COVID-19 patients wait in an ambulance outside a hospital in Ahmedabad. (PTI Photo)Coronavirus India News May 13 Highlights: The rampage of the second wave of the coronavirus continues in India with over 4,000 people losing their lives for a second straight day. While the numbers of new infections dwindled slightly with 3.62 lakh cases reported by the official data. As the situation shows some improvement in urban areas, the rural population is suffering silently. While the lockdowns have helped the states to bring down the Covid numbers, the Centre is trying to rework the national vaccination plan. Now there are reports coming in that the govt has been recommended to increase the time gap between two doses of Covishield. Though a study has also said that delaying the second dose will help in lessening the chances of death, in India the delay is being seen as the govt’s attempt to cover the maximum population while struggling with the vaccine shortage.
While Indian cities are showing lower Covid numbers with Delhi and Mumbai improving the situation, crisis is worsening in India’s countryside. Be it Maharashtra or Uttar Pradesh, Bihar or Madhya Pradesh, more form 1/3rd to 2/3rd of total cases are being reported from the villages.
Also Read: COVID-19 hits the national transporter!
From Ballia to Chhapra, various areas in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have been reported about corpses floating in the River Ganga. While officials are not saying that all these are Covid victims, panic is palpable in the rural areas. While the urban population has taken to social media to voice their woes, the grievances of the rural areas are unheard. Be it Haryana’s Rohtak to UP’s Meerut, even areas closer to National Capital Delhi have been facing the uphill task of providing proper treatment to the people. In between the crisis of Covid care and bed availability, the vaccine chaos means that the expectations of protecting the people will have to wait.
Meanwhile, amid reports of ‘Indian variant’ being detected in over 40 nations, the Centre took a strong stand and said that B.1.617 strain of coronavirus must not be called as the ‘Indian strain.’ Upon a thorough reading, we also found that the WHO has not mentioned the mutant strain as the Indian variant. After China’s objection to the ‘Wuhan virus’, India has made it clear that the double mutant must not be called the Indian variant. It should be noted that the mutant was first detected in India in October last year.
As India battles the invisible enemy, here are the latest, verified updates from across the country and around the globe:
Highlights
Haryana on Thursday reported 163 COVID-19 related deaths taking the cumulative toll to 6,238 while 12,286 fresh infections pushed the total case count to 6,65,028. According to the health department's daily bulletin, the latest deaths include 17 each from Gurugram and Rohtak, 15 from Karnal, 14 from Hisar and 12 from Bhiwani. Among the districts which continued to report a big spike in cases include Gurugram (2,159), Sirsa (1,350), Faridabad (1,091) and Hisar (1,166). The number of total active cases in the state was 1,03,140 while the total recoveries so far were 5,55,650. (PTI)
Industry body COAI has urged state governments to vaccinate the field workforce of telecom companies on priority basis as as they ensure continuous operation of telecommunications infrastructure, which in turn helps keep the Indian economy running. The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) has sought the support of the state governments of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, West Bengal and Punjab, among others, to consider telecom field employees as frontline workers. "During the COVID-19 pandemic India's telecom warriors are keeping Indians connected. At a time when physical distancing is critical, the telecommunications sector is instrumental in access to healthcare services to work-from-home to online education. (PTI)
Manipur BJP president S Tikendra Singh who had been undergoing treatment for COVID-19 at a hospital in Imphal passed away on Thursday evening. He was 69. He had tested positive for the virus on April 27. Chief Minister N Biren Singh while informing about the death tweeted, "Im at a loss of word to learn that Prof S Tiken Singh, president BJP Manipur, has passed away just a while ago. "We have lost a stalwart of BJP in Manipur who have dedicated his life for the service of people and the party.My deepest condolences to the bereaved family. May your soul rest in peace Oja." (PTI)
The Centre on Thursday rejected the Delhi government's claim that Covaxin maker Bharat Biotech has refused to provide it "additional" doses and said the national capital has received over 15 lakh doses of the anti-COVID vaccine. On Tuesday, Deputy Chief minister Manish Sisodia had alleged the Covaxin manufacturer has in a letter said it cannot provide the Delhi government vaccines due to unavailability, under instruction of government officials concerned. "It means that the central government is controlling supply of the vaccine," Sisodia, who is a senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader, had said. Addressing a briefing of the Union Health Ministry, Niti Aayog member (health), V K Paul said the government of India's role is to facilitate. (PTI)
Gujarat reported 10,742 new COVID-19 cases and 109 deaths on Thursday, taking its overall infection tally to 7,25,353 and fatality count to 8,840, the health department said. Of the 109 fatalities, 16 were reported in Ahmedabad district, 14 in Surat, 10 in Vadodara and nine in Rajkot district, it said. A total of 2,878 new cases were recorded in Ahmedabad city alone, followed by 776 in Surat city, 650 in Vadodara city and 461 in Vadodara district, 399 in Mehsana, 359 in Rajkot city and 332 in Rajkot district. (PTI)
Maharashtra reported 42,582 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, a drop of nearly 4,200 infections from a day ago, while 850 more patients succumbed to the disease, the state health department said. With the addition of 42,582 COVID-19 cases, down from 46,781 on Wednesday, the state's caseload increased to 52,69,292, while the death toll reached 78,857, it said. On Tuesday, Maharashtra had reported 40,956 COVID-19 cases, 793 deaths and 71,966 recoveries. (PTI)
The Covid-19 pandemic on Thursday claimed 159 lives in Rajasthan which registered 15,867 more coronavirus positive cases, taking the total fatality toll to 6,317 and infections to 8,21,525. Jaipur reported the highest number of 47 deaths followed by Jodhpur where as many as 15 people died, an official health bulletin said on Thursday. Bikaner reported 13 deaths followed by Udaipur (12), Sikar (11), Alwar (10), the statement said, adding fatalities were also reported from other districts of the state. Of the fresh positive cases, a maximum of 4,099 cases was reported from Jaipur while 1,074 and 997 persons tested positive in Udaipur and Jodhpur respectively. (PTI)
Armed with 6.48 lakh vaccine doses, Jharkhand on Thursday said it was all geared up to kickstart free vaccination campaign for the 18-44 age group from Friday. Facing vaccine shortage, the state could not launch the drive on scheduled May 1 and Chief Minister Hemant Soren had announced to begin free inoculation on May 14. "From 14 May 2021, the state government is going to start the free vaccination drive for people falling under 18 - 44 years of age....As of now 4,14,340 doses of Covaxin and 2,34,400 doses of Covishield are available in the state, which was provided by the central government to Jharkhand for the drive," a state government official said. (PTI)
Two men were arrested in separate incidents for allegedly duping people on the pretext of supplying oxygen cylinders for COVID-19 patients in the national capital, police said. In the first case, Dheeraj Kumar Jangid (22) was arrested from his native place in Rajasthan fo duping people on the pretext of providing them oxygen cylinders. To make easy money, he took advantage of the scarcity of oxygen cylinders in Delhi and planned to cheat those in need, they said. With his arrest, two mobile phones were seized from his possession, police said. The probe was initiated after a woman approached the police with her complaint on March 28 at Govindpuri police station and said that her mother was suffering from COVID-19. As her condition deteriorated, there was a need for oxygen cylinders. (PTI)
Two men were arrested in separate incidents for allegedly duping people on the pretext of supplying oxygen cylinders for COVID-19 patients in the national capital, police said. In the first case, Dheeraj Kumar Jangid (22) was arrested from his native place in Rajasthan fo duping people on the pretext of providing them oxygen cylinders. To make easy money, he took advantage of the scarcity of oxygen cylinders in Delhi and planned to cheat those in need, they said. With his arrest, two mobile phones were seized from his possession, police said. (PTI)
The number of people infected with the coronavirus in England fell by almost half over the past month marking the lowest level of COVID-19 cases since last year, according to new statistics released in London on Thursday as UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said "cautious steps" were being taken on the virus variant first identified in India. The Imperial College London-led Real-time Assessment of Community Transmission (REACT-1) study comes as it emerged that the government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) is holding a review meeting on Thursday to discuss the Variant of Concern (VOC) first identified in India. During a primary school visit in north-east England on Thursday, Johnson admitted the VOC named B.1.617.2 "has been spreading" and the UK wants to "grip it". (PTI)
Uttarakhand minister Swami Yatishwaranand has asked officials to rope in sugar mills to start producing oxygen to augment the supply of the life-saving gas in view of the rising COVID-19 cases in the state. Two sugar mills in Hardiwar have already agreed to the proposal, the minister for sugarcane development and sugar industry said. In a letter to ministry secretary Chandresh Kumar, Yatishwaranand cited the example of Osmanabad in Maharashtra where an oxygen plant is being run at a sugar factory and asked him to start work in that direction in Uttarakhand too. The minister said he had spoken to the management of the Dharashiv Sugar Mill in Osmanabad and also collected information about a dozen sugar mills that are running oxygen plants in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh. (PTI)
Madhya Pradesh on Thursday reported 8,419 fresh COVID-19 cases and 74 more fatalities, taking the tally of infections to 7,08,621 and the toll to 6,753, the state health department said. This was the fourth day on the trot when Madhya Pradesh registered less than 10,000 cases, signalling a possible plateauing of the viral infection in the state. Also, recoveries outnumbered new cases. A total of 10,157 patients were discharged from hospitals in the last 24 hours, taking the count of recoveries in Madhya Pradesh to 5,93,752, the department said. (PTI)
The Karnataka government on Thursday announced floating a global tender for procuring two crore COVID-19 vaccines owing to supply shortage. Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said a Task Force has been set up to oversee the preparation for a probable third wave of COVID-19. He also announced the appointment of Professor Gagan Deep Kang of Christian Medical College at Vellore in Tamil Nadu as an advisor on vaccination strategy. "The state has placed a purchase order for three crore doses of vaccines--two crore doses of Covishield and one crore doses of Covaxin." (PTI)
Aimed at providing medical kits to those under home isolation, five lakh kits will be procured, and measures will be taken to see that they reach the doorstep of the infected within 1 hour of getting the COVID-19 test result, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister C N Ashwath Narayan said on Thursday. He said authorities had been directed to ensure the systematic delivery of home isolation medical kits starting from May 15. (PTI)
The Karnataka government on Thursday announced floating a global tender for procuring two crore COVID-19 vaccines owing to supply shortage. Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said a Task Force has been set up to oversee the preparation for a probable third wave of COVID-19. "The state has placed a purchase order for three crore doses of vaccines, two crore doses of Covishield and one crore doses of Covaxin. We are floating global tenders for an additional two crores," Yediyurappa told reporters here. (PTI)
The Madhya Pradesh government has invoked stringent National Security Act (NSA) against 75 persons for allegedly indulging in illegal sale of Remdesivir medicine in different parts of the state, a senior official said on Thursday. These 75 persons have already been sent to jails by the district collectors concerned, he said. "As per the procedure, we have confirmed the NSA against 37 persons for black-marketing Remdesivir. We will also confirm the proposal against 38 others under the same Act by Friday," Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) Home, Dr Rajesh Rajora, told PTI. They were arrested under the NSA as well as the Prevention of Black-marketing and Maintenance of Supplies of Essential Commodities Act, 1980, he said. (PTI)
The news of Covaxin stocks running dry in Delhi has left people in the 18-44 age group worried, with many saying on Twitter that they would be "left in a lurch" if their wait for the second dose gets "infinitely delayed". Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Wednesday announced that people under the age of 45 will not be able to get Covaxin shots from Thursday, saying its manufacturer Bharat Biotech has refused to provide "additional" vaccine doses to the city government. With covaxin's stock finished, the Delhi government temporarily closed down around 100 centres administering the vaccine on Wednesday. "I got my first dose of Covaxin day before yesterday now I am concern how I will get my second dose as you know Covaxin have stopped the supply to Delhi(sic)," tweeted Abdul Basit. (PTI)
Ghaziabad recorded 16 more COVID-19 deaths that pushed its toll to 358, while 11 more people succumbed in Gautam Buddh Nagar where the number of such fatalities reached 361 on Thursday, official data showed. The two neighbouring districts adjoining Delhi in western Uttar Pradesh now have a cumulative death toll of 719, according to data released by the state's health department for a 24-hour period. In terms of new cases, Gautam Buddh Nagar recorded 747 fresh infections during the period and its tally mounted to 57,892. Its active cases reached 7,842, the data showed. Ghaziabad in the meantime logged 374 new cases that pushed its case tally to 50,200 and active cases to 4,958, it showed. (PTI)
At least 2,491 persons tested positive for coronavirus, while 63 died of the infection in Goa on Thursday, an official from the state health department said. With this, the coastal state's caseload has risen to 1,30,130 and the toll has reached 1,937, the official said. The count of recoveries rose to 95,240, after 2,266 patients were discharged from various treatment facilities during the day, he said, adding that the state is now left with 32,953 active cases. (PTI)
Uttar Pradesh on Thursday recorded 17,775 fresh COVID-19 cases that pushed the infection count to 15,80,980, while 281 new fatalities took the death toll to 16,646 in the state, officials said. The number of active cases in the state has come down by over 1.06 lakh in the past 12 days, Additional Chief Secretary, Health, Amit Mohan Prasad said. The COVID-19 recovery rate now stands at 86 per cent in Uttar Pradesh, he said. On April 30, there were about 3.10 lakh active cases, and the number currently stands at 2,04,658, the official said. With this, the total number of patients in the state who have recovered from the infection has risen to 13,59,676, Prasad said. (PTI)
Telangana continued to register a decline in fresh infections with 4,693 new COVID-19 cases being recorded on Thursday, pushing the caseload to 5,16,404, while the toll mounted to 2,867 with 33 deaths, a government bulletin said. The state had reported 4,801 fresh cases on Tuesday, while it logged 4,723 cases yesterday. Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) accounted for the most number of cases with 734, followed by Rangareddy (296) and Medchal Malkajgiri (285), the bulletin said. (PTI)
Tribal-dominated Jharkhand on Thursday saw its fresh fatalities plunge below 100 for the second time in May at 97, with capital Ranchi also witnessing COVID-19 related deaths coming down to 19. This is a 22.72 per cent dip, compared to average fatalities during May so far, which has been around 125. The death toll in the state has climbed to 4,182, as per a Health Department bulletin. The state had recorded 97 fatalities on May 10 also. To date this month, the highest number of 159 deaths was recorded on May 2.
Two more people succumbed to COVID here, taking the death toll in the city to 215, officials said on Thursday. According to Chief Medical Officer MS Fojdar, out of the 1,053 new samples, 442 were tested positive. The city currently has 5,601 active COVID cases, he said. With 855 people having recovered from the virus, the total number of recoveries reached 20,981, he added. (PTI)
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath visited AMU on Thursday to take stock of the coronavirus situation at the university, where at least 35 serving and retired faculty members have died due to COVID or COVID-like symptoms in the recent weeks. Expressing grief over the deaths at Aligarh Muslim University's Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, he said he hoped that the vaccination drive on the campus would pick up soon and help in improving the situation. On his first visit to AMU since he assumed office in 2017, the chief minister also said that the supply of oxygen to the university's medical college is being augmented. The university hospital, however, hasn't reported any deaths due to the shortage of oxygen. (PTI)
The government medical college in Aurangabad, one of the biggest health facilities in the Marathwada region, has proposed a certificate course in COVID-19 prevention and management for state-run medical colleges, an official said on Thursday. The course will help treatment facilities get a continuous flow of doctors and required manpower for hospital services, Dr Kananbala Yelikar, the dean of the Aurangabad Government Medical College wrote in the proposal. (PTI)
As India opened Covid-19 vaccination to all above 18 years from May 1, states governments/UTs are trying to make the vaccination drive hassle-free and health officials are experimenting with things to make the process even smoother. This is apparently why the Gurgaon Health Department has decided to hold a drive-in vaccination facility in parking lots of shopping malls of the district. For this, the district health administration has joined hands with an automated smart parking solutions provider. READ FULL STORY
Uttar Pradesh reports 17,775 new COVID19 cases, 19,425 recoveries and 281 deaths todayTotal cases: 15,80,980Active cases: 2,04,658 (ANI)
AAP leader Atishi Thursday said Delhi is left with just two-three days’ stock of coronavirus vaccines for those above 45, and key workers. For the 18-44 age group, the capital has eight days of Covishield doses available, she said. READ MORE
Meghalaya decides to extend the Covid-19 lockdown in East Khasi Hills district till May 24. (AIR News)
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
Andhra Pradesh reports 22,399 new #COVID19 cases, 89 deaths and 18,638 recoveries todayTotal cases: 13,66,785Active cases: 2,01,042 (ANI)
Coronavirus Covid19 in India Live Tracker: NHRC issues notice to Centre, UP and Bihar over dead bodies floating in Ganga; asks for action-taken report in 4 weeks
The Maharashtra government will not remove Prime Minister Narendra Modis photograph from COVID-19 vaccination certificates, but the state should be allowed to design its own software application for registering citizens for inoculation, minister Nawab Malik said on Thursday. In a video statement, Minority Affairs Minister Malik claimed technical glitches in use of the Centres CoWIN app, the digital backbone of the nationwide vaccination drive, leading to difficulties in people registering themselves for getting jabs. READ MORE
IIT-Kharagpur announced on Thursday that its offices will remain shut till May 23 in the wake of the rising COVID-19 cases. Except for essential services, no work will be done from the campus, Registrar Tamal Nath told PTI. “We have decided to shut down non-essential offices on the campus from Friday till May 23, and the staff will be working from home. This will be the same as online classes being held for the students,” he said. Essential services staff will continue to work on the campus, following all COVID protocols, he said. READ MORE
The COVID-19 death toll in Ladakh rose to 158 on Thursday with one more fatality, while 243 new cases pushed the infection count to 15,807, officials said. Of the total deaths, 114 were recorded in Leh and 44 were from Kargil, they said. The only fatality was reported from Leh on Thursday, officials said. Of the 243 fresh cases, 171 were reported from Leh and 72 were from Kargil, they said. Of the total cases so far, 13,009 were recorded in Leh district and 2,798 in Kargil, they said. As many as 147 people, including 104 in Leh and 43 in Kargil, were discharged after recovering from the infection, taking the overall recoveries so far to 14,102, they said. (PTI)
The government has accepted the COVID-19 Working Group's recommendation for extending the gap between the two doses of the Covishield vaccine from 6-8 weeks to 12-16 weeks, the Union health ministry said, while announcing the extension on Thursday. However, no change has been suggested for the dosage interval for Covaxin, it said. "Based on the available real-life evidences, particularly from the UK, the COVID-19 Working Group agreed for increasing the dosing interval to 12-16 weeks between two doses of Covishield vaccine. No change in interval of Covaxin vaccine doses was recommended," the ministry said. The present gap between two doses of Covishield, manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, is 6-8 weeks. "The recommendation of the COVID-19 Working Group was accepted by the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 (NEGVAC), headed by Dr V K Paul, Member (Health), Niti Aayog, in its meeting on May 12, 2021," the ministry said. (PTI)
Union Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan today held a meeting via video conferencing with health ministers of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, and Delhi on the #COVID19 situation (ANI)
Puducherry reports 1,942 new COVID-19 cases, 912 recoveries and 24 deaths in the last 24 hoursActive cases: 16,568 (ANI)