Coronavirus LIVE Updates: India's Active Caseload Share Lowest Since March 2020; Govt Plans First Shot for All by December Start

China reported on Thursday a third COVID-19 case among foreign athletes at preparatory events ahead of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, which are being organised with stringent measures in place to control any outbreaks. A foreign athlete participating in the Luge World Cup in Beijing was confirmed on Tuesday as being an asymptomatic case after a routine COVID-19 test, state media reported.

With 11,919 fresh cases, India’s COVID-19 tally has climbed to 3,44,78,517, while the number of active cases has gone up to 1,28,762, the Union health ministry said on Thursday. The death toll due to the viral disease has shot up to 4,64,623 with 470 more fatalities, according to the ministry’s data updated at 8 am.

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has said that the country is gradually easing COVID-19 safety measures and making sure the situation stabilises with each step, so as to avoid “unsettling” U-turns. “What I am trying to do is to ease up a little bit, make sure things stabilise, ease up a bit more, make sure things stabilise again and ease up a little bit more,” Lee said.

Announcing that the number of fully vaccinated persons in the country has surpassed the partially vaccinated, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Wednesday expressed confidence that the country will have vaccinated every Indian by the end of the month-long ‘Har Ghar Dastak’ campaign. Mandaviya appealed all eligible citizens to get vaccinated and assured people that there was no shortage of vaccine doses. READ MORE

The cumulative COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country crossed 114 crore on Wednesday, the Union health ministry said. More than 65 lakh (65,73,687) vaccine doses have been administered till 7 pm. The daily vaccination tally is expected to increase with the compilation of the final reports for the day by late night, the ministry said.

Spains panel of vaccine experts approved Wednesday the use of a COVID-19 booster shot for people between 60-69 years old and for health workers, as part of an effort to combat an uptick in infections. The final go-ahead for the shot must be given by Spains health minister and the country’s regional health chiefs. Spain has already given 2.7 million booster shots to people age 69 and over and to people of all ages with suppressed immune systems.

Belgium extended the use of facemasks and mandatory remote work on Wednesday in an attempt to contain a new surge of COVID-19 cases. The alarm signals are flashing red, said Prime Minister Alexander De Croo. The premier added that the mandatory use of facemasks in crowded places would now include those 10 and older and that remote work, when possible, would mandatory for 4 days in the 5-day workweek until Dec. 12.

Two men, who had tested positive for coronavirus in a rapid antigen test conducted at a city-based zoo, sent two dummy patients to a medical facility by offering Rs 10,000 to them in order to avoid hospitalisation, police said on Wednesday. The fake patients were arrested by the Aurangabad city police from a civic-run COVID-19 facility soon after their real identity came to light on Monday, while one of the actual patients, Gaurav Kathar, was nabbed on Wednesday, police said. Search is on for another patient named Gagan Pagare, they said.

As the schools across India remain shut due to the Covid-19 pandemic, students had resorted to supplementary classes including coaching or tuition. Regardless of classes, states, or type of school (government or private) enrolled, students across India have relied heavily on tuition. In a contrasting trend, the largest increases in the proportion of children taking tuition are seen among children from the most disadvantaged households. As kids turned towards family support during the Covid-led school shutdown, first-generation learners or those whose parents had ‘low’ education qualifications, found it hard to keep with online studies. READ MORE