Coronavirus India News Live Updates: Mumbai reports 3056 new COVID19 cases, 3838 recoveries and 69 deaths

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Sunder Pichai, Punit Renjen and Shantanu Narayen join steering committee of Global Task Force on Pandemic Response

Three Indian-American CEOs Sunder Pichai from Google, Punit Renjen from Deloitte and Shantanu Narayen from Adobe have joined the steering committee of the Global Task Force on Pandemic Response, which is overseeing an unprecedented corporate sector initiative to help India successfully fight COVID19. The names of the three Indian-American CEOs were added to the list of the steering committee on Thursday.

The three CEOs have been active in organising US companies’ response to the COVID-19 crisis in India. Others who were added to the list on Thursday are Mark Suzman, CEO, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Joshua Bolten, president and CEO, Business Roundtable and Suzanne Clark, president and CEO, US Chamber of Commerce.

The task force is a newly formed public-private partnership organised by the US Chamber of Commerce and supported by Business Roundtable. It is working with the Chamber’s US-India Business Council and the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum to take immediate actions to help address the COVID-19 surge in India.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | US govt, businesses and people of America working together to provide COVID relief to India: Jake Sullivan

The US government, corporates and the people of America are working together to provide COVID-19 relief to India, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has said. Sullivan made the remarks after joining the first meeting of the Global Task Force on Pandemic Response. "Our people, our businesses, and our entire government are working together to provide COVID-19 relief for the people of India and we will continue our efforts to help around the world," he said on Thursday.

More than 45 top American companies and its CEOs have joined the task force created by the US Chambers of Commerce and Business Roundtable in association with US-India Business Council and US-India Strategic and Partnership Forum. Working in close coordination with the Indian government, the task force has so far announced to send 25,000 oxygen concentrators and 1,000 ventilators. US companies like Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Deloitte, Walmart, Boeing and Mastercard among others announced major assistance to India.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Six US planes carrying medical supplies reached India in past few days

The US has so far sent six planes carrying emergency supplies to India, which is battling one of its worst public health crises. The emergency supplies include 20,000 courses of remdesivir (125,000 vials) to help treat critically ill patients, nearly 1,500 oxygen cylinders, which can be repeatedly refilled at local supply centres, and one million rapid diagnostic tests to quickly identify COVID-19 cases.

The six planes, which have landed in just six days, also carried nearly 550 mobile oxygen concentrators that obtain oxygen from ambient air. These units have a lifespan of more than five years and can serve multiple patients at once, depending on their oxygen needs. The US has also sent nearly 2.5 million N95 masks to protect healthcare professionals and other frontline workers.

According to the USAID, a large-scale deployable Oxygen Concentration System that can provide oxygen to treat 20 or more patients at a time and 210 pulse oximeters to measure oxygen levels in a patient's blood to determine whether a higher level of care is needed has also been sent to India.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | COVID second wave in India a tragedy, says Dr Vivek Murthy

The second wave of COVID-19 in India is a tragedy, US Surgeon General Dr Vivek Murthy has said, underlining the need for countries to help each other during the crisis.

"If COVID-19 has taught us anything, it's that we need each other to get through this pandemic. As a world, we need each other in terms of countries to step up to help make sure that the world has an adequate supply of vaccine, to ensure people have treatments available, supply of PPE because the threat of COVID in any part of the world is ultimately a threat to every country, Indian-American Murthy told a news channel in an interview.

To a question on the current COVID crisis in India and if the US might face a similar situation, Murthy hoped that it never happens. "But it is always a possibility and that we have to be mindful of. And I'm cautiously optimistic that we will do well in this country, especially if we keep up our efforts at the vaccination campaign, he said on Thursday.

"What's happening in India is a tragedy. And India has two challenges or has many challenges, but in terms of their variants, it has to B117 variant, which is the predominant one circulating here, which we know is at least 50 per cent or more contagious than the variant we were dealing with last year in the US, Murthy said.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Haryana reports 14,840 new cases, 177 deaths in past 24 hours

14,840 new cases, 12,246 recoveries and 177 deaths reported in Haryana in the past 24 hours

Case tally: 5,73,815

Total recoveries: 4,52,836

Death toll: 5,137

Active cases: 1,15,842

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Assam registers 4,936 new cases, 46 deaths in past 24 hours

Assam registers 4,936 new COVID-19 cases, 2,976 recoveries and 46 deaths in the last 24 hours

Active cases: 31,829

Total cases: 2,77,687

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | India’s cumulative vaccination coverage exceeds 16.48 crore doses, says Centre

India’s cumulative COVID-19 vaccination coverage exceeds 16.48 crore doses (16,48,76,248). More than 2.62 lakh beneficiaries of age group 18-44 were vaccinated today till 8 pm: Union Health Ministry

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | No lockdown will be imposed in Telangana, says CM 

No lockdown will be imposed in Telangana: CM K Chandrasekhar Rao 

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Chhattisgarh reports 13,846 new cases, 212 deaths in past 24 hours

Chhattisgarh reports 13,846 new COVID19 cases, 377 discharges and 212 deaths today.

Total cases: 8,16,489

Total recoveries: 1,30,553

Death toll: 9950

Active cases: 1,31,245

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | 24 patients asked to be ready to shift from Ashraya Hospital to other hospitals due to oxygen shortage

24 COVID19 patients asked to be ready to shift from Ashraya Hospital to other hospitals in Chickamagalur due to oxygen shortage. 2 patients already shifted to other hospitals: Vijay Kumar, MD, Ashraya hospital.

Coronavirus LIVE Updates | Goa suspends all permissions issued for shooting of films, serials 

Due to rise in COVID cases in Goa, state govt ordered that all permissions issued by Entertainment Society of Goa for films, serials & musical shows' shooting are withdrawn & suspended. We don't know how long will this continue: SP Desai,Entertainment Society of Goa Vice Chairman

Hello and welcome to Moneycontrol’s LIVE coverage of the novel coronavirus pandemic and its socio-economic impact. The COVID-19 outbreak has spread across 192 countries and territories. Stay tuned to this LIVE blog for the latest updates through the day.