Covid LIVE: 31,183 new cases in Karnataka; UP curfew extended till May 31

Coronavirus live updates: India reported 257,299 fresh Covid-19 infections today, taking the caseload tally to 26,285,069. Death toll nears 300,000. Stay tuned for corona-related news

9:01 PM

Active cases in Uttar Pradesh drop below 100,000

Active Covid-19 cases in Uttar Pradesh dropped below 1 lakh on Saturday and settled at 94,482, an official said.

 

The infection tally in the state mounted to 1,665,176 with 6,046 fresh cases, while 226 more fatalities pushed the death toll to 18,978.

 

Of the 226 new deaths, state capital Lucknow recorded 21 fatalities, followed by 14 in Varanasi and 12 in Gorakhpur and Kanpur and Meerut 10 each, among others, the UP government said in a statement here. (PTI)

8:52 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: UP extends curfew till May 31

8:30 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Telangana sees 3,308 new cases

Telangana reports 3,308 new coronavirus cases, 4,723 recoveries and 21 death in the last 24 hours, according to the state health department

8:29 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Karnataka reports 31,183 new cases

Karnataka reports 31,183 new coronavirus cases, 61,766 recoveries and 451 deaths, according to the state health department

8:11 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: West Bengal reports 18,863 new cases

West Bengal reports 18,863 new coronavirus cases, 19,202 recoveries and 154 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the state health department

8:04 PM

Coronavirus LIVE | 'Corona Curfew' extended till May 31 in Jammu and Kashmir

Coronavirus LIVE | 'Corona Curfew' extended till May 31 in Jammu and Kashmir

7:53 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: States have mismanaged handling of ventilators, says Piyush Goyal

7:40 PM

Nepal's coronavirus infection count crosses 500,000

Nepal on Saturday reported 8,980 new coronavirus cases, taking the national tally to over 500,000, while the death toll stands at 6,153, according to the health ministry.

 

A total of 129 more fatalities were reported from across the country in the past 24 hours on Saturday, the ministry said., according to Health Ministry officials.

 

Nepal's overall coronavirus infection tally has crossed the 500,000-mark, it said. (PTI)

7:27 PM

AstraZeneca vaccine 80% effective against B1.617.2 variant: UK study

Two doses from either the Oxford/AstraZeneca or the Pfizer vaccine are over 80 per cent effective in preventing infection from the B1.617.2 variant of Covid-19, first discovered in India, a new UK government study has reportedly found.

 

The Oxford/AstraZeneca two-dose vaccine is also being produced by the Serum Institute of India as Covishield and being administered among the adult population in India to protect against the deadly virus.

 

The UK findings are said to be based on data from Public Health England (PHE) and have also revealed that the two doses provide 87 per cent protection from the B.117 variant, first discovered in Kent region of England and also considered highly transmissible. Read here

7:08 PM

Study finds 96% of Covid-19 patients have antibodies year after recovery

A study by Japan's Yokohama City University showed that 96 per cent of people previously infected with Covid-19 still had antibodies a year after recovery, Kyodo News Agency reported.

 

The study looked at results from 250 people aged 21-78 who tested positive for the virus between February and April last year and found that those Covid-19 patients who showed more severe symptoms all had antibodies in the following year, while 97 per cent of those with mild or no symptoms had antibodies in the first six months after being ill.

 

The study also found that only 69 per cent of people who were sick with mild or no symptoms of Covid-19 last year had antibodies to fight the South African variant six months after being ill, 75 per cent against the Indian variant, 81 per cent against the Brazilian variant and 85 per cent against the UK variant. The study further showed that these percentages declined in the following year. Read here

6:51 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: 19,981 new cases in Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh reports 19,981 new coronavirus cases, 18,336 recoveries and 118 deaths in the last 24 hours.

6:41 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: 28,514 new cases in Kerala

28,514 new coronavirus cases, 45,400 recoveries and 176 deaths reported in Kerala today. A total of 2,025,319 recoveries and 7,170 deaths in the state so far. Active cases stand at 289,283: Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan

6:21 PM

Sikkim reports 287 new coronavirus cases, one more fatality

The Covid-19 caseload in Sikkim mounted to 12,808 as 287 more people tested positive for the infection, a health department bulletin said on Saturday.

 

The death toll rose to 221 as one more person succumbed to the disease in the last 24 hours, it said.

 

Of the new cases, 200 were reported from East Sikkim, 55 from South Sikkim, 25 from West and seven from North Sikkim. (PTI)

6:06 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: No events to be organised on 7th anniversary of govt, says BJP chief

5:49 PM

Negative Covid test report must for those coming to Karnataka: State Minister

A negative Covid test report is a must for inter-State travellers coming into Karnataka, said State Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Saturday.

 

"We have barricaded not only major roads but also the minor ones as was done last time," he told reporters here.

 

"We have imposed restrictions, especially in the border districts such as Belagavi, Bidar, Bidar, Kalaburagi, Anekal in Bengaluru (bordering Tamil Nadu) and near Mangaluru (bordering Kerala)," he said.

 

As directed by the Centre, a negative Covid report is a must for the inter-State travellers to enter Karnataka, the Minister said. (PTI)

5:21 PM

Black fungus declared notifiable disease in Uttarakhand

With black fungus cases rising in Uttarakhand, it was declared a notifiable disease in the state under the Epidemic Act, 1897 on Saturday.

 

So far, 64 people have been infected with black fungus in the state and of them, four have died.

 

Black fungus or mucormycosis has been declared a notifiable disease for its co-ordinated treatment as a growing number of people are contracting the infection post Covid-19, Health Secretary Pankaj Kumar Pandey said. (PTI)

5:17 PM

Union Minister calls for making vaccination drive in Kashmir valley a 'Jan Andolan'

Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh today urged the Kashmir leaders to push forward the Vaccination drive in the Valley. Rising above political and ideological differences, it is the responsibility of all of us to save the paradise of Kashmir by unitedly fighting the onslaught of Covid, he said. Read here

 

5:09 PM

No consensus yet on coronavirus vaccine passport issue at WHO level, discussions are going on: Govt

No consensus yet on coronavirus vaccine passport issue at WHO level, discussions are going on: Govt

5:08 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: No robust evidence, says govt on taking different vaccines

4:47 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Govt clarifies on vaccine passport

So far there's no consensus at level of WHO over this. Discussion still being done if vaccinated people will be allowed. As of now,as per WHO guidelines, people with negative Covid test report being allowed: Health Ministry on 'vaccine passport'

4:39 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Vaccine wastage reducing gradually, says govt

Covishield wastage reduced from 8 per cent on March 1 to 1 per cent now, while Covaxin wastage decreased from 17 per cent to 4 per cent in same period: Govt

4:37 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Pandemic is stabilising, but still a long way to go, says govt

Pandemic is stabilising in major parts of the country. Positivity rate is going down and active cases are also going down, but there is still a long way to go before situation comes under control, says govt

4:26 PM

Coronavirus positivity rate has declined from 24.83% on May 10 to 12.45% on May 22: Govt

Coronavirus positivity rate has declined from 24.83% on May 10 to 12.45% on May 22: Govt

4:14 PM

There are more than 93 districts where declining case positivity is being noted, says govt

There are more than 93 districts where declining case positivity is being noted, says govt

4:11 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Only 7 states are reporting 10,000-plus daily cases, says govt

Coronavirus LIVE: Only 7 states are reporting 10,000-plus daily cases, says govt

4:07 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Consistent rise in testing, while positivity rate is declining, says govt

Coronavirus LIVE: Consistent rise in testing, while positivity rate is declining, says govt

4:04 PM

Watch: Union Health Ministry briefing on coronavirus situation in the country

3:57 PM

Delhi sees lowest cases in nearly 2 months; positivity rate drops to 3.58%

Delhi recorded 2,260 fresh Covid-19 cases and 182 fatalities on Saturday, with the positivity rate in the city slipping to 3.58 per cent, data shared by the health department showed.

 

This is the lowest daily spike in cases recorded since March 31 (1,819) and the first time that the count has gone below the 3,000-mark since April 1, when 2,790 people tested positive for the viral disease.

 

As per the latest health bulletin, these new fatalities pushed the death toll  due to Covid-19 in the national capital to 23,013. Read here

3:39 PM

Coronavirus Latest: Russia records 8,709 new cases

Russia confirmed 8,709 new Covid-19 infections over the past 24 hours, taking the nationwide tally to 4,992,554, the official monitoring and response center said Saturday.

 

The national Covid-19 death toll rose by 386 to 118,125 in the past day, while the number of the country's recoveries grew by 9,345 to 4,610,465.

 

Moscow, Russia's worst-hit region, reported 2,653 new cases, taking the city's total to 1,154,115.

3:31 PM

British Airways flight carrying 18 tonnes of medical aid lands in Delhi

A British Airways cargo flight carrying 18 tonnes of medical aid mainly comprising oxygen concentrators landed at the Delhi airport on Saturday morning, a statement said.

 

The cargo flight from London landed in Delhi at 5.45 am on Saturday.

 

"The total weight of the medical aid was 18 tonnes, made up of five thousand pieces. Among the medical equipment were hundreds of oxygen concentrators from charities, including Oxfam, Khalsa Aid, Christian Aid and LPSUK," the British Airways said.

 

This is the airline's second relief flight to India in the last two weeks, it mentioned. (PTI)