15 to 18 year-old beneficiaries at Mumbai's BKC Jumbo Center get Covid vaccination. (Express Photo by Amit Chakravarty)Covid-19 India Live News: Maharashtra on Tuesday detected 75 new Omicron variant cases in the last 24 hours, taking the count of such cases to 653 so far, , the state health department said. Of the 75 Omicron cases, 40 cases were reported from Mumbai. At the same time, the state reported 18,466 fresh coronavirus positive cases with Mumbai logging over 10,000 new infections. 20 fatalities were also recorded in the last 24 hours. The single day spike reported on Tuesday is around 52 per cent or 6,303 cases more than the previous day’s tally.
Delhi on Tuesday decided to implement a weekend curfew in the national capital, following a meeting by the Delhi Disaster Management Authority. The seating capacity in the metro and buses was increased to 100 per cent to avoid crowding at stops and stations.
The Punjab government has imposed a night curfew in the state from 10 pm to 5 am, excluding essential services. All educational institutes shall remain closed, while online classes will continue. Among other restrictions, bars, cinemas halls, malls, restaurants and spas will be allowed to operate at 50 per cent capacity, subject to staff being fully vaccinated.
Meanwhile, as the world grapples with the highly mutated Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2, scientists have identified a new strain of the Covid-19 causing virus in Southern France. Known as ‘IHU’, the B.1.640.2 variant has been reported by researchers at institute IHU Mediterranee Infection in at least 12 cases, and has been linked to travel to African country Cameroon. However, the researchers noted that it is too early to speculate on how this variant behaves as far as infection and protection from vaccines is concerned.
India recorded 37,379 fresh Covid-19 cases and 124 deaths in the 24 hours ending 9 am Tuesday. With 11,007 recoveries, the active cases in the country stood at 1,71,830. Meanwhile, the Omicron tally has touched 1,892, with the highest number of cases in Maharashtra (568).
Children getting vaccinated against coronavirus in Ahmedabad. (Express Photo by Nirmal Harindran)
Five Omicron cases detected in Meghalaya.
Bihar on Tuesday imposed fresh curbs as active Covid cases in the state reached 2222 with over 800 cases reported in the last 24 hours. Patna and Gaya are the worst-affected. A statement released by the government said a night curfew will be in force from 10 pm to 5 am. Pre-schools and classes 1 to 8 will remain closed. However, online classes will continue. Educational institutions for classes 9 to 12 will function with 50 per cent capacity. These latest restrictions will remain in effect from January 6 to 21.
Tamil Nadu on Tuesday recorded 2,731 Coronavirus infections and nine fatalities, taking the count to 27,55,587 and the death to 36,805. On Monday, the state had recorded 1,728 cases.
With 674 Covid-19 positive patients getting discharged following treatment, total recoveries rose to 27,06,370. The number of active cases including in isolation remains at 12,412.
A total of 121 persons, including 3 cases cross notified to Kerala, Puducherry and Andhra Pradesh, tested positive for Omicron, and of them 105 were discharged. About 13 persons are currently undergoing treatment, a bulletin from the State Health Department said.
Chennai recorded a maximum of 1,489 fresh Coronavirus cases on Tuesday followed by Chengalpattu with 290 cases and Tiruvallur with 147 new infections. Coimbatore (120) and Vellore (105) also recorded higher numbers. As many as 17 districts recorded cases in double figures.
Maharashtra on Tuesday reported 18,466 fresh coronavirus positive cases, around 52 per cent or 6,303 cases more than the previous day's tally, and 20 fatalities, the state health department said. With these additions, Maharashtra's Covid-19 tally rose to 67,30,494 and the death toll to 1,41,573, it said.
Maharashtra recorded 75 new cases of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus in the last 24 hours, taking the count of such cases to 653 so far. Of the 75 Omicron cases, 40 cases were reported from Mumbai, nine from Thane city, eight from Pune city, five from Panvel, three each from Kolhapur and Nagpur, two from Pimpari-Chinchwad, and one each from Bhiwandi Nizampur, Ulhasnagar, Satara, Amravati and Navi Mumbai.
On Sunday, Maharashtra had recorded 12,160 Covid-19 cases and 11 deaths. (PTI)
😷 Today's Covid numbers: Delhi (5,481 cases), Mumbai (10,860 cases), Bengaluru (2,053 cases), Kolkata (4,759 cases), Chennai (1,489 cases)
West Bengal on Tuesday reported highest-ever single day spike of 9,073 Covid-19 cases. 16 related deaths were also reported today along with 3,768 recoveries . Active cases 25,475 (+5,289).
Gujarat on Tuesday reported 2,265 new Covid cases, 240 recoveries and 2 deaths today. Active cases 7800: State Health Department.
Mumbai on Tuesday reported 10,860 new Covid-19 cases and two fatalities. With the fresh infections and deaths reported, the number of active cases rose to 47,476 and the toll stood at 16,381. As per the data provided by the city health department, 89 per cent patients are asymptomatic.
Offline schools to remain shut for classes 1 to 8 in Pune till January 30, announced Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar. He also added that online classes will continue.
Amid a surge in the number of Covid-19 infections, including high incidence of the Omicron variant, the Haryana government Tuesday restricted the attendance at government offices, boards and corporations to 50 per cent of the total strength. The rest of the employees will work from home, according to a government notification.
The fresh set of instructions were issued by the office of Chief Secretary Sanjeev Kaushal. Read More
In view of the rise in coronavirus infections in Chhattisgarh, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Tuesday ordered a ban on rallies, processions and other kind of public events across the state, an official release said. Baghel also ordered a "night clamp-down" from 10 pm to 6 am in the districts where the case positivity rate is 4 per cent and above, it added.
The directives to district collectors and superintendents of police (SPs) were issued in the light of a sharp spike in Covid-19 cases in the last one week, the release said.
The state recorded 1,782 new cases of coronavirus in the last one week. On Monday alone, 698 fresh infections were reported. (PTI)
Kerala reported 3,640 new Covid-19 cases and 30 related deaths on Tuesday. The test positivity rate has jumped to 5.11 per cent. The state has an active caseload of 20,180 infections.
Meanwhile, as Covid cases are surging, the state government Tuesday decided to impose restrictions on the number of participants in public events. The number of participants in closed premises would be limited to 75, while the same for open spaces would be 150. The restrictions would be applicable to all events.
The decision was taken in a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan which observed that 80 per cent of the eligible population in Kerala have got the second dose of vaccine. The meeting also decided to strengthen the screening of passengers arriving at all airports.
As on January 3, Kerala has reported 181 Omicron variant cases.
As the world grapples with the highly mutated Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2, scientists have identified a new strain of the Covid-19 causing virus in Southern France.
Known as ‘IHU’, the B.1.640.2 variant has been reported by researchers at institute IHU Mediterranee Infection in at least 12 cases, and has been linked to travel to African country Cameroon. Read More
More evidence is emerging that the Omicron coronavirus variant is affecting the upper respiratory tract, causing milder symptoms than previous variants, a World Health Organization official said on Tuesday.
"We are seeing more and more studies pointing out that Omicron is infecting the upper part of the body. Unlike the other ones, that could cause severe pneumonia," WHO Incident Manager Abdi Mahamud told Geneva-based journalists, saying it could be "good news". However, he added that Omicron's high transmissibility means it will become dominant within weeks in many places, posing a threat in countries where a high portion of the population remains unvaccinated.
His remarks on the reduced risks of severe disease chime with other data including a study from South Africa which was one of the first countries where Omicron was detected. However, Mahamud also sounded a note of caution, calling South Africa an "outlier" since it has a young population among other factors. (Reuters)
Karnataka reported 2,479 new Covid-19 cases on Tuesday out of which 2,053 were in Bengaluru. The positivity rate shot up to 2.59 per cent. Four related deaths were also recorded in the past 24 hours.
Delhi on Tuesday reported 5,481 fresh Covid cases and three deaths with a test positivity rate of 8.37 per cent. Number of people on oxygen support rose from 124 to 168 in the past 24 hours. Those on ventilators also doubled to 14 in a day.
Karnataka Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar on Tuesday insisted upon special measures for Bengaluru amid an alarming rise in Covid-19 cases in the city. Stating that the third wave of Covid-19 has set in, Sudhakar predicted that the state capital will be an epicentre of the latest outbreak.
"Taking special steps in Bengaluru has become very necessary. Bengaluru is an epicentre. It was an epicentre in the first wave and second wave. It will be the epicentre during the third wave as well," Sudhakar told reporters. Explaining the reasons behind taking special steps for Bengaluru, he said the city has an international airport where many people arrive from abroad. Hence, we need to take special measures, the minister added. (PTI)
Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar on Tuesday said if the daily Covid-19 cases here cross the 20,000-mark, a lockdown will be imposed in the city as per the Union government's rules.
Talking to reporters at her office in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) headquarters, Pednekar suggested that citizens wear triple-layer masks while travelling in public buses and local trains. She also appealed to them to get vaccinated at the earliest and follow all Covid-19-related standard operating procedures. (PTI)
About 5,500 new Covid cases reported in Delhi on Tuesday, positivity rate close to 8.5 per cent, informed Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain.
More than 1 million people in the US were diagnosed with Covid-19 on Monday as a tsunami of omicron swamps every aspect of daily American life.
The highly mutated variant drove US cases to a record, the most — by a large margin — that any country has ever reported. Monday’s number is almost double the previous record of about 590,000 set just four days ago in the US, which itself was a doubling from the prior week.
It is also more than twice the case count seen anywhere else at any time since the pandemic began more than two years ago. Read more