12.08 pm: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal extends the lockdown in Delhi by a week. It will now be in place till 5 am on May 3.

11.28 am: “I urge people to not fall prey to any rumour about vaccine,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi says.

He adds that the country’s corporate sector can also participate in the vaccine drive by getting their employees vaccinated. “Government of India’s free vaccination program will continue in future too. I request states to ensure benefits of this free vaccination program reaches as many people as possible,” he adds.

11.20 am: The prime minister also urges everyone to only seek information on the pandemic through reliable sources.

11.15 am: Prime Minister Narendra Modi says the government of India is dedicated to taking forward the efforts of the state governments to tackle the current health crisis, ANI reports.

11.11 am: “Our health workers and doctors are currently fighting a major battle against Covid 19,” he adds. “In the past one year, they have had several kinds of experiences about the pandemic.”

11.09 am: “I’m speaking to you at a time when Covid-19 is testing our patience and capacity to bear pain,” the prime minister says, according to ANI. “Many of our loved ones left us untimely. After successfully tackling first wave, nation’s morale was high, it was confident but this storm [the second wave] has shaken the nation.”

11.08 am: Prime Minister Narendra Modi calls the second wave of the pandemic a storm and says it has shaken the country. “To tackle this wave of Covid, I have held meetings with experts from many fields like pharma industry and oxygen production,” he says in his Mann-ki-Baat radio programme.

11.04 am: Twenty railway coaches have been set up for isolation of coronavirus patients in Bhopal< ANI reports.

11.01 am: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi urges members of the party to leave political work and help the public during the health crisis.

“‘System’ failed, so it’s important to do Jan ki baat,” he says in a tweet, just minutes ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Mann-ki-Baat radio programme. “In this crisis, the country needs responsible citizens. I request my Congress colleagues to leave all political work – just provide all help and ease the pain of our countrymen. This is the Dharma of the Congress family.”

10.34 am: Uttar Pradesh records its highest single-day surge in infections as well as coronavirus-related deaths with 38,055 fresh cases and 223 fatalities, reports PTI. With this, the overall infection count stands at 10,51,314 and the toll at 10,959.

10.32 am: A man has been arrested in Spain on suspicion of assault after he allegedly infected 22 people with the coronavirus, reports BBC. He is said to have walked around in Majorca, pulling his mask down, coughing and telling his colleagues that he was going to infect them.

10.31 am: Police arrest five persons in Nagpur for allegedly selling antiviral drug Remdesivir at Rs 45,000 per vial, reports PTI.

10.28 am: Jammu and Kashmir administration announces free vaccination against coronavirus for all above 18 years of age, reports The Times of India.

10.25 am: Tamil Nadu announces a new set of restrictions aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus, reports the Hindustan Times. The restrictions will come into effect from 4 am on April 26 on top of the existing measures in the state.

10.24 am: Kerala Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala appeals to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan government to airlift surplus medical oxygen cylinders to Delhi after Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal requests states for supplies, reports ANI.

10.23 am: Twenty isolation railway coaches set up for coronavirus patients in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, reports ANI.

10.21 am: The Jagannath Temple administration closes the shrine for devotees till May 15 in view of the coronavirus cases, reports the Hindustan Times.

10.20 am: Several coronavirus patients were on Saturday forced to wait outside state-run Sir Sayaji General Hospital in Vadodara, Gujarat, for hours before admission as the medical facility ran out of oxygen, reports the Hindustan Times.

10.18 am: The Centre cuts the basic customs duty and health cess on medical grade oxygen and 15 other related equipment to boost oxygen availability in the country amid the coronavirus crisis which has battered the health infrastructure, reports the Hindustan Times.

10.38 am: A parliamentary panel had in November last year suggested the Centre should augment hospital beds and oxygen production, reports PTI. The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health had said that the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority, a government agency that controls the prices of pharmaceutical drugs, should take measures to cap the price of oxygen cylinders in order to ensure their availability as well as affordability, according to a report.

10.15 am: Several states in America resume the use of the one-shot Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine, reported The Guardian. Europe’s medicines regulator had said that blood clots should be listed as a “very rare” side effect of Johnson & Johnson vaccine but that the benefits of the shot still outweighed the risks, according to AFP.

10.09 am: A large number of people seen on roads in Shivvamogga in Karnataka as grocery shops are allowed to remain open between 6 am and 10 am during the statewide curfew, reports ANI.

9.45 am: India reports a record-breaking 3,49,691 new cases in a day, taking the total number of infections to 1,69,60,172 since the pandemic broke out in January 2020. This is the highest ever single-day rise in cases reported by any country so far, and the fourth consecutive day when the country has set such a grim global record.

For the first time, 2,767 deaths were registered. The toll is now 1,92,311, while there are 26,82,751 active cases.

9.37 am: The Punjab government, meanwhile, stopped operations at iron and steel plants to divert oxygen for medical use, PTI reports.

9.30 am: Six critically ill patients died at a hospital in Amritsar in Punjab on Saturday, the Hindustan Times reports. They died due to a shortage of oxygen.

The hospital authorities claimed that the district officials prioritised government hospitals. Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has ordered an inquiry.

9.20 am: A complete weekend curfew is underway in Jammu and Kashmir. It will in place till 6 am on Monday.

9.10 am: At least 23 people died after a fire broke out at a hospital in Baghdad, Iraq. The explosion was caused by “a fault in the storage of oxygen cylinders”, according to AFP. The fire broke out inside a coronavirus intensive care unit at Ibn al-Khatib hospital. The flames reportedly spread out over many floors.

9 am: The United States is “deeply concerned” by the severe Covid outbreak in India, says White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, according to ANI. “We’re working around the clock to deploy more supplies and support to our friends and partners in India as they bravely battle this pandemic.”

8.50 am: “Our hearts go out to Indian people in the midst of the horrific COVID outbreak,” says US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, according to ANI.” We’re working closely with our partners in the Indian govt, and we’ll rapidly deploy additional support to the people of India & India’s healthcare heroes.”

8.40 am: The second wave of Covid has hit India more like a tsunami, with a deadly toll. Here are some ways we make the best of the crisis we are facing. It is imperative that we build on to what we previously did right and rectify our past mistakes, says a Mumbai doctor.

Read more here:

Five suggestions for flattening India’s Covid-19 second wave by a Mumbai doctor

8.30 am: From Saturday night, only German citizens would be able to enter Germany from India, ANI reports. “In order not to jeopardise our vaccination campaign, we need to significantly limit our passenger traffic with India,” German Health Minister Jens Spahn said.

The temporary restrictions come as India witnesses a record rise in Covid cases. Canada, UAE, Hong Kong and the UK are among some other countries that have restricted travel from India.

8.20 am: The Centre has approved 4.3 lakh vials of antiviral drug remdesivir to Maharashtra, the Hindustan Times reports.

“The central government today has approved the supply of 4,35,000 vials of Remdesivir to Maharashtra till April 30th,” the chief minister’s office said on Saturday. “CM Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray has thanked the Hon’ble PM Narendra Modi for accepting his request.” Around 2.69 lakh vials were sent earlier.

8.10 am: The Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in Delhi announces that it has received 5 tonnes of oxygen at 4.15 am, ANI reports. “Oxygen running in full pressure after a long time,” the spokesperson says.

Ganga Ram and the Gandhi Hospital in Uttam Nagar had sounded an alarm around midnight, warning that they only had oxygen left for a few more hours, according to NDTV. Both hospitals later received help.

8 am: Biotechnology company Bharat Biotech’s coronavirus vaccine, Covaxin, will cost Rs 600 per dose for state governments and Rs 1,200 for private companies. The vaccine will be priced between $15 and $20 (approximately Rs 1,120 and 1,500) for export.

Read more here:

Coronavirus: Covaxin priced at Rs 1,200 for private companies, Rs 600 for states

7.50 am: The police in Madhya Pradesh make Covid guidelines violators make squats as a punishment, ANI reports.

7.40 am: West Bengal reported 14,281 coronavirus cases on Saturday and 59 deaths on Saturday, PTI reports. This is the state’s highest single-day rise in cases since the pandemic broke out in March 2020. It now has 7,28,061 cases and 10,884 deaths. The number of actives cases is 81,375.

7.30 am: Globally, the coronavirus has infected more than 14.6 crore people and killed over 30.96 lakh since the pandemic broke out in December 2019, according to Johns Hopkins University. More than 8.41 crore people have recovered from the infection.

Here are the top updates from Saturday: