Coronavirus LIVE: Nearly 8 mn vaccinated in India; current cases at 138,253

Coronavirus live updates: Globally, more than 108.7 million people have been infected by the virus and the death toll stands at 2,392,479

11:45 PM

Chhattisgarh records 229 COVID-19 cases, 4 deaths, 245 recoveries

The number of Covid-19 cases in Chhattisgarh increased by 229 on Saturday to reach 3,08,930, while the toll rose by four to touch 3,771, according to PTI.

The number of people who have recovered reached 3,01,904 during the day after 21 people were discharged from hospitals and 224 completed home isolation, leaving the state with 3,255 active cases, he added.

 

11:14 PM

82 new Covid cases in Haryana, 4 more die

Haryana recorded 82 fresh coronavirus cases on Saturday, while four fatalities due to the infection took place in the state, according to PTI.

The new cases and fatalities raised the infection count to 2,68,969 and the death toll to 3,039 in the state, the bulletin said.

10:23 PM

Over 7,000 get 2nd Covid-19 vaccine dose, total 8 million vaccinated so far

Beneficiaries of the nationwide COVID-19 immunisation drive began receiving second dose with over 7,000 healthcare workers getting the jab on Saturday, 28 days after their first shot on the inaugural day, according to PTI.

The Union Health Ministry said the cumulative number of healthcare and frontline workers vaccinated against coronavirus in the country surpassed 8 million on Saturday.

It said 80,52,454 beneficiaries have been vaccinated through 1,69,215 sessions, according to the provisional report till Saturday 6 pm. These include 59,35,275 healthcare workers and 21,17,179 frontline workers.

9:44 PM

Delhi: 126 new cases; no fresh death, second time in Feb

No fresh death from COVID-19 was recorded on Saturday in Delhi, the second time in February when the single-day fatality count was zero, according to PTI

 

On February 9, no fatality from the coronavirus was registered in the national capital, after a gap of nearly nine months.

 

Delhi recorded 126 fresh COVID-19 cases and no death due to the pandemic on Saturday, while the positivity rate stood at 0.21 per cent, according to the latest bulletin issued by the Delhi health department.

9:25 PM

Nagpur sees 486 cases, 5 deaths, 266 recoveries

The number of COVID-19 cases in Nagpur reached 1,38,300 on Saturday after 486 people were detected with the infection, while the death toll increased by five and the recovery count by 266, an official told PTI.

 

The district has so far witnessed 4,224 deaths and 1,30,227 people have been discharged, leaving it with 3,849 active cases, he added.

8:53 PM

Andhra Pradesh reports 54 fresh Covid-19 cases

Andhra Pradesh logged 54 fresh Covid-19 cases, taking the tally to over 8.88 lakh, the government said on Saturday, according to PTI. The toll remained at 7,162 with no addition to the fatalities. The state also reported 71 more recoveries in 24 hours ending 9 am on saturday, a health department bulletin said.

With 33,415 clinical examinations, the total number of tests conducted so far in the state stood at over 1.35 crore. The total confirmed positive COVID-19 cases were 8,88,814 while the recoveries stood at 8,80,855, it said. The active cases stood at 797. Visakhapatnam district accounted for the most number of cases with nine, followed by Krishnawith eight.

8:01 PM

AIIMS: Covaxin effective for 9-12 months, no serious side-effects so far

Mathematical calculations indicate that Covaxin may provide immunity against Covid-19 for 9 to 12 months, and there may be a booster shot after this period elapses, Y.K. Gupta, the President of AIIMS Bhopal and Jammu, told IANS.

Stressing on the safety and effectiveness of Covaxin, Gupta, former Dean (Academics), and ex-Head, Department of Pharmacology, AIIMS, New Delhi, said that no death has been reported so far due to Covaxin, nor has there been any case of major side-effects, adding that more clarity will emerge by March end when data from Phase 3 trials will be available to establish the efficacy of Covaxin. Read more

7:59 PM

No case of serious or severe adverse event following immunisation so far: Govt

No case of serious or severe Adverse event following immunization (AEFI) or death has been attributable to vaccination till date. Deaths reported so far in cases where vaccination has been conducted to date is 27. There are 3 deaths reported in the past 24 hours who had taken vaccination at some point in time in the recent past: Health Ministry, according to ANI

7:43 PM

Till 6pm today, a total of 80,52,454 vaccinations have been carried out: Health min

7:07 PM

Maharashtra reports 3,611 new Covid-19 cases, 1,773 discharges

6:59 PM

Tamil Nadu reports 477 new Covid-19 cases, 482 recoveries

6:58 PM

Discrepancies found in Covid test data in Bihar's Jamui: Principal Secy

We've found serious discrepancies in Covid test data in Jamui's Barhat & Sikandra. Action has been initiated against concerned officials. Apart from that,at many places, we've been able to trace persons but they gave their phone numbers as ten zeroes: Bihar Principal Secy

6:47 PM

Goa registers 41 new COVID-19 cases; 51 recoveries

Goa's coronavirus caseload reached 54,193, after 41 persons tested positive for the infection on Saturday, an official from the health department said, according to PTI. At least 51 patients were discharged from various treatment facilities, while one succumbed to the infection during the day, the official said.

With this the count of recoveries in the coastal state reached 52,831 and the toll stood at 778, he said. Goa is now left with 584 active cases, he said as per PTI. With the addition of 1,416 samples tested in the day, the total number of tests conducted in the state has gone up to 4,71,165, the official added.

6:10 PM

Kerala reports 5,471 new Covid-19 cases and 5,835 recoveries

5:26 PM

India vaccinates close to 8 million beneficiaries against Covid-19 in 28 days

India has vaccinated close to 80 lakh beneficiaries in its fight against Covid-19, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare informed here on Saturday. "Till 8:00 AM 13 February, 79,67,647 beneficiaries have received the vaccination under the countrywide COVID-19 vaccination exercise. Out of these, 5,909,136 are health care workers and 2,058,511 are front line workers. A total of 1,64,781 sessions have been conducted so far," said MoHFW in an official statement.
 

On February 12, which is day 28 of the vaccination drive, 4,62,637 beneficiaries were vaccinated across 10,411 sessions. The press statement said, "8 states which have vaccinated more than 4,00,000 beneficiaries each account for 59.70 per cent of the total beneficiaries vaccinated in India. Uttar Pradesh alone accounts for 10.8 per cent of the total beneficiaries in India. The number of beneficiaries being vaccinated every day has shown a consistent enhancement."

According to the statement, the total active coronavirus caseload stood at 1,36,571 on February 13. The active caseload consisted of just 1.25 per cent of India's total positive cases.

4:37 PM

No fresh coronavirus cases case in Andamans

No new Covid-19 case was reported in Andaman and Nicobar Islands on Saturday, a health official said, PTI copy said. Two more people have recovered from the disease, he said.

The Union territory's caseload stood at 5,007, of which 11 are active cases, while 4,934 people have recovered from the disease and 62 patients have succumbed to the infection so far, the official said, as per PTI. The administration has so far tested over 2.4 lakh samples for Covid-19, he added.

4:35 PM

Philippines logs 1,960 new Covid-19 cases, more cases of variants detected

The Department of Health (DOH) of the Philippines reported on Saturday 1,960 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the Southeast Asian country to 547,255, according to ANI. The death toll climbed to 11,507 after 12 more patients died from the viral disease, the DOH said. It added 133 more patients recovered, raising the total number of recoveries to 500,781.

The Philippines, with a population of 110 million, has tested over 7.77 million people since the disease emerged in January last year. The DOH has confirmed the detection of 19 additional COVID-19 cases for the more contagious coronavirus variant first found in Britain, raising the number of cases in the country to 44.

As per ANI, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said on Saturday that there is no enough evidence to prove that there is a community transmission of the variant in the Philippines amid the discovery of more cases.

3:20 PM

59 new cases push Odisha's Covid-19 tally to 336,101

Odisha's COVID-19 tally mounted to 3,36,101 on Saturday as 59 more people tested positive for the infection, a health official said, according to PTI. Half of the state's 30 districts did not report any fresh case, he said. Thirty-four new cases were reported in quarantine centres, while 25 infections were detected during contact tracing, the official said.

Bargarh and Sundergarh districts reported the highest number of new cases at nine each. The state now has 787 active cases, while 3,33,351 people have recovered from the disease, 1,910 patients have succumbed to the infection and 53 others have died due to comorbidities, he said. Odisha has so far tested over 80 lakh samples for COVID-19, including 22,389 on Friday.

2:52 PM

No new deaths due to Covid reported in 17 states, UTs in India: Govt

The distribution of daily deaths among states and union territories in a span of 24 hours reflects a significant decline, with 17 of them not reporting any new COVID-19 fatality, the Union Health Ministry said on Saturday.

 

A total of 17 states and union territories that have not reported any new deaths in the last 24 hours are Telangana, Odisha, Jharkhand, Puducherry, Chandigarh, Nagaland, Assam, Manipur, Sikkim, Meghalaya, Ladakh, Mizoram, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Tripura, Lakshadweep, Arunachal Pradesh and Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli. While a total of 13 states and UTs have reported between 1-5 new deaths due to COVID-19. Read more

2:51 PM

Maharastra to start second round of Covid vaccination from February 15

The Maharashtra government will start giving the second dose of COVID-19 vaccine to the healthcare workers in the state from February 15, an official said on Saturday, according to PTI.

 

Those healthcare workers, who have received their first dose of the vaccine and completed the four-week period, will be eligible for the second dose as per the standard guidelines laid down by central health ministry, the official from the state health department. Till Friday, a total of of 6,48,573 healthcare and frontline workers have received their first dose of the vaccine in the state. Read more

1:27 PM

State-wise details of Total Confirmed Covid-19 cases

1:11 PM

Ex-DU Professor GN Saibaba and 4 others test positive for Covid-19, at Central Jail

Ex-DU Professor GN Saibaba and 4 others test positive for Covid-19, at Central Jail where they're lodged. He had sought bail last year, citing cases of infection here. Gangster Arun Gawli and 5 others tested positive a few days ago: Anup Kr Kumre, Superintendent, Central Jail

11:31 AM

Covid-19 didn't deter govt from taking measures for reforms: Sitharaman

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said that the ongoing Covid-19 situation did not deter the Central government from taking measures for reforms that are necessary for sustaining long term growth for this country.

 

While replying to the discussion on the Union Budget in Lok Sabha, Sitharaman said that these reforms will lay a path for India to be one of the top economies of the world in the coming decade and further.

 

"I would like to highlight - stimulus plus reforms. The pandemic did not deter us from taking up reforms that would sustain long term growth. We have taken not just one-off reforms, not just now and then, but reforms rivetted in a policy which will give a neat background, a layout spread before the Parliament for people to know that this is a reform that will lay a path for India to be one of the top economies of the world in the coming decade and further," the Finance Minister said.

11:27 AM

Study: Anti-clotting therapy may prevent death in Covid-19 patients

A clinical study circulated by the British Medical Journal (BMJ) claims strong evidence that prompt preventive blood-thinning drugs may reduce the risk of death in Covid-19 patients.

 

Patients given preventive blood-thinning drugs (prophylactic anticoagulants) within 24 hours of admission to hospital with Covid-19 are less likely to die compared with those who do not receive them, a new study finds.

 

Patients given preventive blood-thinning drugs (prophylactic anticoagulants) within 24 hours of admission to hospital with covid-19 are less likely to die compared with those who do not receive them.

10:11 AM

Coronavirus in India: Latest update by MoHFW

Active cases: 136,571 (Net addition: 645)

Deaths: 155,550 (Net increase: 103)

Cured: 10,600,625 (Net increase: 11,395)

Total cases: 10,892,746 (Net increase: 12,143)

Total vaccination: 79,67,647 (Increase over previous day: 462,637)

 

9:25 AM

Norway's economy weakest in 75 years in 2020 amid Covid-19, but Q4 shines

The Norwegian mainland economy contracted by 2.5 per cent last year in what was probably the weakest development since 1945, Statistics Norway (SSB) said on Friday, although the decline was far less severe than in most other European nations.

 

Norway's fourth-quarter mainland GDP, a measure which excludes oil and gas production, expanded by 1.9 per cent from the preceding three months, SSB said, outpacing a forecast of 1.2 per cent growth in a Reuters poll of 13 economists. Read on...

9:10 AM

Brazil says Amazon coronavirus variant three times more contagious

A coronavirus variant identified in the Brazilian Amazon may be three times more contagious but early analysis suggests vaccines are still effective against it, the country’s health minister said on Thursday, without providing evidence for the claims.

 

Under pressure as the variant hammers the jungle city of Manaus with a devastating second wave of infections, Health Minister Eduardo Pazuello sought to reassure lawmakers that the surge of recent months was unexpected but coming under control. Read on...

8:12 AM

Airlines push White House to reject testing for US flights

Leaders of several major US airlines met online Friday with White House officials to press their case against requiring coronavirus tests for passengers on domestic flights, saying it would undermine the already fragile industry.

 

White House press secretary Jen Psaki downplayed speculation that the Biden administration could soon impose a requirement that passengers on domestic flights first pass a Covid-19 test. But she stopped short of taking the idea off the table.

 

"Reports that there is an intention to put in place new requirements such as testing are not accurate," Psaki said. She described the meeting with CEOs as "brief".

7:48 AM

Covid-19 fatalities in Africa surge amid new variants: WHO

The number of Covid-19 related deaths in Africa has spiked as the continent grapples with local transmission of highly contagious strains of the virus, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday.

 

Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa, said the death toll from the pandemic increased by 40 per cent in January, fuelled by a second wave of infections and new variants that have overwhelmed the continent's public health systems, the Xinhua news agency reported.

 

"The increasing deaths from Covid-19 we are seeing are tragic, but are also disturbing warning signs that health workers and health systems in Africa are dangerously overstretched," Moeti said in a statement issued in Nairobi.

7:46 AM

Covid-19 vaccination: Ready for round-3, but no decision on who'll pay

The government has begun to scale up the Covid-19 vaccination process in multiple steps, but is yet to take a call on how much it would spend.

 

As part of scaling up, the appointment and registration system for the general public is ready to go live. Such a system will enable anybody over 50 years of age or with co-morbidities to get a date, place and time of own choice for getting the vaccine shots. The Union Health Ministry is expected to open up public vaccination by end of March after registration through Co-WIN, the cloud-based end-to-end IT solution for vaccination, sources said. Read on...