A man carries an oxygen cylinder in Ahmedabad, amid the Covid-19 pandemic (Express Photo: Nirmal Harindran)The Centre has said 1 lakh portable oxygen concentrators would be procured from PM CARES Fund on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s direction to procure them at the earliest and provide to states with high case burden.
Serum Institute of India (SII) CEO Adar Poonawalla Wednesday said his firm has decided to reduce the price of its anti-coronavirus vaccine, Covishield, to the states from Rs 400 to Rs 300 per dose as a “philanthropic gesture”. The pharma giant has received flak over its different pricing of Covishield for the Centre and states, with many state governments calling for equal pricing of the vaccine. The Centre gets Covishield at Rs 150 per dose from SII.
Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope Wednesday said the Covid-induced restrictions in the state will be extended by another 15 days. The restrictions were to end on April 30. The state government also declared that it will provide free Covid vaccination to all citizens aged between 18-44.
The registration for Covid vaccination for all above 18 years of age began on Co-WIN portal and Aarogya Setu app from 4 pm Wednesday. However, high user traffic resulted in both the platforms crashing for a brief period. Both the platforms are working fine now.
India, in the last 24 hours, recorded 3,60,960 fresh Covid-19 cases and 3,293 deaths, which is the highest in the country so far. With today’s numbers, the total number of coronavirus cases rose to 1,79,97,267 and the number of fatalities reached 2,01,187. At present, there are 29,78,709 active cases in India and as many as 1,48,17,371 people have recovered.
An employee of a Covid-19 hospital in Gandhinagar carries an oxygen cylinder on Monday. (Express Photo: Nirmal Harindran)
As many as 26 cases of Covid-19 protocol and mask violations during wedding ceremonies were registered across Gujarat on Tuesday and 25 persons were arrested, Gujarat Director General of Police Ashish Bhatia said.
The state government has put a cap of maximum 50 guests at wedding ceremonies while disallowing any programme between 8 pm and 6 am in 29 cities of the state, including the four metropolitan cities.
“On Tuesday, we registered 26 cases for violation of mask rule and guest cap at wedding ceremonies across the state and arrested 25 persons. A number of SOPs, including those for weddings, have been announced by the state government in the wake of the pandemic. We request the public to follow the guidelines, especially the cap on guests at functions and mandatory online registration for such parties,” Bhatia said.
On Sunday, police had registered as many as 207 cases and arrested 78 people for violations of Covid-19 protocols at weddings, the DGP said. From December 19 last year to April 25 this year, a total of 17,571 weddings were checked and 727 cases were registered for mask violation while 149 cases were lodged for Covid-19 guidelines violation. A total of 254 persons were also arrested.
Over last week, more than 20,380 cases were registered under IPC section 188 for disobedience related to violation of night curfew, mask wearing and social distancing in Gujarat.
“Seventeen cases of black marketing of Remdesivir injections have been registered of which four cases are in Ahmedabad, three each in Surat and Rajkot, two in Vadodara, one each in Mehsana, Bharuch, Valsad, Dahod and Patan. Total 44 accused have been arrested till now,” the DGP said. ENS
Justice Virendra Kumar Srivastava of the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court died of COVID-19 on Wednesday. He was 59.
Allahabad High Court Registrar (Protocol) Ashish Kumar Srivastava said that Justice Srivastava died at Lucknow's Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute (SGPGI).
The Allahabad High Court and its Lucknow bench will remain closed on Thursday to mourn the death of Justice Srivastava.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has expressed grief over the death of Justice Srivastava, the state government said in a statement issued in Lucknow on Wednesday. PTI
The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) on Wednesday relaxed several of its rules regarding hospital admission to Covid patients, lifting the restricting of admission to only Covid-19 patients arriving in EMRI (Emergency Management and Research Institute-run) ‘108’ ambulances at the civic body-run hospitals and directed private dedicated Covid hospitals to free up a minimum 75 per cent of beds for Covid patients.
The move comes a day after the Gujarat High Court asked the state government to direct hospitals to admit all Covid-19 patients approaching them, instead of just those arriving through the ‘108’ ambulance service. Read More
Maharashtra on Wednesday reported 63,309 new coronavirus cases and 985 deaths, the state health department said. It took the tally of infections in the state to 44,73,394 and the death toll to 67,214.
Mumbai recorded 4,926 new cases and 78 deaths, raising its caseload to 6,40,409 and the death toll to 12,954.
A total of 61,181 patients were discharged from hospitals during the day, taking the number of recoveries to 37,30,729.
Of 985 fatalities, 392 occurred in the last 48 hours, 251 in the last week while the rest had taken place earlier but were added to the tally now, an official explained. (PTI)
The Maharashtra Cabinet on Wednesday decided to provide free vaccination to all those in the age group of 18 to 44 years. However, the government said that it would not start the vaccination drive from May 1 due to unavailability of vaccines.
The Cabinet also decided to extend the restrictions currently in place. However, it has not been decided how long the curbs will continue.
Making the announcement of free vaccinations for the 18-44 age group, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said the health department is chalking out details of the programme. Read More
Even as the daily number of fresh cases seem to indicate that Mumbai may have passed its second Covid-19 peak, there has been a grim rise in its death rate in the last few weeks.
Until March first week, the death rate was as low as 0.2 per cent. It gradually rose in a month and touched 0.87 per cent last week. The state death audit committee estimates it might climb up to 1 per cent by the end of this week.
Data shows the weekly death rate between April 18 and 24 stood at 0.87 per cent, at 0.56 per cent between April 11 and 17, and at 0.35 per cent from April 4 to 10. Read More
Tamil Nadu on Wednesday reported 16,665 Covid-19 cases, taking the overall tally to 11,30,167. With 98 causalities in the past 24 hours, the death toll reached 13,826. As many as 15,114 people got discharged following treatment and there are still 1,10,308 active cases in Tamil Nadu.
Among the 37 districts in the state, Chennai recorded 4,764 cases and 32 deaths. The city has 31295 active cases. Apart from Chennai, Chengalpattu with 1,219, Coimbatore with 991, Thiruvallur with 751 and Tirunelveli with 714 recorded the most number of cases. So far 2,23,78,247 samples have been tested, including today’s tally of 1,30,042. Read More
The Co-WIN platform saw 79,65,720 registrations after registration for Covid vaccination for people in the age group of 18-45 years began on Wednesday.
Manipur government has put a blanket ban on any sporting activities as the state witnessed sudden spike in new cases of Covid-19 on Wednesday.
The Youth Affairs & Sports Department issued an order banning all sports activities with immediate effect.
“In view of the 2nd wave of Covid-19 and ever increasing cases in Manipur all sporting activities in the state including any sports related activity at Khuman Lampak Sports Complex, Imphal and other sports complexes in the Districts including privately run/managed sports complexes are banned with immediate effect," said the order.
The order further stated that entry of visitors at Khuman Lampak Sports Complex except for the Officials/ Staffs of YAS, National Sports University and other Department located at Khuman Lampak Sports Complex, is also banned with immediate effect. (Input by Jimmy Leivon)
Karnataka on Wednesday reported 39,047 new Covid-19 cases, with capital Bengaluru alone accounting for 22,596 cases.
Andhra Pradesh's active Covid-19 cases crossed the one lakh mark with 14,669 new coronavirus cases during the last 24 hours ending 9am Wednesday, the state government said.
The infection count has gone up to 10,69,544 with the addition of the fresh cases while 71 fatalities pushed the toll to 7,871, an official bulletin said.
The state has 1,07,611 active cases and over 74,000 samples were tested in the last 24 hours. As many as 6,433 people recovered from the disease, taking the tally to 9,54,062.
Nellore topped the toll chart with nine casualties followed by Krishna eight. (PTI)
Serum Institute of India (SII) CEO Adar Poonawalla Wednesday said his firm has decided to reduce the price of its anti-coronavirus vaccine, Covishield, to the states from Rs 400 to Rs 300 per dose as a "philanthropic gesture".
The Centre has said 1 lakh portable oxygen concentrators would be procured from PM CARES Fund on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's direction to procure them at the earliest and provide to states with high case burden.
The government said 500 new PSA (Pressure Swing Adsorption) oxygen plants have been sanctioned under PM CARES Fund, in addition to 713 plants sanctioned earlier. "PSA plants, portable oxygen concentrators will help provide oxygen supply near demand clusters, addressing logistical challenges," the Centre said in a statement.
PM Modi says portable oxygen concentrators, new PSA oxygen plants will improve access to oxygen, specially in district HQs, smaller cities.
After initial trouble, CoWIN portal back online for vaccine registration
On the opening of vaccine registration for the 18-45 age group, R S Sharma, CEO, National Health Authority on registration for vaccination, said some states and hospitals may come on board on May 1 or later, therefore, the visibility into the bookings/vacancy available for vaccination will be available then.
Those above 45 years will continue to be vaccinated free of cost by the Centre, he added. (ANI)
Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope says lockdown in the state will be extended by another 15 days. The restrictions were to end on April 30.
The registration for Covid vaccination for all above 18 years of age began on CoWIN platform or Aarogya Setu app from 4 pm Wednesday. However, high user traffic resulted in both the platforms crashing for a brief period.
Maharashtra government Wednesday declared that it will provide free Covid vaccination to all citizens aged between 18-44. A tweet by CMO Maharashtra read, "Today, the Cabinet under the leadership of CM Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray has decided to provide free COVID-19 vaccination to all the citizens of Maharashtra aged between 18-44years."
Sanitation workers in Bengaluru handling medical waste, including places where Covid-19 patients are in home isolation, allege no supply of mask, gloves, personal protective equipment, transportation to mustering centres.
Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria Wednesday briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi that a dedicated Covid cell has been set up by the Indian Air Force to ensure faster coordination with different ministries and agencies on pandemic-related operations, PTI reported. He also said that the IAF is in 24x7 readiness of its fleet to meet Covid related requirements across India and overseas.
A Coimbatore couple pledged their gold ornaments to donate electronic fans to the Government Medical College and ESI Hospital in Tamil Nadu's Singanallur.
With hospitals barred from using air conditioners during the pandemic, the government previously donated 300 electric fans after an appeal from the ESI hospital director.
However, due to the surge in Covid-19 cases, the hospital has been jam packed with patients. And the director once again made a public appeal for donations.
A young couple responded to the plea and reached the hospital on Tuesday morning along with a truck carrying 100 electronic fans. However, hospital authorities tried to turn down the donation after learning the couple had pledged their gold ornaments in exchange for Rs 2,20,000. They finally relented after assurance from the couple that they were not in dire need of money. The couple also wished to remain anonymous.
From supplying oxygen concentrators to vaccines, ventilators to masks — the global community has now come out to help India at this health crisis due to the second surge of the Covid-19 pandemic.
So far, at least 17 countries have come forward to help India, and they range from the neighbours to the major powers in the world. While Bhutan is going to supply oxygen, the US might be able to share AstraZeneca vaccines next month.
Among the countries that are sending support are the US, UK, France, Germany, Ireland, Belgium, Romania, Luxembourg, Portugal, Sweden, Australia, Bhutan, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong , Thailand and UAE among others. Read this report by Shubhajit Roy
As many states in the country continue to grapple with oxygen shortage, the Kerala government has said it has a reserve of 510 metric tonnes of the life-saving gas at production centres post-delivery. The government is now mulling the possibilities of increasing the reserve stock upto 1000 MT to meet any adverse situations, authorities said.
In the wake of the number of COVID-19 cases crossing the 30,000 mark in the southern state, Health Minister K K Shailaja convened a special high-level meeting on Tuesday to review the availability of oxygen.
In view of the grim situation, it has been decided to set up audit committees in the state, district and hospital levels for the effective utilisation of the available oxygen in the state, she said.
"At present, 220 metric tonnes (MT) of medical oxygen is available in government hospitals. Around 100 MT of oxygen is required for COVID and non-COVID treatments. (PTI)
The US is rushing a whole series of help, including life-saving drugs and machinery, that India needs to combat the massive surge in COVID-19 cases, President Joe Biden has said, as he again recalled New Delhi's assistance to America when it was in a "bind" due to the pandemic. Biden spoke at length with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday and conveyed solidarity with India in its fight against the viral disease.
"We are sending immediately a whole series of help that he needs, including providing for those Remdesivir and other drugs that are able to deal with this," Biden told reporters at a White House news conference on Tuesday.
"We are sending the actual mechanical parts that are needed for the machinery they have to build a vaccine, and that is being done as well," he said.
The president said he had discussed with Prime Minister Modi when the US would be able to send actual vaccines to India. (PTI)
Those in the age group of 18-44 years can register from April 28; the registrations will open from 4:00 pm onwards. You can log into the Co-WIN portal using the link http://www.cowin.gov.in and click on the “Register/Sign In yourself” tab to register for the COVID-19 vaccination. Alternatively, you can also register for vaccination through the Aarogya Setu App. Read More
MIGRANT WORKERS who returned to cities for work after the first Covid lockdown earned roughly five times as much as those who stayed back, and last year’s exodus affected women more than men, according to a Yale University survey that tracked 5,000 migrants across north and central India from April 2020 to February 2021.
The survey, which will be released online Wednesday, shows that only 45 per cent of female migrants returned to their urban workplaces — 40 per cent of them earned no income across a week in which they were tracked in February 2021.
Three days before the Kumbh Mela in Haridwar comes to an end, around 1,350 seers from various akharas and 25,000 devotees bathed in Brahmkund at Har Ki Pauri during the last shahi snan on Tuesday — nearly 1 per cent of the total attendance expected by the authorities for the shahi snan on April 27.
Hours later, the Haridwar district administration announced a ‘corona curfew’ in Haridwar in the evening. It will be effective from April 28 to the morning of May 3.
After an appeal by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and amid criticism over violation of Covid protocols at the Mela, the akharas had agreed to mark a symbolic Kumbh Mela to avoid any new coronavirus infections.
As India tries to accelerate its massive vaccination programme in the middle of a devastating second Covid-19 wave, ground reports from states indicate a complex set of problems ranging from shortage of doses to glitches on the registration portal to panic and fear of the vaccines running out. If the initial weeks of vaccination saw a general reluctance among the public, the severity of the pandemic’s second wave has forced them to flock to vaccination centres, flouting the very rules meant to keep them safe. And to top it off, the Centre will open vaccination to everyone above the age of 18 from May 1, even as lakhs of people in the 45-60 and above 60 high-priority age groups still await the jab. Read the full story here
Iqbal Singh, a fifty-five-year-old DRDO employee, received a positive Covid report three days ago and his oxygen level began deteriorating soon. His condition turned critical with SPO2 levels dropping below 40 in a matter of a few hours. With not even a single bed available in Noida and Greater Noida, his family went to Delhi searching for admission. Iqbal, eventually, passed away at the Sardar Patel Covid centre. Read More
With states complaining of vaccine shortage, the Centre on Tuesday released data to say more than one crore doses, to be administered to priority groups, were available with states and 86 lakh more would be distributed over the next three days.
According to official data released by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, of the 1,00,47,157 doses still available with the states, the maximum are with Uttar Pradesh (10.10 lakh doses), Maharashtra (9.23 lakh doses), Bihar (7.50 lakh doses), Gujarat (6.09 lakh doses) and Jharkhand (5.95 lakh doses). These doses are to be administered to frontline workers, healthcare workers and those above the age of 45 years, with 86,40,000 doses to the states in the next three days.
Among various scientific terms that the Covid-19 pandemic has made part of the public vocabulary, one is the ‘Ct value’ in RT-PCR tests for determining whether a patient is positive for Covid-19. The cycle threshold value emerges in RT-PCR tests for the coronavirus, and determines whether a person is positive for Covid-19 or not. To what extent does it correlate with viral load and disease severity?
Former Congress MP and former Mumbai Congress president Eknath Gaikwad passed away due to Covid-19 related complications. He always championed the cause of Dalits and oppressed segments. His daughter Varsha Gaikwad is the school education minister in the Maharashtra government.
Two days after Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced that a 100-bed hospital would come up for Covid patients at a defunct medical college in Faridabad, work to set up the facility will begin Wednesday.
According to officials, Sub Divisional Magistrate of Faridabad, Paramjit Singh, has been appointed as the nodal officer of Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Government Medical College, which was earlier known as Gold Fields Medical College.
The Karnataka government, in a late night order on Tuesday, said revenue secretary and former Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) chief N Manjunath Prasad will be deployed to BBMP for assisting present civic body chief Gaurav Gupta in dealing with the Covid-19 situation in Bengaluru.
No rank has been assigned to him by the government yet. Incidentally, Prasad is one of the longest-serving commissioners, having served over three years as BBMP commissioner.
Last July, amidst a spike in the number of Covid-19 positive cases, the State government had transferred BBMP commissioner B.H. Anil Kumar and appointed Manjunath Prasad.
The Delhi High Court has directed the Delhi government to come up with an online portal showcasing live information on the supply chain of essential Covid-19 drugs.
“The position should be updated on (a) real-time basis, so that the aspect of availability is known to all, and transparency is maintained. This will, to a great extent, curb black marketing of essential drugs required for treatment of COVID-19,” the division bench of Justices Vipin Sanghi and Rekha Palli said in an order.
The court has also directed the Delhi government to call for records from all the pharmacies in the hospitals with regard to the supplies of Remedesivir, and other essential drugs like Dexamathasone, Tocilizumab, Fabiflu and Doxycycline, and the sales that they have made. It has directed the state to conduct random audits and checks of the stocks of the pharmacies, to catch black marketeers.
ANIL Nigam, the Chief Medical Superintendent Ursula Horsman Memorial (UHM) Hospital in Kanpur Nagar, has his fingers crossed. Come Thursday, the hospital is expected to get an oxygen plant. “So far, by the grace of God, we have never run out of oxygen. But there were times when a 15-minute delay in cylinders would have caused problems. Every hour we need 10-12 cylinders,” Nigam says.
In the past few days, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has claimed on several occasions that there is no shortage of oxygen, and on Monday, the state dispatched 400 cylinders to Madhya Pradesh. However, even as the initial panic with family members running around for oxygen beds has eased, here in Kanpur Nagar district, the chaos has merely shifted to oxygen supply stations and medical stores. Read More
India, in the last 24 hours, recorded 3,60,960 fresh Covid-19 cases and 3,293 deaths, which is the highest in the country so far. With today’s numbers, the total number of coronavirus cases rose to 1,79,97,267 and the number of fatalities reached 2,01,187. At present, there are 29,78,709 active cases in India and as many as 1,48,17,371 people have recovered.
THE OXYGEN crisis during the second Covid surge has been precipitated by a shortage of tankers and the daunting logistics of transportation from distant locations — not by a dearth of Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO), which is available in sufficient quantity, top officials and key industry players told The Indian Express.
Official figures show that on April 24, various industries produced 9,103 metric tonnes (MT) of LMO against a previously existing capacity of 7,259 MT. On the same day, the sale of LMO stood at 7,017 MT.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was informed during a review meeting that production has increased from 5,700 MT per day in August 2020 to 8,922 MT on April 25 this year. Read More here
LAST year, Bharat Biotech’s chairman Krishna Ella said that Indian vaccines, including his Covaxin, developed with help from the Government-run Indian Council of Medical Research, would cost less than a water bottle, almost a fifth.
Yet, his rate card Saturday announced Rs 600/dose for states and Rs 1,200 for private hospitals. Not just on pricing, there are also questions regarding Ella’s claim on ICMR’s role.
On April 21, Ella told NDTV Bharat Biotech had not received any government funding for the development of the vaccine. Read more here
Amid rising cases of Covid-19 infections across the state, Haryana has decided to impose Section 144 of the CrPC across all districts. On Tuesday, directions were issued by the Haryana Chief Secretary, Vijai Vardhan, asking all Deputy Commissioners to impose Section 144 barring assembly of five or more persons.
The Chief Secretary also asked DCs to focus more on micro-containment zones and closely monitor the contact tracing of Covid-19 positive patients. Read More
More than one crore vaccine doses are still available with states and union territories, and another 80 lakh doses will reach them in the next three days, the Union Health Ministry said on Tuesday. The government of India has so far provided 15,65,26,140 vaccine doses to the states and UTs free of cost, it said.
"The total consumption, including wastage, is 14,64,78,983 doses. More than one crore doses (1,00,47,157) are still available with the states and UTs to be administered. More than 80 lakh (86,40,000) doses will be received in addition by the states and UTs in the next three days," the ministry stated.
The ministry said that recently some media reports quoting some government officials from Maharashtra have pointed out that the state has exhausted vaccine doses, thereby adversely impacting the vaccination drive. (PTI)
Maharashtra Tuesday reported 66,358 fresh cases taking the case tally to 44,100,85. As many as 895 deaths were registered while 67,752 people were discharged. On Monday, the state had recorded 48,700 cases.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday chaired a high-level meeting to review Covid-19 situation in the country and asked the officials to ensure rapid upgradation of health infrastructure, PTI reported. The PM was also briefed on the efforts being made to ramp up the availability and supply of oxygen.
PM Modi also instructed the officials to work closely with state governments to start oxygen plants at the earliest.
Gujarat on Tuesday reported the highest number of 14,352 coronavirus positive cases in a day and a record 170 deaths, including 27 in Surat, the state health department said.
With the addition of new cases, the count of infections in the state has gone up to 5,24,725 while the death toll reached 6,656, it said.
Gujarat is now left with 1,27,606 active cases.
A total of 7,803 patients were discharged during the day, raising the number of recoveries in Gujarat to 3,90,229, the department said in a release.
With new detections, Gujarat's case recovery rate fell to 74.37 per cent. (PTI)
Assam will get oxygen from a plant in Samdrup Jongkhar, a Bhutan border town around a 2.5-hour drive from Guwahati, to gear up for the emerging Covid-19 situation, an official announcement by the Indian embassy in Bhutan on Tuesday said.
“In the context of the present COVID situation, Bhutan will supply liquid oxygen to India from a new plant being set up at the Motanga Industrial Estate, Samdrup Jongkhar district by M/s S.D. Cryogenics Gases Pvt. Ltd., a Bhutanese company,” a statement from the Indian embassy in Bhutan said.
“Every day, forty metric tonnes of liquid oxygen produced by the Oxygen Plant will be exported to Assam using cryogenic tankers. The oxygen plant has domestic investment of 51% by M/s S D Cryogenics and FDI component of 49% by Meghalaya Oxygen Pvt. Ltd., an Assam-based Indian company,” it added. Abhishek Saha reports from Assam
Anushka Saha, a resident of North Kolkata, considers last Friday to be a lucky day for her family. This despite the fact that she had to run from pillar to post to arrange an oxygen cylinder for her Covid-19 positive father, Ujjal Saha (58). “We were waiting for his reports but he was showing all Covid-19 symptoms, his SpO2 levels too started dipping. We were asked to administer oxygen by our family physician. So we frantically started calling suppliers for oxygen,” says Saha.
The 23-year-old student of Calcutta University trawled social media pages for numbers. Most of the suppliers didn’t have cylinders. Others quoted exorbitant amounts for a cylinder. Some wanted Rs 30,000, someone else wanted Rs 40,000,” says Saha.
A cylinder which would generally cost about Rs 7,000 in Kolkata is now commanding Rs 40,000 to Rs 75,000. Read this report by Adrija Roychowdhury and Premankur Biswas
As Karnataka continued to report a steady rise in the number of Covid-19 infections and related deaths, the active caseload in the state rose above 3 lakh with 2 lakh of them in Bengaluru Urban alone.
Meanwhile, the total death toll in Bengaluru Urban rose to 6002 as 97 more people succumbed to the infection in the district. As many as 180 more deaths in the last few days from across the state were linked to Covid-19 by the Department of Health and Family Welfare on Tuesday.
At the same time, with 31,830 new cases the total tally in the state, since March 8 last year, rose above 14 lakh. Bengaluru Urban reported 17,550 in the last 24 hours. (PTI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's aunt Narmadaben Modi, who was undergoing treatment for coronavirus infection, dies at a hospital in Ahmedabad. (PTI)
Family members of a woman, who allegedly died due to COVID-19 after failing to get a bed at Apollo Hospital in south Delhi, attacked the staff of the private healthcare facility on Tuesday, police said.
However, they said no complaint has been filed in this regard so far. "The hospital received a woman in a critical condition at the emergency in the early hours of Tuesday. Immediate medical attention appropriate to her condition was given by a team," the hospital's spokesperson said in a statement.
"Given the paucity of beds, the family was advised to shift the patient to another facility with available beds. Unfortunately, the patient died around 8 am, following which her family members resorted to vandalism, destruction of hospital property and assault on our doctors and staff," it said. (PTI)
The Chief Judicial Magistrate, Imphal West, Tuesday sentenced fifteen individuals to three days simple imprisonment for not wearing mask. They have also been fined Rs 1000 each.
They were arrested by police from Khwairamband bazaar, the commercial hub of Imphal city for violating the SOP of the Covid-19 pandemic issued by the state government. They were charged under section 32 of the Police Act, 1861.
As per Manipur Epidemic Diseases (enforcement of Covid-19 Guidelines) Amended Regulation, 2020, any person who violates quarantine is liable to be fined Rs 2000. Failure to maintain social distancing and consumption of tobacco in public places Rs 400 each and spitting in public places is Rs 100. Gathering in excess of authorised number on ceremonies is Rs 20,000. (Input by Jimmy Leivon)
Delhi High Court also issued a notice to the UT government to file a response concerning the Ashoka Hotel being dedicated for judicial officers. The court says it never made any such request. "It's unthinkable. We as an institution won't want any preferential treatment," Justice Vipin Sanghi said.
The Delhi High Court Tuesday said the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government's entire system has failed due to the rampant black marketing of oxygen cylinders and crucial medicines for treating Covid-19 patients. "Set your house in order. If you cannot manage it, we will ask the central government to takeover," the court told the Delhi government.
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra Tuesday wrote to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, alleging low testing for COVID-19, a shortage of oxygen beds and a sluggish vaccination drive in the state, which is battling a "terrible" second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.
In her letter to Adityanath, the Congress general secretary also alleged coronavirus patients and their attendant were scrambling for beds, medicines and oxygen in the state to no avail.
"If you don't employ the entire resources of the government with determination in this hour of crisis, the future generations will never forgive you," she said in her letter, in which she has also made 10 suggestions on fighting the raging pandemic.
She said the second wave of the pandemic is at its peak in many cities of Uttar Pradesh and "is now spreading to villages". "The biggest concern is that the rate of coronavirus cases is rising, while testing is very low. A large number of cases are not being reported," Gandhi alleged in her letter in Hindi. (PTI)
The National Platform for the Rights of the Disabled (NPRD) has asked the Centre to provide free Covid vaccination at doorstep to all disabled and their caregivers to save them from the second wave of coronavirus in the country.
In a statement, NPRD general secretary Muralidharan said people with disability are one of the most marginalised and vulnerable groups and they have been more adversely impacted by the second wave.
Besides free vaccination, other demands put in by the NPRD before the Centre are -- provide Rs 7,500 per month as ex-gratia, free ration and food kits, jobs under MNREGA, legislate a new Urban Employment Guarantee Act, restoration of concessions for the disabled in all long distance trains.
The NPRD also asked for the establishment of toll free accessible helplines for the disabled in all states and separate toll free helplines for Mental Health.
Gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari tested positive for coronavirus and has been kept in isolation in the district jail here, officials said on Tuesday.
Mukhtar Ansari was found COVID positive in a rapid antigen test on Saturday, which was confirmed in an RT-PCR test on Sunday, Chief Medical Officer N D Sharma said.
He has been kept in isolation at Barrack No. 16 in the jail.
A team of doctors is monitoring his health, Banda Government Medical College Principal Mukesh Kumar Yadav said, adding that despite testing positive for the infection, Ansari did not show symptoms. (PTI)
The Assam government on Tuesday imposed night curfew across the state from 8 pm to 5 am with immediate effect, as part of its efforts to control the surge in COVID-19 cases.
The state disaster management authority, in its order, said the curfew will be in place till May 1.
"The COVID-19 situation in Assam has been reviewed... It has been observed that there has been a rapid increase in the number of active cases of COVID-19 across the state.
"...and therefore, it is felt that night curfew needs to be imposed in all districts of Assam, except for essential and emergency activities/services," the order signed by Chief Secretary Jishnu Barua said.
Barring emergencies, movement of individuals will not be allowed during the curfew period, it added.
The state government has also ordered all markets and shops to down shutters by 6 pm, and face mask has been made mandatory for everyone, including a person driving a vehicle. (PTI)
Oxygen supply is very healthy now. Yesterday we got 407.96 metric tonnes of the gas. We now have 13 additional tankers and are importing 18 more. Will issue new allocation order by today evening after yesterday's meeting with suppliers and hospitals. (Inputs from Sofi Ahsan)
‘Vaigai’ festival being celebrated inside Lord Sundararaja Perumal Temple premises in Alagar Koyil, Madurai today. In the wake of Covid-19 pandemic, the temple management authority has decided to celebrate the festival without the participation of common devotees. (ANI)
On behalf of all Taiwanese people, I would like to express my serious concern over the rapid spread of Covid-19 in India. Taiwan stands with India in this difficult time, and we are ready to provide help: President of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen. (ANI)
Night curfew imposed in Assam from 8 pm to 5 am, the order comes into immediate effect and will remain in place till May 1. (ANI)