Coronavirus India News Live Updates: India accounted for one in four COVID-19 deaths globally last week, says WHO

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Local train services to be suspended in West Bengal from May 6 to combat COVID-19 pandemic, says CM Mamata Banerjee

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Sudha Murty says Infosys Foundation to commit additional Rs 100 crore toward COVID-19 relief efforts

Infosys Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Infosys will commit an additional Rs 100 crore to support efforts to fight COVID-19 in India, its top executive told Moneycontrol. This comes on top of the Rs 100 crore that it allocated last year, taking its total commitment to Rs 200 crore.

"Last year, we helped in establishing full-fledged COVID hospital in Bengaluru which is now running at full capacity. We will be allocating funds this time to various other cities where Infosys has a presence- Hyderabad, Pune, Nagpur, Mangalore, Trivandrum, and Delhi. We are supporting hospitals by giving ventilators, oxygen concentrators, sanitisers, PPE kits, N95 masks. We are also helping construction workers with rice and food kits, apart from providing maintenance money to auto drivers. We are also spending money on vaccination awareness programs because there are many people who are not taking vaccines. We are also helping animal care centres," Sudha Murty, Chairperson, Infosys Foundation, told Moneycontrol in a phone interview.

Half of the Rs 100-crore commitment last March was earmarked for the PM Cares fund. This time around, the entire commitment will be used by the Foundation to fund various initiatives at the grassroots level. "There is a lot of work that we are doing at the grass-root level and we need funds for all this. We have distributed thousands of ration kits to vulnerable sections," she said.

70-year old Murty's day usually starts at 5:30 am and she works for up to 15 hours a day, coordinating relief efforts from home, seeking requirements from various hospitals and organizations. "It is not easy, we work very hard. I would have done more if I was on the road," she said.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Over Rs 54 crore collected for mask violations in Mumbai in one year

The civic authorities in Mumbai have collected fines to the tune of over Rs 54 crore in the last one year from 26.87 lakh citizens who violated the COVID-19 mask rule in public places during the pandemic, an official said on Wednesday. As per the data released by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), as many as 4,314 people were caught without masks on Tuesday, of which 1,478 were nabbed by the city police. A total fine of Rs 5.67 lakh was collected from these offenders during the day, it stated.

The BMC had made wearing masks or covering the mouth mandatory in public places in April 2020 due to the rise in the number of COVID-19 cases in the city, and violators were slapped with a fine of Rs 200. The civic body has deployed marshals to enforce mask rule at public places. Mumbai, one of the worst-affected metropolises in the country, has so far recorded 6,61,420 infections and 13,470 casualties.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Unfazed Australia PM Scott Morrison stays firm on ban on flights from India, says it is working'

A defiant Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Wednesday stood firm on his decision to halt flights from India in a bid to curb the COVID-19 infections and a possible third wave of the deadly contagion, saying positive cases have started to come down as a result of the pause. The Australian government, for the first time in history, recently imposed a ban on its citizens from returning home, if they have spent time in India up to 14 days before flying back.

The government threatened to prosecute them with a possibility of five years of jail term or a penalty of 66,000 Australian dollars (USD 50,899). The move triggered a backlash with several lawmakers, doctors, civil societies and businessmen criticising the government for "abandoning" Australians in India and threatening the travellers with a hefty penalty and a jail term.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Roads empty, marketplaces shut as 14-day lockdown comes into effect in Odisha

Streets were largely empty and shops dotting the thoroughfares mostly closed on Wednesday morning as a 14-day lockdown came into effect in Odisha with the imposition of several restrictions. Movement of goods carriers, however, were not affected by the shutdown -- enforced by the government to break the chain of COVID-19 transmission in the state.

Early in the day, a handful of residents here were found buying essentials at grocery stores -- which have been given permission to operate from 7 am till noon. Short queues were also witnessed outside some of the city's vaccination centres, as people waited patiently for their turn to take the COVID-19 jab. Police personnel deployed in the residential areas and along the arterial roads were seen stopping one or two persons to check if they had a genuine reason to venture out of homes.

All educational institutes, shopping malls, marketplaces, entertainment parks and cinema halls remained shut during the day in accordance with the government order. Meanwhile, the state's excise department has requested the government to make provision for home delivery of liquor amid the two-week lockdown.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Good to see health workers setting example in reducing vaccine wastage: PM Modi responds to Kerala CM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday appreciated healthcare workers and nurses for setting an example in reducing vaccine wastage in Kerala, responding to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan''s tweet about these professionals being "super efficient" in his state. Vijayan had on Tuesday pointed out that Kerala received 73,38,806 doses of vaccine from the Centre and provided 74,26,164 doses, even making use of the extra dose available as wastage factor in each vial. 

The health workers, especially nurses, have been super efficient and deserve wholehearted appreciation, he had said.  Responding to Vijayan''s post, Modi tweeted, "Good to see our healthcare workers and nurses set an example in reducing vaccine wastage. Reducing vaccine wastage is important in strengthening the fight against COVID-19." In his discussion with chief ministers on the COVID-19 pandemic, Modi has often stressed the need to reduce the wastage of vaccines and has noted their high rates in a few states.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | 'Accountability should be fixed', says Priyanka  Gandhi slams UP govt over 'deaths due to lack of oxygen'

A day after the Allahabad High Court observed that the death of COVID-19 patients due to non supply of oxygen to hospitals is a criminal act, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday said the Uttar Pradesh government has continuously denied the lack of oxygen when the truth is that there have been many deaths due to it for which accountability should be fixed.

In stern remarks, the Allahabad High Court on Tuesday observed that the death of COVID-19 patients just for non-supply of oxygen to hospitals is a criminal act, "not less than a genocide" by authorities entrusted the task to ensure the oxygen supply chain is maintained. In an apparent reference to the observation by the court, Priyanka Gandhi said the high court has shown the mirror to the government.

"The UP government has continuously denied the lack of oxygen. It has been threatening those flagging the lack of oxygen," the Congress general secretary said in a Facebook post in Hindi. "While the truth is that continuously there have been deaths due to lack of oxygen and its accountability should be fixed," she said. The observation by the court came over some news items doing the rounds on social media regarding the death of COVID-19 patients due to lack of oxygen in Lucknow and Meerut districts. The court also ordered a probe into the incidents.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Karnataka would implement decision taken by PM Modi, says Yediyurappa

Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to the nation on the COVID-19 situation, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Wednesday said the state government will abide by his decision. Addressing reporters here, Yediyurappa said, ''We have to implement the decision taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

We are also waiting for his directions. Based on it, we will take a decision in the evening.'' The Prime Minister is going to take a decision against the backdrop of the Supreme Court's recommendation, which would be binding on Karnataka as well. The Apex Court has asked the Central and state governments to consider imposing a lockdown to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Replying to a query, Yediyurappa said he has directed the ministers to camp in the districts they are in charge of and work there to control COVID. He said the ministers have been briefing him about the COVID situation on a daily basis but henceforth they would work in a more focused manner. The COVID cases are on rise in the state at an alarming proportion despite a lockdown from April 27 to May 12. The state is reporting 44,000 cases and over 200 fatalities daily.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Curfew in Uttar Pradesh extended till May 10

Amid a surge in coronavirus cases, the Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday decided to increase the duration of the weekend lockdown till 7 am on May 10, an official spokesman said here. "The corona curfew from Friday 8 pm to Tuesday 7 am, which was extended on May 3 for 48 hours and is in force till May 6 till 7 am has been further extended till Monday (May 10) 7 am," an official spokesman said here.

All shops and establishments will now remain closed till Monday 7 am. The official said that further decision to extend the curfew will be taken on Sunday. The decision for extension has been taken for breaking the chain of coronavirus. During this period, all essential services will be allowed and vaccination drive will continue, a senior official said, but refused to term it as a "lockdown", preferring "closure" instead. On April 29, the state government had announced that weekend lockdowns will now cover Mondays too and on May 3 it was extended till May 6.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | UP Govt floats global e-tender for 40 million doses of COVID vaccine

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | India accounted for one in four COVID-19 deaths globally last week, says WHO

India accounted for nearly half of the COVID-19 cases reported worldwide last week and one in four of deaths, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday. “India accounts for over 90% of both cases and deaths in the region, as well as 46% of global cases and 25% of global deaths reported in the past week,” the Geneva-based agency said in its weekly epidemiological report.