Latest News Live Updates: The active case count stands at 1,64,511. (File)
India registered a single-day spike of over 16,000 COVID-19 cases for the fourth day in a row on Sunday, pushing the infection tally to 1,10,96,731, while the recoveries surged to 1,07,75,169, according to Union Health Ministry data.
A total of 16,752 novel coronavirus cases were reported in a day, while the death count rose to 1,57,051 with 113 new fatalities, showed the data updated at 8 am on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Coronavirus vaccines will be capped at Rs 250 per shot at private hospitals and health centres, the Health Ministry said on Saturday. Vaccines will be free in all government hospitals and centres.
The government on Friday had said it will let people choose their coronavirus vaccination centres when the campaign expands Monday to cover those over 60 and those over 45 with illnesses.
They can register through the government's CoWIN 2.0 portal, the Aarogya Setu app, or walk into vaccination centres; states will also actively mobilise people.
There are more than 10,000 private hospitals in the country that are cleared to give out vaccines apart from all government hospitals and health centres.
Meanwhile, in a boost for the Congress-led coalition before next month's elections in Assam, the Bodoland Peoples' Front or BPF on Saturday announced that it was quitting the alliance headed by the ruling BJP and joining the opposition front.
"To work for Peace, Unity, and Development and to bring a stable government, free from corruption in Assam, the Bodoland Peoples' Front (BPF) has decided to join hands with MAHAJATH. BPF shall no longer maintain friendship or alliance with BJP. In the forthcoming Assam Assembly Election BPF shall work hand to hand with Mahajath," BPF leader Hagrama Mohilary said in a statement on Facebook.
Here are the Latest News Live Updates:
During Mann Ki Baat, PM Modi conveys greetings on National Science Day and recalls the works of Dr. CV Raman.
Today is National Science Day. It is dedicated to the discovery of the 'Raman Effect' by scientist Dr CV Raman. Our youth should read a lot about Indian scientists and understand the history of Indian science
PM Modi Addresses Nation On Mann Ki Baat
Here are the highlights of his address:
- My dear countrymen, Namaskar. Yesterday was the festival of Magha Purnima. The month of Magha is particularly associated with rivers, ponds and water bodies.
- It is said in our scriptures :- "Maghe nimagna: salile sushite, vikumatapapa: tridivam prayanti." That is, bathing in any holy reservoir during the month of Magha is considered holy.
- In every society of the world, there is a tradition associated with the river. Many civilizations have also developed on the river banks. Because our culture is thousands of years old, therefore, it gets more expanded here.
- There will be no day in India when there is no water festival in some corner of the country.
- During the Magh days, people leave their homes and families and go to Kalpavas on the banks of rivers for the whole month.
- This time Kumbh is also happening in Haridwar. Water is life for us, it is also faith and it is also a stream of development.
- Water is, in a way, more important than Paras. It is said that by the touch of Paras, iron is converted into gold. Similarly, touch of water is necessary for life, it is necessary for development.
- Water has been crucial for the development of humankind for centuries
- A few days later, on March 22, 'World Water Day' is also in the month of March!
- Aradhya ji writes to the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji ..
- Sujit ji has written that nature has given us a collective gift in the form of water, so the responsibility to save it is also collective.
- To solve the water crisis, a very good message has been sent by Sujit ji from 'Uttar Dinajpur' in West Bengal to Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.
- This is true that just as there is a collective gift, so is collective responsibility. Sujit ji is absolutely right. River, pond, lake, rain or ground water, these are for everyone.
- Local people have campaigned to preserve their wells here. They are reviving public wells that have been closed in their area for years.
- Friends, there was a time when the village used to take care of wells, pudders, all of them together; now one such effort is taking place in Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu.
- The rain water from this canal started going straight into the lake. Now this lake is filled with water.
- Babita ji's village is in Bundelkhand. There was once a very large lake near his village which had dried up. They took other women from the village along and built a canal to carry water to the lake.
- What Babita Rajput ji of Agrotha village in Madhya Pradesh is doing will also inspire all of you.
- Jagdish ji decided to solve this crisis by planting trees. He along with the people of the village planted thousands of trees all over the area and today the dried up water reservoir of his area has been replenished.
- Jagdish ji's village and surrounding area depended on a natural source for water requirements. But many years ago this source dried up. This led to a deepening of the water crisis in the entire area.
- Friends, Jagdish Kuniyal Ji living in Bageshwar, Uttarakhand also teaches a lot.
- Friends, we have to understand our collective responsibilities in this way with respect to water. In most parts of India, it starts raining in May-June.
- With this thinking, a few days from now, the Jal Shakti Abhiyan - 'Catch the Rain' is also being started by the Ministry of Water Power. The basic mantra of this campaign is - 'Catch the rain, where it falls, when it falls.'
- We will gather from now on, we will get the rain water harvesting system already in place, get it cleaned in the villages, in the ponds, in the ponds, going to the water bodies, the way of water, removing, then more Will be able to store more rainwater than that.
- My dear countrymen, whenever there is a discussion about the month of Magha and its spiritual social importance, this discussion is not complete without a name. This is the name of Sant Ravidas ji.
One new COVID-19 case in Andamans
One more person has tested positive for COVID-19 in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, pushing the coronavirus tally in the union territory to 5,018, a health department official said on Sunday.
The new case was detected during contact tracing, he said.
The union territory now has four active COVID-19 cases.
The overall COVID situation is under control in the archipelago as the local administration has been strict to ensure that health safety protocols are followed to contain the spread of the disease, he said.
The administration has made it mandatory for passengers arriving by flight to produce a negative RT-PCR test report before they are allowed entry into the islands.
The COVID-19 death toll remained at 62 as no new fatality due to the infection was reported in the last 24 hours.
Voting underway for local bodies polls in Gujarat
Elections to Gujarat's 81 municipalities, 31 district panchayats and 231 taluka panchayats are being held on Sunday across 36,000 polling
booths in the state.
Voters, including leaders from various political parties, arrived at the booths to cast their vote after polling began at 7 am.
The voting will continue till 6 pm.
A couple, scheduled to get married later in the day, arrived at a booth in Gondal taluka of Rajkot to exercise their franchise in the initial hours of voting, and said they did not want to miss out on their democratic duty.
Besides, a newly-wed couple was also seen in a queue at a polling booth in Dehgam taluka of Gandhinagar.
JustIn| ISRO launches Brazil's Amazonia-1 satellite, 18 co-passenger satellites in first lift-off this year
Polling underway for civic polls for 88 seats in Vadodara along with 34 Zila panchayat seats and 168 taluka panchayat seats.
Vice Admiral R Hari Kumar today took over as the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Western Naval Command at Headquarter's Command Post in Mumbai. He has succeeded Vice Admiral Ajit Kumar, who retires after a career spanning 40 years in the Indian Navy
JustIn| 16,752 fresh COVID-19 cases in India, 1.6% higher than yesterday; over 1.1 crore total cases, 1,57,051 deaths
Voting begins for bypolls to 5 municipal wards in Delhi
Voting began on Sunday morning for the bypolls to five municipal wards in Delhi, results of which are likely to have an impact on the 2022 civic elections.
Polling began at 7:30 am amid tight security arrangements.
The main contenders are the ruling Aam Aadmi Party, the BJP and the Congress. All of them have expressed confidence that they will emerge victorious in the bypolls, which are being held amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the State Election Commission of Delhi, around 2.42 lakh people are eligible to cast their votes in two wards under the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) and three wards under the East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC).
These municipal wards are Rohini-C, Shalimar Bagh (North), Trilokpuri, Kalyanpuri and Chauan Banger.
While Shalimar Bagh (North) is reserved for women, Trilokpuri and Kalyanpuri are reserved for the SC category, according to the poll body.
The bypolls are being seen as the semifinal before the elections to all 272 MCD wards in early 2022.
"Deal Firmly With Violations": Centre To States Amid Surge In Covid Cases
The Centre on Saturday advised states and UTs reporting an increase in coronavirus cases to enforce COVID-appropriate behaviour by dealing firmly with violations and ensure effective surveillance in case of potential super spreading events so as not to squander last year's gains.
Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba chaired a high-level review meeting with chief secretaries of states and UTs of Maharashtra, Punjab, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Telangana and Jammu and Kashmir.
These states and UTs have been reporting a high COVID-19 active caseload or an increasing trend in new cases in the last week.
People With These Comorbidities To Be Prioritised For Covid Vaccination
People who have one of the 20 comorbidities, including diabetes and heart failure with hospital admission in the past one year, will be prioritised in the next phase of the COVID-19 vaccination drive, the government said on Saturday.
The simplified system of certifying people with these comorbidities within the 45-59 years age group was explained to the States Health Departments.
This comes as India is going to start the vaccination of people above 60 years and individuals above 45 years of age having comorbidities against coronavirus, from March 1.
New Zealand's Auckland Starts Second Lockdown In Month
Auckland, New Zealand's biggest city, woke up on Sunday morning to a second lockdown in a month as health authorities try to rein in a coronavirus cluster of the more contagious UK variant.
The seven-day lockdown, announced late Saturday by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, follows a three-day stay-at-home order in mid-February after a local emergence of the UK variant of the new coronavirus that causes COVID-19.
Genomic sequencing of a new case recorded on Saturday, which prompted the lockdown, was linked to the existing cluster, health authorities said on Sunday, bringing it to 13 cases.
"It's unlikely we wouldn't see more cases," COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins told the state-owned television network TVNZ on Sunday. "How many cases at this point we simply don't know."
The new case has been considered infectious for a week. The person, a 21-year-old student, visited a number of public spaces during that time.
US Authorises Johnson & Johnson Covid Vaccine For Emergency Use
The United States on Saturday authorized Johnson & Johnson's Covid vaccine for emergency use, giving the nation a third shot to battle the outbreak that has killed more than 500,000 Americans.
"The authorization of this vaccine expands the availability of vaccines, the best medical prevention method for Covid-19, to help us in the fight against this pandemic, which has claimed over half a million lives in the United States," said acting Food and Drug Administration director Janet Woodcock.
Watch Live News:
