Health workers testing people for coronavirus in Mumbai. (Express Photo by Amit Chakravarty)Coronavirus India Highlights: Maharashtra on Sunday reported 30,535 fresh cases of COVID-19. This is the highest number of daily cases Maharashtra has reported since March 2020, taking the total number of coronavirus cases in the state to 24,79,682. As per the health department, 99 deaths have also been reported in Maharashtra today, taking the death tally of COVID-19 related deaths in the state to 53,399.
With the recent spike of coronavirus cases in Rajasthan, the state government has decided to impose night curfew in eight cities from tomorrow. From March 25, the state government has also made negative COVID-19 reports mandatory for people who are entering the state. Rajasthan government officials said that the night curfew will be imposed in Ajmer, Bhilwara, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kota, Udaipur, Sagwada (Dungarpur) and Kushalgarh (Banswara) from 11 pm to 5 am, starting from Monday.
Karnataka health minister Dr K Sudhakar Sunday said the second wave of coronavirus had begun, seeking people’s cooperation to contain the spread of the virus. “We are at the beginning of the second wave of coronavirus. Let us all join hands to control it because the next three months are crucial for us,” Sudhakar said.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla tested positive for Covid-19 on March 19, a press release announced on Sunday. Birla has been admitted to AIIMS Covid Centre in the national capital, where he is getting treated since March 20. Birla’s condition is stable and his parameters are normal, the press release by AIIMS informed.
India recorded 43,846 new cases in the last 24 hours ending 8 am Saturday, taking the country’s total tally to over 1.15 crore cases. This is the highest single day spike since November 25. Out of this, over 3.09 lakh cases are active while 1.11 crore people have recovered. Maharashtra reported 27,126 new cases, while Punjab had 2,578 on Sunday.
The Serum Institute of India in Pune. (Express photo: Ashish Kale)
The Rajasthan government has decided to impose a night curfew — 11pm to 5am — in eight cities across the state in view of the rise in Covid-19 cases. Also, according to an official release of the government, those entering Jaipur will need to furnish a RT-PCR-negative Covid-19 test report not older than three days from March 25.
The eight cities where night curfew will be imposed are: Ajmer, Bhilwara, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kota, Udaipur, Sagwara and Kushalgarh. The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot at his residence on Sunday. It was also decided that markets in all urban areas will be closed by 10pm from Monday. Read More
A 65-year-old man died within hours of being administered the Covishield vaccine Friday in Kesharpur panchayat area of Jharkhand’s Simdega district, according to the district administration.
The man, identified as Jethu Kotwar, fell unconscious after taking the vaccine and died enroute to the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), Ranchi, where he was referred for further treatment. Read More
With the daily positivity rate of Covid-19 cases on the rise in the capital over the past week, experts have raised red flags of a resurgence of the next wave.
On Sunday, the city saw over 800 cases for the second day in a row — 823 new cases from 79,714 tests, a positivity rate of 1.03%. With one more person succumbing to the virus, the death toll stands at 10,956. Read More
Three persons, including a woman, tested positive for COVID-19 in Manipur on Sunday, taking the tally to 29,335, an official said.
The new cases were reported from Imphal East, Imphal West and Kangpokpi districts.
Two coronavirus patients were also discharged in the last 24 hours, taking the number of recovered people to 28,933, the official said.
The state's recovery rate currently stands at 98.62 per cent, and the number of active cases is 29.
The death toll remained unchanged at 373 as no COVID-19 fatalities were reported in the last 24 hours, the official said.
Meanwhile, 81,251 people, including 31,140 healthcare workers, have been vaccinated in the state so far, the official added. (PTI)
The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) declared 260 houses, with a population of 780, at a residential society in South Bopal area a micro-containment zone Sunday.
Entire A to E blocks of Gala Aria in South Bopal, which comes under Jodhpur ward, were declared containment zone, the highest among the list of 18 new areas added by AMC Sunday. Read More
The total number of Covid cases in Mumbai is 3.62 lakh now, of which, 23,448 are active. In the past 24 hours, the number of active cases has risen by 2,113. In the first 21 days of March, the daily caseload in the city has increased by 2.41 times.
However, as opposed to over 40 deaths a day in October last year, the daily death rate due to the virus has dropped to single digits since February this year. On Sunday, 10 deaths were recorded, of which, nine patients aged above 60 years. The recovery rate has also improved to 91 per cent on Sunday as opposed to 86 per cent in October. Read More
The daily count of Covid-19 cases in Maharashtra touched yet another high on Sunday, with the discovery of over 30,000 infections. Till just five days ago, total number of cases from the entire country was fewer than this number.
For the third consecutive day, Pune reported more than 5,000 cases, which continue to be the highest for any city in the country. Sunday’s tally of 5,421 was slightly lower than 5,591 recorded on Saturday. Pune is now quite close to its all-time peak of 5,939 cases, achieved on September 10 last year. Read More
Amid a surge in COVID-19 cases in Chhattisgarh, the Bhupesh Baghel government on Sunday said students of all classes will be promoted without examinations, expect those from Class X and XII.
An order to this effect, which will be applicable to state-run, Central as well as private schools, was issued late evening by the state education department, said a public relations department official.
"All schools will be shut till further orders and all students, except of class 10th and 12th, will be given general promotion to the next class without holding examinations," the order said.
"The board exams of class 10th and 12th will be held offline as per the schedule declared earlier by Chhattisgarh Board of Secondary Education (CGBSE) while complying with all coronavirus preventive guidelines issued by the Centre and state government from time to time," the order added.
Schools, colleges and universities, which were shut since the coronavirus-induced lockdown imposed in the country last year, were reopened from February 15, though only students of Classes IX to XII had to attend.
In the previous academic session too, the state government had promoted students of all classes, except of class 10th and 12th, after the coronavirus-induced lockdown was imposed in March last year.
Meanwhile, the state's Skill Development, Technical Education and Employment department has ordered to shut all government and private engineering colleges, polytechnic colleges, Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and skill development training and educational activities. (PTI)
More than 6 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been sent to 76 nations, while 4.5 crore doses have been administered to beneficiaries in the country till now, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Sunday. He also called for making the vaccination drive a 'Jan Aandolan' (mass movement).
"Until this morning, nearly 4.5 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses have been given to the people in this country. More than six crore doses have been sent to 76 nations," Vardhan said during a media interaction at the Institute of Microbial Technology (CSIR-IMTECH) here. (PTI)
A Gujarat BJP MLA on Sunday said workers of his party do not get infected with novel coronavirus since they work hard.
Rajkot (South) legislator Govind Patel's take on coronavirus came after reporters asked him if the flouting of guidelines by political leaders and workers during poll campaigning was resulting in a spike in cases.
"Those who work hard do not get coronavirus infection. BJP workers work hard, and therefore, not a single worker has been infected with the virus," Patel claimed. Read More
The COVID-19 tally of Pune district rose by 5,408 in the last 24 hours to reach 4,69,478, while the day also saw 32 deaths and 1,245 people getting discharged, an official said on Sunday.
The toll in the district is 9,569, he added. Of the new cases, Pune city accounted for 2,900 and Pimpri Chinchwad 1,416, and the rest were in the rural and cantonment areas, he said. (PTI)
Gujarat's COVID-19 tally increased by 1,580 on Sunday to reach 2,87,009, while the toll rose by seven and the recovery count by 989, an official said. The state's death toll stands at 4,450 and the number of people discharged is 2,75,238, or 95.90 per cent of the caseload, leaving it with 7,321 active cases, including 71 on ventilator support, he added.
"Surat accounted for 510 of the new cases, followed by 451 in Ahmedabad, 132 in Vadodara and 130 in Rajkot. Of the seven deaths recorded on Sunday, three took place in Ahmedabad, two in Surat and one each in Gandhinagar and Vadodara," the official informed. (PTI)
Maharashtra today reported 30,535 fresh cases of COVID-19. This is the highest number of daily cases Maharashtra has ever reported since March 2020, taking the total number of coronavirus cases to 24,79,682. As per the health department 99 deaths have also been reported in Maharashtra today, taking the death tally of COVID-19 related deaths in the state upto 53,399.
Continuing its rising streak, coronavirus cases in Karnataka crossed the 1,700 mark for the second straight day on Sunday as the infection count climbed to 9,70,202 and the toll edged up to 12,434 with two more deaths, the health department said.
Reflecting the trend, the active cases too shot up to 13,493 as against below 6,000 at the beginning of this month, a bulletin said, adding 137 people were undergoing treatment in the intensive care units of various hospitals. (PTI)
The number of COVID-19 cases in Nagpur rose by 3,614 to touch 1,93,080 on Sunday, while the day also saw 32 deaths and 1,859 people recovering, an official said.
The toll in the district is 4,624, and the recovery count is 1,59,108, leaving it with 29,348 active cases, he added. (PTI)
Amid a surge in COVID-19 cases in Chhattisgarh, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Sunday chaired a meeting of his cabinet ministers and senior officials to ensure guidelines are enforced to check the spread of the virus in view of the upcoming Holi festival and wedding season.
Chhattisgarh on Saturday recorded 1,273 cases, the highest single-day spike in this year. The CM also directed that the number of daily COVID-19 tests be increased as well as the vaccination drive be expedited, a state public relations department official said. (PTI)
Punjab reports 2,669 new COVID-19 cases, 1,331 recoveries and 44 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Mumbai on Sunday recorded 3755 Covid-19 cases, highest single-day rise in its total cases, since the pandemic hit the state last year.The last highest count was recorded on Friday, March 19, when 3063 cases were recorded in a day.
Kerala recorded 1,875 coronavirus cases on Sunday, taking the total infections to 11.04 lakh, the state government said. As many as 2,251 people have been cured of the infection and total recoveries have gone up to 10,74,805.
The total infection caseload mounted to 11,04,577, health minister, K K Shailaja said. In the last 24 hours ending 2 pm, 44,675 samples have been tested and the test positivity rate was 4.2 per cent. Kozhikode accounted for 241 cases, Kannur 182, Thrissur 173 , Kollam 158 and Thiruvananthapuram 155. (PTI)
Bengaluru reports 1039 new cases, over 60% of the same across Karnataka (1715). 15 active containment zones now in capital city, as per BBMP data.
A siren will be sounded in all cities in Madhya Pradesh at 11 am on March 23 for two minutes when people will take a vow to wear masks and maintain a physical distance at public places to check the spread of coronavirus, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Sunday in view of a fresh surge in the infections.
He said a siren will be blown again at 7 pm on Tuesday to remind people of their resolve to follow these norms. (PTI)
Passengers from the Europe, UK, Middle East, South Africa and Brazil will no longer have to undergo the mandatory week-long institutional quarantine on arrival to Mumbai if they have received both doses of Covid vaccine, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) said in an order issued on Saturday night.
On request of senior citizens and medical professionals travelling to attend to critical patients among others, the BMC issued the updated quarantine guideline for international passengers. Read More
Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday recorded 158 fresh cases, including 34 travellers, taking the infection tally to 1,28,547, even as one more death was reported in the past 24 hours, officials said.
Out of the fresh cases, 27 were from the Jammu division and 131 from the Kashmir division of the Union Territory, they said. The officials said Srinagar district recorded the highest of 88 cases, including 27 travellers, followed by 22 in Jammu district, 19 in Baramulla and 14 in Budgam districts. (PTI)
Markets to remain closed after 10 pm from March 22 in areas under all city municipal corporations. Night curfew from 11 pm to 5 am to be imposed in Ajmer, Bhilwara, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kota, Udaipur, Sagwara and Kushalgarh: Rajasthan Government (ANI)
Visitors entering the state from March 25 will have to carry a negative RT-PCR test report not older than 72 hours. Primary schools to remain closed till further order: Rajasthan Government. (ANI)
A recent order by the National Blood Transfusion Council has said that a person cannot donate blood for the next 28 days after taking the last dose of COVID-19 vaccine.
As approved in the 30th meeting of the governing body of the NBTC held on February 17, the deferral criteria for blood donation post COVID-19 vaccine was finalised as '28 days post vaccination deferral after the last dose of COVID-19 vaccination irrespective of the type of the vaccine received.' The order implies that the donor has to wait for 28 days after taking second dose of the vaccine, which means that he or she cannot donate for 56 days after taking the first jab. Read More
An orphanage was on Sunday declared a micro containment zone in Goa's Ponda taluka after 18 people tested positive for COVID-19, an official said.
The samples of 45 students and 17 staff from 'Matrucchaya' orphanage for girls in Kavlem, some 10 kilometres from Ponda town, were taken for testing and reports of 18 returned positive after which it was declared a micro containment zone, South District Magistrate Ruchika Katyal said. (PTI)
The Gujarat government on Sunday said permission won't be granted for Holi celebrations due to the surge in COVID-19 cases in the state though the religious ritual of 'Holika Dahan' associated with the festival can take place with crowd restrictions.
Holi falls on March 29 and Holika Dahan on its eve on March 28. The government will only allow 'Holika Dahan', a pyre lighting ritual symbolizing the victory of good over evil on the eve of Holi, that too with a limited number of people in housing societies and villages, Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel said. (PTI)
The Goa government will take strict action against restaurants, hotels or entertainment zones, if they are found not adhering to COVID-19 norms, a state minister said on Sunday. Wearing a mask and maintaining social-distancing is a must for all to avoid the spread of the virus, he said.
"The state government will take a strict view on the functioning of restaurants, hotels and any place considered as an entertainment zone to ensure that people coming there strictly follow the coronavirus protocols," Health Minister Vishwajit Rane said. (PTI)
The coronavirus pandemic is under control in Andaman and Nicobar Islands as tourists are required to furnish COVID negative reports from their respective states or Union territories to enter the archipelago, a senior health official said on Sunday.
Deputy Director (Health) and nodal officer for COVID- 19, Dr Avijit Roy, said that the Union territory administration is ensuring strict adherence to the safety guidelines. (PTI)
Unregistered but eligible people in Delhi will be able to take COVID-19 vaccine jabs between 3 pm and 9 pm, Health Minister Satyendar Jain said on Sunday. Till now, unregistered beneficiaries were being inoculated between 3 pm and 5pm, he said. Beneficiaries need to register themselves on Co-WIN portal to get jabs.
Those who do not have access to the Co-WIN portal can go to the centre and take COVID-19 vaccines. (PTI)
Karnataka Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar on Sunday said the second wave of coronavirus has begun and sought people's cooperation to contain the disease. "We are at the beginning of the second wave of coronavirus. Let us all join hands to control it because the next three months are crucial for us," Sudhakar told reporters here as the coronavirus cases started shooting up.
He said he would discuss with Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa about the COVID-19 situation and measures to be taken. (PTI)
As India witnessed the highest daily tally of COVID-19 cases this year, the Union Health Ministry said on Sunday that Maharashtra, Kerala, Punjab, Karnataka, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh account for 83.14 per cent of the new infections. Maharashtra continues to report the highest daily new cases at 27,126.
It is followed by Punjab with 2,578 while Kerala reported 2,078 new cases. Karnataka, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh reported 1,798, 1,565 and 1, 308 infections in a day. (PTI)
The spike protein of the novel coronavirus, which enables it to infect human cells, is more stable in faster spreading versions of the virus, such as the ones first reported in the UK and South Africa, compared to the original form of the pathogen from Wuhan, China, says a new study.
Researchers, including those from the Boston Children's Hospital in the US assessed the structure of the coronavirus spike protein down to the atomic level, and found how it changed with the D614G mutation which is carried by the Brazil, South Africa and UK variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. (PTI)
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla tested positive for Covid-19 on March 19, a press release announced on Sunday. Birla has been admitted to AIIMS Covid Centre in the national capital, where he is getting treated since March 20. Birla’s condition is stable and his parameters are normal, the press release by AIIMS informed.Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla tested positive for COVID19 on March 19. He was admitted to AIIMS COVID Centre for observation on March 20. He is stable: AIIMS, Delhi ---- Read More
The daily rise in infections was the highest recorded in 115 days. The death toll increased to 1,59,755 with 197 daily new fatalities, the highest in 97 days, the data updated at 8 am showed.
Six states account for 86.8 per cent of the new covid-19 deaths and Maharashtra tops the chart with 92 causalities reported on Sunday. This is followed by Punjab which had 38 daily deaths while Kerala reported 15 deaths.
As the highly attended Kumbh Mela approaches, Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Sunday in a letter to Uttarakhand Chief Secretary urged the need for stringent measures to control the spread of coronavirus cases during the mela.
Bhushan flagged that 10 to 20 pilgrims and 10 to 20 locals are being reported positive every day.
(Pictures: ANI)
As many as 15 doctors and 10 nurses from PCMC-run Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital (YCMH) have tested positive for Covid-19, hospital dean Dr Rajendra Wable said.
The YCMH staff who tested positve were handling Covid patients in different wards. At least three family members of the doctors were also admitted to the hospital. Among the YCMH doctors who tested positive include the head of dental department, Dr Yashwant Ingle, who had received two doses of the vaccine.
Dr Ingale said: “At least five were discharged and advised home isolation. Six-seven are undergoing treatment.” (Read Manoj Dattatrye More's report here)
Holding the laxity shown by people in following safety protocols as the reason behind the recent surge in coronavirus cases, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Saturday urged them not to let their guard down against the infection, else the situation may turn "dangerous". "With vaccines available now, people feel they should not wear masks.
Maximum people hang their masks around their neck, some keep it in their pocket and some do not use it at all," the minister said here on Saturday evening. COVID-19 cases have again started rising at some places in the country for the past some time and the laxity shown by people towards the infection is the basic reason behind it, Vardhan said, adding that the situation may turn "dangerous". "If we do not follow COVID appropriate behaviour, then coronavirus will go away slowly from the country and the world," he said.
India recorded 43,846 new cases in the last 24 hours ending 8 am Saturday, taking the country’s total tally to over 1.15 crore cases. This is the highest single day spike since November 25. Out of this, over 3.09 lakh cases are active while 1.11 crore people have recovered. With 197 new deaths, the death toll is now over 1.59 lakh.
In view of the surge of COVID-19 in the state, teams of the Punjab Police on Saturday persuaded over 4,400 face-mask violators to undergo RT-PCR testing. As many as 1,800 more people were fined as they were found not wearing face masks, police said. Police also distributed free face masks to over 12,000 people.
The move came a day after Chief Minister Amarinder Singh ordered enforcement of face masks in the state. He had directed police and health authorities to take people in public places without face masks to the nearest RT-PCR testing facility to ensure that they were not asymptomatic coronavirus cases. (PTI)
The Himachal Pradesh government has issued instructions to limit gatherings in indoor and outdoor to 50 per cent of the occupancy, with a maximum number of 200 for indoor in the social functions. Chief Minister Jairam Thakur said prior permission for holding social gatherings would also be required after two-three days.
Thakur was talking to the media after presiding over a meeting through video conference with the deputy commissioners, superintendents of police and chief medical officers to review the situation of the pandemic in the state. (PTI)
Haryana reported three coronavirus deaths on Saturday, taking the toll to 3,093, while the tally rose to 2,78,961 with 821 new cases, the Health Department said.
A fatality each was reported from Ambala, Karnal and Yamunanagar districts.
The new infections include 141 in Gurgaon, 123 in Karnal, 110 in Kurukshetra and 108 in Ambala. The active cases rose to 4,830, while the recovery rate was 97.16 percent, as per the bulletin. (PTI)
Holding the laxity shown by people as the reason behind the recent surge in coronavirus cases, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Saturday urged them not to let their guard down against the infection unless the situation may turn "dangerous".
"With vaccines available now, people feel they should not wear masks. Maximum people hang their masks around their neck, some keep it in their pocket and some do not use it at all," the minister said on Saturday evening. (PTI)
Amid a rise in coronavirus cases in Madhya Pradesh, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan toured New Market area in capital Bhopal on Saturday and personally helped several shopkeepers wear masks.
He appealed to them to adhere to COVID-19 norms strictly so that the state is spared a surge, an official release said.
Madhya Pradesh on Saturday reported1,308 COVID-19 cases, taking its tally to 2,74,405, while two deaths increased the toll to 3,903. (PTI)
BMC Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal on Saturday said those who have registered themselves on the CoWIN portal can directly come to vaccination centre without waiting for the scheduled date of appointment.
The commissioner plans to double the vaccination numbers to 50,000 per day and fast-track the process for all those willing to get the jabs. The city vaccinated 8.11 lakh people till March 19. There are over 90 vaccination centres; of them 59 are private hospitals. Read More
For the fourth consecutive day, Punjab added more than 2,000 new Covid-19 cases, as per the state bulletin on Saturday. The daily case count crossed 2,500-mark with 2,587 new cases and 38 fresh deaths.
This is the second Covid wave being witnessed in Punjab after the single-day highest count of 2,896 cases was reported on September 17, 2020. Read More
Restrictions imposed in Nagpur district will continue with some relaxations from March 22 to March 31 in view of rising coronavirus cases, Maharashtra Energy Minister Nitin Raut said on Saturday.
In Nagpur city, restaurants and eateries can operate till 7 pm while shops can remain open till 4 pm, and all offices -- private and government -- can function with 25 per cent staff.
Nagpur is under complete lockdown since March 15 which is to continue till Sunday. (PTI)
Maharashtra on Saturday reported 27,126 new COVID-19 cases, the highest one-day rise since the outbreak of the pandemic last year, said a health official.
The previous highest one-day figure was 25,833, reported on Thursday.
With this, the state's case tally increased to 24,49,147, while 92 deaths took the fatality count to 53,300, the official said. (PTI)
Tamil Nadu continued to witness an increase in fresh COVID-19 cases and the state on Saturday recorded 1,243 new infections and 8 fatalities, taking the caseload to 8,65,693 and the death toll to 12,590.
A returnee from UAE and a passenger each from Maharashtra and Rajasthan added to the new cases today. (PTI)
Schools, colleges and coaching classes in Latur district have been ordered to remain shut from Monday till March 31 amid a rise in COVID-19 cases, officials said on Saturday.
The order, issued by Collector Prithviraj BP, said online classes can be held, and annual board and university level exams already scheduled will go ahead, they added. (PTI)
With a spurt in coronavirus cases in the city, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has decided to carry out over 47,000 rapid antigen tests at public places every day.
Mumbai has added more than 37,000 new cases in the span of one month. It recorded the highest one-day rise in cases earlier this week. (PTI)
Goa's coronavirus caseload went up by 154 and reached 56,525 on Saturday, while the day also saw the death toll remaining unchanged at 815 and the recovery count rising by 56, an official said.
The number of people discharged in the state is now 54,713, leaving it with an active caseload of 997, he added. (PTI)
Kerala logged 2,078 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday and 15 deaths, taking the infection count to 11,02,702 and the toll to 4,482.
A total of 2,211 people recuperated from the disease today, taking the total cured in the state to 10,72,554. (PTI)
Maharashtra Tourism and Environment Minister said he tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday. On his tweet, he also requested everyone who came in contact with him to take Covid test.
Over 40 lakh people have received the COVID-19 vaccine jab in Maharashtra since the immunization drive commenced on January 16, an official said on Saturday.
As per the data released by the state health department, 1,89,130 persons received vaccine shots on Friday, raising the tally to 40,96,898. (PTI)
Delhi reported the highest daily record of 813 fresh COVID-19 cases today. The national capital also reported 567 recoveries and 2 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Prisoners of Central Jail, Indore have been given the first dose of COVID-19 Vaccine.