Coronavirus LIVE: Kerala reports 1,792 fresh cases, 15 deaths in 24 hrs

Coronavirus live updates: The global tally of coronavirus cases stands at 120,040,943. While 96,578,602 have recovered, 12,659,064 have lost their lives

2:41 AM

UK records another 4,618 coronavirus cases, 52 deaths

Another 4,618 people in Britain have tested positive for Covid-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 4,258,438, according to official figures released on Sunday.

 

The country also reported another 52 coronavirus-related deaths. The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Britain now stands at 125,516. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test, the Xinhua news agency reported.

 

More than 24.1 million people in Britain have been given the first jab of the coronavirus vaccine, according to the latest official figures.

 

The data were revealed as experts raised concerns over the difference between vaccination rates in richer and poorer areas in England, where black, Asian and other minority ethnic populations are often the majority.

 

A research by The Guardian newspaper has found the vaccine gap was most pronounced in the borough of Southwark, south London.

 

In the richest areas in the borough, 95 percent of those aged 60 or older had been vaccinated by March 7, but the number fell to only 70 per cent of people in the poorest areas of Southwark, according to the London-based newspaper.

2:40 AM

Africa's confirmed Covid-19 cases pass 4.02 mn

The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Africa has reached 4,025,390 as of Sunday evening, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said.

 

The Africa CDC, the specialised healthcare agency of the African Union (AU), said that the death toll related to the pandemic stood at 107,523, while 3,610,997 patients across the continent have recovered from the disease.

 

The most affected countries in terms of the number of confirmed positive cases are South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, and Ethiopia, the Xinhua news agency reported.

 

South Africa has lost 51,261 lives to the disease, the most among African countries, followed by Egypt at 11,256, and Morocco at 8,718, according to the Africa CDC.

2:38 AM

Anthony Fauci: Donald Trump should urge his followers to get vaccinated

Dr. Anthony Fauci said Sunday he wishes former President Donald Trump would use his popularity among Republicans to persuade more of his followers to get the Covid-19 vaccine.
 

In a round of interviews on the morning news shows, the government's top infectious disease expert lamented polling showing that Trump supporters are more likely to refuse to get vaccinated, saying politics needs to be separated from commonsense, no-brainer public health measures.

 

Fauci said it would be a game changer for the country's vaccine efforts if the former president used his incredible influence among Republicans.

 

If he came out and said, Go and get vaccinated. It's really important for your health, the health of your family and the health of the country,' it seems absolutely inevitable that the vast majority of people who are his close followers would listen to him, Fauci told Fox News Sunday.

 

There was no immediate comment from the former president's office Sunday.

 

Trump has urged people to get vaccinated, doing so again two weeks ago at a conservative political gathering in Florida.

 

But he hasn't been among former presidents and other public officials who have been vaccinated on camera to encourage others to get the shot. It was revealed only recently that he was vaccinated in private at the White House before leaving office in January.
 

8:57 PM

Covid-19: No time to declare victory as there's always risk of surge back up: US' Dr Fauci

There is time to declare a victory in America's fight against the coronavirus as there is always the risk of a surge back up, White House chief medical advisor Dr Anthony Fauci said on Sunday.

The US is going in the right direction, Fauci told Fox News in an interview.

When you see a plateauing at a level of anywhere between 50,000 and 65,000 cases a day, that is absolutely no time to declare victory because we know from previous urges that we've had over the year that when you see that leveling off at a high level, there's always the risk of a surge back up, he said.

8:33 PM

Covid-19: 250 new cases, one more death recorded in Rajasthan

The Covid-19 death toll in Rajasthan rose to 2,790 on Sunday with one more fatality, while 250 new cases pushed the infection count to 3,22,969, a health department bulletin issued here said.

A total of 3,17,726 people have been discharged after treatment so far, it said.

A total of 2,453 people are currently undergoing treatment, the bulletin said.

8:16 PM

J-K records 105 new Covid-19 cases, no fresh deaths

Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday recorded 105 new Covid-19 cases, taking the tally to 1,27,640, while no fresh death was reported in the past 24 hours, officials said.

Out of the fresh cases, 25 were from the Jammu Division and 80 from the Kashmir Division of the union territory, they said.

The officials said Srinagar district recorded the highest of 51 cases, followed by 16 in Jammu district.

While five districts did not report any fresh cases, 12 other districts had cases in single digits.

8:00 PM

1,792 Covid-19 cases, 15 deaths in Kerala

Kerala logged 1,792 fresh Covid-19 cases, including nine health workers and 15 related deaths on Sunday, taking the caseload state to 10.91 lakh and the toll to 4,396.

As many as 3,238 people were cured of the disease, taking the total number of recoveries to 10,57,097, health minister K K Shailaja said.

A total of 50,565 samples were examined on Sunday, taking the overall number to 1,22,91,194.

The test positivity rate stood at 3.54 per cent.

7:12 PM

Chile becomes Latin America''s Covid-19 vaccination champion

After being among the world's hardest-hit nations with Covid-19, Chile is now near the top among countries at vaccinating its population against the virus.

With more than 25 per cent of its people having received at least one shot, the country of 19 million on South America's Pacific coast is the champion of Latin America, and globally it is just behind Israel, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

That's a far cry from the beginning of the pandemic, when Chile was criticised over its inability to trace and isolate infected people. So what is the secret to its success?

Government officials and health experts say it was the country's early negotiations with vaccine producers, as well as its past experience with robust vaccination programs, a record praised by the World Health Organization.

6:40 PM

Malaysia reports 1,354 new Covid-19 cases, four more deaths

Malaysia reported 1,354 new Covid-19 infections, bringing the national total to 323,763, the country's health ministry informed on Sunday.

Health Ministry Director-General Noor Hisham Abdullah said in a press statement that 14 of the new cases are imported and 1,340 are local transmissions.

Another four deaths have been reported, pushing the death toll to 1,210.

6:04 PM

Delhi reports 407 fresh COVID-19 cases

5:57 PM

Highest single day spike in Andhra Pradesh since Jan 8 as 298 cases reported

The number of active coronavirus cases in Andhra Pradesh shot up to 1,400 as 298 were added afresh, the highest single day spike since January 8, that took the gross to 8,91,861.

In 24 hours ending 9 am on Sunday, 164 patients had recovered and two more succumbed in the state, a health department bulletin said.

The total recoveries now touched 8,83,277 and toll 7,184, it said.

The state has now completed 1.45 crore tests that turned out an overall infection positivity rate of 6.14 per cent.

5:41 PM

Odisha logs 71 new COVID-19 cases; Patnaik sets 'zero infection' target

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Sunday set a target of "zero infection" even as the COVID-19 tally in the state mounted to 3,38,192 with 71 fresh cases.

In a video message, Patnaik appealed to people to follow health safety protocols so that the state can achieve the goal and requested them not to be complacent with the daily number of new coronavirus cases remaining below 100.

"With your support, the COVID situation is currently under control in Odisha. The World Health Organization (WHO) has praised our initiatives to fight against the coronavirus pandemic. Although the single-day spike in coronavirus cases is below 100, zero infection is our target," he said.

The COVID-19 situation in Maharashtra, Punjab, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh has worsened due to a significant rise in the number of new cases, he said.

5:32 PM

Chhattisgarh govt plans to allow use of Covaxin in state: Minister

The Chhattisgarh government is considering allowing the use of Covaxin, a vaccine against Covid-19, in the state after the Centre dropped its 'clinical trial mode' tag, state Health Minister T S Singh Deo said on Sunday.

 

In January, Singh Deo had requested Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan to halt the supply of Covaxin, developed by Bharat Biotech, to the state until its phase-3 trials are completed and results are made available.

 

The Serum Institute of India (SII)-made vaccine Covishield is being used in the state as part of the vaccination drive. Read on...

4:19 PM

Delhi records 407 new Covid-19 cases; positivity rate 0.60 pc

Delhi recorded 407 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday, crossing the 400-mark for the fourth consecutive day, while the positivity rate stood at 0.60 per cent, according to data shared by the health department.

The death toll climbed to 10,941 with two more fatalities, as per the latest bulletin issued by the Delhi Health Department.

The city had recorded 419 fresh Covid-19 cases on Saturday, while431 cases were recorded on Friday, the highest single-day spike in over two months. The count on Thursday was 409.

Delhi had registered 370 new cases on Wednesday and 320 on Tuesday. The city had reported three Covid-19 deaths on Wednesday and four on Tuesday.

4:17 PM

Telangana's daily Covid count surges to 228

The daily Covid-19 count in Telangana continued to be on the rise as the state reported more than 200 cases for a second consecutive day on Sunday.

As many as 228 people tested positive for the infection during the last 24 hours, pushing the cumulative tally to 3,01,161.

For the first time after nearly two months, the state on Saturday reported more than 200 cases. The number of Covid-19 cases jumped from 216 to 228.

According to the daily media bulletin released by the Director of Public Health and Family Welfare, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation reported 46 new cases, followed by Rangareddy at 17 and Medchal Malkajgiri with 15. Only three districts reported no cases while in the remaining 27 districts, the count was in single digit.

4:14 PM

Maharashtra: Aurangabad reports 720 new Covid-19 cases, eight deaths

With 720 fresh cases of coronavirus, the overall infection count in Aurangabad district of Maharashtra went up to 56,678, an official said.

These cases were reported on Saturday.

As the virus claimed eight more lives, the death toll in the district reached 1,334, the official said.

A total of 849 patients were discharged from various facilities during the day, he said, adding that there are 4,327 active cases in the district.

3:44 PM

Philippines logs 4,899 new Covid-19 cases, total tops 621,000

The Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) reported 4,899 new Covid-19 infections on Sunday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the Southeast Asian country to 621,498.

The death toll climbed to 12,829 after 63 more patients died from the viral disease, the DOH said. It added 13,371 more patients recovered, raising the total number of recoveries to 560,512.

The Philippines is experiencing a new wave of COVID-19 infections in recent weeks, similar to July-August 2020 when daily cases peaked.

3:22 PM

Surat college, 2 schools shut as 20 students contract Covid-19

Two primary schools and a college in Gujarat's Surat city have been shut for two weeks after 20 students there tested positive for coronavirus, officials said on Sunday.

Since the educational institutions re-opened in Surat in February 2021 after being shut following the outbreak of Covid-19 last year, so far 118 students and teachers in the city have tested positive for the viral infection, they said.

On Saturday, the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) decided to close the C D Barfiwala College here for 14 days after 10 students there tested positive for the coronavirus, a civic official said.

Besides, six students of one primary school and four of another school also tested positive for the infection on Saturday, following which both the educational institutions were also asked to remain closed for 14 days, he said.

3:18 PM

Australia announces more funding for Covid fight

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Sunday announced additional funding to extend the Covid-19 health response until at least the end of 2021.

Morrison said that the A$1.1 billion in funding would protect Australians from the "ongoing threat of the pandemic", reports Xinhua news agency

It takes the total government spending on the health response to the pandemic to more than A$23 billion, including about A$6 billion on the vaccine rollout.

"We are moving into the sort of post-emergency phase, particularly economically from the end of this month, which is the same time that the Covid-19 response with the vaccination program ramps up to a whole new level," Morrison told reporters after receiving his second dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine.

3:18 PM

Plea in SC seeking strict guidelines to prevent chances of fake Covid-19 vaccine

A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking the Centre to issue strict guidelines and regulations to prevent the chances of fake and counterfeit COVID-19 vaccine.

The Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari sought a direction to the Centre to enact a strict law against the criminal act committed by selling or circulating the counterfeit vaccine by any organisation or Individual.

The pleas asked that the guidelines be made under Disaster Management Act or under any other law by constituting a high powered committee, to be headed and monitored by a retired judge of the apex court, to prevent fake coronavirus vaccine, selling/circulating and advertising by any organisation, online app.

"The government has to run the awareness program for the safety of the citizens against the danger of counterfeit vaccination of the virus and to regulate and ensure the equitable distribution of the vaccine and also to ensure its affordable pricing for the public," the plea added.

2:38 PM

Puducherry adds 15 new Covid-19 cases, overall tally rises to 40,030

Puducherry logged 15 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, taking the overall tally to 40,030, a top Health department official said on Sunday.

The fresh infections were identified at the end of the examination of 1,075 samples during the last 24 hours ending 10 AM Sunday.

1:59 PM

Covid jumped from bats to humans with 'very little change', say scientists

The progenitor of the novel coronavirus underwent "very little change" to adapt to humans from bats, according to a new study which suggests that the ability of the virus to spread from one person to another likely evolved in the flying mammal prior to it jumping to its new human host.

 

The study, published in the journal PLOS Biology, assessed hundreds of thousands of sequenced genomes of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and found that for the first 11 months of the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been very little 'important genetic change' observed in the coronavirus.  Read on... 

1:30 PM

Former Windies cricketers, including Vivian Richards, Richie Richardson, thank PM Modi for Covid-19 vaccines

Former West Indies cricketers Vivian Richards, Richie Richardson, Jimmy Adams and Ramnaresh Sarwan thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for helping the Caribbean countries by donating them Covid-19 vaccines under the Vaccine Maitri initiative. In March, Antigua and Barbuda received 1,75,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines out of which 40,000 were donated to the country under the 'Vaccine Maitri' initiative. "I would like to thank India for the wonderful contribution made to our country which is the vaccine. We thank you so much on behalf of the Antiguan and Barbudan people. We look forward, also that in the future, continued relationship. Thank you very much Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the High Commission of India. We also thank all of the people in India for such a kind gesture," Richards said in a video posted on Twitter by the High Commission of India in Guyana.

1:28 PM

One death, 228 new COVID-19 cases in Telangana

Telangana continued to witness a arginal rise in COVID-19 cases as the state recorded more than 200 cases for the second day in a row after a long gap, pushing the infection tally to 3,01,161, the government said on Sunday. With one more fresh fatality, the COVID-19 toll in the state rose to 1,653 as of 8 PM on March 13, a bulletin said. While the state added 228 cases, as many as 152 were discharged, taking the cumulative recoveries to 2,97,515. Corresponding to the steady increase in fresh cases this month, the active cases further edged up to 1993, compared to 1907 on March 1.

1:20 PM

Novel coronavirus jumped from bats to humans with 'very little change', say scientists

The progenitor of the novel coronavirus underwent "very little change" to adapt to humans from bats, according to a new study which suggests that the ability of the virus to spread from one person to another likely evolved in the flying mammal prior to it jumping to its new human host. The study, published in the journal PLOS Biology, assessed hundreds of thousands of sequenced genomes of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and found that for the first 11 months of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been very little 'important genetic change' observed in the coronavirus. However, it noted that some changes such as the D614G mutation, and similar tweaks in the virus spike protein has affected its biology. "This does not mean no changes have occurred, mutations of no evolutionary significance accumulate and 'surf' along the millions of transmission events, like they do in all viruses," explained study first author Oscar MacLean from the University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research in Scotland.

1:11 PM

Govt to provide all-India tourist permit to operators in 30 days of online application submission

In a bid to promote tourism, all-India tourist permits will be provided to operators within 30 days of online application submission, the government said on Sunday. The new rules will be applicable from April 1, 2021. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has announced a new scheme, under which any tourist vehicle operator may apply for an "All India Tourist Authorization/Permit" through online mode. It will be issued, after relevant documents are submitted and fees deposited, within 30 days of submission of such applications, MoRTH said in a statement. The new set of rules, it said, will be known as, "All India Tourist Vehicles Authorization and Permit Rules, 2021". The existing permits shall continue to be in force during their validity.

1:02 PM

A year of lockdown: Which apps did most favourably?

The start of lockdowns and restrictive measures in April 2020 marked the beginning of the drastic increase in downloads for remote education apps such as Google Classroom, and Edmondo, as did other mobile device learning tools, such as Duolingo, Photomath, and the popular U-Dictionary, says a new study by an alternative app store. These same apps saw a new surge in downloads in November; when 67 countries kept their schools closed, affecting 693 million children, roughly 40 per cent of the world's students, said Uptodown. Its study shows global user trends and interesting data regarding the demand of apps over the last 12 months. Curiously, apps purely for children's entertainment; games such as Toca Life World, Princess Salon, My Town: Home Dollhouse, Club Penguin, or the Peppa Pig video app, have had a continuous rise in the number of downloads. Apps aimed at improving productivity and other office work tools, have also seen an increase in downloads, also peaking during the months of April and November during the first and second waves of the pandemic.

12:40 PM

Pakistan extends travel restrictions on inbound flights amid rising coronavirus cases

Amid rising coronavirus cases, Pakistan has extended the duration of restrictions imposed on inbound flights, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said on Saturday, reported Geo News. The extension comes as Pakistan's COVID-19 cases move past 600,000. The country's COVID-19 infections have reached 602,536 since the first case reported last February, with 13,476 people succumbing to the virus and a positivity ratio of 5.5 per cent. In the last 24 hours, 2,338 cases were recorded, and 46 patients died due to the disease, reported Geo News. The restrictions will remain in place till March 18, the CAA said in a notification.

12:31 PM

Singapore PM says may reopen borders by year-end: BBC interview

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in a TV interview he hoped Singapore would start re-opening its borders by the end of the year as more countries ramp up vaccination drives against COVID-19 infections. The Southeast Asian island nation has largely banned leisure travel, but has put in place some business and official travel programmes. It is also discussing the mutual recognition of vaccine certificates with other nations. “I hope if that many countries can have substantial proportions of their populations vaccinated by later this year, we will be able to have the confidence and to have developed the systems to open up our international borders to travel safely again,” Lee said in an interview with BBC that aired on Sunday.

12:20 PM

CRPF organises medical camp in J-K's Rajouri

The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) on Sunday organised a free medical health check-up camp and distributed free medicines under in Dangri Ashram village of Rajouri district. People gathered in large numbers for the health camp organised by the 72nd Battalion of CRPF. Senior Medical Officer of 72 Battalion Dr Vivekanand told ANI that, "The main purpose of this camp is to screen lifestyle diseases like diabetes, hypertension in remote areas, and after the screening, we are distributing the available medicines that we have for free." "After screening if the patients feel the need for advanced medical attention, we have arranged for medical assistance in hospitals as well," he added