India has reported 482 deaths and 22,752 Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours.
Coronavirus India News Live Updates: Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren has quarantined himself at his Ranchi residence after a cabinet minister whom he had met recently tested positive. The chief minister had recently come in contact with Drinking and Sanitation Minister Mithilesh Thakur who has tested positive for COVID-19. Soren has also urged staff members of the Chief Minister’s Office to go into home quarantine.
India has reported 482 deaths and 22,752 Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, pushing the total number of casualties to 20,642 and total number of infections to 7,42,417 which includes 2,64,944 active cases, and 4,56,831 people who have been treated and discharged so far, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The number of recovered cases exceeded that of the active cases by 1,91,886 on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, the Health Ministry assured that the country’s tally per million population is one of the lowest in the world. Referring to the WHO Situation Report-168′ dated July 6, the ministry said India’s COVID-19 cases per million population is 505.37 as against the global average of 1,453.25.
However, four months into the pandemic, Indian medical manufacturers catering to the swelling Covid industry are facing a unique dilemma over the use of a life-saving device at the heart of every ICU: ventilators. On the other hand, while 12 hospitals chosen to conduct clinical trials of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin prepare to enrol participants this month, samples of the vaccine are still undergoing quality and safety tests at a government facility, The Indian Express has learnt.
Globally, the total number of coronavirus cases has reached 11,798,678 while deaths stand at 543,535, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Coronavirus LIVE updates: Once seen as key in Covid fight, experts now say need for ventilators exaggerated. (Express Photo)
One of the passengers waves as they walk along the gangway during the boarding prior the first holiday flight of the Corendon Airlines Europe to the Greek destination Rhodos at the airport Erfurt-Weimar in Erfurt, Germany, Thursday, July 2, 2020. The tourist air traffic was interrupted for several months due to the corona pandemic. (AP Photo/Jens Meyer)
The coronavirus has infected nearly 11.8 million people worldwide and killed over 500,000. The United States has the most number of infections, over three million, followed by Brazil (1.6 million), India (7,00,000) and Russia (6,00,000).
Here's what happened today:
*Riots spark in Belgrade by new lockdown, dozens injured
*US notifies UN on decision to withdraw from WHO
*China defends WHO, lashes out at US move to withdraw
*Japan banks lend at record rate in June
*Colombia extends lockdown till August 1
*UK faces ‘job crisis’ as demand for employment falls
*WHO acknowledges ‘evidence emerging’ of airborne spread of Covid
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The number of Covid-19 cases in Madhya Pradesh's Indore district rose to 4,998 after 44 new cases were found in the last 24 hours, a health official said on Wednesday.
Besides, 252 people have so far died of coronavirus in the district, Indore's Chief Medical and Health Officer Praveen Jadia said.
"Since the outbreak of the disease here on March 24, 4,998 COVID-19 patients have been found so far out of the total 96,090 samples which were tested," Jadia was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.
Till now, 3,871 patients have been discharged after recovery, he added.
The number of COVID-19 cases recorded per day in India may surge to 2.87 lakh by early 2021 if a vaccine or treatment isn’t developed soon, researchers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) warned in a recent study.
In their study, titled ‘Estimating the global spread of COVID-19’, Researchers Hazhir Rahmandad, TY Lim and John Sterman of MIT’s Sloan School of Management have predicted that India may record the highest number of fresh cases in the world by the end of winter in 2021. Further, without a vaccine or treatment, over 24.9 crore cases and 18 lakh deaths may be reported globally by spring next year (March-May), the study claimed. More details here.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren has quarantined himself at his Ranchi residence after a cabinet minister whom he had met recently tested positive. The chief minister had recently come in contact with Drinking and Sanitation Minister Mithilesh Thakur who has tested positive for COVID-19. Soren has also urged staff members of the Chief Minister's Office to go into home quarantine.
As the number of diagnostic tests for novel Coronavirus is increasing in the country, so is the positivity rate. This means more number of people, from among those who are being tested, are found to be infected with the disease. The positivity rate had crossed 6 per cent mark for the first time on June 20, and has risen swiftly thereafter. At present, the positivity rate is around 7.09 per cent.
Positivity rate is a good indicator to assess the prevalence of the disease in the community. The rise in positivity rate means that the growth in the number of confirmed cases is outpacing the growth in the tests being conducted. And this is happening mainly because the criteria for testing is still restrictive in most states.
Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren quarantines himself at Ranchi residence after minister whom he met tests COVID-19 positive: Statement (PTI)
Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister P Thangamani has been tested positive for COVID-19. He participated in a couple of events yesterday at the secretariat with CM Edappadi and other officials. The total number of MLAs who have tested #COVID19 positive in the state has risen to 11.
In a move to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the area, the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) in West Bengal has said that no tourists will be allowed in the Darjeeling Hills till July 31.
Assam has reported a total of 7 Covid-19-related deaths in the past 24 hours, taking the total death toll in the state to 21. While a a woman with Type II diabetes and hypertension in Kamrup (M) district and a 40-year-old from Nagaon district died yesterday, five more deaths were reported this morning. Today’s deaths include a 30-year-old from Udalguri district and and four more (aged between 60 and 75) in Guwahati and Barpeta. “These are trying times, and we all must adhere to guidelines being repeatedly given - wearing mask, social distance and not going out unless very important” wrote state Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Twitter, while sharing his condolences. Yesterday, 814 cases were detected in Assam, with 588 from Guwahati. Active cases in the state are now at 4,988 while the total reported cases are at 13,336. -- reports Tora Agarwala
Bihar is the latest to join states wanting to put the Covid-19 care isolation coaches to use in view of the growing number of coronavirus cases in the state.
Bihar government on Wednesday made the request to the Indian Railways for 500 isolation beds or berths to be placed at Patna junction, sources said.
The State has reported 385 new cases in the last 24 hours, of which 265 have been reported from Patna. The district administration in Patna has also requested for the 80-bed Divisional Railway hospital in Danapur for COVID patients.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday wished Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro a speedy recovery from COVID-19. Bolsonaro had on Tuesday said that he has tested positive for coronavirus. "My friend President @jairbolsonaro (Jair Bolsonaro), my prayers and best wishes for your speedy recovery," Modi tweeted in Portuguese and English.
A 40-year-old Delhi Police constable who was undergoing treatment for liver related complications at a hospital here has passed away, 12 days after testing positive for COVID-19, officials said on Wednesday. Constable Yogender Yadav, was posted at Paschim Vihar West Police Station and passed away on Tuesday, a senior officer said. He was admitted to Park Hospital on June 12 due to a liver related ailment and had tested positive for COVID-19 on June 25. He hailed from Balaha Kalan village in Mahendergarh district of Haryana and lived with his family in police colony, Paschim Vihar, he said. He is survived by his wife -- Rekha (32), son Lakshay Yadav (14) and daughter Akshu Yadav (3), police said. Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal offered condolences to the family.
Ruling BJD MLA Prasant Behera has tested positive for COVID-19, the second legislator in Odisha to have contracted the disease, an official said on Wednesday. The lawmaker from Salipur in Cuttack district was admitted to a COVID-19 hospital, he said. Behera had come in contact with BJP's Nilgiri MLA Sukanta Kumar Nayak, who tested positive for the infection on Monday, and has been undergoing treatment at a hospital in Balasore, the official said.
Behera's personal security officer and driver have also contracted the disease, he said. The local administration has already launched contact-tracing of the legislator as he attended several programmes in his constituency. Meanwhile, Congress MLA Sura Routray has demanded a set of guidelines for legislators as they attend programmes and meet people.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has sought a detailed analytical report from the Delhi government's health secretary on factors responsible for COVID-19 deaths in the city in the last fortnight, officials said. Delhi reported 736 deaths in the last two weeks, with 397 people succumbing to the disease in the first week of July. Officials said the objective of seeking the report is to?take all possible measures to reduce coronavirus deaths in the national capital. A total of 3,165 COVID-19 deaths have occurred in Delhi so far.
A day after the Union Health Ministry recommended the Karnataka government to prioritise saving lives and to step up testing, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa held an emergency meeting with ministers and top government officials in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
The meeting was attended by Deputy Chief Minister Ashwathnarayan C N, Medical Education Minister K Sudhakar, Chief Secretary T M Vijay Bhaskar, and BBMP Commissioner B H Anil Kumar among others.
While 12 hospitals chosen to conduct clinical trials of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin prepare to enrol participants this month, samples of the vaccine are still undergoing quality and safety tests at a government facility, The Indian Express has learnt.
The tests, which began last Friday, are expected to be completed by the end of next week and cannot be rushed as they are expected to ensure the vaccines are safe to use in humans, said senior officials. Read More
Reserve players doing the job of ball boys, cleaning breaks to sanitise stumps and bails, reporters and photographers covering matches in personal protective equipment (PPE) — an unusual Test series between England and the West Indies starts on Wednesday.
In the middle of the novel coronavirus pandemic, international cricket will resume at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton. The Test — and the two that will follow in Manchester later this month — will be played without spectators in a bio-secure environment. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has issued a list of do’s and don’ts in a 74-page booklet that it has sent to Southampton.
Only the two captains, Ben Stokes and Jason Holder, and match referee Chris Broad will go out for the toss, says the booklet. There will be no cameras at the toss, and no handshakes after.
The Assam branch of Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Tuesday expressed resentment over the state government’s recent policy changes on the management of COVID-19 situation, claiming that they are difficult to follow and will not serve any purpose.
In a strongly-worded letter to Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, it also sought to know why a large number of doctors were infected with coronavirus infection while treating patients. The minister did not reply to the message sent by PTI for his reaction till the filing of this report. Senior officials were also not available for comment. Read More
The use of hydroxychloroquine to treat coronavirus patients has become highly politicized in the US but it is used widely in India, a top White House official has said, asserting latest research showed the malaria drug is highly effective in early stages of COVID-19.
“It’s the politicization of this medicine by the mainstream media and portions of the medical community that somehow made this a battle between President Trump and them and created this undue fear and hysteria over a drug, a medicine that has been used for over 60 years relatively safely and is regularly prescribed to pregnant women if they are going to a malaria zone,” White House Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy Director Peter Navarro told reporters.
IN THE STAFF room of the Primary School in Shahabad, Principal Devendra Kumar Singh and teacher Juhi Kumari squinted into the smartphone to read the latest state government order on mid-day meals. Parents of at least three children from Badbilla who study in the school were waiting outside for details with news in the air that students will be provided ration in lieu of mid-day meals.
“We have been instructed to make a roster, and do things systematically. So, it will take a few days. Parents will be called to the school; your children will not have to come. The money will be sent straight to children’s accounts, while you will get the rice from here,” Principal Singh told the parents. Read More