Covid LIVE: Maharashtra posts biggest single-day spike of 31,885 new cases

Coronavirus live updates: Centre has decided to open up vaccination drive for all above 45 yrs of age from April 1. Stay tuned for corona-related news

3:18 AM

India to focus on domestic vaccine demand; will not expand export for few months: Report

India will focus on meeting the domestic demand for coronavirus vaccines in view of a spike in Covid-19 infections in several states and it will not expand export of vaccines for next few months, people familiar with the development said on Wednesday.
 

They, however, said all commercial contracts and export commitments will be honoured and that India will continue to help countries around the world to deal with the pandemic.
 

So far, India has supplied 60.4 million doses of coronavirus vaccines to around 80 countries.
 

The total supplies include vaccine doses sent as grant assistance, under commercial contract and through COVAX, which is a global initiative aimed at equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines.
 

The people said India will fulfil the existing commitments made to various countries and exports will depend on domestic demand.
 

"There will be no expansion of exports for next few months. The situation will be reviewed after around 2-3 months as we are focusing on ramping up vaccine production," said one of the people cited above.
 

India started supplying the vaccine doses to foreign countries on January 20. The first countries to receive such vaccines were from the neighbourhood.   The government has already announced that people who are 45 and older can be vaccinated from April 1.
 

3:17 AM

Belgium reverting to lockdown amid spike in virus cases

Belgium is reintroducing strict lockdown measures in response to a worrying surge of new Covid-19 infections, with the government saying Wednesday that schools would close and residents would have limited access to non-essential businesses.
 

Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said the virus variant first identified in Britain is taking a heavy toll on the health of the country's people: Confirmed cases increased 40% over the last week, and hospital admissions rose 28% following a long stable period.
 

“It's difficult to take such a decision, and for many it will be a deception," De Croo said after an emergency meeting with regional leaders. “But I'm convinced that we are going to break this third wave." Under the government's new order, schools and universities will no longer welcome students for in-person classes starting Monday, although kindergartens will remain open. The government's goal is to resume in-person teaching from April 19, after the Easter break.
 

“The largest number of infections is in the 10 to 19 age group,” De Croo said, noting that children and young adults who show no or few Covid-19 can infect parents and grandparents who become very sick and end up in the hospital.
 

A total of 22,763 people have died from coronavirus-related causes in Belgium, which was among the countries hit hardest when the pandemic emerged last year.

About 1 million of Belgium's 11.5 million residents have received a first vaccine dose, and De Croo said the vaccination program in nursing homes had already helped reduce Covid-19 deaths.
 

11:11 PM

With 5,185 Covid-19 cases Mumbai reports a new high

Mumbai on Wednesday reported its highest one-day rise in Covid-19 cases so far with 5,185 new infections coming to light, said the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
 

It took the caseload in the country's financial capital to 3,74,611, the civic body said.
 

With six deaths, the fatality count stood at 11,606.
 

On the other hand, 2,088 persons were discharged from hospitals, taking the tally of recoveries to 3,31,322.
 

There are 30,760 active patients, the BMC said.
 

The growth rate of the viral infection between March 17 and 23 in the city was 0.79 per cent while recovery rate was 90 per cent, it said.
 

There are 39 active containment zones which include slums and chawls while 432 buildings have been sealed so far after patients were found there.
 

11:10 PM

Spaniards line up for AstraZeneca amid concerns over vaccine

Desperate to finally put the coronavirus pandemic behind them, thousands of Spaniards lined up to get shots of AstraZeneca on Wednesday as the European country became the latest to restart the vaccine whose credibility has suffered a series of setbacks recently.
 

Like neighboring countries that had halted use of the vaccine while examining possible adverse effects, Spain's health officials are now trying to restore confidence in the shot, one of three currently available in the European Union.
 

That is particularly critical at a time when many countries on the continent are struggling to ramp up slow vaccinations while they see infections spike again.
 

Spain's pivot back to AstraZeneca comes just a day after another blow to its reputation, when American officials said that the British-Swedish drug company may have included “outdated information” in touting the effectiveness of its COVID-19 vaccine in a U.S. trial.
 

11:10 PM

US Covid-19 cases top 30 million as states race to vaccinate

The United States crossed 30 million coronavirus cases on Wednesday, according to a Reuters tally, as states accelerate the vaccination process by lowering age limits.
 

Health authorities are racing to vaccinate in the face of the first uptick in new cases on a weekly basis since January.
 

Against the advice of health experts, several states have lifted mask mandates and more infectious variants have also spread across the nation.
 

Although cases are trending higher in 30 out of 50 states compared with the previous week, health officials hope the vaccinations will prevent a rise in deaths. The United States has lost a total of 544,000 lives to the virus. (Graphic: https://tmsnrt.rs/2WTOZDR) New York on Monday joined Florida and a handful of other states that have made vaccines available to people who are at least 50 years old.
 

In the past two weeks, many states including Alaska, Arizona and Texas have lowered down their eligibility age for coronavirus vaccines.
 

Arizona lowered the eligibility age to 16 at state-run vaccination sites in three populous southern counties, effective Wednesday. Three other counties already have eligibility at 16, but most are at 55.
 

9:01 PM

Covid-19 LIVE: Maharashtra posts biggest single-day spike of 31,885 new cases

Maharashtra reported as many as 31,855 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, its highest ever single-day spike since the outbreak of the pandemic last year, a health official said. This took the state's overall caseload to 25,64,881.

 

Before this, the state's highest daily spike of 30,535 cases was recorded on March 21. With 95 new deaths, the fatality count rose to 53,684, the official said. As 15,098 patients were discharged during the day, the recovery count reached 22,62,593. The number of active COVID- 19 cases now is 2,47,299.

8:45 PM

Gujarat reports 1,790 new Covid-19 cases, highest one-day rise

Gujarat recorded 1,790 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, its highest one-day rise since the pandemic began, the state health department said.

 

It took the caseload to 2,92,169, while eight deaths pushed the toll to 4,466, it said.

 

Two deaths each were reported in Ahmedabad and Surat and one each in Gandhinagar, Jamnagar, Rajkot and Vadodara. With 1,277 patients getting discharged, the number of recovered cases rose to 2,78,880. The state's recovery rate now stands at 95.45 per cent.

8:24 PM

Maharashtra reports 31,855 new Covid-19 cases and 95 deaths in a day

8:12 PM

Delhi reports 1,254 new coronavirus cases, 769 recoveries and six deaths

8:09 PM

Tamil Nadu reports 1,636 new Covid-19 positive cases in a day

The COVID-19 graph continued its upward trend in Tamil Nadu, with the state logging 1,636 new cases and 12 fatalities on Wednesday, taking the caseload to 8,71,440 and toll to 12,630. According to a health department bulletin, 1,023 patients were discharged today, pushing the cumulative number to 8,49,064, leaving 9,746 active cases.

 

Chennai accounted for most of the new infections with 633 cases being reported, aggregating to 2,43,287 till date. The metropolis also leads in the number of fatalities with 4,211 deaths.

7:54 PM

Kerala reports 2,456 new coronavirus positive cases in past 24 hours

Kerala reports 2,456 new coronavirus positive cases, 2,060 recoveries and 10 deaths in the past 24 hours.

7:53 PM

Mumbai reports 5,185 new Covid-19 cases and six deaths today

7:41 PM

Punjab is the fastest growing state in terms of Covid-19 infections

Analysis of Covid-19 infections since the start of March shows that cases in Punjab have been growing on an average at 0.8% daily, in contrast cases in Maharashtra have been growing at 0.7%. For India, the compounded daily growth rate in cases for March has been 0.2%. READ MORE HERE...

7:39 PM

Gujarat reports 1,790 new coronavirus positive cases in last 24 hours.

Gujarat reports 1,790 new coronavirus positive cases, 1,277 recoveries and eight deaths in the last 24 hours.

7:16 PM

Uttarakhand reports 200 new coronavirus cases and 49 recoveries today, no deaths reported

Uttarakhand reports 200 new coronavirus cases and 49 recoveries today, no deaths reported

7:15 PM

Nagpur reports highest daily growth of 3,717 Covid-19 cases

Nagpur district in Maharashtra on Wednesday reported 3,717 new coronavirus cases, its highest single-day figure so far since the outbreak of the pandemic last year, the authorities said. This rise took the overall number of cases to 2,03,488, the district information office said in a release.

 

The death toll in the district grew to 4,737 as the virus claimed 40 lives during the day. So far, 1,65,179 patients have recovered from the infection, of whom, 2,098 were discharged on Wednesday. The number of active COVID-19 cases in the district is 33,572. A total of 17,155 samples were tested on Wednesday, while the total test count has reached 15,25,119, it said.

6:30 PM

88% of all Covid-19 deaths in India in age group of 45 years and above: Govt

About 88 per cent of all COVID-19 deaths in the country are in the age group of 45 years and above, making them the most vulnerable section that needs to be protected, the Union Health Ministry said on Wednesday.

 

Addressing a press conference, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said the case fatality rate in this age group is 2.85 per cent.

 

"About 88 per cent of all COVID-19 deaths in the country are taking place in the age group of 45 years and above, making them the most vulnerable group that needs to be protected," he said, adding that this is the reason behind allowing vaccination for those above 45 years from April 1.

6:24 PM

Former Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat, four members of family test positive for coronavirus infection

Former Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat and four members of his family test positive for coronavirus infection

6:03 PM

Haryana bans public celebrations on Holi as Covid-19 cases rise

The Haryana government on Wednesday banned public celebrations of upcoming Holi festival in the wake of the rise in the number of coronavirus cases in the recent weeks.

 

During the past few days, Haryana has been reporting over 800 new cases daily.

5:43 PM

Telangana, Chandigarh, Nagaland and Punjab have low Covid-19 vaccination coverage of healthcare workers

Telangana, Chandigarh, Nagaland and Punjab have low Covid-19 vaccination coverage of healthcare workers: Union Health Ministry

5:16 PM

771 cases of coronavirus variants detected across 18 states in India: Govt

5:05 PM

Recent surge in Covid-19 cases in Maharashtra and Punjab is of grave concern: Health Ministry

Recent surge in Covid-19 cases in Maharashtra and Punjab is of grave concern: Union Health Ministry

5:03 PM

Rise in active Covid-19 cases continues after touching its lowest mark in mid-Feb

5:02 PM

About 88% of all Covid-19 deaths in India in age group of 45 years and above: Health Ministry

About 88 per cent of all Covid-19 deaths in India in age group of 45 years and above: Union Health Ministry

4:54 PM

Maharashtra and Punjab reporting rise in Covid-19 cases: Health Ministry

4:53 PM

Interval between two doses of COVISHIELD increased to 4-8 weeks: Health Ministry

4:21 PM

Maharashtra, Punjab, three other states witnessing surge in Covid-19 cases: Centre

Maharashtra, Punjab, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh and Gujarat are reporting a surge in daily COVID-19 cases and the five states together account for 77.44 per cent of the new infections, the Union Health Ministry said on Wednesday.

 

A total 47,262 new cases were registered in a span of 24 hours.

 

Six states cumulatively account for 81.65 per cent of the new cases. Maharashtra has reported the highest daily new cases at 28,699. It is followed by Punjab with 2,254 and Karnataka with 2,010 cases.

4:14 PM

Centre asks states to restrict public observance of festivals, limit or stop gatherings

Amid a spike in COVID-19 infections in some parts of the country, the Centre on Wednesday asked states and union territories to consider imposing local restrictions in public observance of the upcoming festivals and limit or do away with mass gatherings for effective control of the pandemic.

 

Additional Secretary in the Health Ministry Arti Ahuja, in a letter to state chief secretaries and union territory administrators, stated that the battle against COVID-19 is at a critical juncture with rising number of cases and deaths being reported from many parts in the recent past.

 

"...in view of upcoming festivals such as Holi, Shab-e-Barat, Bihu, Easter and Eid-ul-Fitr, etc., it is strongly advised that states may consider imposing local restrictions in public observance of these festivals and limit/do away with mass gatherings in exercise of the powers conferred under Section 22 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005," the letter read.

3:35 PM

A year of online classes, exams: Covid-19 prompts shift to 'new normal' in teaching and learning

A year of learning in 'smartphone class rooms' and appearing for 'WhatsApp exams', virtual campus tours to Zoom placement drives and ultimately massive increase in 'screen time', the last academic session will go down in history as beginning of the "new normal" prompted by coronavirus-induced lockdown.

 

No packing up of bags for first day at school, cancelled sports day or farewells, no shared lunches and massively increased screen time, marked the 2020-21 academic session, which was about to begin just a week after the COVID-19 lockdown was announced last year.

 

Smartphones and laptops, which were not allowed in classes and meant for restricted usage at home as well, became the backbone of education throughout the year as COVID-19 pandemic prompted a 360 degree shift from classroom teaching to the online space, including YouTube lectures, Zoom classes, WhatsApp exams and online quizzes.

2:32 PM

Negative Covid-19 report must for travelling to Gujarat from Maharashtra

The Gujarat government has made it mandatory to people coming from neighboring Maharashtra to carry a negative RT-PCR test report not older than 72 hours.

 

This decision has been taken in view of a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra, it said.

 

In an order issued on Tuesday, the state health department observed that contact tracing of COVID-19 cases found in Gujarat over the last one week revealed that a large number of the infected people had returned from Maharashtra.