Covid LIVE: Kerala sees over 11k new cases in a day, TPR comes down to 11%

Coronavirus LIVE updates: Kerala recorded 11,699 cases, Maharashtra 2,432, Delhi 32, Karnataka 504, Andhra Pradesh 618 cases in the last 24 hours. Stay tuned for corona updates

12:12 AM

Tamil Nadu reports 1,630 fresh COVID-19 cases, 17 deaths

A total of 1,630 fresh COVID-19 infections, 1,643 recoveries and 17 deaths were reported in Tamil Nadu in the last 24 hours.

 

According to the state's health department, the cumulative cases recorded in the state are 26,60,553 including 17,231 active cases.

 

With new recoveries, the total recoveries in Tamil Nadu reached 26,07,796. The death toll presently stands at 35,526.

 

To detect the presence of the virus in the population, 1,50,725 samples were tested by RT-PCR in the last 24 hours, taking the total samples tested to 4,66,88,837.

 

Meanwhile, India reported 18,795 new cases on Tuesday. As per Union Health Ministry, India reported daily new cases less than 20,000 after 201 days.

10:59 PM

64 new cases take Sikkim's COVID tally to 31,355

Sikkim on Tuesday reported 64 new COVID-19 cases, 39 more than the previous day, with the tally increasing to 31,355, a health department bulletin said. The death toll remained at 387 as no new fatality due to the infection was reported in the last 24 hours, it said. Of the fresh cases, 52 were reported from East Sikkim, six from South Sikkim, five from West Sikkim and one from North Sikkim.

 

The Himalayan state now has 601 active cases, while 30,053 people have recovered from the disease. At least 314 coronavirus-positive patients have migrated out.

 

East Sikkim has logged the highest number of COVID-19 cases thus far at 17,404, followed by 6,951 in South Sikkim, 6,030 in West Sikkim and 656 in North Sikkim. Over 2.48 lakh samples have been tested for COVID-19, including 524 in the last 24 hours. The positivity rate currently stands at 12.2 per cent and the recovery ratio at 96.8 per cent. At least 71.09 per cent of eligible beneficiaries in the state have received both doses of the vaccines.

10:43 PM

Gujarat govt to pay Rs 50,000 to kin of COVID-19 victims

Gujarat Health Minister Rishikesh Patel on Tuesday told the state Assembly here that committees will be formed at the district level to pay compensation of Rs 50,000 to the next of kin of those who died due to COVID-19. The opposition Congress had raised the issue of deaths caused by the pandemic in the state, after which the minister came out with the statement.

 

The Congress had claimed that over three lakh people died due to the pandemic in Gujarat, while the official figure, given by Patel, is 10,082.

 

"As per a letter of the central home ministry, the state government has decided to give Rs 50,000 as financial assistance to the relatives of those who died due to COVID-19.

9:45 PM

Over 87.6 crore Covid vaccine doses administered in India so far, says health ministry

The cumulative COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country has crossed 87.6 crore on Tuesday, the health ministry said.

 

It said over 49 lakh vaccine doses were administered till 7 pm and the tally is expected to increase with the compilation of the final reports by late in the night.

 

The vaccination exercise as a tool to protect the most vulnerable population groups in the country from COVID-19 continues to be regularly reviewed and monitored at the highest level, the ministry underlined.

 

The countrywide vaccination drive was rolled out on January 16 with healthcare workers getting inoculated in the first phase. Vaccination of frontline workers started on February 2.

 

The next phase of COVID-19 vaccination commenced from March 1 for people over 60 years and those aged 45 and above with specified co-morbid conditions. Inoculation of all people aged over 45 years began on April 1.

 

The government then decided to expand its vaccination drive by allowing everyone above 18 to be vaccinated from May 1.

9:10 PM

No choice but to impose travel curbs to contain Covid-19: China

China said on Tuesday that it has no choice but to take preventive measures like travel restrictions to contain COVID-19, as it reacted to a demonstration by stranded Indian students in front of its embassy in New Delhi.

 

China's response came after reports from New Delhi said several Indian students, mostly studying medicine, held a demonstration in front of the Chinese embassy on Monday demanding Beijing to permit their return to re-join their studies.

 

Asked for her reaction to the Indian students' demonstration in Delhi, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a media briefing here: COVID-19 is still spreading in many parts of the world.

 

So, in this context, the Chinese government has no choice but to take a lot of prevention and control measures, Hua said.

 

Given the situation, China is adjusting its measures in accordance with the evolving situation, in order to ensure the safe, healthy and orderly flow of Chinese and foreign travellers, she said.

8:57 PM

Mumbai records 394 Covid-19 cases, six deaths

Mumbai reported 394 new coronavirus infections and six fatalities on Tuesday, taking the tally of cases detected in the city so far to 7,42,011 and death toll to 16,097, a civic official said.

In good news, the daily increase in cases remained below 400 on the second day in a row. On Monday, Mumbai had reported 377 new cases and seven fatalities.

8:53 PM

Uttar Pradesh reports 18 new Covid cases, 1 death

Uttar Pradesh has reported one new Covid-related death and 18 fresh cases, taking the number of fatalities and infections in the state to 22,891 and 7,09,794 respectively.

The lone COVID-19 death was reported from Banda, the UP government said in a statement here on Tuesday.

8:26 PM

Maharashtra reports 2,844 Covid-19 cases, 60 deaths

Maharashtra reported 2,844 new coronavirus cases and 60 deaths on Tuesday, the health department said.

It took the infection tally to 65,44,606, and the death toll to 1,38,962.

As many as 3,029 patients were discharged from hospitals, taking the number of recovered cases in the state to 63,65,277.

7:52 PM

Goa sees 90 Covid-19 cases, 5 deaths, 114 recoveries

Goa's COVID-19 tally reached 1,76,235 on Tuesday with the addition of 90 cases, while the day also saw five deaths and 114 people getting discharged, an official said.

The toll in the state stands at 3,308 and the recovery count is 1,72,094, leaving it with an active tally of 833, he said.

With 5,139 samples being examined in the last 24 hours, the number of tests in Goa went up to 13,43,105, he added.

7:40 PM

Tamil Nadu reports 1,630 new Covid-19 cases

7:24 PM

Covid TPR in Kerala now comes down to 11%

After a long time, Kerala appears to have come out of the spell of high daily Covid tallies and a high test positivity rate.

A statement issued by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that Tuesday saw 11,196 people turn Covid positive after 96,436 samples were tested in the past 24 hours and the test positivity rate was 11.60 per cent.

7:14 PM

Sri Lanka likely to end nation-wide Covid-19 lockdown on Oct 1

Sri Lanka is planning to end the nation-wide lockdown on October 1 as the health authorities feel the current COVID-19 situation in the island nation has improved and is conducive to lift the curfew, the government spokesperson said on Tuesday.

The Sri Lankan government imposed a nation-wide lockdown on August 20 and extended it thrice as health authorities grappled with the crisis of the raging third wave since mid-April.

"Sri Lanka is bracing to end its lockdown on October 1. Health officials say the current condition is conducive to lift the curfew and the government was hopeful of resuming normal functioning of the country from next week," Ramesh Pathirana, who is also the Minister for Plantation, said.

7:04 PM

Karnataka reports 629 new Covid-19 cases

6:43 PM

Kerala reports 11,196 new Covid-19 cases

6:42 PM

Delhi records 2 Covid deaths, 34 new cases in a day; positivity rate 0.05%

Delhi recorded two COVID-19 deaths and 34 fresh instances of the infection in a day with a 0.05 per cent case positivity rate, according to a health bulletin issued by the city government on Tuesday.

Before Tuesday, the national capital has recorded five fatalities due to the viral infection in September so far.

With the new cases, the Covid case tally in the city climbed to 14,38,780 of which over 14.13 lakh patients have recovered. The death toll has risen to 25,087.

6:38 PM

Active Covid-19 cases fall below 12,000 in Andhra Pradesh

The number of active Covid-19 cases dropped below the 12,000 mark to 11,912 in Andhra Pradesh as 771 fresh infections, eight deaths, and 1,333 recoveries were reported in the 24 hours ending 9 am on Tuesday.

The gross positives now touched 20,48,230, recoveries 20,22,168 and deaths 14,150.

The new cases, from 45,592 tests, ranged from zero to 153 in 13 districts of the state, according to the latest bulletin.

6:00 PM

Mizoram logs highest single-day spike of 1,846 new Covid-19 cases

Mizoram's COVID-19 tally mounted to 90,539 on Tuesday as a record 1,846 more people, including 324 children, tested positive for COVID-19, a health official said.

The northeastern state's coronavirus death toll rose to 302 as one more patient succumbed to the infection.

On September 21, the state had reported its previous highest single-day spike of 1,731 COVID-19 cases.

5:55 PM

Odisha reports 545 new Covid cases; 74 in 0-18 year age group

Odisha registered 545 new Covid-19 cases on Tuesday and 74 of them are in the age group of 0-18 years, the state health department said.

Odisha also reported seven fresh fatalities taking the total number of coronavirus deaths to 8,187, while its caseload has gone up to 10.25 lakh.

The number of active cases is now 5,587, as 653 more recoveries took the number of cured people to 10.11 lakh, the department said in a report.

5:37 PM

Scheduled international commercial flights services suspension extended till Oct 31

5:22 PM

Diabetes drug linked to reduced risk of severe Covid-19 outcomes: Study

A type of drug already used to treat obesity and Type 2 diabetes is associated with a reduced risk of hospitalisation, respiratory complications and death in COVID-19 patients with Type 2 diabetes, when taken six months prior to diagnosis with the viral disease, according to a study.

Researchers at Penn State College of Medicine in the US analysed electronic medical records of nearly 30,000 patients with type 2 diabetes who had a positive laboratory test for SARS-CoV-2 between January and September 2020.

The study, published in the journal Diabetes on Tuesday, concluded that the drugs, called glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists, should be further evaluated for potential protective effects against COVID-19 complications.

4:56 PM

Andhra Pradesh reports 771 new Covid-19 cases

4:18 PM

UP govt eases Covid-19 restrictions; allows weddings, events

The Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday eased COVID-19 restrictions amid a dip in the number of cases in the state and permitted wedding ceremonies and other events to be held in open spaces.

However, the number of people allowed to attend the ceremony will depend on the area, stated the Uttar Pradesh Home Department.

"The Uttar Pradesh government has given permission for wedding ceremonies and other events in open places, according to the area. Along with this, compliance with COVID-19 protocol and setting up of COVID-19 help desk at the entrance will be mandatory," said the State Home Department in a tweet from its official Twitter handle today.

3:31 PM

Sanofi ditches mRNA coronavirus vaccine amid rivals' success

Sanofi is dropping plans for its own mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine because of the dominant role of the BioNTech-Pfizer alliance as well as Moderna in the fight against the pandemic, the company said on Tuesday.

 

The move highlights the challenges of competing in particular with pioneer BioNTech, which rose from obscurity through its alliance with pharma major Pfizer last year.

3:25 PM

Nasal microbiota may help predict Covid infection, severity

The microbiota in the nose and upper throat likely contains biomarkers for assessing how sick an individual infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing Covid-19, may get, suggests a study that may help develop new treatment strategies against the infectious disease.

This nasopharyngeal microbiota is generally considered a frontline protection against viruses, bacteria and other pathogens that enter these natural passageways, said Sadanand Fulzele, geriatric researcher in the Department of Medicine at the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University.

3:04 PM

Russia records 21,559 Covid-19 cases in past 24 hours

Russia recorded 21,559 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, down from 22,236 the day before, bringing the cumulative total to 7,464,708, the federal response center said on Tuesday.

"Over the past day, 21,559 COVID-19 cases were confirmed across 85 Russian regions, including 1,709 cases (7.9 per cent) without clinical symptoms," the center said, adding that the rate of increase fell to 0.29 per cent.

2:43 PM

Japan to end Covid-19 emergency measures nationwide this week: Suga

The Japanese government will end this week the COVID-19 state of emergency in Tokyo and 18 prefectures as well as the quasi-state of emergency in other areas, as the number of infections declined steadily, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said on Tuesday.

 

Japan's coronavirus advisory panel has approved a government plan to end the state of emergency and quasi-measures on Thursday as scheduled.

 

It would be the first time since April 4 that none of Japan's 47 prefectures is under either a state of emergency or a quasi-state of emergency.

2:29 PM

WHO's emergency use authorisation for Covaxin further delayed: Report

The emergency use authorisation (EUA) for Bharat Biotech's COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin has once again been delayed by the World Health Organisation, ANI reported.

The ANI sources further said that the UN public health agency has asked for more data from Bharat Biotech for Covaxin.

This delay will affect Indians especially students and who have international travel plans. The EUA is important because without it Covaxin will not be accepted by most countries.

2:04 PM

Over 47.7 million people vaccinated so far in Madhya Pradesh

More than 47.7 million people have been administered COVID-19 vaccine doses in Madhya Pradesh so far out of the eligible population of 54.9 million, a state health official said on Tuesday.

Among these beneficiaries, 12,03,612 people were inoculated on Monday during a mega vaccination drive in the state, he said.

1:32 PM

Brisk Covid vaccination rate primes Indian economy for acceleration

India’s economy showed signs it’s ready to accelerate, thanks to its services sector resuming expansion and manufacturing activity retaining growth momentum in August.
 

Two of the eight high-frequency indicators tracked by Bloomberg News gained speed last month, while five held steady and one slowed. The needle on a dial measuring so-called animal spirits, however, remained unchanged from the July level, as the gauge uses three-month weighted average to smooth out volatility in single-month readings.

 

The monthly expansion in services and manufacturing activity coincided with relatively low new Covid-19 cases and a pick up in the pace of vaccinations -- more than 834 million doses have been administered so far in the nation of 1.3 billion people. That said, less than a fifth of the population is fully vaccinated and risks of a third wave of infections persist. Read on...

1:11 PM

After Covid-19, more women are considering scaling back at work: US survey

Pandemic burnout is nipping at the slow, but steady, progress women have made up and down the corporate ladder over the last five years, a McKinsey & Co. report conducted in partnership with LeanIn.Org released Monday finds.

In an annual survey of 65,000 workers across 423 organizations, one-third of women said they were considering scaling back their careers or leaving the workforce altogether. That figure jumped almost 10 percentage points from the beginning months of the pandemic. Women, the survey found, were more likely to report experiencing burnout than men — a gap that’s widened in the last year, too.

 

“Our concerns are the impact of pandemic burnout on women long-term, and what companies need to do in response,” said Rachel Thomas, co-founder and chief executive officer of Lean In. Read on...