Coronavirus LIVE: Must know Covid origin to curb future outbreaks, says WHO

Coronavirus live updates: At 1,823,896, Maharashtra has the highest number of coronavirus cases, followed by Karnataka 883,899, Andhra Pradesh 867,683, Tamil Nadu 780,505 and Kerala 599,600

2:05 AM

Americans face new Covid-19 restrictions after Thanksgiving

Americans returning home from Thanksgiving break faced strict new coronavirus measures around the country Monday as health officials brace for a disastrous worsening of the out-of-control surge because of holiday gatherings over the long weekend. Los Angeles County imposed a stay-at-home order for its 10 million residents, and Santa Clara County, in the heart of Silicon Valley, banned high school, college and professional sports and decreed a quarantine for those who have traveled more than 150 miles outside the county.

In Hawaii, the mayor of Hawaii County said trans-Pacific travelers arriving without a negative COVID-19 test must quarantine for 14 days, and even those who have tested virus-free may be randomly selected for another test upon arrival. New Jersey is suspending all youth sports. The outbreak in Santa Clara County is like a high-speed train, health officer Dr. Sara Cody said. Our projections tell us that we are on target to derail by around the third week of December if we don't apply the brakes right now with all our collective might, Cody said. Health experts had pleaded with Americans to stay home over Thanksgiving and not gather with anyone who didn't live with them. Nevertheless, almost 1.2 million people passed through U.S. airports Sunday, the most since the pandemic gripped the country in March, and others took to the highways to be with family and friends.

2:05 AM

Assam reported 159 Covid-19 cases and 110 discharges in 24 hours

1:33 AM

8 prisoners killed, 50 injured in clashes at Sri Lankan prison: Report

At least eight prisoners were killed and more than 50 injured in clashes with guards at a Sri Lankan prison, officials said on Monday, as authorities tried to quell a protest over rising coronavirus infections in the country’s crowded jails: Reuters

1:24 AM

Bihar reports 457 fresh COVID-19 cases, five more fatalities

Bihar's COVID-19 tally rose to 2,35,615 with 457 fresh cases, while five more fatalities pushed the death toll to 1,264, a health department bulletin said on Monday. At least 547 people were cured of the disease in the past 24 hours, taking the total number of recoveries in the state to 2,28,798, it said.

The recovery rate among coronavirus patients in the state has improved to 97.11 per cent from 97.06 per cent recorded on Sunday, it said. Bihar currently has 5,553 active cases, the bulletin said. The state has so far tested over 1.46 crore samples, including 1,16,443 in the past 24 hours, the bulletin said. The fresh fatalities were reported from Patna, East Champaran, Kishanganj, Araria and Madhubani.

Patna reported the highest number of new cases at 154, followed by Purnea and Saharsa (29 each), Saran (22), Muzaffarpur (21), Samastipur (18), Gaya and Nawada (16 each). Patna district has recorded the maximum number of COVID-19 deaths at 326.

1:23 AM

Telangana reports 593 new COVID-19 cases

Telangana reported 593 new COVID-19 cases and three deaths in the last 24 hours taking the total count of cases in the state to 2,69,816. According to the state's Health Department, the total count of cases includes 2,58,336 discharged cases and 1,458 deaths. There are 10,022 active cases in the state.

India reported 38,772 new infections in the last 24 hours, according to Health Ministry.

12:40 AM

Odisha prepared for COVID-19 vaccine: govt

The Odisha government on Monday apprised the Centre of its preparedness for mass vaccination of health and frontline workers against COVID-19 in the first phase. The state government informed the Centre of its planning in this regard at a national level review meeting chaired by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba. The third phase human trial of Covid-19 vaccine candidate 'Covaxin' is underway at an institute in Bhubaneswar.

Special Secretary and Mission Director of the National Health Mission, Shalini Pandit said, "The database of the first priority group composed of health care workers (from both the Government and private health facilities) and front line workers under integrated child development scheme have been prepared and uploaded in the national Co-Win web portal." Names of nearly 3.2 lakh such health and frontline workers are in the list, Pandit said.

Additional Chief Secretary to the Health and Family Welfare Department, P K Mohapatra, said that around 8,300 vaccinators have been enlisted and 30,000 sites have been identified for administering the vaccination. Chief Secretary A K Tripathy said, "Odisha is now a step ahead in preparations for Covid vaccination in all parameters of national guideline". He said that Odisha stands prepared for COVID-19 vaccination with prioritised list and it has also designed multi-sectoral response system at different levels. The ssessment for cold chain requirement, safe storage and transportation of vaccines has already been made, he said.

10:57 PM

Delhi reports 3,726 new Covid-19 cases, 5,824 recoveries

10:55 PM

Jharkhand reported 167 new Covid-19 cases

10:05 PM

Need to know origin of coronavirus to curb future outbreaks: WHO chief

I would like to assure you that the WHO's position is very very clear. We need to know the origin of this virus because it can help us to prevent future outbreaks. We're doing everything to make sure that we know the origin. Some have been politicising this. Our position is very clear that we'll start the study from Wuhan, know what has happened there & based on findings, to explore if there're other avenues Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, World Health Organization

9:40 PM

West Bengal reports 2,671 new Covid-19 cases

9:01 PM

Less than 1,000 new coronavirus cases in Karnataka, 13 deaths

Karnataka reported less than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases and 13 related fatalities on Monday, taking the total number of infections to 8,84,897 and the toll to 11,778, the health department said. The day also saw 2,209 patients getting discharged after recovery, while active cases touched 23,279.

 

Bengaluru Urban reported 444 cases out of the total of 998 in the state, followed by Haveri 123, Hassan 45, Tumakuru and Mysuru 43 each, Vijayapura and Mandya 30, while the remaining was scattered over various districts. Cumulatively 8,84,897 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed in the state and these include 11,778 deaths and 8,49,821 discharges, the health department said in a bulletin.

 

Of the active cases, 22,930 patients are stable in isolation at designated hospitals. As many as 349 are undergoing treatment in Intensive Care Units. Bengaluru Urban, with six deaths, was on top of the list, followed by Bengaluru Rural (2), while Bagalkote, Ballari, Dakshina Kannada, Kodagu and Uttara Kannada each reported one fatality.

8:50 PM

Haryana reports 27 coronavirus deaths, 1,604 fresh cases

Haryana on Monday reported 27 more COVID-19 deaths, taking the death toll to 2,428, while 1,604 fresh cases pushed the state's infection tally to 2,34,126, according to a state health department daily bulletin. The fatalities included eight from Faridabad, four each from Gurgaon, Hisar and Bhiwani and three from Panipat, it said.

 

The bulletin said that among the districts which reported a big spike in cases were Gurgaon (494), Faridabad (338), Sonipat (110) and Hisar (102). The active cases in the state currently stand at 18,362 while the recovery rate is 91.12 percent, it said.

8:42 PM

Mumbai reports 646 new coronavirus cases and 19 deaths today

8:34 PM

Rajasthan reports over 2,000 fresh coronavirus cases, 20 more deaths

Rajasthan on Monday reported 20 more deaths due to COVID-19, while 2,677 fresh cases pushed the state's caseload to 2,68,063. The state's COVID-19 death toll has reached 2,312 and the number of active cases stands at 28,653, according to a health department bulletin. So far, 2,37,098 people have been discharged after treatment, it said.

 

In Jaipur, the death toll from the coronavirus infection is 435 so far, followed by 239 in Jodhpur, 187 in Ajmer, 161 in Bikaner, 135 in Kota, 105 in Bharatpur, 95 in Udaipur and 90 in Pali.

 

On Monday, Rajasthan recorded 2,677 new cases, including 745 in Jaipur, 475 in Jodhpur, 194 in Kota, 97 in Tonk, 90 each in Alwar, Bharatpur and Nagaur, 84 in Bhilwara and 83 in Dungarpur, besides cases reported in other districts of the state.

8:13 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: 67 new Covid-19 cases in Chandigarh

Chandigarh on Monday reported 67 fresh coronavirus cases, taking the city's caseload to 17,409, while one more death pushed the toll to 277. The number of active COVID-19 cases stands at 1,062, according to a medical bulletin.

 

As many as 144 patients were discharged after they recovered from the infection, taking the number of cured persons to 16,070, as per the bulletin. A total of 1,42,326 samples have been taken for testing so far and of them, 1,24,109 tested negative, while reports of 82 samples were awaited, it said.

7:45 PM

Ambassadors of 100 countries to visit Serum Institute, Gennova Biopharma

Ambassadors of one hundred countries are scheduled to arrive in Pune on December 4, to visit Serum Institute of India and Gennova Biopharma, a press statement by the Prime Minister’s Office said. Serum Institute in Pune would be undertaking mass production of Covishield vaccine developed by Oxford–Astra Zeneca.

 

While Sweden is looking to expand bilateral cooperation in the areas of health and life sciences in view of the coronavirus pandemic with India, Luxembourg based company B Systems is partnering with India to produce portable vaccine refrigeration equipment, the press statement said.

 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited its facility and also those of Zydus Biotech Park in Ahmedabad and Bharat Biotech in Hyderabad on Saturday to take stock of vaccine preparedness in the country. READ ON...

7:35 PM

Maharashtra reports 3,837 fresh coronavirus cases

Maharashtra on Monday reported 3,837 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the count of infections to 18,23,896, the state health department said. With 80 more patients succumbing to the viral infection, the overall toll mounted to 47,151, it said.

 

A total of 4,196 patients were discharged during the day, taking the count of recoveries to 16,85,122. The state is now left with 90,557 active cases after conducting 1,08,56,384 tests so far.

7:16 PM

Uttar Pradesh reports 19 coronavirus deaths, 2,044 fresh cases

With 19 coronavirus deaths reported in Uttar Pradesh in the past 24 hours, the death toll due to the viral disease rose to 7,761 while the caseload in the state climbed to 5,43,888, a health bulletin stated on Monday. As many as 2,044 fresh coronavirus cases were detected in the state in the past 24 hours, the state government said in the health bulletin.

 

Of the 19 fresh COVID-19 deaths, state capital Lucknow reported four deaths. Lucknow also topped the chart of fresh COVID-19 cases in the state with 296 cases, followed by Meerut (174), Ghaziabad (168), Varanasi (123), Kanpur (106) and Gautam Buddh Nagar (100).

 

In the past 24 hours, as many as 2,472 COVID-19 patients have recovered from the disease in the state, taking the tally of patients discharged after recovering from it to 5,12,028. The count of active COVID-19 cases in the state stands at 24,099, it stated. In the past 24 hours, over 1.52 lakh samples have been tested for COVID-19, while more than 1.93 crore samples have been tested for COVID-19 in the state so far.

6:58 PM

Moderna to ask US, European regulators to OK its vaccine for emergency use

Moderna Inc. said it would ask US and European regulators Monday to allow emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccine as new study results confirm the shots offer strong protection — ramping up the race to begin limited vaccinations as the coronavirus rampage worsens.

 

Multiple vaccine candidates must succeed for the world to stamp out the pandemic, which has been on the upswing in the U.S. and Europe. U.S. hospitals have been stretched to the limit as the nation has seen more than 160,000 new cases per day and more than 1,400 daily deaths. Since first emerging nearly a year ago in China, the virus has killed more than 1.4 million people worldwide.

 

Moderna is just behind Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech in seeking to begin vaccinations in the U.S. in December. Across the Atlantic, British regulators also are assessing the Pfizer shot and another from AstraZeneca. READ ON...

6:46 PM

Covid-19 LIVE: Rajasthan reports 2,677 new coronavirus cases

6:33 PM

Two Delhi patients Covid-19 reinfected within month of recovery: Hospital

The Sir Ganga Ram Hospital has reported two peculiar cases about two patients which it says have re-contracted the Covid-19 infection within a short span of recovery from the viral disease. The patients include a man with a co-morbidity and a healthcare staff of the hospital itself. As per the hospital, the man was found to be reinfected in mere 25 days of testing negative from the first attack of the Covid-19.

 

However, the staff was found to be reinfected within two months of the recovery from the previous episode. The disease severity was found to be in the mild category in both the episodes.

 

Surprisingly, the antibodies developed after the first infection were also found at negligible level in the patients. Dr. Atul Kakar, Senior consultant and Vice chairman of Department of Medicine informed IANS that the antibody levels were either negligible or totally absent in the body of the two patients since they tested negative for the antibodies.

6:17 PM

Centre asks states to identify healthcare workers to carry out Covid-19 inoculation drive

The Centre has asked states to identify healthcare workers, including doctors, pharmacists as well as MBBS and BDS interns, who will carry out a COVID-19 inoculation drive once a vaccine is available.

 

The Centre in its letter to states and UTs has said the MBBS and BDS doctors as well as interns, staff nurses, auxiliarynurse midwives and pharmacists would be considered as potential vaccinators, for carrying out the drive, provided that they are actively involved in day-to-day provision of clinical care and have experience in administering injections.

 

"Further, the states may also consider retired personnel from above mentioned categories, as applicable, that may be utilised to meet the demand for vaccinators," the letter written on November 23 by Additional Secretary, Union Health Ministry, Vandana Gurnani said.

 

According to Union Health Ministry officials, the anti-coronavirus vaccine, once available, would be distributed under a special COVID-19 inoculation programme, using the processes, technology and network of the existing Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP). It would run parallel to the UIP.

6:02 PM

45,333 new coronavirus recoveries across India in 24 hours: Health Ministry

5:34 PM

Centre to vaccinate around 300 million people by July-August: Harsh Vardhan

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Monday said that the Central government a plan to provide coronavirus vaccines to around 25-30 crore people by July-August next year.

 

"In the first 3-4 months of next year, there is a possibility that we will be able to provide vaccine to the people of the country. By July-August, we have a plan to provide vaccines to around 25-30 crore people and we are preparing accordingly," Vardhan told reporters. "I would like to request everyone to remember and follow COVID-19 appropriate behaviour like wearing masks and following social distancing. These are important for health," he said.

 

Dr Harsh Vardhan who is also Chairman of the Indian Red Cross Society (IRCS) distributed masks and soaps at the Old Delhi Railway Station today.

 

"We will soon be completing eleven months in our fight against COVID. Since then, the most important principle to protect ourselves and others is to follow basic principles of hygiene and physical distancing. In the fight against COVID, our biggest weapon is mask and sanitiser," he said. READ ON...

 

5:10 PM

On average 1,000 virus particles transmitted during an infection: Study

Scientists have assessed 750 samples from important COVID-19 superspreading clusters in Austria and found that on average 1,000 infectious virus particles are transmitted from one infected person to the next. According to the study, published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, these values are overall considerably higher than for other viruses such as HIV or noroviruses which cause gastroenteritis.

 

"Yet, occasionally we also found infected people who apparently came into contact with fewer virus particles and still became infected," said study co-author Andreas Bergthaler from the Austrian Academy of Sciences. "We suspect that parameters such as the application of protective measures, the transmission route, or the immune system may play a decisive role here," Bergthaler added.

 

The researchers believe reducing the viral load of infected individuals by a combination of measures such as mouth-nose protection, physical distance, and adequate indoor air exchange play a key role in preventing the spread of the virus.

4:48 PM

Farmers protest at Delhi borders may act as Covid-19 superspreader' event: Experts

The protest by thousands of farmers who have stayed put at various border points of Delhi for the fifth consecutive day on Monday against the Centre's new agriculture reform laws may act as superspreader' event for coronavirus infection, say experts. The national capital has already been witnessing a spike in COVID-19 cases post Diwali celebrations and amid rising pollution levels.

 

"A protest is a mass gathering and thus from a public health perspective, I would suggest protective and preventive behaviours against the spread of coronavirus infection failing which a superspreading event might set in. "It is important to note that the SARS-COV-2 is a transmission efficient virus and such gatherings are conducive for its spread," he stressed.

Any agitation or gathering may cause the spread of COVID-19 and thus gatherings should be avoided during this time and if it cannot be avoided at all, social distancing norms must be maintained, Sanjay Rai, professor in the Department of Community Medicine at AIIMS said.

4:28 PM

Delhi govt caps the price of RT-PCR test by private labs at Rs 800

4:18 PM

Modi to hold all-party meeting on Friday, discuss coronavirus situation

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet representatives of political parties Friday morning to discuss the coronavirus pandemic after promising that the country's priority is to "make vaccine available for all".
 

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi are likely to attend the meeting, NDTV.com reported quoting unnamed sources. Parliamentary Affairs Ministry contacted floor leaders of all parties for the meeting, it said.
 

With a daily increase of 38,772 in total cases, India’s tally of coronavirus cases has risen from 9,392,919 on Sunday to 9,431,691 – an increase of 0.4 per cent. Death toll has reached 137,139, with 443 fatalities in a day. The seventh-most-affected country by active cases, third by fatality, and second by total cases, India has added 291,826 cases in the past 7 days. READ ON...

3:51 PM

Steel companies supply 56,446 tonne medical oxygen for Covid-19 treatment: Steel Ministry

Steel companies have supplied 56,446.245 tonnes of medical oxygen from their integrated plants to various hospitals across the country till October-end, the Ministry of Steel has said. To aid the supply of oxygen in the country, Union Minister of Steel Dharmendra Pradhan in September had directed steel plants to start supplying liquid medical oxygen (LMO), which is a crucial medical requirement for a coronavirus patient.

 

The steel ministry had also made operational a portal wherein plant-wise information regarding availability ofoxygenand daily supply by various plants and states to which such supplies have been made is provided.

 

"Integrated steel plants (ISPs) in the public and private sector have been supplying LMO to meet the requirement of oxygen in hospitals across the country. 56,446.245 MT (metric tonne) LMO was supplied by steel plants to various states during the period from September 11, 2020 to October 31, 2020," the ministry said in an update.

3:16 PM

Nitin Gadkari confident India will get Covid-19 vaccine as early as possible

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Monday expressed confidence that India will get a COVID-19 vaccine "as early aspossible" and overcome the pandemic to win the economic war. The Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Road Transport & Highways said that currently, "majority of countries are not interested to deal with China"; they are rather interested in India.

 

He said such a situation is advantageous for the country's manufacturing sector to ramp up its capabilities to boost exports fromIndia.

 

"I am confident that we will get a vaccine as early as possible and 100 per cent we will win this war against COVID-19 and also win economic war," Gadkari said this at a virtual event organised by Dun & Bradstreet.

 

He said disbursement of loans to the tune of Rs 1.48 lakh crore has been completed so far, out of the Rs 3 lakh crore worth of collateral-free automatic loans for businesses announced by the Centre earlier.

 

"We have already reduced our imports from China and already our (India's) exports are increasing. The trends are positive and I am expecting good results in this field," said the minister.