Covid LIVE: Sputnik Light can submit Russian safety data in India, says DRL

Today's coronavirus numbers: Bengaluru (813 cases), Mumbai 692 cases), Chennai (257 cases), Kolkata (191 cases), Delhi (94 cases). Stay tuned for corona-related news

2:35 AM

TN reports 4,481 new Covid-19 infections, 102 deaths

Tamil Nadu recorded 4,481 fresh coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, pushing the overall caseload to 24.84 lakh, while the toll mounted to 32,721 with 102 deaths.
 

As many as 5,044 people recovered and got discharged today, aggregating to 24,13,930 leaving 37,526 active infections, a medical bulletin said.
 

As many as 23 districts reported new infections in double digits while there were no fresh deaths in 12 districts, the bulletin said.
 

Chennai saw 249 people contracting the contagion aggregating to 5,32,759 till date.
 

The number of Covid-19 related fatalities in the State capital also reached 8,191.
 

The testing of RT-PCR samples stood at 1,63,654 in the last 24 hours, pushing the cumulative number of specimens examined so far to 3.30 crore.
 

Among the 102 deaths, 17 were patients without any co- morbidity or pre-existing illness which include a 19 year old girl from Sivagangai.
 

The girl who tested positive on June 29, succumbed to the virus due to the Covid-19 pneumonia on Thursday(July 1).
 

2:34 AM

HC issues notice to Centre, DG-ICMR in PIL seeking lab test of bacteriophages found in Ganga

The Allahabad High Court issued notices to the Centre and the director general of the ICMR on Wednesday in a PIL seeking a laboratory test on the action of the "bacteriophages" found in the water of the Ganga river which, as claimed in the PIL, can treat Covid-19.
 

Ernest Hackins, a British bacteriologist, found the presence of bacteriophages in the Ganga in 1896 and it was confirmed in studies that their presence does not putrefy or deteriorate the water of the river, rather they kill the pathogens and bacterial infections.
 

A bench comprising Acting Chief Justice M N Bhandari and Justice Rajendra Kumar passed the order in a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Arun Kumar Gupta, a senior advocate of the high court.
 

According to the petitioner, he studied the curative properties of the Ganga and after the outbreak of Covid-19 last year, started searching on the internet for the effect of the water of the river on Covid patients.
 

After doing the research work, the petitioner prepared a scientific paper titled "Treatment of Covid-19 by Ganga Jal" and e-mailed it to the president on April 26, 2020 and the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG).
 

The NMCG forwarded it to the Ayush ministry and the director general of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), but the paper was not considered due to a lack of scientific studies to validate the claim.
 

2:32 AM

Nagaland MLA dies of Covid-related complications in Delhi

Nagaland MLA Toshi Wungtung, who was undergoing treatment for Covid-19 at a hospital in Delhi, died on Thursday, official sources said. He was 56.
 

Wungtung was also advisor to the government for Information and Public Relations, and is the second legislator from Nagaland after C M Chang to have succumbed to coronavirus.
 

He had contested the 2018 elections on a Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) ticket.
 

Wungtung had tested negative, but later his condition deteriorated and he was airlifted to Delhi, where he died at a private hospital around 8:20 am, the sources said.
 

In his condolence message, Nagaland Deputy Chief Minister Y Patton wrote on Twitter: "A very sad day for us! My deepest condolences to the friends, family and supporters of Advisor Toshi Wungtung. Deeply saddened by his passing. He was a compassionate leader whose farsightedness, kind words, and deeds affected numerous lives. May his soul rest in peace!".
 

The mortal remains of Wungtung will be flown to Dimapur for the funeral rites on Friday.
 

8:51 PM

Vaccines reduce severity, symptoms, viral load in re-infected people: Study

People who contract Covid-19 even after vaccination are likely to have a lower viral load or quantity, experience a shorter infection time and have milder symptoms than unvaccinated individuals, according to a study of mRNA preventives in the US.

 

Researchers noted that while Covid-19 vaccines are proving to be highly effective in preventing infection, no vaccine is 100 per cent effective, and breakthrough infections infections after immunisation -- do occur.

 

"If you get vaccinated, about 90 per cent of the time you're not going to get Covid-19," said Jeff Burgess, a professor at the University of Arizona Health Sciences in the US.

 

"Even if you do get it, there will be less of the virus in you and your illness is likely to be much milder," Burgess said. (PTI)

8:41 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: India's vaccination coverage reaches nearly 340 million, says govt

8:34 PM

Delhi Airport sees 3x rise in footfall since mid-May as Covid cases dip

Delhi airport said on Thursday that travelers returned during the month of June as the number of Covid-19 infections have declined.

 

“Delhi Airport has witnessed an over three-fold rise in domestic passenger numbers from around 18,000 per day in mid of May 2021 to over 62,000 per day at the end of June 2021. Similarly, the number of international travellers grew from around 4,500 per day in mid of May to nearly 7,500 per day in June end,” the airport said.

 

Delhi is India's largest airport in terms of footfall of passengers. Read here

8:17 PM

Vaccinate all college students by July 7: Karntaka DCM to VCs

Setting a deadline of July 7 to vaccinate all students above 18 years to facilitate reopening of colleges and resume physical classes, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister Dr C N Ashwath Narayan asked the vice chancellors of universities to speed up vaccination.

 

"Students have to be vaccinated by July 7 as per the schedule of the vaccine drive and the VCs should try to ensure vaccination of all students by the said date and if required this could be extended by two to three days," Narayan, who holds the higher education portfolio, told the vice chancellors during a virtual meet. (PTI)

8:08 PM

Asset quality of banks remained stable during pandemic year: RBI FSR

Banks did not see their bad loan position worsening during the pandemic year of 2020-21 as the gross non-performing ratio stayed stable at 7.48% of the gross advances at the end of March 31, the Financial Stability Report of Reserve Bank of India showed on Thursday.

 

The stress test conducted by the regulator, however, indicated an increase from the March 2021 levels due to the second Covid wave. Read here

7:47 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Sputnik Light can submit Russian safety data in India, says Dr Reddy's

7:43 PM

Covax urges nations to recognise WHO-approved jabs for travel

The global initiative for equitable distribution of Covid-19 vaccines, Covax on Thursday urged all nations to recognise all people who have received Covid-19 jabs approved by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as ‘fully vaccinated’, while making travel-related decisions across various countries. As international pressure mounts on the EU member countries, as many as nine countries have now included India made AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine Covishield in their list of ‘Green Pass’ vaccines.

 

India too had opened diplomatic dialogues with the European Union (EU) after the EU Digital Covid Certificate framework recognised the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine, but did not mention Covishield as the latter did not have an emergency-use authorisation (EUA) from the European Medicine Agency (EMA). Read here

7:31 PM

With so few virus deaths, Australians debate vaccine risks

Australia has weathered the pandemic far better than many nations recording just a single coronavirus death since last October but its success means many Australians are not in a rush to get vaccinated and that could delay the country's return to normalcy.

 

Concerns are growing about the economic cost to Australia of being left behind by countries that suffered far higher death tolls, but urgently embraced vaccines and are increasingly opening up.

 

Most of Australia's pandemic success, after all, can be attributed to the continued closure of the isolated continent's border, something that is unlikely to change until far more than the current 6 per cent of the population is vaccinated. (AP)

7:22 PM

Sri Lanka taking all measures to curb spread of Delta variant: Official

Health authorities in Sri Lanka have said they have taken all precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant of Covid-19 and urged people to cooperate with them, warning that any negligent act can wreak major havoc.

 

Deputy Director-General of Health Services Dr Hemantha Herath said on Wednesday that they had received adequate data on the spread of the Delta variant, which was first identified in India, Daily Mirror reported.

 

We are currently carrying out tests and surveillance to ascertain whether the variant has spread from areas like Dematagoda where it was originally detected to other areas of the country, he said, adding health authorities have taken all precautionary measures to prevent a further spread of the Delta strain. (PTI)

7:00 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: UP sees 147 fresh cases

6:55 PM

New projects drop 13% sequentially in June quarter due to Covid

Companies had fewer new projects on the anvil amid rising cases and uncertainty in the three months ended June.

 

New projects in the June quarter were down 13.4 per cent compared to March, coming in at Rs 1.55 trillion, shows data from the Mumbai-headquartered Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy. The value of completed projects also halved to Rs 50,000 crore as Covid cases surged. Figures are 70-95 per cent higher than the same quarter last year because of the national lockdown at the time. Read here

6:45 PM

Shops can open till 8 pm, more relaxations announced in Jharkhand

Amid declining Covid cases in Jharkhand, the state government on Thursday announced more relaxations to bring life back to normal in the state.

 

As per fresh orders issued on Thursday, shops across all the 24 districts of Jharkhand can remain open till 8 p.m. instead of 4 p.m. All government and private offices can open with 50 per cent strength, as per the order. Read here

6:38 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: 12,868 fresh cases in Kerala

6:38 PM

WHO calls for price cut on drug for Covid-linked black fungus

Amid a sharp rise in cases of black fungus infections among Covid-19 patients in India and Nepal, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has on Thursday called on to lower the prices of the drug used to treat the condition, media reports said.

 

Developed by California-based drugmaker Gilead Sciences, AmBisome is a lipid-based amphotericin, used to treat the black fungus infections, which starts in the nose and quickly spreads to the eyes and brain. The WHO has urged the company to lower its prices as well as boost supplies to curb the rapidly rising cases in South Asia, the Financial Times reported.

 

"An immediate strategy for broadening supply and improving affordability of lipid-based amphotericin is to integrate it into the existing Covid-19 response and for Gilead to extend their existing lower pricing arrangement to Covid patients," Who's Assistant Director General for access to medicines, Mariangela Simao, was quoted as saying. (IANS)

6:26 PM

Bad debts to rise due to Covid, but banks adequately capitalised: RBI FSR

The bad debt ratio in banks would likely deteriorate substantially by the end of this financial year due to coronavirus, even as the banks have enough capital to take care of the stress, the half-yearly financial stability report released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said.

 

Under the RBI’s macro stress tests, the gross non-performing asset (GNPA) ratio of banks may increase from 7.48 per cent in March 2021 to 9.8 per cent by March 2022 under the baseline scenario; and to 11.22 per cent under a severe stress scenario, although the banks have sufficient capital, “both at the aggregate and individual level, even under stress", the FSR noted. Read here

6:11 PM

Odisha halts vaccination in 16 districts due to 'shortage' of Covishield

The Odisha government on Thursday halted vaccination drive in 16 districts due to "shortage" of Covishield doses, amid a rise in Covid-19 cases in the state, an official said.

 

The inoculation exercise was temporarily stopped during the day in Angul, Bolangir, Balasore, Bargarh, Bhadrak, Deogarh, Dhenkanal, Ganjam, Jajpur and Jharsuguda, he said.

 

No Covid-19 vaccination drive was conducted in Kandhamal, Kendrapara, Koraput, Nabarangpur, Sonepur and Sundargarh, the official said. Read here

6:05 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Double Covid jab seems to protect against Delta variant

5:56 PM

India's Covid rate still manageable compared to developed world: PM

Despite limitations of "long-neglected medical infrastructure" and "pressure of population", India's per lakh population rate of Covid-19 infection and death rate is still "manageable" compared to even developed countries, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday.

 

Addressing the doctors' community on the occasion of Doctor's Day, he said loss of lives is always painful, but many lives have been saved too and the credit goes to hard-working doctors, healthcare workers, and frontline workers.

 

Modi's remarks came at a time when second wave of Covid seems to be loosening its grip with 48,786 new cases and 1,005 deaths reported in the last 24 hours. On May 7, 4,14,188 new Covid cases were registered in one day, the highest ever. (IANS)

5:48 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Goa sees 231 cases

5:44 PM

Israel scrambles to curb jump in COVID infections

Israel, a world leader in coronavirus vaccinations, reported its highest daily infection rate in three months as it scrambles to contain the spread of the new delta variant.

 

Authorities are racing to vaccinate children and are considering tighter travel restrictions at the country's main airport.

 

The Health Ministry on Thursday reported 307 new cases on Wednesday, the highest in nearly three months and a rise from 293 newly-diagnosed cases a day earlier. The health ministry reportedly expects those numbers to jump in coming days, raising concerns that Israel is plunging back toward a crisis. (AP)

5:24 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Delhi reports 93 fresh cases

5:10 PM

Assam fails to hit 3 mn inoculation target due to short supply: Official

The BJP-led Assam government could vaccinate only 16.63 lakh people in the last 10 days, almost 45 per cent less than Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's target of inoculating 30 lakh people, due to a massive shortage of Covid-19 vaccines, a senior health official said on Thursday.

 

As per the daily Covid-19 bulletin issued by the National Health Mission under the state Health Department, a total of 16,63,405 people were inoculated across the state from June 21 to June 30. Read here

4:56 PM

Oberoi Group vaccinates all eligible team members, third-party contractual workers

The Oberoi Group on Thursday said it has ensured that all the eligible employees of Oberoi Hotels & Resorts, Trident Hotels and Oberoi Flight Services and third-party contractual workers have been vaccinated.

 

"Vaccination would ensure that our staff remains safe and healthy. Additionally, it will give confidence to everyone who interacts with them as well as our guests," Oberoi Group President Sanjiv Kapoor said.

 

Safety, hygiene and wellbeing of both the employees and guests is of paramount importance and upon this depends the revival of the hospitality business, he added. (PTI)

4:54 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Air bubble agreement between India and Qatar extended for July

4:51 PM

Maharashtra: Raigad to remain in level 4 of Covid curbs

The authorities in Raigad district have said the region will continue to be in level four of the Maharashtra government's five-level unlock plan that seeks to ease coronavirus-induced curbs as per infection positivity rate and oxygen bed occupancy numbers, an official said on Thursday.

 

In a release issued on Wednesday, Collector Nidhi Choudhari said shops that come under the essential services category can function up to 4 pm, while hotels, resorts and lodges are permitted to remain open for tourists with 50 per cent occupancy.

 

The Covid-19 positivity rate in Raigad stands at 10 per cent, and hence, the district will continue to be in category 4, it was stated. (PTI)

4:20 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Expect to produce 10 million doses a month from August, says Cadila MD

4:10 PM

Karnataka to build memorial for Covid warriors who succumbed to disease

A first-of-its-kind grand Covid Warrior Memorial in honour of doctors and paramedical staff who 'martyred' themselves in the fight against coronavirus would be built in Bengaluru, Karnataka Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar said on Thursday.

 

"We will build a memorial to pay homage to those doctors who laid down their lives due to Covid while rendering their services on our Arogya Soudha premises. I believe this is the first memorial in the country," Sudhakar said during a function to celebrate National Doctors' Day.

 

The Minister said his department has decided to build it in a unique way in memory of doctors and paramedics, which will be on par with the War Memorial in New Delhi where anyone can go and pay their respects.

 

The memorial will be a place where everyone can come and pay tribute, he added. (PTI)