Coronavirus Case and Fatality Rate in India, Coronavirus Third Wave Highlights: As India celebrates the 75th Independence Day, we must look at the struggles and milestones we have achieved during our prolonged battle against the novel coronavirus. As President Ram Nath Kovind said during his address to the nation, we must exercise extreme caution against the very unpredictable virus. Talking about the virus, AIIMS Director Dr Randeep Guleria has once again said that the country may not see the rerun of the second wave horrors if we practice Covid-appropriate behaviour. In terms of achievements, one of the key milestones that the country has seen is the new coverage level in the national vaccination programme. As per the current data, around 46 per cent of the adult population in India has received at least one dose of the vaccine. In terms of fully vaccinated people, the figure stands at 13 per cent. At the start of the pandemic, there was a lot of buzz about herd immunity. But with new Covid variants being detected now and then, the concept may just remain a concept. Newer variants are far more transmissible and can escape the immunity provided by the Covid vaccines.
With Delta variant, which was first detected in India, shutting down cities across the world, there is a new cause of worry with fresh advances of Delta Plus in some parts of the country.
Meanwhile, Karnataka has ruled out any state-wide lockdown as of now. Instead, local, district-level officials have been authorised with deciding on micro curfews. The state would go for gradual unlock in areas with less than 2 per cent of the test positivity rate.
Stay with us as we bring you the latest news, views, studies and lockdown/unlock updates from India and around the world:
West Bengal’s COVID-19 death toll climbed to 18,303 on Sunday after 12 more patients succumbed to the virus, while 673 fresh cases pushed the tally to 15,38,563, a health department bulletin said.
The state now has 10,030 active cases, and 15,10,230 people have recovered from the disease so far, including 709 since Saturday.
North 24 Parganas district reported the highest number of single-day deaths at three, followed by two each in Kolkata, Howrah and Nadia, it said.
The fresh cases include 85 from North 24 Parganas, 77 in Kolkata and 71 in Darjeeling.
Altogether, 1,63,87,157 samples have been tested for COVID-19 in West Bengal thus far, the bulletin added. (PTI)
Chhattisgarh on Sunday reported 49 new COVID-19 cases and one death, taking the total number of infections to 10,03,746 and the toll to 13,547, a health official said.
The number of recoveries reached 9,88,904 after 10 people were discharged from various hospitals, while 104 others completed their home isolation stay during the day, leaving Chhattisgarh with 1,295 active cases, he said.
Raipur district reported three new infections, taking the caseload to 1,57,806, including 3,139 deaths. Bastar recorded 11 more infections, Kanker 5 and Raigarh 4, among other districts, the official said.
With 17,530 samples tested during the day, the number of tests conducted so far in Chhattisgarh went up to 1,19,28,838, the official said.
Chhattisgarh’s coronavirus figures are as follows: Positive cases 10,03,746, new cases 49, death toll 13,547, recovered 9,88,904, active cases 1,295, tests today 17,530, Total tests 1,19,28,838. (PTI)
Haryana on Sunday reported one COVID-19 related fatality taking the cumulative toll to 9,658 and 22 fresh infections pushed the total infection count to 7,70,208.
According to the Health Department’s daily bulletin, the latest death was reported from the Jind district.
Among new cases, seven were reported from Gurugram and three from the Palwal district.
The total active cases in the state were 664. The total recoveries so far were 7,59,886. The recovery rate was 98.66 per cent, the bulletin said. (PTI)
Nagaland on Sunday reported 54 new COVID-19 infections, pushing the state’s caseload to 29,151, while deaths of four more patients increased the death toll to 601, a health department official said.
Of the fresh cases, 27 were reported from Kohima, 16 from Peren, four from Mokukchung, three from Mon, and two each from Wokha and Zunheboto.
At least 102 more people were cured of the infection during the day, taking the total number of recovered persons to 26,490, the official said.
The recovery rate among coronavirus patients in the state currently stands at 90.87 per cent.
The state now has 1,224 active cases, while 836 coronavirus patients have migrated to other states.
A total of 289,606 samples have been tested for COVID-19 in the state thus far, and over 6.39 lakh people have been inoculated. (PTI)
Mizoram govt extends partial lockdown in Aizawl Municipal Corporation area and certain restrictions in other parts of state till August 21: Officials (PTI)
Goa on Sunday reported 75 fresh COVID-19 cases and three fatalities, taking the tally of infections to 1,72,506 and the toll to 3,171, a state health official said.
With 85 patients discharged from hospitals, the number of recoveries in Goa rose to 1,68,423, leaving the state with 912 active cases, the official said.
With 4,860 new tests, the total number of samples tested so far in Goa went up to 11,28,724, he added.
Goa’s COVID-19 figures are as follows: Positive cases 1,72,506, new cases 75, death toll 3,171, discharged 1,68,423, active cases 912, samples tested till date 11,28,724. (PTI)
Jammu and Kashmir’s COVID-19 caseload increased to 3,23,422 on Sunday as 97 more people tested positive for the disease, while the death toll increased to 4,397 with two more fatalities, officials said.
Of the fresh cases, 21 were reported from the Jammu division and 76 from the Kashmir division of the union territory, they said.
Srinagar district recorded the highest number of cases at 28, followed by 11 cases each in Ganderbal and Kulgam districts.
The number of active COVID-19 cases stands at 1,288 in Jammu and Kashmir. So far, 3,17,737 patients have recovered from the disease, the officials said.
There are 42 mucormycosis (black fungus) cases in the union territory. No fresh case was reported since last evening, they said. (PTI)
The Anchorage Daily News reports that the Foo Fighters rock band is requiring that people who attend their upcoming shows in Alaska be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or receive a negative test result 48 hours before attending.
The 12-time Grammy-winning-band plans to perform in Anchorage on Aug. 17 and 19 at the Dena’ina Center and in Fairbanks on Aug. 21 at the Carlson Center.
Negative test results or proof of vaccination must be provided before entering — either the original card or copy of card with an ID to match, according to a statement Saturday from Ticketmaster. (AP)
Karnataka registered 1,431 fresh coronavirus cases taking its overall tally to 29,29,464 while 21 deaths took the toll to 36,979, the health department said on Sunday.
Also, Karnataka completed 4 crore COVID tests in the state on Sunday since the outbreak of the pandemic.
There were 22,497 active cases in the state while the recovery of 1,611 patients took the total recovery to 28,69,962.
Dakshina Kannada district, which borders Kerala, remained the number one COVID-19 hotspot. The district reported 311 infections and
four fatalities, the highest among all the districts on Sunday.
Bengaluru urban district was the second major COVID hotspot with 305 fresh infections and three deaths.
The Karnataka capital has so far reported 12,32,902 infections and 15,937 deaths. There were 8,166 active cases.
Other districts too reported COVID-19 cases including 177 Udupi, 87 in Hassan, 83 in Mysuru, 82 in Kodagu, 64 in Uttara Kannada and 51 in Tumakuru.
According to the media bulletin, there were fatalities in 11 districts including Bengaluru, Dakshina Kannada, Chitradurga, Kolar, Mandya and Mysuru.
Yadgir district recorded zero infections and zero fatalities. There were zero fatalities in 20 districts in Karnataka.
The department said in its bulletin that 1,52,767 COVID tests were conducted on Sunday including 1,23,150 RT-PCR tests and other methods.
With this, Karnataka has so far performed 4.09 crore COVID-19 tests in the state, it said.
There were 1,12,199 inoculations done on Sunday taking the total vaccination to 3.46 crore.
The positivity rate for the day was 0.93 per cent and case fatality rate was 1.46 per cent, the department added. (PTI)
Telangana on Sunday recorded 245 new COVID-19 cases and one more death, taking the tally to 6,52,380 and the toll to 3,842.
The number of active cases stood at 7,268, a state government bulletin said.
The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation reported the highest number of 52 cases followed by Karimnagar (30) and Nalgonda (17).
Three districts–Kamareddy, Nagarkurnool and Yadadri-Bhongir, recorded zero cases.
A total of 50,126 samples were tested on Sunday, taking the cumulative number of specimens examined so far to 2,33,94,678.
Recoveries outnumbered fresh cases, with 582 people being cured, taking the total number to 6,41,270.
The recovery rate and Case Fatality Rate in the state was 98.29 per cent and 0.58 per cent, compared to the national average of 97.44 per cent and 1.3 per cent, the bulletin said. (PTI)
Maharashtra on Sunday reported 4,797 new coronavirus positive cases and 130 fatalities while 3,710 patients recovered, the state health department said.
With the new additions, the tally of cases in Maharashtra reached 63,92,660 and the death toll to 1,35,039, it said.
A total of 61,89,933 patients have recovered from coronavirus infection in Maharashtra so far, leaving the state with 64,219 active cases.
Mumbai reported 262 cases during the day and 4 deaths, taking the tally to 7,39,331 and the toll to 15,981.
The Mumbai division saw 699 fresh infections and 12 deaths, raising the total to 16,52,731 and the number of fatalities to 34,724, the department said.
Nashik division added 901 new cases including 748 in the Ahmednagar district. Pune division reported 1,982 infections including 619 in the Satara district, 582 in Solapur district and 436 in Pune district.
Kolhapur division added 921 infections, including 367 in the Sangli district, and 200 in the Kolhapur district, the department said.
Aurangabad division reported 55 new cases, the Latur division 197 including 123 infections in the Beed district. Akola division added 35 cases and the Nagpur division 7 cases.
Nagpur city saw one case. Nagpur, Gondia, Chandrapur and Gadchiroli districts did not report a fresh COVID-19 case.
Akola, Amravati, Latur and Nanded cities and the Yavatmal district also did not report any new case.
With 1,99,963 new tests, the number of samples tested so far in Maharashtra reached 5,09,59,730, the department said.
Tally of COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra is as follows: Positive cases 63,92,660, deaths 1,35,039, total tests 5,09,59,730, active cases 64,219, tests today 1,99,963. (PTI)
Maharashtra reports 4,797 fresh COVID cases, 3,710 patient discharges, and 130 deaths today
Active cases: 64,219
Total discharges: 61,89,933
Death toll: 1,35,039 (ANI)
Kerala on Sunday reported 18,582 new COVID-19 cases pushing the total infection count to 36.69 lakh, as the number of people succumbing to the disease rose to 18,601 with 102 additional deaths.
As many as 20,829 people have been cured of the infection since Saturday, taking the total recoveries to 34,92,367 and the number of active cases in the state to 1,78,630, a state government release said.
In the last 24 hours, 1,22,970 samples were tested and the TPR was found to be 15.11 per cent. So far, 2,94,57,951 samples have been tested, it said.
Some of the worst affected districts in the state are Malappuram 2681, Thrissur 2423, Kozhikode 2368, Ernakulam 2161, Palakkad 1771, Kannur 1257, Kollam 1093, Alappuzha 941, Kottayam 929 and Thiruvananthapuram 927.
Of the new cases, 68 are health workers, 141 had come from outside the state and 17,626 were infected through contact with the source of contact being not clear in 747 cases, the release said.
There are currently 4,99,031 people under surveillance in various districts of the state. Of these, 4,71,395 are in home or institutional quarantine and 27,636 in hospitals. (PTI)
To cover more people in the COVID-19 vaccination drive, the Delhi government on Sunday issued an order to reserve 70 per cent of vaccination slots of Covishield and Covaxin at state-run facilities for those receiving the first dose.
More than 1.15 crore vaccine doses have been administered in the national capital till Sunday, of which 32,66,927 are second doses. | Read More
Gujarat Govt extends night curfew (11pm-6am) in 8 cities — Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot, Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Gandhinagar, & Junagadh — till August 28 (ANI)
Goa CM Pramod Sawant says state-level COVID curfew has been extended for 8 days till August 23 (ANI)
Kerala reports 18,582 fresh COVID-19 cases, 20,089 recoveries, and 102 deaths in the last 24 hours; test positivity rate at 15.11%
Active cases: 1,78,630
Death toll: 18,601 (ANI)
Andhra Pradesh reports 1,506 new COVID-19 cases, 1,835 recoveries and 16 deaths in the last 24 hours.
Total cases: 19,93,697
Total recoveries: 19,62,185
Death toll: 13,647
Active cases: 17,865 (ANI)
Uttar Pradesh on Sunday reported one more death due to COVID-19, taking the fatality toll due to the fatal infection in the state to 22,784. It also detected 34 new Covid cases as the infection count rose to 17,08,948. One death was reported from Jaunpur, the UP government said on Sunday. Of the 34 fresh COVID-19 cases, four cases each were reported from Lucknow and Prayagraj. In the past 24 hours, 36 COVID-19 patients recovered from the disease and were discharged, taking the total number of cured patients in the state to 16,85,725. The present count of active COVID-19 cases in the state stands at 439, the statement said. – PTI
Active coronavirus cases dwindled by 345 to 17,865 in Andhra Pradesh even as the state reported 1,506 fresh positives and 1,835 recoveries on Sunday. The state also reported 16 more deaths in 24 hours ending 9 AM on Sunday, the latest bulletin said. The cumulative Covid-19 cases now touched 19,93,697. The total recoveries increased to 19,62,185 and toll to 13,647, the bulletin added. East Godavari district reported 319, Chittoor 217, SPS Nellore 181, West Godavari 170, Guntur 162 and Prakasam 102 fresh cases. The remaining seven districts added less than 100 new cases each. – PTI
Delhi reported 53 fresh COVID-19 cases on Sunday that took its tally to 14,37,091, while the positivity rate stood at 0.08 per cent, according to a health department bulletin. No fresh deaths were reported. The death toll stands at 25,069, the bulletin said. So far, 14.11 lakh patients have recovered in the city, it said. On Saturday, the national capital had reported 50 COVID-19 cases, with a positivity rate of 0.07 per cent and one death. – PTI
The union territory of Puducherry registered 79 new coronavirus cases during the last 24 hours taking the overall tally to 1,22,282, a senior official of the Health Department said on Sunday. The 70 fresh cases were identified at the end of the examination of 5,022 samples, the Director of the Health Department G Sriramulu said. The cases were spread over Puduchery (41), Karaikal (17), Yanam (one) and Mahe (20). He said the number of active cases stood at 929 with 201 in hospitals and the remaining 728 in home isolation. – PTI
General manager of Southern Railway John Thomas on Sunday said the railway has strengthened the infrastructure to treat COVID-19 patients and it is now setting up a separate paediatric ward in its hospital at Perambur here. Announcing this after unfurling the tricolour at the railway stadium here on the occasion of the 75th Independence Day, he said the number of beds for COVID-19 patients has been increased from 80 to 280 at the railway hospital during the second wave of the pandemic. Hailing doctors, nurses and paramedical staff of Southern Railway as COVID-19 warriors, he said the paediatric ward to attend to the affected children is being developed in the new block of the hospital. Referring to trains operated to carry medical oxygen, he said the southern zone ran 214 trains to supply the life-saving gas to Tamil Nadu and Kerala from various destinations. – PTI
The Philippines recorded 14,749 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, its second-largest daily increase, bringing the Southeast Asian country’s total confirmed infections to 1.74 million.The Department of Health also reported an additional 270 deaths, the third highest one-day spike in fatalities, increasing the death toll to 30,340. – Reuters
Russia reported 21,624 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, including 1,954 in Moscow, taking the official national tally since the pandemic began to 6,600,836.The government coronavirus task force said 816 people had died of coronavirus-related causes in the past 24 hours, pushing the national death toll to 170,499.On Saturday, Russia’s daily COVID-19 deaths hit a new record of 819, a day after Moscow’s health department reported the highest number of monthly deaths in the city since the start of the pandemic.Russia’s daily coronavirus deaths were on the rise after infections peaked in July. Authorities blame the infectious Delta variant and a slow vaccination rate. – Reuters
The Madhya Pradesh government was working on vaccinating all eligible people in the state against COVID-19 by December-end, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Sunday during an Independence Day programme. ‘This is not a vaccine. It is the dose of life. This will save our lives,” he said. He also said his government was focusing on inclusive development of people, especially the poor, and was committed to give 27 per cent reservation to the Other Backward Classes (OBCs). Referring to the recent devastating floods in parts of the state, Chouhan stressed on protecting the nature and promoting environment-friendly energy. – PTI
Mizoram reported 467 new COVID-19 cases and three more fatalities in the last 24 hours, pushing the state’s tally to 48,462 and death toll to 180, a health department official said on Sunday. He said that three persons aged between 40 and 83 years have succumbed to the infection at Zoram Medical College (ZMC) between Saturday and Sunday. According to the official, the 467 fresh cases were detected from 8,772 samples and the single-day positivity rate is 5.23 per cent. Of the new cases, 24 were confirmed through RT-PCR test, 400 were detected through Rapid Antigen Test, 35 cases through TrueNat test and eight were detected through Fluorescent Immunoassay (FIA) tests, he said. – PTI
Odisha’s COVID-19 tally soared to 9,94,565 on Sunday as 1,058 more people, including 138 children, tested positive for the infection; while 64 fresh fatalities pushed the state’s coronavirus death toll to 6,887, a health official said. While the health department is silent on the start of the possible third wave of the pandemic in the state, the official said that the detection of 138 infected children is a cause of concern. As many as 616 new cases were reported in quarantine centres, while the remaining 442 infections were detected during contact tracing, he said, adding that the daily test positivity rate stood at 1.53 per cent. – PTI
Arunachal Pradesh reported 161 fresh COVID-19 cases, pushing the virus tally in the northeastern state to 51,300, a senior health department official said here on Sunday. The COVID-19 death toll in the frontier state remained at 252 as no new fatality was reported in the last 24 hours, State Surveillance Officer (SSO) Dr Lobsang Jampa said. The Capital Complex Region recorded the highest number of fresh cases at 54, followed by Leparada (23), Changlang (12), East Siang and Lower Dibang Valley at 9 cases each, Upper Siang (8) and six cases each from Kamle and Tawang, the official said. – PTI
Australia has purchased about 1 million doses of Pfizer Inc’s COVID-19 vaccine from Poland to add to its inoculation efforts in Sydney and its home state, which on Saturday entered a snap lockdown https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/australias-victoria-reports-21-new-local-covid-19-cases-2021-08-13 amid record new infections.Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Sunday the extra vaccines would start arriving immediately and over half will be directed to 20- to 39-year-olds in New South Wales, as the state reported its second largest increase in locally transmitted infections.Morrison has been under pressure for a sluggish vaccine rollout, with only about 24% of Australians above 16 fully vaccinated as supplies from Pfizer, seen as the preferred inoculation for younger people, have remained in short stock. – Reuters
Goa has become the first state in the country to give one dose of COVID-19 vaccine to 90 per cent of its eligible population, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant claimed in his Independence Day address here on Sunday. Sawant also announced that people of the state will get 16,000 litres of tap water free per month from next month and said he is confident that the first of the upcoming Mopa International Airport will be commissioned on August 15 next year. Referring to the ongoing COVID-19 vaccination drive, he said the entire eligible population in the coastal state with get the first dose soon. – PTI
South Korean police mobilised hundreds of buses and set up dozens of checkpoints on Sunday to fend off political rallies in the capital Seoul, as some groups pushed ahead with annual protests in defiance of warnings over the novel coronavirus.South Korea has largely been held up as a coronavirus success story, but is grappling with a fourth wave of infection that brought more than 2,200 new daily cases last week for the first time, partly fuelled by the more transmissible Delta variant.The government has banned protests and vowed punishment for any legal violation ahead of Sunday’s Liberation Day, warning of a revival of an outbreak from an anti-government rally and a church last August which resulted in more than 1,800 cases. – Reuters
Courts in US State of Texas have reinstated mask mandates as the cases of coronavirus are once again on rise in several areas of its region. Judges, including Indian-American Judge, KP George from Fort Bend County, Texas reinstated mask mandates in the county even after the Texas Governor Greg Abbott prohibited local governments from issuing any mask mandates. Judge KP George issued a mask mandate for all employees and visitors to county facilities effective August 13. This came after District Judge O’Neil Williams signed a temporary restraining order, which George’s office said suspends Governor Greg Abbott’s executive order that bans local governmental entities from imposing a mask mandate. – PTI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday lauded scientists, doctors and paramedical staff for their role in combating the COVID-19 pandemic. “During the coronavirus global pandemic, our doctors, our nurses, our paramedical staff, scientists engaged in making vaccines, citizens engaged in the fight, they all deserve to be worshipped,” he said during his Independence Day speech. – PTI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday that India takes pride in having the world’s largest vaccination programme and over 54 crore people have already taken the COVID-19 vaccines. “We can say with pride that the world’s largest COVID vaccination programme is going on in India. More than 54 crore people have already taken the vaccine,” he said in his Independence Day address from the ramparts of the Red Fort. The prime minister also lauded those involved in vaccine manufacturing in the country and said India did not have to depend on the outside world for vaccines against the coronavirus. “We have to ensure we meet our goal of building Aatmanirbhar Bharat when we celebrate 100 years of India’s Independence,” PM Modi said. He also lauded the doctors, nurses and paramedics for their efforts in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. The prime minister highlighted the creation of the digital platform, CoWIN app, which was attracting the attention of the world. – PTI
An international system to share coronavirus vaccines was supposed to guarantee that low and middle-income countries could get doses without being last in line and at the mercy of unreliable donations. It hasn’t worked out that way. In late June alone, the initiative known as COVAX sent some 530,000 doses to Britain – more than double the amount sent that month to the entire continent of Africa. Under COVAX, countries were supposed to give money so vaccines could be set aside, both as donations to poor countries and as an insurance policy for richer ones to buy doses if theirs fell through. Some rich countries, including those in the European Union, calculated that they had more than enough doses available through bilateral deals and ceded their allocated COVAX doses to poorer countries. But others, including Britain, tapped into the meager supply of COVAX doses themselves, despite being among the countries that had reserved most of the world’s available vaccines. In the meantime, billions of people in poor countries have yet to receive a single dose. – AP
With the addition of 233 new cases of coronavirus, the infection count in Maharashtra’s Thane district has gone up to 5,48,100, an official said on Sunday. Besides these new cases reported on Saturday, the virus also claimed the lives of four more people, which raised the death toll in the district to 11,179, he said. The COVID-19 mortality rate in Thane stood at 2.03 per cent, he added. In neighbouring Palghar district, the COVID-19 case count has gone up to 1,33,958, while the death toll is 3,248, another official said. – PTI
The union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands did not record any new COVID-19 case in the last four days, a health official said on Sunday. The COVID-19 tally in the archipelago remained at 7,548, he said. The union territory has not recorded any new coronavirus case since Wednesday and now has only two active COVID-19 cases and both the patients are in the South Andaman district. The other two districts – North and Middle Andaman and Nicobar – are COVID-19 free, the official said. Two more persons recuperated from COVID-19 on Saturday, taking the total number of recoveries to 7,417, he said. The COVID-19 death toll in the union territory remained at 129 as no fresh fatality due to the disease was reported in the last 24 hours. So far 4,58,881 samples have been tested for COVID-19 and the cumulative test positivity rate is 1.64 per cent. – PTI
India saw a single-day rise of 36,083 new coronavirus infections, raising its tally to 3,21,92,576, while the death toll has climbed to 4,31,225 with 493 fresh fatalities, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Sunday. The active cases have declined to 3,85,336 and comprise 1.20 percent of the total infections. The national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 97.46 percent, the data updated at 8 am showed. A reduction of 2,337 cases has been recorded in the active coronavirus infections in a span of 24 hours, it stated. The ministry said less than 50,000 daily new cases have been reported for forty-nine consecutive days. As many as 19,23,863 tests were conducted on Saturday, taking the total cumulative tests done so far for detection of COVID-19 in the country to 49,36,24,440. The daily positivity rate was recorded at 1.88 percent. It has been less than 3 percent for the last 20 days. – PTI
Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday recorded 135 fresh coronavirus cases that took its infection tally to 3,23,325, officials said.
No new deaths were reported in the union territory. The death toll stands at 4,395, they said. Of the new cases, 37 were reported from the Jammu division and 98 from the Kashmir division of the union territory, the officials said.
Srinagar district recorded the highest number of fresh cases at 35, followed by 11 in Bandipora. The number of active COVID-19 cases stands at 1,303 in Jammu and Kashmir. So far, 3,17,627 patients have recovered from the disease, the officials said.
There are 42 mucormycosis (black fungus) cases in the union territory. One fresh case has been reported since last evening, they said. (PTI)