Covid LIVE: Tamil Nadu govt announces new restrictions till Sept 15

Coronavirus LIVE updates: New Zealand reports the country's first death linked to Pfizer's vaccine, India conducts 1.42 million tests for Covid on Sunday.

11:33 PM

BMC decides to post cops at entrance of sealed buildings

Mumbai's civic commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal on Monday directed officials to deploy police at the entrance of buildings sealed due to the coronavirus pandemic in order to stop people from entering them so as to curb the spread of infection. As per current civic protocol, a building is sealed if it has five or more COVID-19 patients. The city had 27 sealed buildings as on Monday.

 

A Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation release informed that the decision was taken at a virtual meeting chaired by Chahal and attended by ward officers, hospital deans and officials of the civic public health department as well as the Mumbai police's deputy commissioner (operations).

 

It said no one would be allowed to enter sealed buildings, while people who come to provide various services would also be stopped. Chahal said the people living in such buildings might be inconvenienced by the order but he asked them to cooperate so that the pandemic could be controlled.

10:11 PM

Bengal reports 11 fresh Covid deaths, 510 new cases

West Bengal's Covid-19 death toll rose to 18,434 after 11 more people succumbed to the disease on Monday, a bulletin released by the health department said. The tally went up to 15,48,058 after 510 people tested positive for the infection, it added. In the last 24 hours, 647 patients recovered from the disease, improving the discharge rate slightly to 98.23 per cent. So far, 15,20,702 people have been cured of coronavirus in West Bengal.

 

The number of active cases now is 8,922.

 

While North 24 Parganas district accounted for three deaths, two fatalities each were reported from Kolkata, Bankura and Nadia. One death each was registered in Purulia and Howrah, the bulletin said.

9:35 PM

Tamil Nadu adds 1,523 new Covid-19 infections, 21 deaths

Tamil Nadu on Monday added 1,523 new Covid-19 infections pushing the caseload to 26,13,360, while 21 people succumbed to the virus taking the death toll to 34,899. Recoveries eclipsed new infections with 1,739 people getting discharged in the last 24 hours, aggregating to 25,61,376, leaving 17,085 active cases, a medical bulletin said.

 

A total of 1,50,948 samples were tested in the last 24 hours, pushing the cumulative number of specimens examined to 4,21,66,911 till date. Three districts accounted for a majority of new infections today-Coimbatore 188 cases, Chennai 183 and Erode 129. Ramanathapuram and Theni recorded the least number of new infections by adding two cases each.

 

Thirty districts reported new cases in double digits, while there were no fresh deaths in 23 districts.

8:56 PM

Guj sees 12 Covid-19 cases, 13 recoveries

Gujarat reported 12 COVID-19 cases on Monday, including three in Ahmedabad, taking the state's tally to 8,25,410, while the death toll remained unchanged at 10,081, an official said, according to PTI.

The discharge of 13 people from hospitals took the recovery count to 8,15,179, leaving the state with 150 active cases, including four critical patients, he said.

The COVID-19 vaccination drive remained suspended on the second day on Monday for Janmashtami festivities, a release said, adding that 4,54,69,490 doses had been administered in the state so far.

8:55 PM

973 new cases in Karnataka, 15 deaths

Karnataka on Monday reported 973 new cases of COVID-19 and 15 deaths, taking the total number of infections to 29,48,228 and death toll to 37,293, the health department said, according to PTI.

The day also saw 1,324 discharges, taking the total number of recoveries to 28,92,517. Bengaluru Urban recorded 264 new cases as the city saw 261 discharges and three deaths. Active cases stood at 18,392. While the positivity rate for the day stood at 0.64 per cent, case fatality rate (CFR) was at 1.54 per cent.

8:54 PM

Coronavirus booster shots 'not a luxury', WHO Europe head says

A third-dose booster shot of the COVID-19 vaccination is a way to keep the most vulnerable safe and "not a luxury", the World Health Organization said on Monday, according to Reuters.

8:30 PM

Tamil Nadu govt announces new restrictions till Sept 15

8:17 PM

Maharashtra logs 3,741 new Covid cases, 52 deaths, 4,696 recoveries

Maharashtra reported 3,741 new coronavirus cases and 52 fresh fatalities on Monday, taking the infection tally to 64,60,680 and the toll to 1,37,209, a state health department official said, according to PTI.

The official said 4,696 patients were discharged from hospitals across the state in the last 24 hours, taking the cumulative number of recovered patients to 62,68,112. The state, which now has 51,834 active cases, has 2,88,489 people in home isolation and another 2,299 in institutional quarantine, he said.

8:15 PM

McDonald's, others consider closing indoor seating amid Delta surge in US

Some U.S. fast-food restaurants are closing indoor seating areas or limiting hours of operation because of the spread of the Delta variant of COVID-19, according to franchisees, Reuters reported.

8:10 PM

New Zealand reports first death linked to Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine

New Zealand reported its first recorded death linked to U.S. drugmaker Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine, the health ministry said on Monday, after a woman suffered a rare side-effect leading to inflammation of the heart muscle, Reuters reported.

8:01 PM

640 million doses administered so far: Union health ministry

7:45 PM

Goa sees 59 Covid-19 cases, 3 deaths, 59 recoveries

The COVID-19 tally in Goa reached 1,73,850 on Monday with the addition of 59 cases, while the day also saw three deaths and 59 recoveries, an official said, according to PTI.

The toll in the state stands at 3,198 and the number of people discharged so far is 169,769, leaving it with 883 active cases, he said.

With 3,966 samples being examined in the last 24 hours, the number of tests in Goa went up to 12,03,513, the official added.

7:44 PM

Mandating Covid vaccines for kids 'good idea': US infectious disease expert Fauci

Mandating Covid vaccines for school children is a "good idea", US top infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci said, citing the growing prevalence of the highly-contagious Delta variant, IANS reported.

With Delta variant driving infection rates in the country, children have been particularly affected. About 300 kids are reportedly being hospitalised each day with Covid-19. The cases among children are set to surge with schools reopening.

"I believe that mandating vaccines for children to appear in school is a good idea," Fauci Fauci said in an interview on CNN's State of the Union on Sunday.

 

7:08 PM

Inter-state movement with Kerala curbed, says Karnataka min

6:54 PM

Kerala records 19,622 new cases in a day; TPR is 16.74%

Kerala on Monday reported 19,622 new positive cases and 132 COVID-19-related deaths, taking the caseload to 40,27,030 and the death toll to 20,673.

State health minister Veena George said 117,216 samples were tested in the last 24 hours and the Test Positivity Rate (TPR) was 16.74 per cent. 
 

Among the districts, Thrissur reported the highest number of cases today--3,177, followed by Ernakulam with 2,315 and Kozhikode 1,916.
 

"Out of those found infected today, 62 reached the state from outside while 18,436 contracted the disease through their contact. The source of infection of 1,061 is yet to be traced and 63 health workers are also among the infected," the minister said in a release.
 

Meanwhile, 22,563 persons recuperated from the disease on Monday, taking the total cured to 37,96,317. Currently, there are 2,09,493 active cases.

 

6:43 PM

Covid recovery doesn't guarantee antibodies, immunity to re-infection

Prior exposure to SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing Covid-19, neither guarantees a high level of antibodies nor immunity to re-infection as thought earlier, finds a study emphasising the need to get vaccinated against the deadly infectious disease, IANS reported.

The study, led by researchers from the Northwestern University in the US, shows that two months after the second Pfizer/Moderna vaccination, antibody response decreases 20 per cent in adults with prior cases of Covid-19.

It added that prior exposure to SARS-CoV-2 does not guarantee a robust antibody response to the first vaccine dose. This directly contradicts the assumption that contracting Covid will naturally make someone immune to re-infection.

6:42 PM

Uttarakhand reports 38 new cases

6:40 PM

India's Covid vaccine supply jumps, raising export hopes

India's rising output of COVID-19 vaccines and the inoculation of more than half its adult population with at least one dose are raising hopes the country will return as an exporter within months, ramping up from early next year, Reuters reported.

6:17 PM

Indian naval ship Airavat arrives in Vietnam with Covid relief material

6:01 PM

India supplies Covid relief materials to Vietnam

With Covid-19 cases on the rise in Vietnam, Indian Naval Ship Airavat arrived at Ho Chi Minh City port with Covid-19 relief material on Monday, PTI reported.

"The ship is carrying 100 MT of Liquid Medical Oxygen in five ISO containers and 300 oxygen concentrators of 10 LPM capacity each, based on the requirement projected by the Government of Vietnam in its fight against the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic," an Indian Navy statement said.

INS Airavat, an indigenously-built Landing Ship Tank (Large) under the Eastern Naval Command based at Visakhapatnam, is on a deployment to Southeast Asia for trans-shipment of Covid relief aid.

5:56 PM

New Covid variant, C.1.2, may be more infectious, evade vaccine protection: Study

A new variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus which cause COVID-19, has been detected in South Africa and many other countries globally which could be more transmissible and evade protection provided by vaccines, according to study, PTI reported.

Scientists from National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) and the KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform (KRISP) in South Africa said the potential variant of interest, C.1.2, was first detected in the country in May this year.

C.1.2 has since been found in China, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mauritius, England, New Zealand, Portugal and Switzerland as of August 13, they said.

5:31 PM

Delhi reports 20 new cases

5:18 PM

Andhra Pradesh reports 878 new cases

4:49 PM

Covid restrictions at border with Kerala to continue: Official

Giving a clarification on reports claiming that the Centre has lifted the requirement of RT-PCR certificates to cross the border, an official said the Karnataka government's order mandating the RT-PCR test negative certificates for those coming to DK from Kerala is still in force, according to PTI.

4:47 PM

Delhi Police on Sunday issued 1,100 challans to people for not wearing face masks

2:54 PM

LNJP Hospital prepares for third wave

1:30 PM

Puducherry logs 63 new cases

Puducherry recorded 63 new coronavirus cases in last 24 hours to take its total to 1,23,457, PTI reported quoting a civil servant. No death was reported in 24 hours and fatalities due to Covid-19 remained at 1,812.

1:07 PM

Japan withdraws 1 million shots more of contaminated Moderna vaccine

Moderna Inc's Covid-19 vaccine contamination woes in Japan have widened with another million doses being suspended, after foreign substances were found in more batches and two people died. The suspension of Moderna supplies, more than 2.6 million does in total, comes as Japan battles its worst wave of Covid-19 yet, driven by the contagious Delta variant, Reuters reported.

12:16 PM

Mizoram's new cases count rises by 440

Mizoram's Covid-19 tally increased to 57,962 on Monday as 440 more people, including 88 children, tested positive for the infection, PTI reported quoting a civil servant. The state's coronavirus death toll rose to 213 as a 68-year-old woman from Aizawl succumbed to the disease.

11:41 AM

Delhi schools, colleges get guidelines for students, teachers

Students and teachers living in Covid-containment zones must not to be allowed when schools and colleges reopen: DDMA.