Coronavirus LIVE: Punjab reports 2,319 new Covid-19 positive cases in a day

Coronavirus live updates: Today marks a year since India went into a complete lockdown, starting with Janata curfew. Maharashtra has reported 30,535 fresh cases. Stay tuned for corona-related news

11:44 PM

CM Thackeray favours lockdown in some cities if cases keep rising: Tope

Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Monday said people must follow Covid-19 safety protocols if the state is to avoid another lockdown.
 

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was of the view that lockdown may become necessary in some cities if the new cases continue to climb, Tope told reporters here.
 

At the same time, he also defended the state's response to rising cases and pointed out that in terms of cases per million population, many states have fared worse.
 

He met the Chief Minister two days ago, Tope said.
 

"He told me that if the number of daily cases in the state remains in the range of 25,000 to 30,000 for the next some days, then we will have to take some stringent steps. He is of the opinion that if the numbers continue to increase, we will have to impose lockdown in some cities," the minister said.
 

"I appeal people to respond to CM's warning (about possibility of lockdown) positively and follow the Covid-19 protocols such as mask wearing, hand hygiene and physical distancing to avoild lockdown," Tope said.
 

He also said that the Centre has told the states that the gap between two shots of Covishield vaccine will be 45 to 60 days instead of the present 28 days. The gap between doses of Covaxin will be same as earlier, that is 28 days.
 

He has discussed the latest surge in cases with epidemiologists, the health minister said.
 

11:39 PM

Tamil Nadu records 1,385 new Covid-19 infections, 10 fatalities

The Covid-19 graph continued its upward trend in Tamil Nadu as the state logged 1,385 cases, including three from outside the state, and 10 fatalities, pushing the caseload to 8.68 lakh and the toll to 12,609.
 

The state saw the number of cases cross the 1,000 mark on March 19 after over an 80 day gap, when it touched 1,087.
 

Recoveries on Monday were lesser with 659 patients being discharged, taking the cumulative number to 8,47,139 leaving 8,619 active cases, a health department bulletin said.
 

Chennai accounted for most of the new infections with 496 cases being reported, aggregating 2,42,115 till date.
 

The metropolis also leads in the number of fatalities with 4,202.
 

Among the 10 deceased, a 64 year-old was the lone individual to succumb to the virus without any co-morbidities.
 

A total of 73,247 samples were tested on Monday taking the cumulative number of specimens examined so far to 1,88,54,356.
 

Coimbatore was behind Chennai with 130 cases, Chengalpet 126 and Thanjavur with 83.
 

As many as 11 districts reported fresh infections in single digits.
 

Three persons who returned from the United Arab Emirates, Karnataka, Kerala were among those who tested positive today.
 

Meanwhile, chief secretary Rajeev Ranjan reviewed the Covid-19 precautionary measures taken in the State on Monday.
 

An official press release said the infection rate was comparatively higher over the last week in cities like Chennai, Chengalpet, Coimbatore, Tiruvallur, Thanjavur, Kancheepuram, Tiruppur, Salem, Madhurai, Tiruvarur.
 

11:31 PM

Nashik sees 2,779 Covid-19 cases, 12 deaths, 2,696 recoveries

Nashik's Covid-19 tally rose by 2,779 on Monday to touch 1,50,917, the sixth consecutive day  when the case addition was above 2,000, an official said.

10:38 PM

Maharashtra reports 24,645 new coronaviurs cases, 58 deaths

A day after Maharashtra reported highest single-day spike since the outbreak of Covid-19, the  state on Monday saw a drop in daily count, recording 24,645 new cases.

While the caseload increased to 25,04,327, the state also reported 58 deaths due to Covid-19, taking the death toll to 53,457.

 

8:46 PM

Karnataka adds 1,445 fresh coronavirus cases

Karnataka recorded over 1,445 new cases of COVID-19 and ten fatalities, taking the total number of infections to 9,71,647 and the toll to 12,444, the Health department said on Monday.

 

This is for the seventh consecutive day that the state is reporting over 1,000 new cases, however it has come down from 1,715 infections on Sunday. The day also saw 661 patients getting discharged after recovery.

8:34 PM

CBI searches offices of Sebi officials in Saradha scam

The CBI on Monday carried out searches at the Securities and Exchange Board of India office in Mumbai after the alleged role of three of its senior officers in granting permission to Saradha ponzi scheme surfaced, a PTI report said.

 

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team carried out searches at the offices and residences of three SEBI officers--chief general managers Jayanta Jash and Jeevan Sonparote, and Deputy General Manager Prasenjit Dey--in connection with the case, they said.

 

Jash and Dey were posted in Kolkata when the Saradha ponzi scheme was being run in West Bengal and neighbouring states, while Sonparote was posted in Mumbai, they said.

8:32 PM

1,348 new coronavirus cases in MP, two deaths

Madhya Pradesh on Monday reported 1,348 new COVID-19 cases, taking its tally to 2,77,075, while two deaths increased the toll to 3,908, an official said. On the other hand, 754 people were discharged from hospitals, taking the count of recoveries to 2,64,575. Five of 52 districts in the state did not report a new COVID-19 case since Sunday evening.

 

"A death each was reported from Bhopal and Burhanpur. Indore's caseload rose by 356 to reach 64,509, while that of Bhopal touched 47,459 with the addition of 349 cases of infection," said the health department official.

8:08 PM

119 armed forces personnel died of COVID-19; total number of infection 44,766: Govt

As many as 119 armed forces personnel died of COVID-19 while 44,766 contracted the infection in the three services, according to data provided by the government on Monday.

 

In response to a question in Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Defence Shripad Naik said the Army reported 81 deaths while the total number of coronavirus infections in the force was 33,003.

 

Naik said two persons died of the infection in the Navy while the number of positive cases was 3,604. He further added the number of deaths in the Indian Air Force was reported at 36 and the total infection stood at 8,159. On a specific query, the minister said as per rules, no special compensation for deaths occurring due to infectious disease is provided to armed forces personnel while they are in service.

7:55 PM

Punjab reports 2319 new coronavirus cases, 1870 discharges and 58 deaths in the last 24 hours

Punjab reports 2,319 new coronavirus cases, 1,870 discharges and 58 deaths in the last 24 hours

7:36 PM

Goa mulls Covid-19 negative certificate for some states: Vishwajit Rane

Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Rane on Monday said he would be placing a proposal in front of Chief Minister Pramod Sawant to make COVID-19 negative certificate mandatory for people flying in from neighbouring states like Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala.

 

He said the proposal would be placed before the CM in the next couple of days, in order to stall any surge in cases in Goa.

 

The decision on the COVID-19 negative certificate proposal will be taken by the CM, he added. He pointed out that Maharashtra had made it mandatory for people flying in from Goa to have COVID-19 negative certificates, though the number of cases were less here.

6:54 PM

Karnataka reports 1,445 new Covid-19 cases, 661 recoveries, and 10 deaths in the last 24 hours

Karnataka reports 1,445 new coronavirus positive cases, 661 recoveries, and 10 deaths in the last 24 hours

6:40 PM

Jammu and Kashmir reports 132 new Covid-19 cases

Jammu and Kashmir recorded 132 fresh COVID-19 cases, including 28 travellers, taking the infection tally to 1,28,679 on Monday, even as no new death due to the virus was reported in the past 24 hours, officials said.

 

Out of the fresh cases, 28 were from the Jammu division and 104 from the Kashmir division of the Union Territory, they said.

 

Srinagar district recorded the highest of 77 cases, including 16 travellers, followed by 25 in Jammu district. There were 34 travellers who had tested positive for the infection in the past 24 hours. While six districts did not report any fresh case, 12 other districts had cases in single digits.

6:29 PM

Municipal corporation reopens jumbo hospital amid rising Covid-19 cases in Pune

6:08 PM

Odisha reports 146 new Covid-19 cases; tally 338,963

Odisha's COVID-19 tally climbed to 3,38,963 as 146 more people tested positive for the disease, a health department official said on Monday. Of the new cases, 87 were reported from quarantine centres and 59 detected during contact tracing.

 

Khurda district, of which the state capital Bhubaneswar is a part, reported the highest number of new cases at 35, followed by Cuttack (25), Mayurbhanj (13), Nuapada and Sundargarh (12 each). Several new cases were detected in an educational institute in the city, a Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation official said.

5:01 PM

Govt revises interval between 2 doses of Covishield, can be taken between 4-8 weeks

The Centre Monday revised the time window within which the 2nd dose of Covishield vaccine can be taken, asking all states and Union Territories to administer it between 4-8 weeks instead of 4-6 weeks.

 

"In view of the emerging scientific evidence, the interval between two doses of a specific COVID-19 vaccine i e. COVISHIELD , has been revisited by National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI) and subsequently by NEGVAC in its 20th meeting during which the recommendation has been revised to provide 2nd dose of COVISHIELD at 4-8 weeks' interval after 1st dose instead of earlier practiced interval of 4-6 weeks, The Union Health Ministry Monday said.

4:20 PM

Oxford/AstraZeneca jabs effective against severe Covid, new trial in US confirms

A large trial in the US and two South American countries of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine has shown 79 per cent efficacy rate at preventing symptomatic COVID-19 and 100 per cent effectiveness in stopping severe disease and hospitalisation, the biotech firm said on Monday.

 

A Phase III study of the vaccine, developed by Oxford University and produced by AstraZeneca was conducted by AstraZeneca plc in the US, Chile and Peru and reaffirmed that the vaccine is safe and highly effective, adding to previous trial data from the UK, Brazil and South Africa.

 

The Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine is also being produced as part of a tie-up by the Serum Institute of India.

3:59 PM

Covid-19 rules violation: Over 9,000 people fined so far in Jammu

Over 9000 people have been fined so far in Jammu district for violating COVID-19 guidelines by not wearing masks and Rs 45 lakh recovered from them, officials said on Monday. Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday recorded 158 fresh coronavirus cases, including 34 travellers, taking the infection tally to 1,28,547.

 

Officials said, "During the drive against violators of COVID-19 guidelines, more than nine thousand persons have been fined for not wearing face masks during the year 2020-21".

 

A total fine imposed on them amounted to Rs 45 lakh, they said. Those found violating the COVID-19 guidelines in the district will be strictly dealt with under the law, police said.

3:42 PM

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi takes his first dose of coronavirus vaccine in Hyderabad

3:03 PM

AstraZeneca Covid vax found 79% effective in US trial

British-Swedish pharmaceutical major AstraZeneca on Monday said its vaccine demonstrated efficacy of 79 per cent at preventing symptomatic Covid-19 and 100 per cent efficacy at preventing severe disease and hospitalisation in a phase-3 trial in the US.

 

The results come after several countries in Europe briefly suspended the use of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine over fears of harmful side effects.

 

In the US trial, the vaccine was well tolerated, and the independent data safety monitoring board (DSMB) identified no safety concerns related to the vaccine, AstraZeneca said.

2:31 PM

India's Covid-19 Case Fatality Rate stands at 1.37% and is continuously declining: Govt

1:54 PM

Covid-19 LIVE: Five states record surge in cases

Maharashtra, Punjab, Karnataka, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh are reporting a surge in the COVID-19 daily cases and account for 80.5 per cent of the total new cases registered, the Union Health Ministry said on Monday.

 

India saw 46,951 new cases being registeredin a day,the highest single day rise so far this year.

 

Maharashtra has reported the highest daily new cases at 30,535 (65.03 per cent). This is followed by Punjab with 2,644 while Kerala reported 1,875 new cases. Eight states including Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Gujarat, Karnataka and Haryana are displaying an upward trajectory in the daily new COVID-19 cases, the ministry said.

1:49 PM

Uttarakhand CM tests Covid-19 positive

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat has tested positive for coronavirus and has isolated himself.

 

Giving information about this on his Twitter handle on Monday, the Chief Minister said, "My corona test report has come positive. I am fine and I have no problem. I have isolated myself under the supervision of doctors. All those of you I have come in close contact in the last few days, please be cautious and get yourself checked. I wish everyone good health. "

 

For the past several days, the Chief Minister has been continuously attending several programmes. He also met some Union Ministers and BJP leaders in Delhi.

1:17 PM

84.49% Covid-19 cases reported from five states in last 24 hours: Govt

Maharashtra, Punjab, Karnataka, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh are reporting a surge in daily COVID-19 cases and together they account for 80.5 per cent of the total new cases registered in the last 24 hours, informed the union health ministry on Monday.

 

In the last 24 hours 46,951 new cases were registered and out of these, 84.49 per cent are reported from Maharashtra, Punjab, Kerala, Karnataka, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.

 

According to the health ministry, Maharashtra reported the highest daily new cases at 30,535 (65.03 per cent), followed by Punjab with 2,644 and Kerala with 1,875 new cases.

12:59 PM

Satish Kaushik hospitalised days after testing COVID-19 positive

Veteran actor-filmmaker Satish Kaushik has been admitted to a private hospital here, days after he tested positive for coronavirus.

 

On March 17, Kaushik tweeted that he had contracted COVID-19 and was quarantining at home.

 

The 64-year-old actor, however, was shifted to the Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital for better medical care.

12:52 PM

Uttarakhand CM Tirath Singh Rawat tweets that he has tested positive for Covid-19

12:38 PM

Delhi SDMA to hold meeting today over spike in coronavirus cases

In view of the rising COVID-19 cases in the national capital, State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) will be holding a meeting on Monday to formulate strategies to combat the virus.

 

The meeting will take place at 12:30 pm.

 

Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Health Minister Satyendar Jain, Chief Secretary, and other senior officials will be present in the meeting.

 

On Sunday, Delhi reported 823 new infections, the highest single-day spike which the national capital has registered this year.

12:07 PM

Angela Merkel to discuss harder lockdown with state leaders

German Chancellor Angela Merkel will join state leaders on Monday to discuss whether a return to a harder lockdown is needed after the country surpassed a key threshold in coronavirus infection numbers.

 

Despite hopes for more lockdown relaxations in time for the Easter holiday weekend, which falls at the start of April this year, Germany is likely to halt its plans for reopenings after the seven-day incidence of new infections passed the critical benchmark on Sunday, reports Xinhua news agency.

 

Officials previously agreed to use an "emergency brake" and renew restrictions if the number of new infections per 100,000 inhabitants during the course of a week exceeded the threshold of 100 for three consecutive days.

12:02 PM

Covid state of emergency ends in Tokyo region

Japan on Monday ended the coronavirus state of emergency that was in place in Tokyo and its surrounding prefectures despite growing concerns about a resurgence of new infections and increasing cases of new strains of the virus.

 

Tokyo and the prefectures of Saitama, Chiba and Kanagawa, which had been the last remaining regions subject to restrictions, are still struggling to rein in new infections, dpa news agency reported.

 

According to Kyodo News, Japan confirmed 1,119 new cases, including 256 in Tokyo, and 20 Covid-19-related deaths on Sunday, compared with a record 7,851 on January 8.

11:36 AM

Puducherry reports 47 fresh Covid-19 cases, overall count goes up to 40,433

Puducherry logged 47 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours taking the overall tally in the union territory to 40,433, a senior official of the Directorate of Health and Family Welfare Services said on Monday.
 

One fatality was reported in Karaikal during the last 24 hours ending 10 AM Monday pushing the toll to 676, Director of Health and Family Welfare Services S Mohan Kumar said in a release.
 

The deceased, a 65-year old woman, had comorbidities, he said, adding she also had complaints of Covid-19 viral pneumonia and ARDS.
 

The number of active cases in the union territory stood at 412 while 39,345 patients had recovered and were discharged so far, the Health department Director said.

11:25 AM

Pak govt to cap prices of Russian, Chinese vaccines imported by pvt firms

Pakistani authorities have decided to cap the maximum retail price of the Russian and Chinese Covid-19 vaccines imported by private firms, amid a sharp increase in coronavirus cases in the country.

 

The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (Drap) last week notified the procedure for determining the maximum retail prices of imported Covid-19 vaccines in the country.

 

Official sources said that the maximum sale price of Sputnik V Russian vaccine will be fixed at Rs8,449 for two doses and China's Convidecia at Rs4,225 per injection. Read on...