Covid-19 January 30 Highlights: Nasal vaccine could be a game-changer, says AIIMS epidemiologist

Assam reports 910 new #covid19 cases, 20 deaths, and 7,230 recoveries, in the last 24 hours. Active cases 22,448 (ANI)

Haryana's coronavirus tally surged to 9,45,969 on Sunday with 3,918 fresh infections, while the death toll climbed to 10,286 as 17 more people succumbed to the infection, according to a health department bulletin. The worst-hit Gurgaon district reported 1,267 fresh cases, Faridabad 222, Sonipat 207 and Panchkula 244, the bulletin stated. Three deaths each were reported from Gurgaon and Panchkula and two each from Karnal, Ambala and Sirsa, it said. (PTI)

COVID-19: Nasal vaccine could be a game-changer if it provides mucosal immunity, says AIIMS epidemiologist (ANI)

Chhattisgarh's COVID-19 tally rose by 2,373 on Sunday to reach 11,23,170, while the death toll climbed to 13,834 as 10 patients succumbed to the infection, an official said. The state's positivity rate is 9.14 per cent, he said. The number of recoveries reached 10,83,602 after 98 people were discharged from hospitals, while 1,646 others completed their home isolation during the day, the official said. There are 25,734 active COVID-19 cases in the state at present. (PTI)

Meghalaya on Sunday reported 362 new COVID-19 cases, 42 more than the previous day, with the tally mounting to 90,884, a health official said. The death toll rose to 1,522 as four more patients succumbed to the disease, Health Services Director Dr Aman War said. (PTI)

The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Sunday announced a seven-hour relaxation in the restriction on non-essential movement amid concerns raised by traders over the 64-hour long weekend Covid lockdown hampering their businesses. A fortnight ago, the administration had imposed complete a restriction on non-essential movement from Fridays 2 pm to Mondays 6 am to rein in the surge in COVID-19 cases. (PTI)

Pune district in Maharashtra on Sunday reported 7,617 fresh coronavirus positive cases and 15 fatalities, which raised the tally of infections to 14,06,073 and the toll to 19,461, an official said. He said 3,896 cases were reported from Pune city, 2,133 in Pimpri Chinchwad, 1,155 in Pune rural and 147 in cantonment limits. (PTI)

The COVID-19 tally in Madhya Pradesh rose to 9,59,439 on Sunday after the addition of 9,305 fresh cases, while the death toll increased to 10,616 after nine people succumbed to the coronavirus infection in the last 24 hours, a health department official said. The case positivity rate in MP decreased slightly to 11.49 per cent on Sunday from 11.74 per cent recorded the previous day, he said. The total recovery count reached 8,85,526 after 12,041 people were discharged during the day, leaving MP with 63,297 active cases, the official said. (PTI)

Tamil Nadu on Sunday added 22,238 infections, including a returnee from the United Arab Emirates, pushing the tally to 33,25,940 while 38 more fatalities took the death toll to 37,544, the Health department said. Recoveries outnumbered new cases with 26,624 people getting discharged in the last 24 hours, aggregating to 30,84,470 leaving 2,03,926 active infections, a medical bulletin said. (PTI)

Sikkim's COVID-19 caseload rose to 38,099 on Sunday as 127 more people tested positive for the virus in the past 24 hours, a health department bulletin said. The small Himalayan state had reported 156 new cases on Saturday. The bulletin said the state's coronavirus death toll rose to 429 after one more person succumbed to the disease on Sunday. (PTI)

Rajasthan on Sunday logged 10,061 fresh COVID-19 cases and 21 deaths due to the viral disease, according to an official report. Jaipur reported the maximum number of fresh cases at 1,813, followed by 888 in Jodhpur, the report stated. While four deaths were reported from Jodhpur, three each were reported from Jaipur, Kota and Udaipur, two from Sawaimadhopur and one each from Bikaner, Churu, Hanumangarh, Jalore, Nagaur and Sirohi, it said. (PTI)

Gujarat on Sunday reported 9,395 COVID-19 cases, which raised the tally to 11,53,980, while 30 deaths took the toll to 10,438, an official said. The discharge of 16,066 people from hospitals increased the recovery count to 10,52,222, leaving the state with an active tally of 91,230, he said. The state reported less that 10,000 cases in a day for the first time in nearly two weeks, while the deaths were slightly less than the 33 witnessed on Saturday, he pointed out. (PTI)

Telangana on Sunday recorded 2,484 new COVID-19 cases taking the tally to 7,61,050 while the death toll rose to 4,086 with one more fatality. Telangana had on Saturday reported 3,590 new COVID-19 cases. The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) recorded the highest number of fresh cases with 1,045, followed by 138 in Medchal Malkajgiri and 130 in Ranga Reddy districts, a state government bulletin said, providing details as of 5.30 PM today. (PTI)

Karnataka on Sunday reported 28,264 new cases of COVID-19 and 68 fatalities, taking the tally to 37,85,295, and death toll to 38,942. There were 29,244 discharges, taking the total number of recoveries to 34,95,239, a health bulletin said. Of the new cases, 11,938 were from Bengaluru Urban that saw 10,454 people being discharged and 14 virus-related deaths. The total number of active cases across the state is now at 2,51,084. While the positivity rate for the day stood at 16.38 per cent, the case fatality rate (CFR) was 0.24 per cent. (PTI)

Russia's daily count of new coronavirus infections surged to more than 121,000 on Sunday, an eightfold increase compared with the beginning of the month as the highly contagious omicron variant spreads through the country. The state coronavirus task force reported 121,288 new infections over the past 24 hours — an all-time high and 8,000 more than a day earlier. The country's infection numbers have rocketed since early January, when only about 15,000 new cases per day were tallied. The task force said 668 people died of COVID-19 in the past day, bring Russia's total fatality count for the pandemic to 330,728, by far the largest in Europe. Despite the surging infections, authorities have avoided imposing any major restrictions to stem the surge, saying the health system has been coping with the influx of patients. (AP)

Himachal Pradesh's COVID-19 tally increased to 2,70,078 on Sunday as 787 more people tested positive for the viral disease, while the death toll climbed to 3,978 with nine fresh fatalities, a health official said. Kangra reported the highest number of fresh cases at 148, followed by 114 in Solan, 108 in Hamirpur, 97 in Bilaspur, 83 in Sirmaur, 76 in Mandi, 69 in Una, 42 in Chamba, 29 in Shimla, 19 in Kullu and two in Kinnaur, he said. (PTI)

COVID- 19 | Delhi reports 3,674 new cases, 30 deaths and 6,954 recoveries. Positivity rate 6.37% Active cases 21,490 (ANI)

Mumbai reports 1,160 new #covid19 cases, 2,530 recoveries, and 10 deaths in the last 24 hours. Active cases 10,797 (ANI)

Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday recorded 4,615 fresh coronavirus cases that took its infection tally to 4,32,875, while seven more fatalities pushed the death toll to 4,659, officials said. Of the fresh cases, 1,401 were from the Jammu division and 3,214 from the Kashmir division of the union territory, they said. Srinagar district recorded the highest number of fresh cases at 889, followed by 826 in Jammu district. (PTI)

COVID-19 cases in Kerala continued to rise with the southern state reporting 51,570 new infections on Sunday taking the total number of affected people to 59,83,515. The state has reported 14 coronavirus-related deaths in the last 24 hours taking the death toll to 53,666, the state health department said. The state has tested 1,03,366 samples in the last 24 hours, a release issued by the health department said. (PTI)

The Election Commission will meet on Monday to assess the COVID-19 situation in the five poll-going states and decide on whether to continue the ban on physical rallies. The Commission may also decide on whether fresh relaxations can be extended to political parties and candidates in holding physical campaigning events. Citing the rise in COVID-19 cases, the poll panel had imposed a ban on physical rallies and roadshows when it announced the poll schedule for Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Punjab and Manipur on January 8. (PTI)

Mizoram reported 1,819 fresh COVID-19 cases on Sunday, 323 less than the previous day, pushing the state's tally to 1,71,686, a health department official said. The death toll rose to 601 as two more persons, one each from Aizawl and Lunglei districts, succumbed to the virus, he said. (PTI)

Nashik district in Maharashtra on Sunday reported 957 new COVID-19 cases and five fatalities, taking the tally to 4,65,279 and the toll to 8,806, officials said. The number of recovered cases in the district rose to 4,40,924 after 2,403 people were discharged during the day. The number of active cases stood at 15,549 as of Sunday. (PTI)

Chinese authorities summoned officials of AstraZeneca China regarding an investigation of suspected medical insurance fraud by the company's employees, the National Healthcare Security Administration (NHSA) said on Saturday. The regulator of the state medical insurance fund said authorities ordered the arrest of all suspects, but did not give details of the suspected violations or the size of funds involved. (Reuters)

India as of now hasn't seen this new variant (NeoCov). We're careful as the virus is continuously changing, new variants, mutants are emerging; taking precautions to be more vigilant about such cases: Dr S Kumar, MD, LNJP Hospital, Delhi (ANI)

The highly transmissible Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus – the most common form of which is known as BA.1 – now accounts for nearly all of the coronavirus infections globally, although dramatic surges in COVID cases have already peaked in some countries. Scientists are now tracking a rise in cases caused by a close cousin known as BA.2, which is starting to outcompete BA.1 in parts of Europe and Asia. The following is what we know so far about the new subvariant:

“STEALTH” SUBVARIANT

Globally, BA.1 accounted for 98.8% of sequenced cases submitted to the public virus tracking database GISAID as of Jan. 25. But several countries are reporting recent increases in the subvariant known as BA.2, according to the World Health Organization. In addition to BA.1 and BA.2, the WHO lists two other subvariants under the Omicron umbrella: BA.1.1.529 and BA.3. All are closely related genetically, but each features mutations that could alter how they behave. (Reuters)

Odisha recorded the highest daily coronavirus deaths in five months as 19 people, including two babies, succumbed to the infection on Sunday when it logged the lowest number of new cases in 20 days, the state health department said. A three-day-old boy in Bhadrak district and a 1-year-old girl in Ganjam died from the pathogen. Four out of the new fatalities were in Bhubaneswar, a bulletin by the health department said. The toll in the state due to the pandemic has now mounted to 8594, it said. Odisha logged 4,843 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, the lowest in 20 days and the positivity rate was 7.7 per cent, the bulletin stated. The infection is down by 43 per cent from 8,520 a week ago. (PTI)

According to the health bulletin, Andhra Pradesh on Sunday reported 10,310 new Covid-19 cases and 12 more deaths. The state's active caseload now stands at 1,16,031.

West Bengal BJP to meet State Election Commission tomorrow demanding that the elections for four municipalities (in the second phase) be postponed by 4 weeks in wake of COVID situation (ANI)

The health ministry on Sunday said that Nepal recorded 3,540 new COVID-19 cases along with 6,359 recoveries and 32 deaths. As of now, there are 83,999 active cases across the country. According to PTI, the district administration office in Kathmandu Valley has lifted the odd-even vehicle rationing scheme.

The UK's National Health Service (NHS) on Sunday expanded its COVID-19 vaccination programme to cover vulnerable children aged five to 11 years. Eligible children include those with diabetes, immunosuppression, learning disabilities, and other serious conditions that place them at a high risk from COVID-19. NHS England said nearly 500,000 eligible children in England are set to receive their first dose of a COVID vaccine in line with advice set out by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). (PTI)

Beijing officials said Sunday they sealed off several residential communities in the city’s northern district after two cases of COVID-19 were found.

Residents in the Anzhenli neighborhood in Chaoyang district were sealed off on Saturday, and will not be allowed to leave their compound. | Read More

Veteran singer Lata Mangeshkar, who was suffering from Covid-19, has recovered from the virus and is doing better, Maharashtra Minister Rajesh Tope informed.

Odisha reported 19 more COVID-19 deaths on Saturday — the highest in nearly five months, pushing the toll to 8,594, while the coronavirus tally mounted to 12,45,911 with 4,843 fresh cases, the health department said in a bulletin. (PTI)

Russia reported a record daily number of COVID-19 cases on Sunday as the Omicron variant of coronavirus has spread, authorities said.

New daily cases jumped to 121,228, up from 113,122 a day earlier. The government coronavirus task force also reported 617 deaths in the last 24 hours. (Reuters)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said India is fighting the new wave of Covid with “great success” and asserted that the people's trust on indigenous vaccines was “our strength”.

In his monthly 'Mann Ki Baat' radio broadcast, Modi said, “Now the cases of corona infection have also started decreasing, this is a very positive sign.”

It is a matter of pride that till now about four-and-a-half crore children have been administered the first dose of coronavirus vaccine, he said.

“This means that about 60 per cent of youth in the age group of 15 to 18 years have got their vaccines within three to four weeks. This will not only protect our youth but will also help them to continue with their studies,” he said.

Another good thing is that within 20 days, one crore people have taken the precaution dose as well, Modi said.

“This trust of our people on the indigenous vaccines is our great strength,” the prime minister said.

He asserted that India is fighting the new wave of coronavirus with “great success”.

“People should be safe, the pace of economic activities of the country should be maintained — this is the wish of every person in the country,” Modi said. (PTI)

From realising the importance of critical care to determining correct course of treatment were some of the biggest learnings and challenges faced by healthcare professionals in the last two years after the first case of COVID-19 was reported in the country.

It was on January 30, 2020 when a third-year medical student from Wuhan university tested positive for coronavirus, becoming the country's first COVID-19 patient, days after she had returned home following semester holidays.

Recalling the turbulent journey, Dr Yatin Mehta, Chairman of Medanta Institute of Critical Care and Anesthesiology at Medanta – The Medicity, Gurugram said, the importance of critical care and sound infrastructure has been realised during this period.

“As a nation spending 1.3 per cent of its GDP on health, we now plan to increase it to 3 per cent. We also learnt the importance of private healthcare which supported the government at every step to contain and treat the pandemic without any thought of self-illness, pay cuts and even death of HCW's (healthcare workers),” he said. | READ MORE

Puducherry registered a rise in the number of daily cases of coronavirus with as many as 923 people testing positive for the virus on Sunday.

Puducherry and other three outlying regions of Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam together recorded the new cases, which were identified at the end of examination of 3,177 samples.

With this, the overall caseload in the union territory reached 1,60,747.

While Puducherry region alone accounted for 650 fresh cases out of the total 923 cases Karaikal reported 186, Yanam 72 and Mahe 15.

The number of fresh cases logged on Saturday was 855.

Five more people succumbed to the infection during last twenty-four hours, taking the toll to 1,928, Director of Health G Sriramulu said in a release.

The deceased were in the age group of 50 years and 85 years and included two women.

The Director further said 2,433 patients recovered and were discharged during the last 24 hours and the overall recoveries stood at 1,47,792.

The active cases were 11,027 of which 189 were in hospitals taking treatment and the remaining 10,838 patients were in home isolation.

The Department of Health has tested so far 21,56,984 samples and has found 18,08,780 out of them to be negative.

Sriramulu said the test positivity rate was 29.05 percent while the fatality and recovery rates were 1.20 percent and 91.94 percent, respectively.

The Department of Health has administered so far 15, 33,395 doses which comprised 9,20,981 first doses, 6,05,041 second and 7373 booster doses. (PTI)

Odisha reported 19 more COVID-19 fatalities on Saturday, the highest in nearly five months, pushing the toll to 8,594, while the coronavirus tally mounted to 12,45,911 with 4,843 fresh cases, the health department said in a bulletin.

Khurda district, where state capital Bhubaneswar is located, registered 1,023 new infections and five deaths.

Odisha had logged 4,842 COVID-19 cases and 15 deaths on Saturday.

The coastal state now has 53,090 active cases, and 11,84,174 patients have recovered from the disease so far, including 10,267 since Saturday, the bulletin said.

It tested 62,858 samples for COVID-19 in the past 24 hours at a positivity rate of 7.7 per cent. (PTI)

I spoke with Dr Pratit Samdani who is treating singer Lata Mangeshkar. She's recovering, was on a ventilator for some days, but is better now. She is no more on ventilator. Only oxygen is being given to her. She is responding to the treatment: Maharashtra Minister Rajesh Tope (ANI)

Single-day recoveries continued to outnumber fresh COVID-19 cases in Arunachal Pradesh as 379 more people recuperated from the disease in the last 24 hours, while 326 new infections were reported, a health department official said on Sunday.

The fresh cases pushed the tally in the northeastern state to 61,953, he said.

Altogether, 58,524 people have recovered from the disease so far, State Surveillance Officer (SSO) Dr Lobsang Jampa said.

The COVID-19 recovery rate currently is 94.46 per cent, he said.

The COVID-19 death toll in the Northeastern state rose to 286 after a person succumbed to the infection on January 28, the SSO said.

A 78-year-old man from East Siang district died due to Cardio-pulmonary failure with Covid Pneumonia, the official said.

Of the 326 new cases, 132 were registered in the Capital Complex Region, 36 in West Kameng, 33 in Papumpare, 21 in Lower Subansiri and 20 from East Siang district.

Two NDRF personnel were among the new patients, he said.

Arunachal Pradesh currently has 3,143 active COVID-19 cases. (PTI)

The faith of our people in our nation's vaccine is a great source of strength. Now, the number of COVID infections is declining. This is a very positive sign: PM Narendra Modi (ANI)

India is very successfully fighting the fresh wave of Corona. It is a matter of pride that so far almost 4.5 crore children have taken COVID vaccine: PM Modi during 'Mann Ki Baat' (ANI)

Thousands of protesters gathered in Canada’s capital on Saturday to protest vaccine mandates, masks and lockdowns. The sounds of honking horns echoed around Ottawa’s downtown core. A convoy of trucks and cars parked in around Parliament Hill with some parking on the grounds of the National War Memorial before police asked them to move. | Read More

One person died of coronavirus in Ladakh, while 227 fresh cases pushed the overall virus tally in the Union Territory to 25,763, officials said on Sunday.

The new death was reported from Leh district on Saturday, taking the overall death toll since the outbreak of the pandemic to 224, the officials said.

They said a total of 1,144 people were tested for COVID-19 in the twin districts on Saturday and 227 of them returned positive. They included 134 in Leh and 93 in Kargil.

The officials said 249 Coronavirus patients were discharged from hospitals in Leh and 11 others in Kargil, taking the number of cured patients in Ladakh to 24,278.

There are 1,261 active cases with 854 in Leh and 407 in Kargil, the officials said. (PTI)

Amid the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, India has completed two years since the first coronavirus case was reported in the country and during this time, it has not just battled the virus but also its mutated variants, even as uncertainty continues to surround the expected course of the pandemic. | Read More

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said the decision on reopening schools in the state will be taken after consultation with experts and review of the COVID-19 situation.

The state government had on January 14 ordered closure of schools and hostels for Classes 1 to 12 till January 31 in the wake of a surge in COVID-19 cases at that time.

The CM, while reviewing the COVID-19 situation in the state on Saturday, said COVID-19 cases were coming down in the state, including major cities like Indore, Bhopal, Jabalpur and Gwalior.

“Very few coronavirus patients are admitted in hospitals. The decision on opening schools will be taken after considering the COVID-19 situation in other states…experts will be consulted. Schools will be opened only after full deliberation,” Chouhan said.

There is a possibility that COVID-19 cases will come down by February 15, he said.

Though there is nothing to worry, the administration should continue to adopt COVID-19-appropriate behaviour and follow the mandatory requirement of wearing masks, the CM said.

Health officials informed during the meeting that 72 COVID-19 patients were currently admitted on oxygen beds, while 150 were admitted in the Intensive Care Units (ICUs) in the state.

On Saturday, Madhya Pradesh reported 8,678 new COVID-19 cases, raising the state's infection tally to 9,50,134, while five more deaths pushed the toll to 10,607, a health department official earlier said. (PTI)

India reports 2,34,281 new COVID-19 cases, 893 deaths and 3,52,784 recoveries in the last 24 hours

Active case: 18,84,937(4.59%)

Daily positivity rate: 14.50%

Total Vaccination : 1,65,70,60,692 (ANI)