Covid-19 Cases and Deaths in India Today Highlights: As the world tries to vaccinate the younger population with the US starting the inoculation programmes specifically focused on the children, the Niti Aayog has said that the WHO has not recommended the need to vaccinate the young. This was something the Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also said on Twitter. At a time when the health experts are talking about the probability of the third wave of the coronavirus impacting the kids more severely, this confusing messaging from the top may hamper the policymaking for the future. The Centre must clearly spell out the agenda and roadmap for the next quarter if we don’t want to see a repeat of what happened in April.
Coronavirus in India News Live: India registers 1.73 lakh new cases, positivity rate remains below 10% for last 5 days
On Thursday, the government said the second COVID-19 wave in India is on the “downswing” and hoped this trend will be sustained even when curbs are systematically relaxed. The Centre also highlighted that the number of active cases in the country is “still very high”. Amid a fall in the number of daily cases and some improvement in the status of Covid bed, medical oxygen, and medicine, the Home Ministry also issued fresh guidelines on Covid management. It directed the states/UTs to continue the ongoing Covid-19 guidelines till June 30 and asked them to go for intensive and local containment measures in districts with a high number of cases to check the spread of the disease.
Kerala government said on Friday that it will issue COVID-19 vaccination certificates with passport numbers to those persons who require them to go abroad for job or studies; and need travel clearance.
As states spar with the Centre of vaccine stock and vaccine wastage data, India is losing out precious time for preparing for the war ahead. Here are the latest news, views, updates on state-wise lockdowns and all vaccine research from India and around the world:
Highlights
Puducherry reports 1223 new COVID-19 cases, 1779 recoveries, and 21 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Total cases 1,01,900
Total recoveries 86,528
Death toll 1476
Active cases 13,896 (ANI)
Rajasthan reports 2648 new COVID-19 cases, 11,177 recoveries, and 78 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Total cases 9,33,848
Total recoveries 8,63,175
Death toll 8181
Active cases 62,492 (ANI)
Haryana reports 2007 new COVID-19 cases, 5025 recoveries, and 96 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Total cases 7,52,069
Total recoveries 7,18,959
Death toll 8035
Active cases 25,075 (ANI)
The process of lifting the lockdown gradually in the capital will begin from Monday, starting with resumption of construction activities and reopening of factories for a week, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced on Friday. The phase-wise unlocking process in Delhi will begin after over six weeks of lockdown enforced in view of the second wave of COVID-19.
Noting that Delhi somehow gained control over the second wave of COVID-19 with the positivity rate coming down to 1.5 per cent, the chief minister said the fight against the deadly disease has not ended yet. Kejriwal also stressed that if cases start rising again, the unlock process will have to be stopped. (PTI)
The Himachal Pradesh government on Friday extended the coronavirus curbs till June 7 but announced relaxations, including increase in the opening hours of shops, an official spokesperson said. The decision was taken in a high level meeting chaired by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur here, he added. Earlier, the curbs had been imposed in the hill state till May 31.
However, the state government has decided to provide a few relaxations like opening of all shops and other establishments from Monday to Friday for five hours from 9 am to 2 pm, the spokesperson added. This decision will be effective from 6 am on May 31 till 6 am on June 7. It was decided that government offices would also function with 30 per cent attendance, except stand alone offices with a strength of up to four employees will remain open with full strength.
The spokesperson said it was decided that milk, bread, medicine shops will remain open as usual during Saturdays and Sundays as well. However, all the educational institutions in the state will remain closed. Similarly, public transport will also remain suspended till further orders. All other restrictions and exemptions will continue as per guidelines already issued under the “corona curfew”. (PTI)
Some unfound reports on unaccounted vaccine doses of Bharat Biotech having 6 crore doses is an error of comprehension. These reports are incorrect and are not supported by full information on the matter. Current production capacity of Covaxin will be doubled by May-June 2021 and then increased nearly 6-7 fold by July/August i.e. from 1 crore vaccines in April, to 6-7 crore vaccines in July/August. It’s expected to reach nearly 10 crore doses per month by Sep 2021: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (ANI)
Punjab has reported 3,724 new COVID-19 positive cases, 6,797 recoveries, and 148 deaths today.
Active cases: 44,964
Total positive cases: 5,59,795 (ANI)
COVID19 | Karnataka has reported 22,823 new positive cases, 52,253 recoveries, and 401 deaths today.
Total positive cases: 25,46,821
Active cases: 3,72,373 (ANI)
Manipur | Curfew extended in the Districts of Imphal West, Imphal East, Bishnupur, Thoubal, Kakching, Churachandpur and Ukhrul with permitted activities and guidelines including restriction on inter-district movements till June 11. (ANI)
The state-wide lockdown without relaxations to help break the chain of COVID-19 transmission has been extended till June 7 by one more week, Chief Minister M K Stalin announced here on Friday. The Chief Minister said that COVID-19 related guidelines, including wearing mask, following individual distancing and washing hands with soap and water or sanitisers should be adhered to.
A two-week lockdown was clamped on May 10 in Tamil Nadu with some relaxations and subsequently, it was extended by one more week, till May 31 and relaxations were withdrawn. The additional restrictions between May 24 and 31 include closure of vegetable shops and provision stores, which were earlier allowed to work between 6 AM and 10 AM. All such curbs would continue to be implemented till June 7. (PTI)
22,318 coronavirus cases in Kerala, 194 deaths: Health Dept (PTI)
Due to rising cases of black fungus, Amphotericin B has also been included in the exemptions list: FM Nirmala Sitharaman after 43rd GST Council meet | Read More
Issues of COVID-related equipment was one of the items on the agenda that had a very detailed discussion. Many issues were raised & discussed….The Council has decided to exempt the import of relief items till 31st August 2021: FM Nirmala Sitharaman after 43rd GST Council meet | Read More
Mumbai reports 929 new COVID-19 cases, 1239 recoveries and 30 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Total cases 7,03,461
Total recoveries 6,58,540
Death toll 14,808
Active cases 27,958 (ANI)
Restrictions on scheduled international passenger flights to/from India extended till June 30th, 2021: Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) (ANI)
Himachal Pradesh reports 1,523 new COVID-19 positive cases, 3148 recoveries, and 64 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Active cases: 18,495
Total positive cases: 1,87,342 (ANI)
Madhya Pradesh reports 1854 new COVID-19 cases, 5796 recoveries and 63 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Total cases 7,75,709
Total recoveries 7,33,496
Death toll 7891
Active cases 34,322 (ANI)
As many as 1,055 persons tested positive for COVID-19, while 32 died of the infection in Goa on Friday, an official from the state health department said. With this, the coastal state’s COVID-19 caseload has risen to 1,53,456 and the toll mounted to 2,570, the official said. The count of recoveries in the state reached 1,35,560, after 1,396 were discharged from hospitals during the day, he said, adding that the state is now left with 15,326 active cases.
With 4,865 swabs tested during the day, the total number of tests conducted in the state has gone up to 8,12,415, the official said. Goa’s COVID-19 figures are as follows: Positive cases 1,53,456, new cases 1,055, death toll 2,570, discharged 1,35,560, active cases 15,326, samples tested till date 8,12,415. (PTI)
Governor of Himachal Pradesh notifies priority groups for COVID-19 vaccination namely all specially-abled persons, all staff government & private institutions; government departments’ employees, NCC cadets 18 years & above, all prisoners above 18 years, COVID volunteers & others. (ANI)
Tamil Nadu extends lockdown till 6 am on June 7. Supply of groceries to continue through govt departments, grocery to be sold through vehicles or pushcarts in association with local grocery shops. Delivery of grocery allowed between 7am to 6 pm (ANI)
ln view of COVID-19 second wave, Universities & Colleges are requested to make optimum use of SWAYAM online platform for the benefit of students. The platform will have 83 UG & 40 PG MOOCs courses, for July-October Semester 2021: University Grants Commission (ANI)
Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan writes to PM Narendra Modi requesting him to take “measures for a continuous supply of vaccines so that the balance vaccines can be supplied matching with the pace of Kerala’s vaccination potential.” (ANI)
The Telangana government on Friday launched mass COVID-19 vaccination for high risk groups, including accredited journalists, across the state. Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar who visited a few vaccination centres here told reporters that more than 1.4 lakh people in the districts will be administered vaccine over the next three days during the special drive. Similarly 32 centres have been set up in Greater
Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) area, which will operate for seven days, where around 30,000 people will be vaccinated daily, he said. He said the vaccination centres will start work from 8 AM daily and street vendors and those working in pesticide shops and other kirana shops identified by officials and who are given coupons, will be given the shots as no walk-ins are allowed. A senior official earlier said that about 7.75 lakh people are in the high risk groups and vaccination will be done for them during the special drive from May 28 to 30.
Those who are in regularly on the move and in contact with people such as vegetable and fruit vendors, cab and auto drivers and barbers, among others, fall into the category of high risk groups. An official release issued by the state government on Friday said nearly 44 lakh people have received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccination, while over 13 lakh got the second jab also. (PTI)
Sikkim reported the highest single-day spike of 420 COVID-19 cases pushing the tally to 14,634, a health department bulletin said on Friday. The coronavirus death toll in the Himalayan state rose to 243, with three fatalities reported in the past 24 hours. East Sikkim reported the maximum number of 235 fresh cases, followed by South Sikkim at 136, West Sikkim at 47, and North Sikkim at two. At present, there are 3,794 active cases, while 212 others have migrated to other states and 10,385 patients have recuperated from the infection. So far 11,15,641 samples have been tested for COVID-19 in the state, including 422 in the past 24 hours. (PTI)
Kerala government will issue COVID vaccination certificates with passport numbers to those persons who require them to go abroad for job or studies; and need travel clearance. (ANI)
A Covid vaccination centre dedicated for persons with disabilities (PwD) was opened on Friday at the Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya in Chhatarpur. As per a notice from the south Delhi district magistrate, the centre will cater to PwDs aged 45 or older for now. The centre will remain open from 9 am to 5 pm every day of the week, except on Sunday. The visitors will be required to carry a proof of disability in the form of PwD identity card, or proof of residency in a PwD shelter/hostel/centre, or any other relevant PwD certificate, the notice said.
The Delhi government on Thursday had asked all district social welfare officers (DSWOs) to proactively coordinate with revenue and health department functionaries at the district level to facilitate timely treatment and vaccination of persons with disabilities against COVID-19. The DSWOs have also been directed to actively coordinate with the office of the State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities and implement any directions received without delay. The department also provided the DSWOs a district-wise list of NGOs so that they can establish linkages for providing information and services to persons with disabilities for access to food, shelter, treatment and other necessities during the pandemic. (PTI)
Northwest Delhi has administered 6.34 lakh vaccine doses, the maximum by any district in Delhi so far, while only 3.15 lakh people have got jabs in the northeast region, according to government data. According to data shared with the Centre, 52.84 lakh doses have been administered in Delhi since the inoculation exercise started on January 16. Of this, 36.79 lakh were Covishield doses and 16.04 were Covaxin jabs. The maximum number of 1.41 lakh people were vaccinated on May 10. As many as 11.87 lakh people have received both the doses. At least one dose has been administered to 23.71 lakh males and 17.24 lakh females in the city. Authorities in the Northwest district have administered 6.34 lakh doses till Friday afternoon, the highest in the city so far.
In West Delhi district, 6.29 lakh jabs have been given. The number of doses administered stands at 5.74 lakh in Central Delhi, 5.55 lakh in South Delhi and 5.37 lakh in Southwest district, according to government data. Southeast Delhi has administered 4.84 lakh doses so far. The figure is 4.68 lakh in New Delhi, 3.74 lakh in North Delhi, 3.73 lakh in Shahdara, 3.34 in East Delhi and 3.15 lakh in Northeast Delhi.
A government official said the number of doses administered in districts also depends on the number of inoculation centres and eligible population. “Then, there are some districts which have more rural areas than others. In such places, people faced problems in registration for vaccines in initial phases,” he said.
Delhi has so far received 47.44 lakh doses from the Centre for those aged above 45, and healthcare and frontline workers.Till now, 8.17 lakh doses have been procured directly from the manufacturers for the 18-44 age group. The Delhi government had suspended the inoculation exercise for the 18-44 age group on May 22 due to shortage of vaccines. The city is likely to get around 4 lakh more doses for this category from the manufacturers in June. (PTI)
The timeline for manufacturing, testing and release for a batch of COVAXIN is approximately 120 days, production batches that were initiated during March this year will be ready for supply only during the month of June: Bharat Biotech | Read More
There shall be a weekend Corona curfew in Chandigarh from 5 am on Saturday, 29th May till 5 am on Monday, 31st May: Chandigarh Administration – ANI
Andhra Pradesh reports 14,429 new COVID19 cases, 20,746 recoveries and 103 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Total cases 16,57,986
Total recoveries 14,66,990
Death toll 10,634
Active cases 1,80,362 – ANI
I’ve written to Murshidabad DM requesting release from my MPLAD fund for a Medical oxygen plant at Murshidabad Medical College & procurement of 2 Ambulances with critical care medical equipment. Request not cleared yet. I need your intervention: Congress’ AR Chowdhury to WB CM – ANI
Delhi reports 1141 new COVID19 cases, 2799 recoveries and 139 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Total cases 14,23,690
Total recoveries 13,85,158
Death toll 23,951
Active cases 14,581
Positivity rate 7.46%
Case Fatality Rate 1.68% – ANI
Even as the worrisome trend of untimely deaths and rising Coronavirus cases continues, a research conducted by Goethe University Frankfurt has warned that another pandemic is emerging within the Covid pandemic as dip in physical activity has been reported in a large number of people. The study has found that during the first Coronavirus induced lockdown people were as much as 40 percent less active than their usual selves. The study also found that the number of people rendered vulnerable to mental depression increased by 3 times during the first lockdown, the Indian Express reported. READ FULL STORY
A 65-year-old man from Delhi, having multiple co-morbidities, has become the first COVID-19 patient to receive monoclonal antibody therapy at the Apollo hospital here, the healthcare group said on Friday. The patient responded well to the infusion of the antibody cocktail and went home after an hour of observation on Thursday, hospital authorities said. As part of this single dose infusion-based treatment, patients with mild to moderate symptoms, are offered a cocktail of Casirivimab and Imdevimab, that is said to reduce their chance of hospitalisation by 70 per cent. In a statement, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, Delhi on Friday announced that “Roche India’s antibody cocktail (Casirivimab and Imdevimab) distributed by Cipla Ltd. is available for administration to patients with mild and moderate COVID-19 infection” at its facility. The Antibody Cocktail was launched on May 24 in India by Roche India after receiving Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA) from the Central Drugs Standards Control Organisation (CDSCO), it said. (PTI)
A vaccine supplier from Czech Republic, which had submitted bid to supply Pfizer and AstraZeneca COVID-19 shots to the Mumbai civic body, has withdrawn its proposal, leaving seven firms in the fray as of now, BMC officials said on Friday. On May 12, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) floated a global expression of interest (EOI) to procure one crore COVID-19 vaccine doses from the open market. Earlier this week, the BMC extended the deadline for submitting bids till June 1 (from May 25 earlier) though it had received positive response from eight firms for supplying COVID-19 vaccines, one of them from Czech Republic. The Czech Republic-based vaccine supplier, through an email, informed the BMC about the withdrawal of its proposal on Wednesday, the officials said. (PTI)
Delhi records 1,141 fresh cases of COVID-19 at positivity rate of 1.59 per cent; 139 new fatalities: Authorities. (PTI)
Odisha’s COVID-19 tally soared to 7,39,955 on Friday as 7,216 more people tested
positive for the infection, while 33 fresh fatalities pushed the state’s coronavirus death toll to 2,651, a health official said. As many as 4,041 new cases were reported in quarantine centres, while 3,175 infections were detected during contact tracing. The number of fresh infections dropped below 10,000 for the second consecutive day this month as testing of samples also dipped due to the havoc wreaked by cyclone Yaas in the coastal state. Cuttack reported the highest number of new cases at 1,091, followed by Khurda (809) and Kendrapara (487). Angul district recorded the highest number of fresh fatalities at five, followed by four in Sundergarh and three each in Boudh, Kalahandi, Khurda and Keonjhar. (PTI)
A plea has been filed before the Supreme Court seeking stricter punishment to control hoarding, profiteering, adulteration and black marketing of items such as medicines, medical equipments and oxygen cylinders during COVID-19 pandemic. The petition, filed by advocate and BJP leader Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay, also sought direction to the Centre and states to invoke the National Security Act against people involved in these activities and seize their 100 per cent “benami properties and disproportionate assets”. Several people lost their family members due to hoarding of beds, profiteering, adulteration in medicines and black marketing, it alleged. The plea also urged the apex court to rule that the punishment for offences for hoarding, profiteering, adulteration and black marketing and the sentence shall be consecutive, not concurrent. It sought a direction to the Centre to examine the International Laws relating to hoarding, profiteering, adulteration and black marketing and take appropriate steps to insert a Chapter for these offences in IPC. (PTI)
Delhi University’s Lakshmibai College began a walk-in vaccination drive on Friday for its staffers and their family members aged 45 and above, the institution’s principal said. The college had started a COVID-19 isolation centre last month as a tribute to one of its professors, Sangita Sharma, who succumbed to the virus, principal Pratyush Vatsala said. A post-Covid care clinic was started on Wednesday, she added. “We are a public-funded institution and it’s our responsibility to serve the society. The vaccination centre that we have started is currently only for DU staffers and their families, but if we do not get much crowd then we plan to open it for the common people too,” Vatsala said. Till now, the university had three vaccination camps at its health centres in the North and the South Campus and at Shivaji College. “Lakshmibai College, in collaboration with the Office of the District Magistrate, North West, Government of NCT of Delhi, is happy to announce a walk-in vaccination drive from 28th May 2021 onwards. (PTI)