Students leave with their parents after attending the Delhi Public School, in Noida, on Wednesday. (PTI)Coronavirus highlights: India recorded 1,150 cases new Covid-19 cases and four deaths in the last 24 hours ending 8 am Sunday, according to data released by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The active cases currently stand at 11,558 and comprise 0.03 per cent of the total infections. The recovery rate remained unchanged at 98.76 per cent and 954 recoveries were reported on Saturday. The country’s daily positivity rate is 0.31 per cent and the weekly positivity rate is 0.27 per cent.
Amid an uptick in Covid cases in Ghaziabad and Gautam Buddh Nagar, the Uttar Pradesh government on Saturday put all the National Capital Region (NCR) districts on alert mode, according to an official statement. Directions to this effect were given by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath while chairing a meeting on Covid management in the state, the statement said. During the meeting, the chief minister observed that over the past few days, there has been a rise in Covid cases in the state’s neighbouring areas and its impact can be seen in the NCR districts. He asked officials to put all the NCR districts on alert mode, it said.
Meanwhile, a heat-stable Covid vaccine that is being developed in India and does not need cold chain storage has generated strong antibody response against coronavirus variants, including Delta and Omicron, according to a study on mice. News agency PTI reported, the vaccine candidate, by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru and biotech start-up company Mynvax, uses a part of the viral spike protein called the receptor-binding domain (RBD), which allows the virus to connect with the host cell to infect it.
Health workers taking samples for Covid-19 testing. (Express photo by Praveen Khanna)
Hong Kong has banned Air India services till April 24 after three passengers on one of its flights tested positive for COVID-19 post arrival on Saturday, a senior government official has said.| Passengers from India can arrive in Hong Kong only if they have a COVID-19 negative certificate from a test done 48 hours prior to the journey, according to rules issued by the Hong Kong government, said the official on Sunday.
Moreover, all international passengers are required to take a post-flight Covid-19 test at the airport premises in Hong Kong.
"The three passengers on Air India's AI316 Delhi-Kolkata-Hong Kong flight on April 16 tested positive for Covid-19 post arrival," the official said.
Air India flights from New Delhi and Kolkata have been banned till April 24 by the Hong Kong government, the official added. (PTI)
Maharashtra on Sunday reported 127 new coronavirus positive cases, taking its tally to 78,75,845, while the death toll remained unchanged at 1,47,827 as nobody succumbed to the infection in the last 24 hours, a health official said.
So far, 77,27,372 people have been discharged post recovery, including 107 during the day, leaving the state with an active caseload of 646, he said.
As 21,6534 samples were examined in the last 24 hours, the overall test count in the state went up to 7,98,66,301, the official said.
State health department data showed that the recovery rate was 98 per cent and the fatality rate stood at 1.87 per cent.
Mumbai city reported 55 cases, taking its tally to 10,57,843, while the toll stood at 19,562, the official said. The tally in Mumbai metropolitan region increased by 80 to touch 22,32,542, while the count of deaths remained at 39,826. (PTI)
The massive surge of Covid-19 cases in Shanghai city has hit China's shipbuilding industry, including the construction of the third aircraft carrier scheduled for launch on April 23.
For over a fortnight, Shanghai -- China's business and industrial hub with over 26 million people -- has been literally shut down with strict lockdown as the city experienced rampaging spread of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus.
Shanghai reported 3,590 confirmed locally transmitted Covid-19 cases and over 21,500 local asymptomatic carriers on Saturday, the city municipal health commission said on Sunday.
The lockdown has slowed China's shipbuilding plans and may affect the launch of the country's third aircraft carrier, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported on Sunday. (PTI)
A prominent Indian-origin public health expert who advises the Scotland government on its Covid-19 pandemic measures has revealed the level of threats she has had to face over the course of the country's lockdowns. Devi Sridhar, professor of global public health at Edinburgh University who is on the Scottish government's coronavirus advisory board, told ‘The Times' newspaper this weekend that she was sent white powder and a used face mask in the post last year."I was extremely shaken and it was probably the hardest part because it was in my real life, not virtual or online,” said Sridhar, who often appears on UK radio and television as an expert commentator on the Covid-19 pandemic.“I have thought often about withdrawing but it feels like, for better or worse, my job now also has a public dimension. Hopefully, it's helpful to have scientists out there explaining things for most people," she said. (PTI)
The WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine, set to come up in Gujarat, aims at improving the quality and safety of traditional medicinal practices by developing a cohesive approach to healthcare, said the world body's Regional Director Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh.
The objective is also to develop a mechanism that allows access to such traditional medicinal practices and protects such knowledge, she said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus will perform the ground-breaking ceremony of the facility in Jamnagar on April 19.
It would be the first global outpost centre for traditional medicine and define the issues that countries face in regulating, integrating and positioning traditional medicine. (PTI)
The number of people in Delhi-NCR reporting someone getting Covid-19 in their close social network has risen by 500% in the last 15 days, a survey has claimed.Around 19 per cent residents of Delhi-NCR responding to a survey revealed they have one or more individuals in their close network who has had Covid in the last 15 days.The 'Covid network prevalence' marks an over 500 per cent increase in the last 15 days, said LocalCircles, the firm that conducted the survey.The survey received inputs from 11,743 residents located in all districts of Delhi and NCR, the firm said.It asked the respondents: “How many individuals (including children) do you have in your close social network (family, friends, neighbours, colleagues) in Delhi-NCR that have had Covid in the last 15 days?” In response, the majority of the respondents, 70 per cent, said: “No one in the last 15 days”. An 11 per cent said “1 or 2”, eight per cent said “3-5”, and another 11 per cent “couldn't say”. (PTI)
A top private school in Delhi has asked parents to not send their children to school on Monday after a student tested positive for Covid-19. "Kindly do not send your wards to school on Monday as fumigation or sanitation exercise will be conducted," the school said in a communication to parents on Saturday after the Covid positive case was reported. The number of school students testing positive has been on the rise in the city, raising concerns of parents. The Delhi government has told school authorities to close specific wings or classrooms wherever needed. Schools in Delhi have a four-day holiday in view of Ambedkar Jayanti, which was on Thursday, and Good Friday followed by Saturday and Sunday.
Gujarat on Saturday reported four Covid-19 cases, taking the state's tally to 12,24,142, while the death toll remained unchanged at 10,942, a health department official said. So far, 12,13,074 people have been discharged post recovery, including 32 during the day, leaving the state with an active caseload of 126, he added.
The new cases comprise three from Vadodara and one from Sabarkantha, the official said. As many as 40,250 people were inoculated against Covid-19 on Saturday, taking the overall number of doses administered in Gujarat to 10.67 crore, a government release informed.
Nagaland on Saturday did not report any fresh Covid-19 case for the third consecutive day, a health department official. The Covid-19 tally remained at 35,487, the official said. The state had reported three fresh infections on Wednesday.
Shanghai has set a target to stop the spread of Covid-19 outside of quarantined areas by Wednesday, two people familiar with the matter said, which would allow China's largest city to further ease lockdown curbs and start returning to normal life.The target will require officials to accelerate Covid testing and the transfer of positive cases to quarantine centres, according to a speech by a local Communist Party official dated Saturday, a copy of which was seen by Reuters.
Shanghai has become the epicentre of China's largest outbreak since the virus was first identified in Wuhan in late 2019, and has recorded more than 320,000 COVID infections since early March when its surge began.Locked-down Shanghai residents have expressed frustration over difficulties sourcing food, lost income, separated families and poor conditions at central quarantine centres. (With Reuters)
Amid concerns over children getting infected with coronavirus as schools reopened, health experts said there was no need to panic they mostly have mild illnesses and recover with just symptomatic treatment. They, however, stressed that the children who are eligible to get vaccinated against Covid must get the jab.
The health experts said consistent and appropriate use of masks, implementation of a standard protocol for sanitisation and hand washing are the key pillars of Covid-appropriate behaviour. "There is no need to panic as data from past waves have clearly shown that children, even if they contract COVID-19, have mild illness and recover spontaneously with just symptomatic treatment," AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria told PTI.
Amid an uptick in Covid-19 cases in Ghaziabad and Gautam Buddh Nagar, the Uttar Pradesh government on Saturday put all the National Capital Region (NCR) districts on alert mode, according to an official statement.
Directions to this effect were given by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath while chairing a meeting on Covid-19 management in the state, the statement said. During the meeting, the chief minister observed that over the past few days, there has been a rise in COVID-19 cases in the state's neighbouring areas and its impact can be seen in the NCR districts. He asked officials to put all the NCR districts on alert mode, it said.
The total number of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered in the country so far under the nationwide vaccination drive has exceeded 186.51 crore.
India on Saturday questioned the World Health Organisation's methodology to estimate Covid-19 mortalities in the country, saying using such a mathematical modelling cannot be applied to estimate the death figures for such a vast nation of geographical size and population.
The Union health ministry issued a statement in response to a New York Times article titled "India Is Stalling WHO's Efforts to Make Global Covid Death Toll Public" dated April 16, saying the country has on several occasions shared its concerns with the global health body over the methodology used.
India recorded 1,150 cases new Covid-19 cases and four deaths in the last 24 hours ending 8 am Sunday, according to data released by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The active cases currently stand at 11,558 and comprise 0.03 per cent of the total infections. The recovery rate remained unchanged at 98.76 per cent and 954 recoveries were reported on Saturday.
No Covid case or death was reported in Chhattisgarh for the third time in the past six days on Saturday, keeping the tally and toll unchanged at 11,52,217 and 14,034 respectively, an official said.
So far, 11,38,167 people have been discharged post recovery, including three during the day, leaving the state with 16 active cases, he added.
Currently, 20 districts in the state have no active case, the official pointed out. With 3,149 samples being examined during the day, the overall number of tests in Chhattisgarh reached 1,75,87,235, he added. (PTI)
Tamil Nadu on Saturday added 23 Covid infections, pushing the overall tally to 34,53,233 while the death toll remained unchanged at 38,025 with nil fatalities reported in the last 24 hours, the health department said.
Recoveries grew to 34,14,983 with 26 people getting discharged in the last 24 hours leaving 225 active infections, a medical bulletin said.
Chennai accounted for the majority of new coronavirus infections with 12 new cases, followed by Chengalpet six, Kancheepuram two while Coimbatore, Erode, Thanjavur recorded one each. As many as 13 districts reported nil active cases. (PTI)
Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday recorded nine fresh cases of coronavirus, taking the infected number of persons to 4,53,929 while no death due to the virus was reported in the past 24 hours, officials said.
There are 71 active cases in the union territory, while the number of recovered patients was 4,49,107, the officials said. All the fresh cases were from Kashmir division of the union territory, the officials said, adding the Srinagar district recorded the highest of seven cases.
Eighteen of the total 22 districts in the Union territory did not report any fresh cases. The death toll in the union territory due to the pandemic was 4,751 as no fresh death was reported in the past 24 hours. (PTI)
Madhya Pradesh on Saturday recorded 13 new cases of coronavirus that raised the tally of infections to 10,41,243, an official from the state health department said.
The count of recoveries rose to 10,30,461 after nine patients were discharged from hospitals, while the toll stood at 10,734, as no fresh fatalities were reported in the last 24 hours, he said.
With the positivity rate of 0.2 per cent, the central state is now left with 48 active cases, the official said. (PTI)
Anti-virus controls that have shut down some of China's biggest cities and fueled public irritation are spreading as infections rise, hurting a weak economy and prompting warnings of possible global shockwaves. (AP)
Keeping up with the trend of the past few days, Covid-19 cases further rose in Delhi on Saturday as the city reported 461 new Covid cases and two deaths, according to data shared by the city health department. With 8646 tests being conducted in the city, the positivity rate as of Saturday evening rose up to 5.33 per cent.
On Friday, the capital had recorded 366 Covid-19 cases and zero death, while the positivity rate stood at 3.95 per cent. Delhi on Thursday had recorded 325 cases and no death, while the positivity rate stood at 2.39 per cent. Read more
Nagaland on Saturday did not report any fresh Covid case for the third consecutive day, a health department official. The Covid tally remained at 35,487, the official said. The state had reported three fresh infections on Wednesday.
Nagaland now has eight active Covid cases, while 33,236 patients have recovered from the disease and 1,484 patients have migrated to other states, the official said.
The Covid death toll remained at 759 as no fresh fatality was reported in the last 24 hours. The Covid recovery rate is now 93.65 per cent. (PTI)
A top private school here has asked parents to not send their children to school on Monday after a student tested positive for Covid. The number of school students testing positive has been on the rise in the city, raising concerns of parents. The Delhi government has told school authorities to close specific wings or classrooms wherever needed.
Schools in Delhi have a four-day holiday in view of Ambedkar Jayanti, which was on Thursday, and Good Friday followed by Saturday and Sunday.
"Kindly do not send your wards to school on Monday as fumigation or sanitation exercise will be conducted," the school said in a communication to parents on Saturday after the Covid positive case was reported. (PTI)
Gujarat on Saturday reported four Covid cases, taking the state's tally to 12,24,142, while the death toll remained unchanged at 10,942, a health department official said.
So far, 12,13,074 people have been discharged post recovery, including 32 during the day, leaving the state with an active caseload of 126, he added. As many as 40,250 people were inoculated against Covid on Saturday, taking the overall number of doses administered in Gujarat to 10.67 crore, a government release informed.
The adjoining Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu continued to be coronavirus-free, local officials said. (PTI)
Maharashtra on Saturday reported 98 new coronavirus infections but no pandemic-related deaths. The day before the state had reported 69 infections and one death.
The state's Covid caseload rose to 78,75,718 on Saturday, while death toll remained unchanged at 1,47,827. There are 626 active cases in Maharashtra now. The recovery rate is 98.12 per cent, while the case fatality rate is 1.87 per cent.
Mumbai city reported 43 cases but no deaths. The tally of cases reported in Mumbai in the last two years rose to 10,57,788, and death toll remained unchanged at 19,562. (PTI)
Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia Saturday said coronavirus cases may have been rising in the national capital, but there is no need to worry as hospitalisation is low.
Sisodia, who also holds the education portfolio, reiterated that instructions have been issued to schools to follow the government's Standard Operating Procedure if they detect any case.
"There is no need to worry. There might have been a rise in coronavirus cases but we are vigilant and the hospital admissions are low. There are only six coronavirus patients admitted at LNJP hospital," he said. (PTI)
With an uptick in Covid cases here, district authorities have intensified surveillance and are on alert mode for early detection and containment of people infected with the disease.
Some districts have also planned awareness campaigns from next week. The daily Covid cases and the positivity rate in the national capital have seen an upward trend in the last few days. The positivity rate in the last five days, between April 10 and April 15, has increased by three times, according to city health department data.
The positivity rate on April 10 was 1.29 per cent with 141 cases, and this rose to 3.95 per cent on Friday with 366 cases. Surveillance teams are active, on alert mode and are monitoring the situation, a senior official of the South District administration said. (PTI)
Odisha reported 10 new Covid cases on Saturday, seven less than the previous day, with the tally rising to 12,87,912, a health department bulletin said.
The death toll remained at 9,123 as no fresh fatality due to the infection was recorded in the last 24 hours, it said. Fifty-three other Covid patients have died due to comorbidities.
Seventeen people recuperated from the disease on Friday, taking the total number of recoveries to 12,78,622, the bulletin said. Odisha now has 114 active coronavirus cases, it added. (PTI)
No Delhi Capitals players will shake hands with any player from Royal Challengers Bangalore after the night game at Wankhede Stadium on April 16.
Not because there is any problem between the two teams but it’s a BCCI mandate to the Delhi team after their physiotherapist Patrick Farhat tested covid positive on Friday and another support staff tested positive on Saturday.
It is understood that the support staff who tested positive on the morning of the game against RCB is the masseur. Read more
Chingam village has become the first remote hamlet in Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar district to register 100 percent Covid vaccination, the Army said on Saturday.
Located 50 kilometres from Kishtwar town, the village has been adopted by the Army with an aim to reduce the hardships of the people and ensure the implementation of Covid protocols, thus saving precious lives and breaking the chain of the virus, Jammu-based Army PRO Lt Col Devender Anand said here.
He said with dedicated efforts of the Army, the civil administration and the people, Chingam has become a model village by achieving 100 percent Covid vaccination. (PTI)
One fresh Covid case was reported in Ladakh, taking the overall virus tally in the Union Territory to 28,239, officials said on Saturday.
The number of active cases, however, dropped to eight after the recovery of two more patients in Leh on Friday, the officials said, adding that with this the number of recovered patients in Ladakh has gone up to 28,003.
According to the officials, there was no Covid -related death in the region, which has so far recorded 228 fatalities linked to the pandemic since its outbreak. (PTI)
Amid concerns over children getting infected with coronavirus as schools reopened, health experts said there was no need to panic they mostly have mild illnesses and recover with just symptomatic treatment. They, however, stressed that the children who are eligible to get vaccinated against Covid must get the jab.
The health experts said consistent and appropriate use of masks, implementation of a standard protocol for sanitisation and hand washing are the key pillars of Covid-appropriate behaviour. "There is no need to panic as data from past waves have clearly shown that children, even if they contract Covid, have mild illness and recover spontaneously with just symptomatic treatment," AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria told PTI.
Therefore, eligible children should take the vaccine. But then even those who have not been vaccinated should not panic as chances of them getting a severe infection is very low, he said. (PTI)
Japan's top representative in Shanghai urged China's most populous city to address concerns of Japanese businesses over losses and other disruptions caused by lockdowns aimed at containing a Covid surge.
Consul General Shuichi Akamatsu's letter, posted on the consulate's website on Saturday, comes as most of Shanghai's 25 million residents remain under strict lockdowns that have hobbled economic activity in the financial centre. The city reported a record 3,590 symptomatic cases on Saturday.
The U.S. State Department on Monday ordered non-emergency U.S. government workers to leave the consulate due to surging virus numbers and China's measures to control its spread. (Reuters)
Coronavirus infections might soon be flagged with a puff of exhaled breath, after the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday authorized the first breath-based COVID-19 test in the United States.
The emergency-use authorization of the InspectIR COVID-19 Breathalyzer is a meaningful milestone in the yearslong quest to develop more breath-based diagnostics, as well as innovative new tests for COVID-19, experts said. And it is likely to be the first of many similar breath-based COVID-19 tests, experts said.
“I think this is a really exciting development for the entire field of breath analysis,” said Cristina Davis, associate vice chancellor of Interdisciplinary Research and Strategic Initiatives at the University of California, Davis, who has been developing her own coronavirus test. “This is a huge step forward.” Read more
Studies on various vaccines globally have shown that an additional dose provides extended protection against Covid-19. Now, a study from Israel has found that four doses offer greater protection against severe disease than three, but the protection against infection itself was brief. India has started rolling out a ‘precautionary’ (third) dose for the general population. Read more
Seventy people, including 14 children, have tested positive for Covid in Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddh Nagar, pushing the number of active infections to over 200, the district health department said on Saturday. The number of active cases in the district, adjoining Delhi, has reached 218 now, the department said.
According to official figures, 70 more people have tested positive for the infection since Friday 6 am while eight have been cured during the period. “Of the 70 new cases, 14 are children below 18 years of age who have tested positive for Covid,” Chief Medical Officer Sunil Kumar Sharma said.
The department has urged residents to inform officials about any suspected case or symptoms of the virus to any person on the dedicated helpline no- 1800492211 or through email cmogbnr@gmail.com" ncmogbnr@gmail.com for proper and timely treatment. (PTI)
A heat-stable Covid vaccine that is being developed in India and does not need cold chain storage has generated strong antibody response against coronavirus variants, including Delta and Omicron, according to a study on mice.
The vaccine candidate, by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru and biotech start-up company Mynvax, uses a part of the viral spike protein called the receptor-binding domain (RBD), which allows the virus to connect with the host cell to infect it.
The team, including researchers from Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), noted that most vaccines require refrigeration to remain effective. The heat-tolerant Covid vaccine candidate can be stored at 37 degrees Celsius for four weeks and at 100 degrees Celsius for up to 90 minutes. (PTI)
No fresh case of coronavirus was reported in Puducherry during the last twenty-four hours ending 10 a.m. on Saturday while the active cases remained three.
The department of health conducted examination of 87 samples today and found no new infection. The Department of Health examined 22,31,677 samples and found 18,76,577 out of them to be negative, Director of Health G Sriramulu said in a release.
The overall caseload and recoveries remained 1,65,77 and 1,63,812 respectively. With no fatality reported during last 24 hours the toll stood at 1,962. The test positivity rate was zero while the fatality and recovery rates were 1.18 percent and 98.81 percent respectively, the Director said. (PTI)
Amid an uptick in Covid cases in Ghaziabad and Gautam Buddh Nagar, the Uttar Pradesh government on Saturday put all the National Capital Region (NCR) districts on alert mode, according to an official statement.
Directions to this effect were given by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath while chairing a meeting on Covid management in the state, the statement said.
During the meeting, the chief minister observed that over the past few days, there has been a rise in Covid cases in the state's neighbouring areas and its impact can be seen in the NCR districts. He asked officials to put all the NCR districts on alert mode, it said. (PTI)
Two Covid vaccine candidates developed by units of China National Biotec Group (CNBG) to target the Omicron variant were approved for clinical trials as boosters in Hong Kong, the Sinopharm subsidiary said on Saturday.
Scientists worldwide are racing to study upgraded injections against Omicron, as data indicated that antibodies elicited by vaccines based on older strains show weaker activity to neutralise the highly transmissible variant.
The two candidates, both containing inactivated or "killed" Omicron virus and similar to the two Sinopharm vaccines in use in China, will be tested in adults who have already received two or three vaccine doses, CNBG said in a statement. (Reuters)
Mizoram on Saturday reported 53 new Covid cases, eight less than the previous day, with the tally rising to 2,26,015, a health department official said.
The single-day positivity rate shot up to 38.41 per cent, as the fresh cases were detected from 138 sample tests. The ratio was 9.67 per cent the previous day.
The death toll remained at 691 as no new fatality due to the infection was reported in the last 24 hours, he said. The recovery rate among coronavirus patients in the state stood at 99.44 per cent. Mizoram now has 569 active cases. (PTI)
Dr Peter Hotez, who co-chairs the Lancet Commission on Covid-19 Vaccines and Therapeutics Task Force, talks to Kaunain Sheriff M about the next phase in the development of Covid-19 vaccines, explains why heterologous boosters will give more “enduring and lasting protection”, says the Indian govt’s decision to “aggressively pursue a booster programme is wise”, and elaborates on the challenges of long Covid and the road ahead.
Dr Hotez is an internationally recognised physician-scientist and among the most trusted voices on vaccine development. The Hyderabad-based Biological E’s Corbevax, which is being administered to children between the age group of 12-14 years in India, was developed in collaboration with the team of scientists headed by Dr Hotez at the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development and Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas.
Read the full interview here
China's financial centre Shanghai reported a new record number of symptomatic COVID-19 cases on Saturday as the country imposed new lockdowns, underscoring its "dynamic clearance" approach to COVID control.The Zhengzhou Airport Economic Zone, an industrial area in the central province of Henan that houses manufacturing facilities of companies including Apple Inc supplier Foxconn, announced a 14-day lockdown on Friday "to be adjusted according to the epidemic situation."
All hospitals in Delhi have been advised to remain alert in view of the rise in coronavirus cases in the city, Health Minister Satyendar Jain said Friday, while asserting that they are fully prepared to tackle the situation. According to an officials statement, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the government is keeping a close eye on the situation. "Hospital admissions are not increasing, so there is no need to panic. Nothing to worry about as of now," he stressed.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said the country will get a record number of doctors in the next 10 years due to the central government's policy of establishing at least one medical college in every district. Speaking after dedicating to the nation a 200-bed K K Patel Mutli-speciality Hospital in Bhuj in Gujarat's Kutch district via video-conferencing, he said coronavirus is still lurking and people should not take it easy and be watchful.
The modern health facility is the first charitable multi-speciality hospital in the Kutch region and it has been built by the Leuva Patel community of Bhuj with help from donors based in India and abroad.
India recorded 975 new Covid-19 cases and four deaths in the last 24 hours ending 8 am Saturday, according to data released by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The active cases currently stand at 11,366 and comprise 0.03 per cent of the total infections. The recovery rate stands at 98.76 per cent and 796 recoveries were reported on Friday.
Haryana has reported over 1,200 fresh Covid cases in over 14 days out of which over 1,000 infections were from Gurugram district, official data showed. The district has been witnessing a rise in Covid cases in the past few days. Its neighbouring Delhi has also been recording an uptick in daily Covid cases with the positivity rate going beyond two per cent. The Covid positivity rate in Haryana was 1.27 per cent on February 28, 0.41 per cent on March 31 and 2.72 per cent on April 14.
China on Friday reported more than 3,400 positive and 20,700 asymptomatic coronavirus cases, majority of them in Shanghai city which is reeling under prolonged lockdown, and where hospitals have been ordered not to delay treatment of non-COVID patients after an elderly woman died waiting for emergency care, sparking a public outcry.The positive cases continued to be the highest in Shanghai.
Amid growing public anger over the hospitals refusing treatment for non-COVID patients, health officials in Shanghai on Friday ordered hospitals not to delay treatment of patients over COVID-19 restrictions after an elderly woman died. (With PTI)
Delhi on Friday recorded 366 fresh Covid-19 cases and zero death, while the positivity rate rose further to 3.95 per cent, according to data shared by the city health department. With this, Delhi's Covid-19 tally has increased to 18,67,572. The death toll stands at 26,158, according to the bulletin. The daily Covid-19 cases and the positivity rate in the national capital have seen an upward trend in the last few days.
With daily Covid cases crossing the 300-mark for the second day in a row in the capital, district authorities have ramped up testing, contact tracing and vaccination campaigns.
According to senior officials, random Covid testing will restart at Metro stations and places that see high footfall like markets, bus stops and railways stations after the DDMA meeting on April 20. A senior official from the Southeast district said they are expecting fresh guidelines will be issued, which will reimpose fines for not wearing masks and enforcement drives.
Delhi on Friday recorded 366 fresh Covid-19 cases and zero death, while the positivity rate rose further to 3.95 per cent, according to data shared by the city health department. With this, Delhi's Covid-19 tally has increased to 18,67,572. The death toll stands at 26,158, according to the bulletin.
The daily cases and the positivity rate in the national capital have seen an upward trend in the last few days.
Delhi had on Thursday recorded 325 Covid-19 cases and zero death, while the positivity rate stood at 2.39 per cent. On Wednesday, 299 cases were recorded with a positivity rate of 2.49 per cent and no death. (PTI)
India Friday administered 22,532 precaution doses of Covid-19 vaccine among people in 18-59 age group, taking the total number of such shots to 1,09,080, according to the latest Health Ministry data. In all, 5.79 lakh vaccine doses were administered on Friday till 7 pm, pushing the cumulative figure to 186.36 crore, the ministry said.
India began on Sunday administering precaution dose of Covid-19 vaccines to all aged above 18 years at private vaccination centres. Those above 18 who have completed nine months since the administration of the second dose are eligible for a precaution shot.
More than 2.39 crore vaccine doses have been administered in 12-14 year age group so far, while over 2.51 crore precaution doses have been administered to healthcare workers, frontline workers and to those aged 60 and above so far. (PTI)
Dr Peter Hotez, who co-chairs the Lancet Commission on Covid-19 Vaccines and Therapeutics Task Force, talks to Kaunain Sheriff M about the next phase in the development of Covid-19 vaccines, explains why heterologous boosters will give more “enduring and lasting protection”, says the Indian govt’s decision to “aggressively pursue a booster programme is wise”, and elaborates on the challenges of long Covid and the road ahead.
Dr Hotez is an internationally recognised physician-scientist and among the most trusted voices on vaccine development. The Hyderabad-based Biological E’s Corbevax, which is being administered to children between the age group of 12-14 years in India, was developed in collaboration with the team of scientists headed by Dr Hotez at the Texas Children’s Hospital Center for Vaccine Development and Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. Read the interview by Kaunain Sheriff M
Haryana has reported over 1,200 fresh Covid cases in over 14 days out of which over 1,000 infections were from Gurugram district, official data showed.
The district has been witnessing a rise in Covid cases in the past few days. Its neighbouring Delhi has also been recording an uptick in daily Covid cases with the positivity rate going beyond two per cent.
The Covid positivity rate in Haryana was 1.27 per cent on February 28, 0.41 per cent on March 31 and 2.72 per cent on April 14. (PTI)
Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Friday said a specific wing in schools or classrooms where a COVID-19 case has been detected should be closed temporarily and clarified that the entire school should only be closed in specific cases.
The comments by Sisodia, who is also the Education Minister, came against the backdrop of rising cases of COVID-19 among school children and staff members. A meeting of the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) has been called on April 20 to review the situation in the national capital.
The Directorate of Education (DoE) issued a fresh advisory for schools in the national capital on April 13, directing them to close the entire premises or specific wings temporarily if any student or staff tests positive for COVID-19. The department also said students and staff must wear masks and maintain social distancing to the extent possible. (PTI)
Scientists in Japan have developed a new antiviral coating that inactivates various types of coronavirus variants under both indoor light and darkness.
The coating developed by researchers at Nara Medical University, Kanagawa Institute of Industrial Science and Technology, and Tokyo Institute of Technology is made using a combination of titanium dioxide (TiO2) and copper oxide (CuxO) compounds.
They noted that the main transmission pathway of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is through droplets released by infected people into the air, adding these droplets exist on various surfaces as well. (PTI)
The daily tally of Covid-19 cases in Shanghai, which is at the centre of China's epidemic, has fallen slightly, authorities said on Friday, as the city's lockdown threatened to exact a heavier toll on the world's second-biggest economy.
China's automakers may have to suspend production next month if suppliers in Shanghai and surrounding areas can't resume work, the chief executive officer of electric-car maker Xpeng said, while airlines and the property sector are also feeling the pain. (Reuters)
The number of active cases in the district has reached 156 now, the department said.
California is delaying a coronavirus vaccine mandate for schoolchildren until at least the summer of 2023. Gov Gavin Newsoms administration announced the change on Thursday.
California was the first state to announce it would require all schoolchildren to receive the coronavirus vaccine. But the mandate will not take effect until federal regulators give final approval to the vaccine for children. That hasnt happened yet California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr Mark Ghaly said school districts would need more time to implement the mandate once federal approval happens.
State officials say the mandate will not happen before July 1 2023. (AP)