India, now the world's second worst affected nation added over 20 lakh cases from August 7 to September 5. (File)Coronavirus India Updates: Recording a slight dip in the new cases, India added 75,809 coronavirus cases Tuesday taking the country’s total caseload to over 42.80 lakh. Of the total cases, over 33 lakh people have recovered after testing positive while over 8.83 lakh infections still persist.
The daily cases dipped after recording over 80,000 new cases every day for the past 5 days and over 90,000 in the last two days. India, now the world’s second worst-affected nation, has added over 20 lakh cases from August 7 to September 5. (Follow Covid-19 LIVE updates here)
With 1,133 fresh fatalities, a record number of Covid-induced deaths were reported in the last 24 hours taking the country’s toll past 75,000 to reach 75,775. India’s recovery rate went up to 77.65 per cent while its fatality rate stood at 1.7 per cent, unchanged from the previous day.
Here are the top developments
Over 6,000 fresh cases recorded in UP, death toll at 4,047
The death toll due to the novel coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh rose to 4,047 on Tuesday with 73 more fatalities, while 6,743 fresh cases pushed the state’s infection tally to over 2.78 lakh, PTI reported.
The total number of cases in the state have now climbed to 2,78,473.
According to the latest bulletin issued by the UP government, of the 73 deaths, 19 were reported from Lucknow followed by six from Prayagraj and four from Kanpur.
Three deaths each were reported from Gorakhpur, Varanasi, Moradabad, Maharajganj, Unnao, and Rae Bareli among others, it said.
With 63,256 active cases, the total number of cases in the state have now climbed to 2,78,473.
Doctor’s prescription not mandatory for testing: Delhi HC
The Delhi High Court Tuesday ordered that doctor’s prescription will not be mandatory from now on for those going voluntarily for RT/PCR test to detect COVID-19 infection in the national capital. Till now it was mandatory for a person to have a doctor’s prescription or symptoms to get tested for the virus.
A bench of justices Hima Kohli and Subramonium Prasad said people need to carry Aadhaar card for Delhi address proof and fill up a form as prescribed by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for testing.
The court has also ordered the Delhi government to ramp up mobile testing facilities, at least four in each district.
Vaccine developed by Russia under consideration, says Centre
Dr. VK Paul, Member (Health), Niti Aayog on Tuesday said that the vaccine developed by Russia has been under consideration.”The vaccine developed by Russia has been under consideration of the country. The government of Russia approached our govt and sought help on two counts- to consider its manufacturing through our network of companies, and phase 3 studies in India,” Dr. Paul was quoted as saying by ANI.
A woman holds a small bottle labeled with a “Vaccine COVID-19” sticker and a medical syringe in this illustration taken April 10, 2020. (Reuters)
“The government of India attaches great importance to this offer of partnership from a very special friend of this nation, and on both the tracks there has been significant movement,” he further added.
Four cases of Covid-19 reinfection reported in Gujarat
A health worker collects a nasal sample from a woman for COVID-19 testing. (PTI Photo)
Gujarat’s civic body reported four cases of Covid-19 reinfection between August 18 and September 6, nearly four months after the patients tested positive for the first time. The fours reinfections include two male resident doctors, a 26-year-old woman resident doctor and a 60-year-old homemaker. They had first tested positive between April 13 and April 21. All had subsequently recovered and were discharged after testing negative through RT PCR tests at the time.
AMC said these four are being considered as the statistically rare cases of reinfection, since two of them had coincidentally been included in the two serosurveys of AMC, and thus they have some evidence to track the trajectory of the supposed cases of reinfection.
33 passengers test positive at Ahmedabad railway station
Over 500 passengers who arrived via Gorakhpur Express and 530 others via Muzaffarpur Express, tested positive. (Express Photo by Javed Raja)
As migrants return to Gujarat, Ahmedabad has started testing for Covid-19 at the railway station for arriving passengers. Of the over 1,800 passengers who arrived in three trains, 33 tested positive. In Rajkot, 15 employees of the Gujarat State Road Transport Corporation (GSRTC) tested positive.
At the Ahmedabad Kalupur railway station, of the 823 passengers who arrived via Delhi-Ahmedabad Rajdhani Express, 26 tested positive.
Seven others among the total of 1,050 arriving passengers, that is 519 passengers who arrived via Gorakhpur Express and 530 others via Muzaffarpur Express, tested positive.
Presence of antibodies may not guarantee protection from virus: Scientists
Scientists are grappling with the vital issue of antibodies and trying to discern their role in curbing the virus.(Representational)
The presence of “antibodies” in one’s immune system does not necessarily provide protection from the coronavirus infection, scientists have noted. The protection from reinfecting the disease rather depends on factors such as the nature, quantity and the lasting duration of antibodies in a person’s system. With coronavirus cases showing no signs of abating in the country, scientists are grappling with the vital issue of antibodies and trying to discern their role in curbing the virus.
Immunologist Satyajit Rath from the National Institute of Immunology said he would prefer to “wait and see” where the evidence goes and that antibody presence in itself tells us nothing about disease progression in individuals.
According to a scientist at Pune’s Indian Institute of Science, there are neutralising antibodies (nAbs) and also simple antibodies. While nAbs produced against the coronavirus can block its entry into the host cell, other antibodies are also generated against many parts of the virus. “The simple antibodies are an indication of host response to viral presence but are not that useful to stop further spread of the virus”, he added.
SP leader SRS Yadav dies due to COVID-19
Senior Samajwadi Party leader and Member of Legislative Council SRS Yadav Monday night succumbed to the coronavirus after he tested positive on September 1. The 87-year-old was admitted at the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI) following his test results, SP national spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary said.
SRS Yadav, who worked as an administrative officer till 1992, joined the Samajwadi Party after his retirement. He is survived by his wife and three sons.
Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, while condoling the demise of the senior party colleague, said he dedicated his entire life to the Samajwadi Party after his retirement.
Punjab sees record single-day jump of 2,110 cases
Maximum new cases of infections were once again from Ludhiana. (File)
Punjab breached the 2,000-mark in a single day on Monday, as it recorded 2,110 fresh Covid-19 cases, taking the tally to 65,583 on Monday. The death toll from the infection mounted to 1,923 with 61 more fatalities. Before this, Punjab surpassed its previous single-day maximum of 1,946 cases registered on Sunday.
Maximum new cases of infections were once again from Ludhiana (338), followed by Jalandhar (210), Mohali (176), Amritsar (157). Meanwhile, six more police personnel tested positive in Ludhiana.
A total of 1,565 patients in the state were discharged after recovering from the infection. So far, 47,020 people have recovered while active cases stand at 16,640. Seventy-five critical patients are on ventilator support while 534 on oxygen support.
Karnataka orders clinical study after first case of Covid reinfection in Bengaluru
The Karnataka government Monday ordered a clinical study on reinfection cases, a day after a 27-year-old woman tested positive for coronavirus for the second time.
After a meeting held at Vidhana Soudha in the state capital, Medical Education Minister K Sudhakar said that officials have been directed to conduct a clinical study and submit a report by the end of this week.
The Minister also asked the officials to look into reinfection cases reported in other states.
After surge in cases, Centre reaches out to hotspot districts, finds glaring gaps
Employees wearing protective masks serve customers at at a pharmacy during a lockdown imposed due to the coronavirus in Mumbai, India, on Monday, June 1, 2020. (Photographer: Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg)
Following the detection of nearly six lakh new infections in the week beginning August 31, the Centre has over the last few days made a significant change in targeting its messaging on tackling the novel coronavirus.
The Centre has begun to communicate directly with the administrative and chief medical officers fighting the pandemic. Receiving feedback from these officers, the Centre has identified several loopholes in the implementation of containment, surveillance and clinical management strategies for the coronavirus in several states.
According to sources, these lapses gave the push to the country’s rising numbers.