The COVID-19 pandemic continues to be a challenge and this is a long-drawn battle to be fought by each one of us, warned V.K. Paul, member of the Central government’s COVID-19 response team, on Sunday, speaking exclusively to The Hindu.

You can track coronavirus cases, deaths and testing rates at the national and State levels here. A list of State Helpline numbers is available as well.

Here are the latest updates:

Tasmac liquor outlets to open in Chennai from August 18

Retail liquor shops run by Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (Tasmac) Ltd. in areas within Greater Chennai Police limits will be reopened from August 18.

“Liquor shops will be open between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. Every shop will distribute only 500 tokens a day,” an official release said.

Law department office sealed after officers found COVID-19 positive

The office enclosure of the law department at the civil secretariat here has been sealed on Sunday after a few senior officials tested positive for coronavirus. The officers and staffs of the law department have been quarantined following the detections, health department sources confirmed.

Lockdown extended till month-end in Tirupati

The government has announced extension of the lockdown in Tirupati till August 31 in view of an ever-increasing number of COVID-19 cases.

Municipal Corporation of Tirupati (MCT) Commissioner P.S. Gireesha on Sunday announced that the restrictions on public movement would be in force till the said period.

90 inmates of girls home test positive

Ninety inmates of a government shelter home for girls here have tested positive for COVID-19, an official said on Sunday.

Deputy Director of Women Welfare Department Nita Ahirwar said, “In the past two days, 90 inmates of Nari Niketan in Bareilly have tested positive. All of them have been isolated.”

How the inmates got the infection is being investigated, she said.

- PTI

ICMR-Vector Control Research Centre sets up COVID-19 diagnostic lab

Greater Chennai Corporation health worker wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) checking people at a fever camp at Collector colony, Amijikarai in Chennai on August 16, 2020   | Photo Credit: B. JOTHI RAMALINGAM

The ICMR-Vector Control Research Centre (VCRC) has set up a COVID-19 diagnostic laboratory to help the Government effort to build testing capacity for the viral infection in the region.

The lab with equipment including centrifuge and vortex for RTC-PCR testing has been established as bio safety level 3 (BSL-3) facility to be managed by a set of technicians trained at Jipmer.