Amid a steep rise in coronavirus cases, senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal on Sunday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to declare a national health emergency. The former Union minister also called on the Election Commission to declare a moratorium on election rallies in view of the sharp rise in COVID-19 cases.
Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Sunday suspended all his remaining public rallies in West Bengal in view of the prevailing Covid-19 situation, and urged other political leaders to think about the consequences of holding large rallies in the current circumstances.
Underlining the “alarming rise in daily number of active cases" and “a sharp growth of 10.2% in the number of deaths”, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan Saturday said “the widening gap between daily new cases and daily new recoveries reflects that the infection is spreading at a much faster rate than recoveries with consistently growing active cases”.
At a meeting to review the availability of oxygen, ventilators, manpower, medicines and hospital beds in 11 states/UT reporting a surge in Covid-19 cases, Harsh Vardhan said: “India is currently reporting the sharpest growth rate of 7.6% in new Covid cases, which is 1.3 times higher than case growth rate of 5.5% reported in June 2020.” He said the Centre is rushing 6,303 additional ventilators to six states of concern: 1121 ventilators to Maharashtra, 1700 to Uttar Pradesh, 1500 to Jharkhand, 1600 to Gujarat, 152 to Madhya Pradesh, and 230 to Chhattisgarh.
Maharashtra recorded its highest-ever single-day spike with 67,123 cases on Saturday. Delhi and Kerala too registered their biggest one-day count with 24,000 and 13,835 infections respectively. With 120 deaths, Uttar Pradesh reported its largest one-day toll.
After 11 states and Union Territories raised the demand for oxygen cylinders, ventilators, vaccine doses and Remdesivir, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for a review meeting with government officials to take a stock of the Covid situation and vaccine availability in the country. The states and UTs including Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, West Bengal, Delhi, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh, raised the demands during a high-level meeting chaired by Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan. "Many of them raised the issue of dovetailing the medical oxygen supply lines and capping of prices of essential drugs like Remdesivir which has been sold in the black market at exorbitant prices. Double mutant strain in Maharashtra was a key point of concern. The Delhi government requested for additional beds in central government hospitals as was done in 2020 to help tide over the emergent health crisis," the ministry said in a statement after the meeting.
Railway Minister Piyush Goyal Sunday said, "The patient should use as much oxygen as they need. In many places there is news that oxygen is being given even when it is not needed."
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Maharashtra reports 68,631 COVID-19 cases –– highest one-day case count till date. A total of 503 deaths push toll to 60,473, said the state health department.
Bihar has decided to impose night curfew from 9 pm to 5 am and extended closure of schools/colleges/coaching centres till May 15.
Tamil Nadu government has announced night curfew from April 20, between 10 pm and 4 am. It also called for 'Sunday lockdown', postponed Class 12 public exam, and banned visit to beaches, zoos, all tourist destinations like Nilgiris and Kodaikanal.
Amid scute shortage of oxygen in Delhi, CM Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday alleged that Delhi's quota of oxygen has been diverted to other states. "Delhi facing acute shortage of oxygen. In view of sharply increasing cases, Del needs much more than normal supply. Rather than increasing supply, our normal supply has been sharply reduced and Delhi’s quota has been diverted to other states," he tweeted.
In order to meet the oxygen demand across the country, the Railways will run 'Oxygen Express' to transport liquid medical oxygen and oxygen cylinders to different places, the national transporter said Sunday. Empty tankers will start their journey from Kalamboli and Boisar railway stations in and near Mumbai on Monday to load liquid medical oxygen at Vizag, Jamshedpur, Rourkela and Bokaro, officials said.
Delhi's Connaught Place wears a deserted look since Saturday as the national capital observes weekend curfew.
Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar on Sunday underlined the need for more stringent action in Bengaluru in view of rising coronavirus cases leading to speculations about lockdown in the coming days. "There is a need for more stringent measures in Bengaluru. This is my clear opinion and the same will be communicated to the Chief Minister for discussion," Sudhakar told reporters in Bengaluru after meeting Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, who is undergoing treatment in a private hospital for COVID-19. To a question if he discussed imposing lockdown in Bengaluru with the Chief Minister, Sudhakar said, "I have discussed with him regarding it. Tomorrow after the all-party meeting, the Chief Minister may support stringent measures." The Minister's statement came ahead of the all-party meeting on Monday. --PTI
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi once again seeking the Centre’s permission to “purchase vaccination doses directly with state funds and launch a massive free vaccination campaign in the state covering the entire population”.
“You may recall that I had written to you on February 24, 2021 to allow the state to purchase vaccination doses directly with state funds and launch a massive free vaccination campaign in the state covering the entire population,” she wrote. Read more
The Delhi government has urged the railways to arrange up to 5,000 beds by deploying COVID-care coaches at the Shakur Basti and the Anand Vihar stations in view of the rising number of coronavirus cases in the national capital. Over 25,000 new COVID-19 cases have been reported in Delhi and the positivity rate has increased to nearly 30 per cent in the last 24 hours, according to data shared by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. He also said that less than 100 ICU beds are vacant in Delhi hospitals, and the situation is worsening every moment. In a letter to Railway Board Chairman Suneet Sharma, Delhi Chief Secretary Vijay Kumar Dev said there has been a tremendous increase in COVID-19 cases in the national capital in the recent past, resulting in high number of serious cases requiring treatment in hospitals. --PTI
Former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and his wife Asha Hooda tested positive for COVID-19 on Sunday. The 73-year-old Congress leader and his wife are in Delhi and they will get themselves admitted to a hospital in Gurgaon as a precautionary measure, party MLA B B Batra told PTI. "Hooda had mild fever on Saturday. Later, he and his wife got themselves tested for COVID-19 and their report was positive," he said. When contacted, Hooda told PTI over phone that he had fever but was feeling okay. He said that his and wife's COVID-19 test reports have come positive. --PTI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday reviewed the COVID-19 situation in Varanasi, his Lok Sabha constituency, and stressed the need for vaccination of everyone over 45 years of age. He asked the local administration to help people with full sensitivity and asserted that the cooperation of society as well as the government is necessary to curb the pandemic. According to a statement, Modi emphasised on implementing 'tracking, tracing and testing', saying this has to be fully followed to check the virus' spread in the same manner the first wave was curbed. Speaking to local officials and people's representatives, the prime minister asked the administration to ensure that preventive measures like social distancing and the use of masks are practised. "The prime minister underlined the importance of the vaccination exercise and asked the administration to raise awareness among everyone over 45 years about it," the statement said. --PTI
The government plans to double the production of antiviral drug remdesivir to around 3 lakh vials per day over the next 15 days, to make it available readily for the treatment of COVID-19. Minister of State of Chemicals and Fertilisers Mansukh L Mandaviya tweeted that the process has already started to enhance the production of remdesivir in the country. "We are trying to increase production of remdesivir injection and also that its price comes down. Currently, we are producing 1.5 lakh vials per day. In the next fifteen days, it will be doubled to 3 lakh vials per day," he said on Twitter. The government has also given permission to 20 plants to produce the antiviral drug, he added. Already, remdesivir is being rolled out of 20 plants in the country, Mandaviya said. "In the next few days, we are trying to maximise the remdesivir production. The drug companies have also reduced retail prices of the medicine and patients will benefit from it," he added. --PTI
Former PM Manmohan Singh on Sunday wrote to PM Modi flagging serious Covid situations in Congress-ruled states. Flagging vaccine shortage, he asked the PM to ensure the following
1. Ramp up vaccine production
2. Emergency apporval of all vaccine candidates
3. All equipment, medicines, instrument and support infrastructure needed to fight Covid are completely exempted from GST
4. With possibility of lockdown round the corner, start the scheme of guaranteed monthly income so that Rs 6,000 is transferred to all eligible people so that it can help reduce the financial hardship during economic shutdown
5. Safe transportation and accomodation of migrants
Drawing attention to the worsening Covid-19 situation of national capital, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking for beds and oxygen cylinders for patients. Kejriwal requested Modi that 7,000 out of 10,000 beds in Delhi’s Central government hospitals be reserved for Covid patients.
Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil on Sunday warned of action against those violating the restrictions imposed by the state government to contain the spread of Covid-19.
The tough new measures, which exclude essential services, came into force on Wednesday night and will remain in force till 7 am on May 1. Section 144 of CrPC, prohibiting assembly of five or more people at one spot, will remain in force during the period.
"In order to curb the rising number of COVID-19 infections, curfew order and restrictions should be effectively followed. Action will be taken against those who violate orders," Walse Patil tweeted. (PTI)
Mumbai police summoned a director of Bruck Pharma, a Daman-based pharmaceutical manufacturing company that manufactures Remdesivir for questioning about a huge quantity of the drug stored in Mumbai.
The person, who the police did not identify, was let go from the Vile Parle police station where he was questioned for about 45 minutes.
The police said the Remdesivir stockpile was going to be illegally flown out abroad by air cargo, though export of of the drug has been banned by the government.
But it appears that the stock had been arranged by the BJP for distribution in Maharashtra. On learning that company director was being questioned, former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and another top BJP leader Praveen Darekar rushed to the police station.
Mumbai police summoned a director of Bruck Pharma, a Daman-based pharmaceutical manufacturing company that manufactures Remdesivir for questioning about a huge quantity of the drug stored in Mumbai.
The person, who the police did not identify, was let go from the Vile Parle police station where he was questioned for about 45 minutes.
The police said the Remdesivir stockpile was going to be illegally flown out abroad by air cargo, though export of of the drug has been banned by the government.
But it appears that the stock had been arranged by the BJP for distribution in Maharashtra. On learning that company director was being questioned, former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and another top BJP leader Praveen Darekar rushed to the police station.
Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Sunday took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, thanking him for sparing “a little time” amidst the “urgent war to conquer West Bengal”, to review the coronavirus situation in the country.
He also criticised the prime minister for his “Didi-O-Didi” remark, asking if this is the manner in which the prime minister should refer to a chief minister.
“Thank you Prime Minister for sparing a little time for Covid amidst the urgent war to conquer WEST BENGAL and annexe it to the BJP’s empire,” Chidambaram said on Twitter.
His remarks came after Modi chaired a COVID-19 review meeting with government officials on Saturday, amid a big surge in infection cases in the country, with over 2 lakh cases being reported everyday for the past four days.
Haryana's Leader of Opposition and former CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda and his wife Asha Hooda have tested positive for Covid-19. Both are likely to be admitted in Medanta, Gurgaon.
Their son Deepender Hooda had tested positive last year and recovered.
The Union Health Ministry Sunday said that the daily positivity rate in India has doubled from 8 per cent to 16.69 per cent in last 12 days.
At a review meeting in Varanasi on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reiterated the importance of masks and urged all to ensure 'do gaj ki doori' (social distancing).
Modi said that as a representative of Varanasi, he takes constant feedback from public and in the last 5-6 years, medical infrastructure has advanced in Varanasi that has helped in the fight against Covid-19.
The Union Health Ministry Sunday said India took only 92 days to reach the mark of 12-crore vaccinations, the fastest country to do so.
It is followed by the US which took 97 days and China which took 108 days.
The cumulative number of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered in the country has crossed 12 crore as part of the world's largest vaccination drive, it said.
Cumulatively, 12,26,22,590 vaccine doses have been administered through 18,15,325 sessions, as per the provisional report till 7 am. These include 91,28,146 healthcare workers (HCWs) who have taken the first dose and 57,08,223 HCWs who have taken the second dose, 1,12,33,415 Frontline workers (FLWs) who have received the first dose and 55,10,238 FLWs who have taken the second dose.
Besides, 4,55,94,522 and 38,91,294 beneficiaries aged above 60 have been administered the first and second dose respectively and 4,04,74,993 and 10,81,759 beneficiaries aged 45 to 60 years have taken the first and second dose respectively.
The Union Health Ministry Sunday said that the Government has written to all Central Ministries & public sector companies (PSUs) under them to dedicate their hospital beds for Covid-19 Management in States/UTs.
"The dedicated hospital wards/blocks have to be equipped with supportive/ancillary services including oxygen supported beds, ICU beds, ventilators, specialised CCUs (wherever available), lab/imaging services, kitchen etc., with dedicated health workforce," the ministry added.
Six deaths of critically ill Covid positive patients undergoing treatment at the ICU ward of Shahdol medical collage were reported early on Sunday allegedly due to shortage of oxygen supply.
In the last 25 hours, Shahdol medical college has reported 12 deaths of Covid patients.
Alarm bells started ringing at around 10 pm at Shahdol medical college as the pressure of liquid medical oxygen which has a direct supply to the hospital’s ICU unit dropped. It had about 62 patients in its ICU units.
Delhi’s positivity rate continued its upward climb with 30 per cent of those tested over the past 24 hours testing positive for Covid-19, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said.
On Saturday, this figure was around 24 per cent.Delhi saw close to 25,500 cases on Sunday, according to the CM, and the health infrastructure is under immense pressure as ICU beds and oxygen supply were running out.
“We are running out of ICU beds and all included we have less than 100 left at present. Oxygen is running out too. A private hospital told us yesterday that they had almost run out but tragedy was averted. We are asking Centre for help and getting it. We thank them for it,” Kejriwal said.
Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala Sunday held an emergency meeting with top bureaucrats of the state to discuss plans to contain the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.
According to sources at Karnataka Raj Bhavan in Bengaluru, Vala directed the top officers to take all necessary steps to bring the situation under control. “These steps included ensuring enough oxygen supply, beds and medicines for patients suffering from Covid-19,” an official said.
Chief Secretary P Ravikumar, Additional Chief Secretary to CM E V Ramana Reddy, and Additional Chief Secretary (Health & Family Welfare) Jawaid Akhtar took part in the meeting.
With 5,093 new Covid-19 cases, Telangana recorded its highest single-day case spike in the 24 hours ending 8 am Sunday.
Fifteen more people succumbed to the disease. This comes as the state has stalled its Covid-19 vaccination drive on Sunday with at least 1,077 government-run centres. The state government has assured to resume these on Monday.
Earlier on Saturday, the director of Public Health, Dr. G Srinivasa Rao said that the State was left with stocks of about 2 lakh doses which would last for a day or two. “We are getting about 2.7 lakh doses by Saturday night,” he told reporters.
With over 25,500 fresh Covid-19 cases being reported in Delhi in the last 24 hours, the positivity rate has increased from 24 per cent to nearly 30 per cent, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Sunday.
"Positivity rate increased from 24% to 30% in last 24 hours. Less than 100 ICU beds left & there's oxygen shortage. Spoke to Dr Harsh Vardhan yesterday & Amit Shah ji this morning regarding lack of beds & informed them that we're in dire need," Kejriwal said.
"Around 25,000 #COVID19 cases reported in Delhi in last 24 hours. There are 10,000 beds in Delhi, incl that of central govt. Of which, 1,800 beds currently reserved for COVID. I request Centre to allot 7,000 of 10,000 beds in view of severe COVID cases," Kejriwal further added.
The Delhi government has asked the Centre to immediately increase the oxygen supply for the national capital, a day after it recorded 24,375 cases and 167 deaths, the highest single-day spike and death toll in the city. The positivity rate was recorded at 24.56%.
“Due to higher consumption than usual, the supply of oxygen allocated to Delhi is falling drastically. Information is being received from some hospitals that they have a stock of oxygen left for a very limited time. The Delhi government has asked the Indian government to immediately increase the oxygen quota for Delhi,” tweeted deputy CM Manish Sisodia, who is also the nodal officer for Covid-19 management in Delhi.
Amid a steep rise in coronavirus cases, senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal on Sunday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to declare a national health emergency.
The former Union minister also called on the Election Commission to declare a moratorium on election rallies in view of the sharp rise in COVID-19 cases.
"COVID-19 infections faster than recoveries. Modiji: Declare a National Health Emergency. Election Commission: Declare a moratorium on election rallies. Courts: Protect people's lives," Sibal tweeted. (PTI)
The country needs to prepare for “greater uncertainty” in terms of consumer as well as investor sentiments due to the second wave of coronavirus infections, and the government will respond with fiscal measures as and when required, Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar said on Sunday.
While acknowledging that the present situation has become far more difficult than it was in the past due to rising coronavirus infections, Kumar remained hopeful that the country’s economy will grow 11 per cent in the current fiscal ending March 31, 2022.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday condoled the loss of lives in a hospital fire in Raipur and appealed to the Chhattisgarh government to provide all help to the bereaved families.
Four coronavirus patients were killed in the fire at the intensive care unit of a private hospital in Chhattisgarh's Raipur city, police said on Sunday. Authorities have ordered a probe into the incident.
"The news of fire in the ICU of a hospital in Raipur is sad. My condolences to the families who lost their loved ones," Gandhi said in a tweet in Hindi.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Sunday suspended all his impending public rallies in West Bengal in view of the prevailing Covid-19 situation, and urged other political leaders to think about the consequences of holding large rallies in the current circumstances.
Ther Union Health Ministry Sunday said 162 PSA (Pressure Swing Adsorption) oxygen plants have been sanctioned by GoI for installation in public health facilities in all states. These will augment medical oxygen capacity by 154.19 MT.
"Out of 162 PSA plants sanctioned, 33 already been installed - 5 in MP, 4 in Himachal Pradesh, 3 each in Chandigarh, Gujarat & Uttarakhand, 2 each in Bihar, Karnataka & TL; & 1 each in AP, CG, Delhi, Haryana, Kerala, Maharashtra, Puducherry, Punjab & UP," the minsitry said.
The West Bengal government Sunday formed a 4-member 'Task Force on augmentation of Covid beds in private hospitals/nursing homes' to stem a rise in coronavirus cases in the state, news agency ANI reported.
Sanjay Bansal, Secretary in Health & Family Welfare Dept will chair the task force and act as State Nodal Officer.
Engineering entrance exam JEE-Mains scheduled to be held from April 27-30 have been postponed in view of the Covid-19 situation, Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank' said on Sunday.
"Given the current #covid19 situation, I have advised @DG_NTA to postpone the JEE (Main) - 2021 April Session. I would like to reiterate that safety of our students & their academic career are @EduMinOfIndia's and my prime concerns right now," Nishank tweeted.
According to an official order by the National Testing Agency (NTA), "looking at the present situation of COVID-19 pandemic and also taking into account the safety and well being of candidates and examination functionaries, it has been decided to postpone JEE-(Main) April session".
Outside the trauma centre of King George’s Medical University in Lucknow is a triage area of sorts with around 20 beds and some basic medical equipment. This is where every Covid protocol in the book vanishes the minute a patient is wheeled in — there is no restriction on movement, no one is questioned or scanned for temperature, and social distancing is rendered meaningless.
With 1,50,676 active cases, the second highest in the country, behind only Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh’s already frail health infrastructure is stretched further. Most hospitals in Lucknow are reporting acute shortage of ICU and ventilator beds.
Sitting on one of the beds at the triage is Lucknow resident Vikas Verma, 38. Having tested positive for the coronavirus, Verma says he has been waiting for two days for a bed in the hospital’s Covid ward that has around 520 beds — 427 ICU and 133 with ventilators.
Outside the trauma centre of King George’s Medical University in Lucknow is a triage area of sorts with around 20 beds and some basic medical equipment. This is where every Covid protocol in the book vanishes the minute a patient is wheeled in — there is no restriction on movement, no one is questioned or scanned for temperature, and social distancing is rendered meaningless.
With 1,50,676 active cases, the second highest in the country, behind only Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh’s already frail health infrastructure is stretched further. Most hospitals in Lucknow are reporting acute shortage of ICU and ventilator beds.
Sitting on one of the beds at the triage is Lucknow resident Vikas Verma, 38. Having tested positive for the coronavirus, Verma says he has been waiting for two days for a bed in the hospital’s Covid ward that has around 520 beds — 427 ICU and 133 with ventilators.
Authorities have ordered an investigation after four coronavirus patients were killed in a fire at the intensive care unit of a private hospital in Chhattisgarh's Raipur city, police said on Sunday.
Raipur Collector Bharathi Dasan has ordered an investigation into the incident. Officials have been directed to conduct safety check at all coronavirus hospitals in the city.
The fire broke out at Raipur's Rajdhani hospital on Saturday, police said.
"Four persons died in the incident, one from fire injuries and three due to suffocation," a police official said, adding a case of negligence will be registered against the owners of the hospital.
The fire broke due to short-circuit in a fan and spread in other wards, police said. (PTI)
Authorities have ordered an investigation after four coronavirus patients were killed in a fire at the intensive care unit of a private hospital in Chhattisgarh's Raipur city, police said on Sunday.
Raipur Collector Bharathi Dasan has ordered an investigation into the incident. Officials have been directed to conduct safety check at all coronavirus hospitals in the city.
The fire broke out at Raipur's Rajdhani hospital on Saturday, police said.
"Four persons died in the incident, one from fire injuries and three due to suffocation," a police official said, adding a case of negligence will be registered against the owners of the hospital.
The fire broke due to short-circuit in a fan and spread in other wards, police said. (PTI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair a meeting at 11 am on Sunday to review the Covid-19 situation in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.
The meeting will be attended by top officials, local administration and doctors who are involved in fighting coronavirus in Varanasi, Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said.
The first alarm bell rang on the afternoon of April 12 at Shree Ashirwad Hospital, a Covid-19 nursing home in Badlapur, a satellite town 50 km east of Mumbai.
For over a month, six giant oxygen cylinders have been stationed on the footpath outside the hospital entrance, and many smaller ones have been jostling for space in the narrow corridors of the hospital. That day, most were empty, awaiting replacement, but the vendor had no stock to supply. The hospital had 47 Covid-19 patients, all on oxygen support, and six hours of oxygen left.
One doctor began making frantic calls to families of six ICU patients, asking them to find another hospital, and another began calling hospitals to check if they had spare cylinders or beds. As it turned out, 50 hospitals in Badlapur, Ambernath, Ulhasnagar, Kalyan and Dombivali (all municipal corporations in Thane) were fast running out of oxygen. Their common supplier, S K Agencies, was making desperate calls to his vendors for liquid medical oxygen (LMO).
Weekend lockdown emptied streets & markets in Chandigarh, to curb the spread of coronavirus.
The union territory reported 431 new cases yesterday, taking the case tally to 33,309.
Streets wore a deserted look in Lucknow as Uttar Pradesh observes Sunday lockdown amid a rise in Covid-19 cases. Below are some visuals from Hazratganj and Vidhan Sabha Marg.
More than 360 cases have been registered and 164 people arrested for violations of the ongoing weekend curfew imposed by the Delhi government amid a surge in coronavirus cases, police said on Saturday.
"On Saturday from 8 am to 8 pm, a total of 363 FIRs have been registered and 164 people were arrested," Delhi Police PRO Chinmoy Biswal said.
The weekend curfew in in force from Friday 10 PM to Monday morning.
Police said that 2,432 challans were issued to people for violations of the curfew. Over 1,900 people were booked for allegedly violating the night curfew. According to data shared by the police, 72 cases were registered from 10 pm on Friday to 5 am on Saturday. (PTI)
The Covid-19 tally in Pune district rose by 12,836 in the last 24 hours to touch 7,09,769, an official said on Saturday. The day also saw 100 deaths, taking the toll to 11,312, while 5,609 people were discharged post recovery, he added.
Of the new cases, 6,006 are in Pune city, which now has a count of 3,60,803, and 2,982 were in Pimpri Chinchwad, taking its tally to 1,80,916. The caseload in the district's rural and cantonment areas is 1,68,050, he added. (PTI)
The Odisha government on Saturday said all returnees from the Kumbh Mela will have to undergo a 14-day quarantine period, apart from RT-PCR tests before setting foot in the state, in an effort to rein in the spread of COVID-19.
The quarantine can be completed at home or temporary medical camps (TMC), Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) P K Jena said in an order.
Jena said the list of people, who got themselves registered with the Uttarakhand government for participating in Kumbh Mela, has been shared with collectors and municipal commissioners to ascertain their location and travel plans. (PTI)
In a major relief to employees of some sectors, including home delivery and domestic help, allowed to work amid restrictions, the PMC on Saturday exempted them from mandatory Covid-19 test as laboratories in the city are overburdened by samples of suspected patients as well as staff of sectors required to operate at present.
In its April 7 order on restrictions to be imposed in the city to contain the spread of Covid-19, the PMC made it mandatory for employees of various sectors to undertake RT-PCR test but, later on April 14, allowed any Covid-19 test to ensure infected persons do not report to work. Employees were asked to get tested every 15 days. Read More
Manipur reported 39 new cases of Covid-19 on Saturday, making it the highest single-day surge for the current year. With this, the total tally of confirmed cases in the state has climbed to 29,649.
According to Manipur Health department, of the 39 new cases, 17 were reported from Imphal West, nine from Imphal East, four from Bishnupur, two each from Kakching and Kangpokpi, and one each from Chandel, Churachandpur, Tengnoupal, Thoubal and Ukhrul. Three cases are from Central Armed Police Forces.
However, no COVID-19 related deaths were reported on Saturday and the death toll stands at 376.
As many as 14 more patients recovered on Saturday taking the number of recoveries to 29,083, the release stated. Meanwhile, the total number of active cases rose from 165 on Friday to 190 on Saturday, the release added.
As per the latest update by the health department, the total number of people vaccinated in the state is 1,04,387.
-- Jimmy Leivon reports from Manipur
Prime Minister Narendra Modi holding a review meeting on COVID-19 and vaccination.
Lower primary schools in districts which have reported more than 100 cases have been directed to be closed on account of the surge in Covid-19 cases in Assam, said health and education minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma. “As of today, this includes Kamrup (Metro), Dibrugarh, Nagaon, Jorhat, Tinsukia, Cachar and Sonitpur districts,” said Sarma, addressing a press conference in Guwahati on Saturday, regarding the Covid situation in the state. “We have authorised the deputy commissioners to close the LP schools as and when they find more than 100 active cases in their district,” he said
After a staggered opening since September, schools (all classes) in Assam have been functioning in full capacity since January 1. Read Tora Agarwala's report from Assam
Accusing the Modi government of “gross unpreparedness” and “adhocism” in dealing with the COVID-19 crisis, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Saturday made a slew of suggestions to the Centre to deal with the pandemic such as reducing the immunization age to 25 years and providing income support to people.
In her opening remarks, while chairing the meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), Gandhi also accused the Centre of giving preferential treatment to some states while maintaining “thundering silence” on requests of states ruled by the Congress and opposition parties.
The Congress has always believed that fighting the COVID-19 pandemic is a national challenge that should be kept above party politics, she asserted. Read more
Union Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju Saturday said he has tested positive for COVID-19. (File Photo)
Shiv Sena on Saturday blamed EC and Centre for the second coronavirus wave in India. "Centre is busy electioneering in Bengal. Had it instead focused on war against coronavirus, the situation would have been under control," it said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called a review meeting with top officials over the Covid-19 situation and the ongoing vaccination exercise in the country, government sources said on Saturday.
Top officers from various ministries will participate in the meeting scheduled for 8 pm on Saturday.
The meeting comes amid a huge surge in Covid-19 cases across the country with reports pouring in from many states about the shortage of hospital facilities and essentials like oxygen supply. Read more
On the intervention of central government, manufacturers have reduced prices of Remdesivir voluntarily.
Shortage of oxygen in Delhi has also prompted Kejriwal to ask Centre for increase in oxygen supply.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, during a press conference, raised a request with the Centre asking it to reserve at least 50% beds in the central govt-run hospitals in Delhi.
The 'break the chain' restrictions in place in Maharashtra to tackle the surge in coronavirus cases may be extended beyond May 1 depending on the outbreak situation, state health minister Rajesh Tope said on Saturday. Speaking to reporters in Jalna, over 400 kilometres from here, Tope said people have been supportive of the restrictions, though some violations of prohibitory rules under section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) have also been reported. "We are taking stock of the situation. There have been some violations of CrPC section 144 invoked to curb the COVID-19 spread. We may extend these restrictions beyond May 1, depending on the situation. A decision will be finalized only after reviewing the outcome of these 15 days (when the restrictions will be in place)." --PTI