Health workers collect swabs at a fever camp in Chennai. Express Photo: Srinivas KCoronavirus India Live Updates: Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh Friday ordered the extension of night curfew in the state till January 1, 2021 across the state. The chief minister also extended curbs on the number of people at gatherings until New Year. Directives have been issued to the Punjab police to ensure strict compliance by people in the state, especially in marriage halls.
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma has tested positive for COVID-19. Taking to Twitter, the chief minister tweeted that he is under home isolation and is experiencing mild symptoms and urged all those who had come in contact with him over the last five days to keep a watch on their health.
India recorded 29,398 new Covid-19 cases in the 24 hours ending 8 am Friday. With this, the country’s total caseload is now over 97.96 lakh, out of which, over 3.63 cases are active while over 92.90 lakh people have recovered after testing positive. With 414 new fatalities, the death toll now stands at 1,42,186. Only three states, Kerala, Maharashtra and West Bengal reported more than 2,000 cases on Thursday.
On the vaccines front, one crore health care workers, two crore frontline workers including the police and armed forces, and about 27 crore people above the age of 50 years and those less than 50 years with associate comorbidities — these are the three groups who should be simultaneously vaccinated on priority depending on the availability of a vaccine, a high-level expert committee has recommended to the government.
Coronavirus India LIVE updates: At Lok Nayak, the biggest Covid-only facility, 1,670 of the 2000 beds are available. (File)
With 29,398 new cases on Friday, India’s total Covid-19 active caseload dropped to 3.63 lakh, the lowest in 146 days. The difference in the new recoveries outnumbering new cases has also improved the national recovery rate to 94.84 per cent, the Union Health Ministry said.
Meanwhile, the United States is expected to provide emergency use approval for Pfizer/BioNTech’s Covid vaccine after an advisory panel recommended for the same to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Elsewhere, Egypt has received its first shipment of a Chinese coronavirus vaccine, which was tested in the United Arab Emirates and is said to be 86% effective. The United Kingdom, on the other hand, has already begun vaccinating people with the Pfizer shot.
Here are the top Covid-19 developments that you need to know today
The Karnataka government Friday announced that it has set aside Rs 22.5 crore to purchase medicines in the wake of a possible second wave of Covid-19 predicted by the technical advisory committee.
Health and Medical Education Minister K Sudhakar said, "We have discussed various points to contain the spread of coronavirus infection for the next 90 days. Rs 11.32 crore has been set aside for purchasing rapid antigen kits and another Rs 22.50 crore is earmarked for medicine purchase."
The Minister added that several complaints of private hospitals overcharging for Remdesivir — a drug used for the treatment of coronavirus patients — had come to his notice. "The government rate for Remidisvir is Rs 1800. Action will be taken against such hospitals under provisions of the Karnataka Private Medical Establishments (KPME)Act," Sudhakar warned.
(Inputs from Ralph Alex Arakal, Bengaluru)
Punjab Health Secretary Hussan Lal has said that the Punjab government has made all arrangements for COVID-19 vaccination drive in the state. Lal said that Punjab has a robut cold chain for their universal immunization programme and said that the state has cold chain stores at Chandigarh, Ferozpur, Amritsar and Hoshiarpur.
"We have adequate teams. Further, the Centre will provide us with a walk-in cooler to be installed at Chandigarh", Lal added. (ANI)
The Karnataka government Friday announced that it has set aside Rs 22.5 crore to purchase medicines in the wake of a possible Covid-19 second wave predicted by the technical advisory committee.
Confirming the same, Health and Medical Education Minister K Sudhakar said, "We have discussed various points to contain the spread of coronavirus infection for the next 90 days. Rs 11.32 crore has been set aside for purchasing rapid antigen kits and another Rs 22.50 crore is earmarked for medicine purchase."
Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal reviewed the status and progress of Digital Delivery of Services in New Delhi today, along with the Chief Secretary, Secretary of IT and other heads of departments. Baijal said that he had emphasised on providing all public services online via a common platform for the convenience of citizens amid the pandemic.
Baijal also stressed that the public needs to use online services for their needs and emphasised on the importance of sticking to deadlines when it comes to delivery of services.
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has ordered the extension of night curfew in the state till January 1, 2020 across the state. The chief minister has also extended curbs on the number of people at gatherings until New Year. Directives have been issued to the Punjab police to ensure strict compliance by people in the state, especially in marriage halls.
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma has tested positive for COVID-19. Taking to Twitter, the chief minister tweeted that he is under home isolation and is experiencing mild symptoms and urged all those who had come in contact with him over the last five days to keep a watch on their health.
Telangana reported 612 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the tally to over 2.76 lakh while three fatalities pushed the toll to 1,485, the state government said on Friday. Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) accounted for the most number of cases with 144, followed by Rangareddy (73) and Medchal Malkajgiri (60), it said in a bulletin, providing details as of 8 PM on December 10.
As many as 7,604 patients are under treatment and 56,178 samples were tested on Thursday. Cumulatively, over 60 lakh samples have been tested. The samples tested per million population was over 1.61 lakh, the bulletin said. (PTI)
A US government advisory panel has endorsed widespread use of Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine, putting the country just one step away from launching an epic vaccination campaign against the outbreak that has killed close to 300,000 Americans.
Shots could begin within days, depending on how quickly the Food and Drug Administration signs off, as expected, on the expert committee’s recommendation.
In a 17-4 vote with one abstention, the government advisers on Thursday concluded that the vaccine from Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech appears safe and effective for emergency use in adults and teenagers 16 and older.
India recorded 29,398 new Covid-19 cases in the 24 hours ending 8am Friday. With this, the country's total caseload is now over 97.96 lakh, out of which, over 3.63 cases are active while over 92.90 lakh people have recovered after testing positive. With 414 new fatalities, the death toll now stands at 1,42,186.
The last fortnight has seen an improvement in the situation in Gurgaon in the context of the Coronavirus pandemic, with the doubling rate becoming over three times what it was on November 25.
According to data provided by the health department, the doubling rate has increased from around 76.17 days as of November 25 to 271.17 percent as of Thursday. The number of active cases have also fallen from 6085 to 2709, as a result of which the situation in terms of hospital beds in the district has also improved. While the number of vacant beds overall has risen from 72.7 percent of those reserved for COVID patients to 86.3 percent, of the 367 ICU beds also, as opposed to 53.4 percent, 64.5 percent are now vacant, while 77.4 percent ventilator beds are vacant as opposed to the 58.1 percent that were vacant on November 25.
In December so far itself, the number of fresh cases recorded everyday have reduced to between 300 and 500, as opposed to the 470 to 870 cases that were being recorded daily in the last 9 days of November. The number of fresh COVID cases recorded in the first 9 days of December is also significantly lesser than the number recorded in the last 9 days of November. Data released by the health department in its daily health bulletins indicates that, while 6035 new cases of Coronavirus were recorded between November 22 and November 30, this number fell to 3768 cases between December 1 and December 9.
“Extensive testing is the only reason why the number of COVID cases has reduced in the past few days. We are doing between 5000 and 6000 tests daily. A total of 15 camps are also being set up everyday in the district, along with 2 evening camps daily,” said Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Virender Yadav.
He, however, warned that this drop in cases should not be taken as a reason to become complacent, “With this infection, it is difficult to predict what will happen in future, there tends to be a surge every few weeks so it is critical for residents to continue to remain cautious.” (With inputs from Sakshi Dayal)
Madhya Pradesh on Thursday recorded 1,319 new COVID-19 cases, taking the count of infections in the state to 2,19,893, health officials said. With seven more people succumbing to the viral infection, the death toll reached 3,373, they said. A total of 1,307 patients were discharged from hospitals, taking the overall recovery count to 2,03,294. Of new fatalities, three died in Indore, two in Bhopal and one each in Khandwa and Vidisha districts. Of 1,319 new cases, Indore accounted for 456 and Bhopal 296. (PTI)
Maharashtra's COVID-19 tally on Thursday reached 18,68,172 with the addition of 3,824 cases, a state health official said. As the virus claimed the lives of 70 patients during the day, the fatality count went up to 47,972, he said. A total of 5,008 patients were discharged on Thursday, which pushed the recovery count of the state to 17,47,199. The number of active cases in Maharashtra is now 71,910. Mumbai city reported 798 fresh cases, due to which its overall case count went up to 2,88,696, while its death toll climbed to 10,942, of which 13 were reported on Thursday. The state has so far conducted 1,15,02,427 tests. (PTI)
A decision about permitting the general public to travel by suburban local trains in Mumbai will be taken after New year celebrations are over, Mumbai municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal said on Thursday. Speaking to PTI, he said the number of new coronavirus patients in the city is decreasing day by day while the number of asymptomatic new patients is high now. In view of this, a decision about allowing common people to travel on suburban locals will be taken after Christmas and New Year celebrations, he added. Currently, only certain categories of persons including those working for essential services are allowed to travel by local trains. (PTI)
The third wave of COVID-19 pandemic in the national capital is not over yet but it is “definitely on the wane”, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain said on Thursday. Delhi recorded 2,463 new COVID-19 cases and 50 fatalities on Wednesday, the lowest number of deaths in a single day since November 1. As the positivity rate slipped to 3.42 per cent, Jain had on Wednesday tweeted that it was heartening to see that the national capital is “emerging victorious” in the battle against the coronavirus.
"Cases are falling, and death count in a day is lowest in the last 40 days. The situation has improved, and we can definitely say the third wave of the pandemic here is on the wane. It is not over, but on the wane," he told reporters on Thursday. On plans of COVID-19 vaccination, he said, healthcare workers and frontline staff will be administered the vaccine first, followed by the elderly and then others. "If we have vaccine availability, we can vaccinate the entire population in a week's time, we have the preparations ready," he added. (PTI)
Kerala's COVID-19 caseload crossed the 6.50 lakh mark on Thursday, with 4,470 new cases being reported while 4,847 people have been cured of the infection. In the last 24 hours, 52,769 samples have been tested and the test positivity rate dipped to 8.47 per cent, Health minister K K Shailaja said in a press release. So far, 68,08,399 samples have been sent for testing. With 4,847 recoveries today, presently 59,517 people are undergoing treatment and 5,91,845 have recuperated. The total COVID cases in the state has touched 6,54,041. (PTI)
With most of Switzerland preparing for tighter lockdown restrictions because of COVID-19, the region of Geneva is going in the other direction allowing restaurants to reopen on Thursday after a drop in cases from one of the world's highest rates of infection roughly a month ago. Authorities in the Geneva canton, or region, that includes the city of the same name confirmed Monday the strict conditions for the reopening of eateries, just days after Swiss national authorities announced plans to tighten measures designed to fight the coronavirus.
On Tuesday, after an urgent session of the Swiss federal executive body, Health Minister Alain Berset announced a proposal to be discussed with the regions to require the closure of shops, restaurants, gyms and other businesses open to the public no later than 7 pm every night. A day earlier, in a statement, Geneva regional authorities said establishments must close their doors no later than 11 pm suggesting a disconnect that may well require compromise or concession.
Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Thursday thanked Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan for donating 500 Remdesivir injections, used in treatment of COVID-19 patients, saying it came at a time "when it was needed the most".
The Union Health Ministry in its Clinical Management Protocols for COVID-19 has allowed the use of Remdesivir for restricted emergency purposes in patients in the moderate stages of the COVID-19 disease under "investigational therapies".
Jain tweeted on Thursday: "We are extremely thankful to Sh. @iamsrk and @MeerFoundation for donating 500 Remdesivir injections at a time when it was needed the most we are much obliged for the support extended by you during the time of crisis."
Jain told reporters that the third wave of COVID-19 pandemic in the national capital is not over yet but it is "definitely on the wane".
The Ministry of Defence has issued COVID-19 guidelines for the upcoming Aero India 2021, which should be followed for the biennial air show and exhibition. The event will be held for five days from February 3-7, 2021 at the Air Force Station in Yelahanka, North Bengaluru.The testing and quarantine guidelines for international delegates will be as per the Karnataka government's guidelines for international returnees. The people without masks will not be allowed according to the guidelines and sensors will be used in toilets, washbasins and foot-pulls for doors. The ministry has mandated Covid test for people staying in Karnataka for over 48 hours. (With inputs from Darshan Devaiah B P)
India's cumulative tests for detection of COVID-19 has crossed 15 crore with one crore tests added in just 10 days, the Union Health Ministry said underlining comprehensive and widespread testing on a sustained basis has resulted in bringing down the positivity rate.
The country has also reported less than 40,000 new daily cases of COVID-19 for eleven continuous days, the ministry underscored. A total 9,22,959 samples were tested in a day which has increased India's total cumulative tests to 15,07,59,726. (PTI)