18-45 yrs age group opening. In total 38.88 lakh people have got the vaccine in all age groups till yesterday evening," Sisodia tweeted. (PTI)

The Chandigarh administration has decided to impose a weekend lockdown again to check the coronavirus spread.

The administration had imposed a weekend lockdown last week too while it ordered the closure of shops selling non-essential items till May 11. It had imposed a daily night curfew from 6 pm to 5 am. 

A weekend lockdown will again be imposed in the Union Territory, beginning 5 am on Saturday and will continue till 5 am on Monday, according to an order after a review meeting here. However, during this period, morning walk will be allowed from 6 am to 9 am.

The shops selling essential items like dairy products and vegetables will remain open for home delivery up to 2 pm. No person will leave home or move on foot or by vehicle or travel or stand or roam around on any road or public place during the lockdown hours, the order issued by District Magistrate Mandip Singh Brar said. (PTI)

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has announced a statewide curfew starting May 9 till May 23. Grocery shops would remain open from 7 am to 1 pm. Takeaway kitchens would be open from 7 am to 7 pm, medical supplies to be available as well. 

"Tourists entering Goa will need to have a negative RT-PCR test report or proof of vaccination," he said.

Goa CM announces state-wide curfew from May 9 to May 23. Grocery shops to be open from 7 am to 1 pm, takeway kitchens from 7 am to 7 pm, medical supplies to be available. @IndianExpress

— Mayura Janwalkar (@mayura) May 7, 2021

Principal Scientific Advisor to Prime Minister: "If we take strong measures, the third wave may not happen in all the places or indeed anywhere at all. It depends much on how effectively the guidance is implemented at the local level, in the states, in districts and in the cities everywhere." (ANI)

Addressing the press, Arti Ahuja, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Health, said, "Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Jharkhand are the states/UTs where cases were increasing earlier but are now plateauing gradually." 

"When we see states where the trend is going upwards, those states are Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Haryana, Odisha and Uttarakhand." (ANI)

All hospitals with a capacity of more than 50 beds in Gurgaon have been directed to make arrangements for oxygen supply themselves by either setting up oxygen plants or making arrangements for PSA oxygen generation, said officials during a meeting on Friday.

At the meeting, it was also revealed that a portal will soon be created to make the process of procuring oxygen cylinders smoother for those in home isolation, and six oxygen plants will be set up in the district in the coming weeks to improve the oxygen supply.

Speaking during the meeting, held virtually to discuss the Covid situation in Gurgaon, Deputy Commissioner Yash Garg said, “Continuous efforts are being made to increase oxygen supply in the district. Instructions have been given to hospitals with more than 50 beds capacity to manage their own oxygen needs, whether through liquid oxygen plants or by arranging a PSA. A letter has also been sent to them to this effect.” Report by Sakshi Dayal

The Delhi government has directed the heads of all the hospitals admitting Covid-19 patients to update the status of the beds on Delhi Corona App frequently but not later than every two hours. The order was issued after there was a delay by the hospitals in updating the app, causing trouble to the patients.

An order issued by special secretary, health and family welfare, S M Ali stated “It has been reported that many hospitals are not updating the status of different categories of beds regularly on the designated portal and Delhi Corona App. This is creating hardship to the public who, in the absence of reliable information, are forced to spend time and energy in searching for vacant beds and are subjected to great harassment and agony.” Read this report by Astha Saxena

Amid a rise in oxygen demand owing to spiralling COVID-19 cases, Haryana's Home and Health Minister Anil Vij on Friday said control and management of all oxygen generation plants should be handed over to military or paramilitary forces for their safety and smooth functioning.

Later, according a statement, Vij said if an oxygen plant stops functioning due to any reason it can cost lives. "Control and management of all Oxygen Generation Plants should be handed over to military or paramilitary forces for safety and smooth functioning of the plants," Vij said in a tweet.

On Wednesday, Vij had said 60 oxygen plants will be set up in the state with the support of the central government. According to a government release, the plants will be installed at various government hospitals with bed capacity of 30, 50, 100 and 200. (PTI)

The Karnataka government has decided to cap the price of CT-scan and digital X-ray in private hospitals and labs at Rs 1,500 and Rs 250 respectively, Health Minister Sudhakar K said on Friday. He said CT-scan or X-ray is becoming increasingly necessary to detect COVID-19.

"We have received complaints that some hospitals and labs are exploiting people by charging high prices," Sudhakar said adding that the government's decision is aimed at checking this.

The Minister warned that strict action would be taken against hospitals and labs which violate rules and charge high prices. (PTI)

Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Friday said a lockdown to curb the rise in COVID-19 cases could be inevitable if people do not cooperate. "People are not following the Janata Curfew properly. They are not abiding by our warnings. Hence, lockdown could be inevitable," he told reporters near Annamma Devi Temple here ahead of a crucial meeting later Friday in view of the alarming rise in coronavirus cases.

According to him, the government will finalise in a day or two about the stringent measures required to control COVID. "If people wish that stringent measures should not be taken, then people should cooperate by wearing masks and maintaining social distancing," the Chief Minister said. (PTI)

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Friday announced a covid pandemic time relief of Rs 2,000 for the people of the state, a cut in Aavin milk rate and free travel for women in state-run buses, all promises made by his DMK ahead of the April 6 Assembly elections.

Issuing his first set of orders after taking over as CM, Stalin also announced bringing covid treatment in private hospitals under a government insurance scheme, to provide succour to such people, an official release here said. It recalled the party's promise of providing Rs 4,000 for rice ration card holders to aid citizens affected due to the pandemic and help them with their livelihood.

"To implement that, the Chief Minister has signed the order to provide the first instalment of Rs 2,000 in May itself at Rs 4,153.69 crore, covering 2,07,67,000 ration card holders," it said. (With PTI)

As the national capital continues to struggle with a deadly second wave, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will hold a high level meeting over the current covid situation. Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, Health Minister Satyendar Jain and other officials will also be present for the meet.

Uttar Pradesh BJP MLA Dal Bahadur Kori died due to post covid complications at a private hospital in Lucknow, family sources said on Friday.(With PTI)

Karnataka's allocation of Remdesivir has been increased to 2,62,346 from May 10 to May 16. Stating this in a tweet on Friday, Karnataka Health Minister Sudhakar K thanked the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Minister D V Sadananda Gowda for their continued support to strengthen the State's battle against Covid-19 pandemic. Karnataka's active COVID cases breached the five lakh mark with 49,058 fresh infections, including 23,706 in Bengaluru Urban district, on Thursday. (PTI)

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday with four urgent issues to address: scientifically tracking the virus and its mutations using genome sequencing; assessing all vaccines against new mutations; rapidly vaccinating the population; and transparently keeping the world informed of the findings. He said the government’s failures in containing the pandemic have made “another devastating national lockdown almost inevitable”.

Gandhi’s letter is the second to the Prime Minister amid the second wave of Covid-19 in India.

Slamming the Modi government over its handling of the coronavirus situation, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday said the Centre has failed the people of India as the “country is crippled by political leadership that has no empathy for its citizens”.

Addressing the virtual Congress Parliamentary Party meeting, Gandhi sais,  “the nation is sinking under the Narendra Modi government’s indifference. Tackling the Covid crisis requires able and visionary leadership. However, the battle against the virus transcends political differences and the country will have to fight this together,” she added.

Any person arriving in Delhi from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana will have to produce a negative Covid-19 test or stay in government quarantine for 2 weeks, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority said through an order. This comes in response to a virulent variant of the virus to have recently been found in the two southern states, the order said.

New COVID strain: Those arriving from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana to Delhi need to produce negative report or be in govt quarantine for 14 days.
.."virulent variant of COVID-19 is reported to have been found recently...", order says. @IndianExpress pic.twitter.com/OSanzJhn2a

— Avishek Dastidar (@avishekgd) May 7, 2021