The lanes leading to the Kolkata station have barely seen traffic during lockdown. (Express photo)

India Coronavirus Latest Update: India on Saturday registered another record high of 18,552 new cases, pushing the country’s tally above 5,00,000, the official Health Ministry data showed on Saturday. Deaths rose by 384 to 15,685.

Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan Saturday said India’s recovery rate was nearly 60 per cent, while the fatality rate was near 3 per cent. The doubling rate is now 19 days. “Our mortality/fatality rate is near 3 per cent which is very less. Our doubling rate has come down to near 19 days, which was three days before the lockdown,” he said. Of the total 5,08,953 Covid-19 cases, 2,95,881 people have recovered, so far.

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) said a total of 79,96,707 samples have been tested so far, with 2,20,479 samples being tested on June 26.

Here are the top COVID-19 developments from across India

Health Ministry adds steroid dexamethasone in Covid-19 treatment

Following the footsteps of United Kingdom, India too has decided to add the inexpensive steroid dexamethasone in the treatment protocols for COVID-19 patients in moderate to severe stages of illness among other therapeutic measures, the Health Ministry said Saturday, PTI reported. The updated protocol includes the advice to use dexamethasone as an alternative choice to methylprednisolone. The revised treatment protocols for moderate cases advised considering methylprednisolone 0.5 to 1 mg/kg or dexamethasone 0.1 to 0.2 mg/kg for three days, preferably within 48 hours of admission or if oxygen requirement is increasing and if inflammatory markers are increased.

According to the revised ‘Clinical Management Protocols for COVID-19’, dexamethasone which is already used in treating lung infections besides in a wide range of conditions for its anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressant effects can be used as an alternative to methylprednisolone which already existed in the treatment guidelines. Few days ago, the ministry on June 13 allowed drug remdesivir for restricted emergency use and off-label application of tocilizumab, a drug that modifies the immune system or its functioning, and convalescent plasma for treating COVID-19 patients in moderate stage of the illness as an investigational therapy.

For more details, please see this Press Release:https://t.co/HGW4C6kHqv https://t.co/w0bdHjCHZU

— Ministry of Health (@MoHFW_INDIA) June 27, 2020

Andhra Pradesh sees record rise in infections

With 796 new coronavirus cases, Andhra Pradesh’s tally rose to 12,285 and 11 fresh deaths took the toll to 157, according to the health department bulletin. Anantapuramu district recorded 161 cases in a day, pushing it to the second spot in the state with a total of 1,320 behind Kurnool (1,684). Krishna and Kurnool districts registered four fresh coronavirus deaths each while West Godavari, East Godavari and Vizianagaram accounted for one each. It was the first COVID-19 death in Vizianagaram district to date. AP now has 6,648 active COVID-19 cases

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal has a five-step Covid approach

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Saturday listed five “weapons” his government was using to combat the disease. The increase in number of beds, testing and isolation, distribution of pulse oxymetres, plasma therapy and surveys and screening were the five measures taken in the national capital. Speaking to the press, Kejriwal said the speed at which the number of Covid cases had risen in the city was faster than the government had expected. The city now has a total of 77,240 cases and 2,492 deaths.

दिल्ली वालों ने करोना के ख़िलाफ़ ज़बरदस्त युद्ध छेड़ा हुआ है। इस युद्ध में हमारे ये पाँच हथियार हैं https://t.co/CelqbDD6vA

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) June 27, 2020

Maharashtra: 417 Thane cops test positive; trend of decline in daily deaths offers glimmer 

In Maharashtra, 417 police personnel of Thane police commissionerate tested positive for coronavirus, PTI reported. Three of them, all constables, succumbed to the virus. Thane Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar urged personnel to remain “extra cautious” while performing their duties.

The number of daily deaths from Covid-19 in Maharashtra has been declining for over a fortnight now, government data analysed by The Indian Express show. This declining trend contrasts with the continuing rising trend in the number of daily new Covid cases, and could indicate the impact of several relatively recent policy interventions in the battle against the pandemic. Maharashtra carries India’s heaviest Covid case load and death toll, having reported close to 1.52 lakh cases and 7,106 deaths until Friday. The first case in the state was reported on March 9.

Police in Pune patrolled streets and imposed fines on people not wearing masks.

Tamil Nadu reports 3,645 new cases; DMK MLA tests positive

Tamil Nadu on Friday reported 3,645 new novel coronavirus cases, taking the state’s total to 74,622. A total of 1,956 cases were reported in Chennai, taking the city’s tally to 49,690. At least 46 deaths were reported over the last 24 hours, taking the total toll to 957. Of the deceased cases, 44 persons had comorbidities.

DMK MLA from Cheyyur R T Arasu has tested positive for COVID-19. He is the third legislator from the DMK after the late J Anbazhagan and Vasantham K Karthikeyan to contract the infection and the fifth MLA in Tamil Nadu. Read Tamil Nadu live news updates

Telangana has witnessed a sudden spike in the number of Covid-19 cases since June 16, taking the tally to 12,349 on June 26. (File photo)

Telangana health dept flags violations in private Covid labs

Barely ten days after permitting 16 private diagnostic centers and hospitals in the state to conduct RT-PCR based testing of samples for coronavirus, the Telangana health department is preparing to take “stringent action” against several of them over several violations, ranging from poor quality control, poor hygiene, incorrect testing methods and failure to share full data with authorities.

The state has witnessed a sudden spike in the number of Covid-19 cases since June 16, taking the tally to 12,349 on June 26. Of these, 7,436 are active and under treatment. As many as 6,943 positive cases have emerged during the last 10 days after Telangana ramped up its testing.

After the state health department observed a disparity in the figures uploaded by private labs into the ICMR and state portals on June 24, an inspection was initiated by four teams, comprising senior microbiologists and senior officers from the health department across 16 private laboratories.

Odisha coronavirus cases rise to 6,350

Odisha reported one more death due to Covid-19 on Saturday, taking the death toll to 18. As many as 170 people tested positive for the virus, bringing the state’s total tally to 6,350.

Out of the 170 new cases, 143 were reported from quarantine centres, where people returning from other states have been lodged for preliminary observation, while 27 were local people, an official said.

The number of active cases in the state stands at 1,903 and 4,402 people have recovered.