India has been reporting below 20,000 new Covid-19 cases for the past few days. (Picture: Reuters)Coronavirus Variants and Vaccinations, Coronavirus Active Cases in India Today News, October 20 Highlights: India is racing towards the 100-crore mark in Covid-19 vaccination. The country has so far (till Tuesday) administered more than 99 crore doses of the Covid-19 vaccine, according to Union Health Ministry’s data. In fact, WHO Director-General Dr Tedros lauded the “mammoth efforts” undertaken by the Indian government for vaccination against Covid-19, informed Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya.”Had a detailed interaction with DG WHO @DrTedros, accompanied by other senior officials of @WHO, on various issues related to health, including pandemic management and WHO reforms. DG WHO lauded the mammoth efforts undertaken by the Indian government for #COVID19 vaccination,” Mandaviya said in a tweet. With adequate vaccine supply, the Union Health Ministry on Tuesday urged states/UTs to focus on increasing the coverage of the second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.
Meanwhile, in a positive sign in the fight against Covid-19, India’s R-value, which reflects how rapidly the Covid-19 pandemic is spreading, remained below 1 since September despite the festive rush. The country’s R-value, calculated between September 25 and October 18, was 0.90. This suggests the rate of Coronavirus infection is declining, say researchers. According to researchers of the Chennai-based Institute of Mathematical Sciences, the R-value of the top 10 states with the most number of active cases was below 1 till October 18.
However, a few cities continue to show an increase in active Covid-19 cases. According to data, Kolkata has an R-value over 1; this might be due to the mass gatherings during the recently-concluded Durga Puja in the city. Bengaluru also has an R-value of over 1 (it has been so ever since mid-September), while the R-values of Chennai, Pune, and Mumbai are just below 1. The Covid Task Force in Maharashtra has cautioned about a third wave of the pandemic after Diwali. Any laxity in adhering to Covid protocols during festivals might trigger a spike in Coronavirus virus infections, warned health experts.
India has been reporting below 20,000 new Covid-19 cases for the past few days. India added 14,623 new coronavirus infections in the last 24 hours, taking its overall Covid-19 tally to 3,41,08,996, while the active cases declined to 1,78,098, the lowest in 229 days, according to data from the Union Health Ministry on Wednesday. With 197 fresh fatalities, the Covid-19 death toll increased to 4,52,651, the health ministry said. India has been witnessing a daily rise of Covid-19 cases below 30,000 for 26 days in a row and less than 50,000 cases for the past 115 consecutive days. The active cases now account for 0.52% of the total infections, the lowest since March 2020, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate improved to 98.15%, the highest since March 2020, the ministry said. All these numbers are indicating that the virus is shrinking. What we need to do now is to follow appropriate Covid behaviours, and take vaccines to avoid the next wave of Coronavirus infection.
Here are the latest, verified Covid news from India and across the world:
Highlights
As many as 117 fresh COVID-19 cases reported on Wednesday in Himachal Pradesh, pushed the infection count to 2,21,936 in the state, an official said.
No covid death was reported Wednesday and the death toll stood at 3,711.
Meanwhile, 63 more patients recovered from the infection, the health official said.
The active cases today rose to 1,394 from 1,348 on Tuesday, he said.
The overall recoveries so far have reached 2,16,814, he added. (PTI)
The financial capital on Wednesday reported 473 new coronavirus positive cases and four fatalities, taking the tally of infections to 7,51,957 and the death toll to 16,192, a civic official said.
After a gap of four days, the metropolis again reported more than 400 cases on Wednesday. The number of fatalities remained constant at four on the third day in a row.
The day before Mumbai had recorded 313 cases and four fatalities due to COVID-19.
Mumbai is now left with 4,550 active cases after 558 patients were discharged on Wednesday, taking the total number of recoveries to 7,28,696, the official said.
With 39,608 new tests, the number of samples examined so far in Mumbai went up to 110,61,542, he said.
Mumbai's average recovery rate now stands at 97 per cent. The average doubling rate of cases is 1,323 days. The average growth rate of cases stood at 0.05 per cent for the period between October 13 to October 19, the official added. (PTI)
As India nears the milestone of administering 100 crore Covid vaccine doses, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Wednesday appealed to all those who are eligible to get inoculated without delay and contribute in the historic vaccination journey of India.
A series of events have been lined up to celebrate the milestone of administering 100 crore Covid vaccine doses.
Mandaviya will launch a song by singer Kailash Kher and an audio-visual film at the Red Fort.
"The country is close to making a vaccine century. To be a part of this golden opportunity, I appeal to the citizens who are yet to be vaccinated to contribute in this historic golden vaccination journey of India by getting vaccinated immediately," he said in a tweet in Hindi. | Read More
Union Health Minister to launch song to celebrate administration of 100 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses (ANI)
COVID-19 | Karnataka reports 462 new cases, 9 deaths and 479 discharges; active cases 9,074 (ANI)
COVID-19 | Tamil Nadu reports 1,170 new cases, 1,418 recoveries and 20 deaths today; active cases 14,058 (ANI)
“Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package- Insurance Scheme for Health Workers fighting COVID-19”, extended for a further period of 180 days. So far, 1351 Claims have been settled under the scheme: Government of India (ANI)
Odisha, for the second consecutive day, logged above 550 new COVID-19 cases taking the state's tally to 10,36,532 on Wednesday while two fresh fatalities pushed the death toll to 8,296, a health department official said.
While the state on Wednesday reported 559 new cases, the figure was 556 on the previous day and 340 on Monday.
Wednesday's new cases included 71 children and adolescents. The rate of infection among the population in the age group of 0 to 18 years is 12.70 per cent.
Of the 559 fresh cases detected in 23 of the state's 30 districts, 321 came from quarantine and 238 were local contacts. Khurda district of which Bhubaneswar is a part, reported the highest 279 fresh infections followed by Cuttack (54), the official said.
One COVID-19 patient each died in Jagatsinghpur and Nayagarh districts, taking the state's death toll to 8,296.
The state's daily test positivity rate (TPR) stands at 0.79 per cent as 559 people were detected with the disease out of 70,586 samples tested on Tuesday. The TPR was 0.97 per cent the previous day.
The state currently has 4,785 active cases while 10,23,398 patients including 618 on Tuesday recovered from coronavirus.
The state has thus far conducted over 2.12 crore sample tests.
As many as 1.02 crore people have been fully inoculated with double doses of COVID-19 vaccines till Tuesday, the official said. (PTI)
Odisha, for the second consecutive day, logged above 550 new COVID-19 cases taking the state's tally to 10,36,532 on Wednesday while two fresh fatalities pushed the death toll to 8,296, a health department official said.
While the state on Wednesday reported 559 new cases, the figure was 556 on the previous day and 340 on Monday.
Wednesday's new cases included 71 children and adolescents. The rate of infection among the population in the age group of 0 to 18 years is 12.70 per cent.
Of the 559 fresh cases detected in 23 of the state's 30 districts, 321 came from quarantine and 238 were local contacts. Khurda district of which Bhubaneswar is a part, reported the highest 279 fresh infections followed by Cuttack (54), the official said.
One COVID-19 patient each died in Jagatsinghpur and Nayagarh districts, taking the state's death toll to 8,296.
The state's daily test positivity rate (TPR) stands at 0.79 per cent as 559 people were detected with the disease out of 70,586 samples tested on Tuesday. The TPR was 0.97 per cent the previous day.
The state currently has 4,785 active cases while 10,23,398 patients including 618 on Tuesday recovered from coronavirus.
The state has thus far conducted over 2.12 crore sample tests.
As many as 1.02 crore people have been fully inoculated with double doses of COVID-19 vaccines till Tuesday, the official said. (PTI)
More than 102.4 crore (102,48,12,565) COVID-19 vaccine doses have been provided to the states and Union territories so far through the Government of India (free of cost channel) and under the direct state procurement category, the Union health ministry said on Wednesday.
More than 10.78 crore (10,78,72,110) balance and unutilised Covid vaccine doses are still available with the states, it added.
The Centre is committed to accelerating the pace and expanding the scope of Covid vaccination throughout the country, the ministry said.
The vaccination drive has been ramped up through availability of more vaccines, advance visibility of vaccine availability to the states for enabling better planning by them and streamlining the vaccine supply chain, it said.
As part of the nationwide vaccination drive against the viral disease, the Centre has been supporting the states by providing them vaccines for free, the ministry said.
In the new phase of universalisation of the COVID-19 vaccination drive, the Union government will procure and supply (free of cost) 75 per cent of the vaccines produced by the vaccine manufacturers in the country to the states and Union territories, it added. (PTI)
COVID-19 | Kerala reports 11,150 new cases, 82 deaths and 8,592 recoveries in the last 24 hours; active cases 82,738 (ANI)
In view of the improved COVID-19 situation in Uttar Pradesh, the state government on Wednesday lifted night restrictions between 11 PM to 6 AM, a senior official said here.
“On directions of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Corona curfew between 11 PM to 6 AM) is being lifted in the state,” Additional Chief Secretary, Home, Awanish Kumar Awasthi said here. The order in this regard has been issued to all the officers concerned. | Read More
In view of the improved COVID-19 situation in Uttar Pradesh, the state government on Wednesday lifted night restrictions between 11 PM to 6 AM, a senior official said here.
“On directions of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Corona curfew between 11 PM to 6 AM) is being lifted in the state,” Additional Chief Secretary, Home, Awanish Kumar Awasthi said here. The order in this regard has been issued to all the officers concerned. | Read More
Mizoram on Wednesday reported 665 fresh COVID-19 cases, 288 less than the number of infections registered on the previous day, raising the tally to 1,14,466, an official said.
The state had logged 953 cases on Tuesday, he said, adding, single-day infections have remained below 1,000 since October 15.
The death toll mounted to 393 after two more patients succumbed to the virus.
At least 148 children and four frontline workers were among the newly infected people, the official said.
Mizoram now has 10,768 active cases, while 1,03,305 people have recovered from the disease so far, including 1,269 since Tuesday.
The state has conducted over 12.37 lakh sample tests for COVID-19 thus far.
Meanwhile, more than 6.91 lakh people have been vaccinated till Tuesday, State Immunisation Officer Lalzawmi said. (PTI)
More than 99 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in India and the government has set a target of vaccinating the country’s entire adult population by the end of the year, Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Bharati Pravin Pawar said on Wednesday.
While virtually addressing the FICCI’s “Healthcare Excellence Awards” ceremony, Pawar informed that under the ‘Make in India’ initiative of Prime Minister Narendra Modi “India is one of the leading countries in the global medical devices market in the world.”
Detailing the success amid challenges posed by COVID-19, the Union minister said, “More than 99 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered in the country and the government has set a target of vaccinating the country’s entire adult population by end of the year.” | Read More
President Vladimir Putin orders week-long paid holiday to curb COVID-19 infections in Russia (AFP)
Delhi records 25 fresh COVID-19 cases, zero fatality; positivity rate at 0.04 per cent: Authorities (PTI)
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The COVID-19 death toll in Meghalaya remained at 1,439 as no new fatality due to the infection was reported in the last 24 hours, while 79 fresh infections pushed the tally to 83,158, a health department official said on Wednesday. Of the fresh cases, 45 were recorded in East Khasi Hills district, 23 in West Khasi Hills and six in South West Khasi Hills. Meghalaya now has 761 active cases, while 80,958 people have recovered from the disease, Health Services Director Dr Aman War said. The state has conducted over 11.26 lakh sample tests for COVID-19, he said. (PTI)
Even as microfinance lending, which targets micro and small business owners and individuals, was able to recover to the pre-pandemic mark by Q4 FY21, the second wave and the following lockdown put a severe dent in the sector’s growth in the first quarter of the current financial year. The growth in the gross loan portfolio of lenders declined by 7 per cent quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) from Rs 253.8k crore in Q4FY21 to Rs 236.1k crore in the April-June quarter of FY22 while year-on-year (YoY) growth was less than 1 per cent from Rs 234.1k crore, according to the latest Crif MicroLend report on India’s microfinance sector. READ FULL STORY
Health chiefs in the UK have urged the government to legally enforce some of the COVID-19 prevention measures, such as mandatory face coverings in enclosed spaces, as coronavirus infections in Britain continue to spike over the 40,000 mark daily. The NHS Confederation, a membership body of the country's National Health Service (NHS), said a back-up strategy, or "Plan B plus", is required as preemptive action over winter when the health service is already stretched due to seasonal flu and other diseases. The warning comes as the UK hit another daily high of 43,738 COVID cases on Tuesday and 223 COVID deaths, which is the highest daily coronavirus death figure since March. "It is time for the government to enact Plan B of its strategy without delay because without preemptive action, we risk stumbling into a winter crisis. Also, health leaders need to understand what a 'Plan C' would entail if these measures are insufficient," said Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation. (PTI)
The Czech Republic has been hit by a steep rise in coronavirus infections that have reached levels unseen since late April, the Health Ministry said on Wednesday. The government was set to meet later in the day to approve new measures to tame the surge. The day-to-day increase in new cases reached 3,246 on Tuesday, more than double the cases a week ago when it was 1,507. It was the highest number since April 20. The new infections surpassed 100 per 100,000 people in seven days with 117 positive cases. The fast rise of infections is accompanied by increasing numbers of people who need hospitalisation and those who die. A total of 620 COVID-19 patients were treated in hospitals on Tuesday with about 100 in serious condition. It's more than twice as many as two weeks ago. In last seven days, 51 people have died of COVID-19. (PTI)
Poland reported over 5,000 daily COVID-19 cases for the first time since May on Wednesday, Health Ministry data showed. The country of around 38 million people reported 5,559 new cases of the coronavirus and 75 deaths on Wednesday. Since the beginning of the pandemic Poland has reported 2,950,616 cases and 76,254 deaths. (Reuters)
Russia on Wednesday reported a record 1,028 coronavirus-related deaths in the last 24 hours as well as 34,073 new infections, a surge in cases that has led authorities to press for stricter health restrictions. Moscow's mayor announced four months of stay-home restrictions for unvaccinated over-60s on Tuesday and the Russian government proposed a week-long workplace shutdown to cope with fast-rising cases that the Kremlin has blamed on Russia's slow vaccination campaign. (Reuters)
China reported a fourth day of new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases in a handful of cities across China, prompting alarmed local governments to double down on efforts to track potential carriers amid the country's zero-tolerance policy. A total of 17 new local cases were reported for Oct. 19, up from nine a day earlier, data from the National Health Commission (NHC) showed on Wednesday. The new cases were reported in eight cities and administrative divisions, more than four for Oct. 18, the bulk of which were in northern and northwestern China. Three separate cases were also reported in recent days in the south and southwest of China. Among the cases was one in the capital city Beijing, which is busy gearing up for its hosting of the 2022 Winter Games in February, where officials vowed stringent efforts against the virus. Almost half of the 26 local cases found on Monday and Tuesday were of close contacts of an elderly couple who had travelled in the provinces of Shaanxi and Gansu and the Chinese region of Inner Mongolia before being confirmed as COVID-19 patients on Sunday. (Reuters)
The Biden administration threatened on Tuesday to revoke the authority for three Republican-controlled states to handle their own workplace safety enforcement because they have refused to adopt rules to protect health care workers from COVID-19. The threats were sent to Arizona, South Carolina and Utah as the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration prepares to adopt much more far-reaching vaccination and testing rules affecting 80 million Americans. In nearly half the states, it will have to rely on state labour regulators for enforcement. OSHA officials say Arizona, South Carolina and Utah are not complying with their promises to enforce labour standards that are at least as good as those adopted by the federal government. At issue is a rule requiring personal protective equipment, social distancing and other safety measures for workers at health care facilities that care for people with COVID-19. (Reuters)
Singapore welcomed on Wednesday the first travellers under an expanded quarantine-free programme, marking a big step towards the aviation hub restoring its international links, despite a sharp rise in its COVID-19 cases. Singapore Airlines flights from Amsterdam and London arrived on Wednesday under the so-called vaccinated travel lanes (VTL)."Yeah, that's (a) perfect visit. It's really convenient," said Singapore resident Andrea Mullens, who returned from the Netherlands with her daughter, who will return to school in Singapore. "It's a good thing happening. I think travel in general is a bit challenging at the moment." Husband Harald said he would return to the Netherlands next week on business. "I do appreciate that family can travel again," he said. From this week, the lanes will be extended to vaccinated arrivals from Canada, Denmark, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Britain and the United States, who can enter Singapore without quarantine if they pass COVID-19 tests. Singapore earlier opened the lane to arrivals from Germany and Brunei and will include South Korea from mid-November. While Singapore is opening further, a recent rise in cases has prompted tighter measures locally, including limiting social gatherings to two people and only allowing vaccinated people to enter malls. (Reuters)
The summit of the G20 leaders scheduled in Rome at the end of this month will focus on the fight against climate change, coronavirus and the measures required for a global recovery after the pandemic, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi said on Wednesday. "Without the involvement of the world's largest economies, we will not be able to comply with the Paris Agreement and limit global warming," Draghi told Senate in remarks ahead of this week's European Council meeting. The Rome summit is seen as particularly important because it comes just before the United Nations COP26 climate change conference to be held in Glasgow, Scotland, where the position of G20 nations will be critical. (Reuters)
The Gates Foundation will allocate up to $120 million to help lower-income countries get an experimental COVID-19 drug being developed by U.S. drugmaker Merck & Co Inc in the battle against coronavirus, it said on Wednesday. The money will support efforts to develop and make generic versions of what could become the first oral antiviral medication for the disease if it wins regulatory approval, the foundation said in a statement. "Today's commitment will ensure that more people in more countries get access to the promising drug molnupiravir, but it's not the end of the story - we need other donors, including foundations and governments, to act," Co-Chair Melinda French Gates said. Merck is developing the antiviral pill along with partner Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, to treat coronavirus infections that range from mild to moderate in severity and sought U.S. emergency use authorisation for the drug this month. The step comes as low- and middle-income countries struggle to secure life-saving vaccines and treatments for COVID-19, particularly in Africa, where just about 5% of the population is immunised. (Reuters)
Germany may miss its target to donate 100 million COVID-19 vaccine doses this year due to conditions imposed by manufacturers and delivery shortfalls, a health ministry official said in a letter to Brussels seen by Reuters. The 100 million doses account for half the total promised by European Union member states to poorer countries this year, according to the European Commission. The German foreign office said on Oct. 19 that Germany had only donated just over 17% of that amount. In a letter on Monday to the European Commission's Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA), health ministry state secretary Thomas Steffen said there were "ongoing bureaucratic, logistical and legal problems" imposed by vaccine makers on EU countries wanting to donate surplus shots.
The union territory of Puducherry logged 42 fresh coronavirus cases during the last 24 hours taking the overall tally to 1,27,521, a senior official of Department of Health said on Wednesday. The new cases were identified at the end of the examination of 4,065 samples and were spread over Puducherry (34), Karaikal (three) and Mahe (five), the Health Department Director G Sriramulu said in a release. Yanam, an enclave in Andhra Pradesh, did not report any fresh case, he added. The number of active cases in the union territory stood at 461 with 94 patients in hospitals and the remaining 367 in home isolation, Sriramulu said. The Health department Director said no fresh fatality was reported from any of the four regions - Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam - during the last 24 hours ending 10 AM Wednesday and the toll remained at 1,852. He said 71 patients recovered and were discharged during the last 24 hours and the overall recoveries climbed to 1,25,208. (PTI)
Andaman and Nicobar Islands reported four new COVID-19 cases, which took the tally in the Union Territory to 7,646, a health department official said on Wednesday. Two fresh cases were detected during contact tracing, while two new patients have travel history, he said. The death toll remained at 129 as no new fatality due to the infection was reported in the last 24 hours, the official said. Three more patients were cured of the disease during the period, taking the total number of recoveries in the archipelago to 7,509. The Union Territory now has eight active cases. The local administration has been strict to contain the spread of the disease and has adopted an approach of tracking, testing and treating, he said, adding that people arriving here from the mainland are mandatorily required to undergo COVID tests. (PTI)
Brazil had 12,969 new cases of the novel coronavirus reported in the past 24 hours and 390 deaths from COVID-19, the Health Ministry said on Tuesday. The South American country has registered 21,664,879 cases since the pandemic began, while the official death toll has risen to 603,855, according to ministry data. It is the world's third worst outbreak outside the United States and India and its second-deadliest. (Reuters)
China reported 30 new confirmed COVID-19 cases for Oct. 19 compared with 25 a day earlier, the country's health authority said on Wednesday. Of the new infections, 17 were locally transmitted cases, up from 9 a day earlier, according to a statement by the National Health Commission. The new local cases were reported in Inner Mongolia, Gansu, Beijing, Guizhou, Yunnan, Shaanxi and Ningxia. China reported 22 new asymptomatic patients, which it classifies separately from confirmed cases, compared with 19 a day earlier. There were no new deaths, leaving the death toll unchanged at 4,636. As of Oct. 19, mainland China had 96,601 confirmed coronavirus cases. (Reuters)
Mexico's health ministry on Tuesday reported 446 more deaths from COVID-19 in the country, bringing the overall death toll since the pandemic began to 284,923. The government has previously said the numbers are likely significantly higher than those reported. (Reuters)
India reported an 18 per cent decrease in the new COVID-19 cases along with a 13 per cent decline in the number of deaths during the week of October 11 to 17, the WHO has said, highlighting that all the regions globally, except the European Region, reported a fall in new weekly cases of the deadly virus. The COVID-19 Weekly Epidemiological Update, released by the World Health Organisation on Tuesday, said that with just over 2.7 million new cases and over 46,000 new deaths reported during the week of October 11 to 17, the global number of new cases and deaths remained similar to that of the previous week. Apart from the European Region, which reported a 7 per cent increase in the number of new weekly cases when compared to the previous week, all the other regions reported declines in new weekly cases. The update said that the largest decrease in new weekly cases was reported from the African Region (18 per cent), followed by the Western Pacific Region (16 per cent). The African Region also reported the largest decline in weekly deaths (25 per cent) followed by the South-East Asia and Eastern Mediterranean Regions with 19 per cent and 8 per cent declines, respectively. (PTI)
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The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is aiming to ease COVID-19 restrictions on bars and restaurants next week as infections continue to decline, the Jiji news service said on Wednesday. The easing will be announced as early as Thursday and would apply to businesses that are certified as following anti-infection measures, Jiji reported, citing informed sources. Representatives for the Tokyo government did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Reuters. Tokyo and much of Japan lifted COVID-19 emergency measures on Oct. 1 that had been in place for almost six months. Even so, restaurants and bars in the capital have been asked to halt alcohol sales by 8 p.m. and close by 9 p.m. New daily cases in Tokyo dropped to 29 on Monday, the lowest since June last year. (Reuters)
Daily COVID-19 cases in New Zealand fell on Wednesday after a record jump the day before, with most infections still in Auckland as the Delta variant of the coronavirus continues to affect the country's biggest city. Authorities reported 60 new COVID-19 infections on Tuesday, of which 56 were in Auckland, taking the total number of cases in the current outbreak to 2,158. There have been 28 deaths in total since the pandemic began and 43 people are currently hospitalised because of the virus. New Zealand had stayed largely virus-free for most of the pandemic until the Delta outbreak in mid-August that has spread across Auckland and neighbouring regions, prompting tight restrictions on some 1.7 million Aucklanders that were extended further this week. (Reuters)