Covid LIVE: Gujarat CM rolls out fresh curbs, night curfew till June 26

Coronavirus live updates: Tamil Nadu recorded 18,023 cases in the last 24 hours. Kerala registered 15,567 infections, Maharashtra 10,891, Karnataka 9,808 , Delhi 316. Stay tuned for corona-related new

11:56 PM

US to buy 500 million Pfizer vaccines to share globally

The US will buy 500 million more doses of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine to share through the global Covax alliance for donation to 92 lower income countries and the African Union over the next year, a person familiar with the matter said Wednesday.

 

President Joe Biden was set to make the announcement Thursday in a speech before the start of Group of Seven summit. According to the source, 200 million doses enough to fully protect 100 million people would be shared this year, with the balance to be donated in the first half of 2022. (PTI)

10:36 PM

Jharkhand extends lockdown-like restrictions till June 17

The Jharkhand government on Wednesday extended Covid-related lockdown-like restrictions till June 17 with some relaxations, including expanding time of opening of shops across the state by two hours till 4 pm, an official said.

 

Inter-state and Intra-state bus transport shall be prohibited except for the buses specifically used by the district administration till June 17 morning, as per the notification in this regard.

 

Earlier, an official had said that the restrictions are applicable till June 16, but the government notification stated that the curbs will be in placer till June 17.

 

E-passes will be mandatory for inter-state and inter- district movement in private vehicles but for movement within the district, no e-passes will be required. (PTI)

10:28 PM

Bengal reports 5,384 new Covid cases, 95 fresh fatalities

West Bengal's Covid-19 tally rose to 14,42,830 on Wednesday as 5,384 more people tested positive for the infection, while 95 fresh fatalities pushed the state's coronavirus death toll to 16,555, a health bulletin said.

 

North 24 Parganas district reported the highest number of fresh fatalities at 20, followed by 17 in Kolkata.

 

Of the 95 deaths, 53 were due to comorbidities where Covid-19 was incidental, the bulletin said. (PTI)

9:51 PM

Jharkhand says vaccine wastage falls to 1.5% from earlier 4.5%

Jharkhand on Wednesday said its vaccine wastage figure has dipped to 1.5 per cent from earlier 4.5 per cent on the back of an efficient vaccination drive in the state.

 

The efforts made by the state government are now showing results in terms of paced up speed of inoculation and reduced vaccine wastage in the state, it said.

 

As per the vaccine data from National Health Mission Jharkhand, in a short span of two weeks between May 26 and June 8 almost 6 lakh new vaccine doses were administered across Jharkhand.

 

The vaccine coverage in Jharkhand was 40.12 lakh doses on May 26 which increased to 46.07 lakh doses on June 8 morning, as per a statement from the state government. (PTI)

9:46 PM

Covid-19: Haryana records 40 deaths, 528 fresh cases

Haryana on Wednesday reported 40 Covid-19 deaths as 528 fresh cases surfaced, taking the state's infection count to 7,64,094.

 

So far, the infection has claimed 8,829 lives in the state.

 

According to a Health Department bulletin, five deaths were reported from Hisar, four from Panipat and three each from Kaithal, Jind, Jhajjar, Bhiwani and Sirsa districts.

 

Sirsa reported the maximum 69 cases while 58 infections surfaced in Yamunanagar. (PTI)

9:30 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Jammu and Kashmir sees 1,098 new cases

9:19 PM

Coronavirus latest: Rajasthan sees 30 more deaths, 520 new cases

Rajasthan recorded 520 fresh coronavirus cases and 30 related deaths on Wednesday, raising the infection tally to 9,48,024 and the toll to 8,749, according to an official report.

 

Three new fatalities each were reported from Jaipur, Sriganganagar, Udaipur and Jodhpur besides deaths recorded in other cities, the report said.

 

A maximum of 115 new cases were registered in Jaipur, while 46, 45, 40 and 32 more people tested positive in Alwar, Hanumangarh, Bikaner and Jodhpur, respectively. (PTI)

9:01 PM

Karnataka reports 10,959 new Covid cases, 192 deaths in last 24 hours

Karnataka reports 10,959 new Covid cases, 192 deaths in last 24 hours

8:51 PM

Delhi reports 337 new Covid cases, 36 deaths

Delhi reported 337 new Covid cases and 36 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the Delhi government's daily health bulletin.

 

This is the second straight day that the national capital has witnessed a slight surge in daily cases. Delhi had reported 231 new cases on Monday, the lowest since March 2, which increased to 316 on Tuesday.

 

The daily test positivity rate stood at 0.46 per cent on Wednesday. The national capital presently has 4,511 active cases, of which 1,555 are in home isolation. The active caseload dropped below the 5,000-mark for the first time since March 24 on Tuesday when it stood at 4,962.

8:47 PM

Quicker vaccination coverage critical for regaining growth momentum: FinMin

Quickening the pace and coverage of vaccination of people against COVID is critical for regaining growth momentum as economic activities are inextricably linked to the path of the pandemic, the finance ministry said in its monthly economic report on Wednesday.

 

"As we cautiously recuperate from the second wave, rapidly improving vaccination delivery and frontloading the fiscal measures planned in the Union Budget hold key to invigorating the investment cycle in the coming quarters," it said.

 

Regarding the impact of the second COVID wave, the report said that with state-level lockdown restrictions being more adaptive to learnings from the first wave, manufacturing and construction are expected to experience a softer economic shock in the current quarter. READ ON...

8:43 PM

West Bengal reports 5,384 new Covid cases, 10,512 recoveries, and 95 deaths in past 24 hours

West Bengal reports 5,384 new Covid cases, 10,512 recoveries, and 95 deaths in the past 24 hours 

8:39 PM

Covid LIVE: Gujarat CM rolls out fresh curbs, night curfew till June 26

Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Wednesday chaired a core committee meeting wherein it was decided to roll out fresh COVID-19 curbs in the state. To prevent the spread of the virus, a night curfew will be in place till June 26.

 

As per the official release, "Important decisions were taken related to COVID-19 in the meeting of the core committee chaired by CM Vijay Rupani."

 

Restaurants and hotels can be maintained during this period i.e. from June 11-26, 2021 from 9 am to 7 pm with 50 percent of its seating capacity. Takeaway can be done till 9 pm and home delivery can be done till 12 pm. Night curfew will be enforced every day from 9 pm to 6 am till June 26.

8:27 PM

Kerala sees 16,204 new Covid-19 cases, takes tally to 26,444,141

Kerala reported 16,204 fresh COVID-19 cases and 156 deaths on Wednesday, taking the tally to 26,44,141 and the toll to 10,437. Recoveries continued to outnumber fresh cases with 20,237 testing negative, taking the total number to 25,24,248.

 

Among the districts, Ernakulam reported 2,059 cases, the highest in the state, followed by Kollam with 1,852 and Thiruvananthapuram with 1,783, health minister Veena George said in a release.

 

"Out of those infected today, 154 reached the state from outside, while 15,048 contracted the disease through their contacts. The source of infection of 928 are yet to be traced. READ MORE...

8:22 PM

Govt allocated additional 1.7 lakh vials of Amphotericin-B drug to states/UTs: Sadananda Gowda

8:16 PM

Covid TPR in Kerala still high as 16,204 new cases registered

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday said that 16,204 people tested Covid positive out of 1,15,022 samples sent for testing in the past 24 hours, showing the state's test positivity rate (TPR) was still at a high 14.09 per cent.

 

A statement issued here by Vijayan said there were 1,39,064 active cases on Wednesday, while 20,237 people turned negative, taking the total number of cured people in the state to 25,24,248.

 

Another 156 deaths were recorded, taking the total death tally to 10,437.

8:08 PM

Mumbai reports 788 Covid-19 cases, 27 deaths; 511 recover

Mumbai reported 788 new COVID-19 cases and 27 fresh fatalities, a sharp rise from just seven deaths a day ago, on Wednesday, taking the infection tally to 7,13,790 and the toll to 15,100, the city civic body said.

 

Notably, this was the tenth day in a row when Mumbai's daily coronavirus cases have remained below the 1,000-mark.

7:55 PM

Covaxin Phase-3 efficacy analysis to be made public by July: Bharat Biotech

Covaxin manufacturer Bharat Biotech said that the detailed analysis of the phase-3 clinical trial data of its Covid-19 vaccine will be made public by July. The company is also doing phase-4 trials for real world effectiveness of vaccines, reports said.

 

In a series of tweets, Raches Ella, project lead, Covid19 vaccines at Bharat Biotech said that the last volunteer of their phase-3 clinical trial (sample size 25,800) was vaccinated in mid-March. “Mandatory CDSCO/FDA requirement of a two-month safety follow-up for all volunteers landed us in Mid May,” Ella said. He claimed that this was the largest efficacy trial conducted in the developing world. In mid-May, the company said it has sufficient data for quality checks and analysis. READ MORE...

7:45 PM

Andhra Pradesh registers 8,766 new Covid cases, 67 deaths, and 12,292 recoveries today

Andhra Pradesh registers 8,766 new Covid cases, 67 deaths, and 12,292 recoveries today; active cases at 1,03,995

7:44 PM

Maharashtra reports 10,989 Covid cases, 261 deaths

Maharashtra on Wednesday reported 10,989 new COVID-19 cases, taking the state's caseload to 58,63,880. It also recorded 261 fatalities, pushing the death toll to 1,01,833, health officials said.

 

The daily cases in the state have dipped to around 10,000 in the last two days. Maharashtra had reported 9,927 cases on March 9 this year after which the numbers had increased.

 

As many as 16,379 patients were discharged on Wednesday, taking the number of recovered persons to 55,97,304. The state's recovery rate is 95.45 percent and the case fatality rate is 1.74 percent, the health department said. There are 1,61,864 active cases in the state now. As many as 2,20,912 coronavirus tests were done during the day, taking the total to 3,71,28,093.

7:26 PM

Covid LIVE: 10,989 new cases in Maharashtra

7:10 PM

Nepal reports 4,344 new Covid-19 cases; tally reaches 615,652

Nepal reported 4,344 new cases of coronavirus, taking the nationwide tally to 615,652, while the death toll rose to 8,179 with 81 more fatalities, heath officials said on Wednesday.

 

Of the new infections, 915 were recorded in the Kathmandu Valley, health ministry spokesperson Dr Krishna Prasad Poudel said.

 

With 510,298 patients recovering from the disease so far, there are currently 80,336 active cases of COVID-19 in the country, he said.

7:04 PM

Covid LIVE: Delhi reports 337 new cases, 36 deaths; positivity rate 0.46%

6:40 PM

WTO to intensify talks over protections of COVID-19 vaccines

World Trade Organisation member states agreed on Wednesday to intensify talks toward improving access to COVID-19 products, as developing nations push for a proposal to ease patent and other legal protections on coronavirus vaccines - and some wealthier countries remain stiffly opposed.

 

A WTO panel focusing on intellectual property, which includes patents on technological know-how like vaccines and the processes to manufacture them, wrapped up a two-day meeting on Wednesday with an agreement to start a text-based process to pull together proposals about improving the fight against COVID-19 through the Geneva-based trade body's intricate system of rules.

 

The goal is to help jump-start lagging efforts to get vaccines to developing-world countries that badly need them, according to a Geneva-based trade official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak publicly on the matter.

6:16 PM

Project launched for children orphaned by Covid in Haryana

Haryana State Legal Services Authority Executive Chairman, Justice Rajan Gupta, on Wednesday launched projects to create awareness about rights and benefits of the children who were orphaned amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

Justice Gupta emphasized the need of awareness as it is the only effective tool that can bring changes in the mindset towards social responsibilities and to fight the pandemic.

 

"Awareness has a great impact on our society in making it more sensible, responsible and reliable. With this view, the legal services authority has launched projects aiming maximum mass awareness and strengthening the legal services," he said.

6:09 PM

DRDO invites expression of interest for bulk production of Covid drug 2-DG

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), which developed 2 -Deoxy-D-Glucose (2-DG), a drug used for the treatment of COVID-19 patients, has called for Express of Interest (EOI) to transfer the technology to Indian pharmaceutical industries for production.

 

The 2-DG is developed by the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), a lab of DRDO, in collaboration with Dr Reddy' Laboratories.

 

The third phase trials of 2-DG began in January, while the phase trials were conducted over three month period between June and September last year and involved 110 patients. READ ON...

5:55 PM

COVAXIN phase 3 full trial data will be made public in July: Bharat Biotech

Hyderabad-based vaccine manufacturer Bharat Biotech, which is carrying out its phase 3 trial will publish the data in July following that the company will be applying for the full licensure of COVAXIN.

 

"It is critical to understand, and further emphasise the Phase-3 data will first be submitted to Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), followed by peer-reviewed journals, with a timeline of 3 months for publication, and as communicated earlier COVAXIN® phase 3 results full trial data will be made public during July. Once data from the final analysis of phase III studies are available, Bharat Biotech will apply for full licensure for COVAXIN®," Bharat Biotech informed ANI on Wednesday.

 

Regarding the efficacy of the vaccine, Bharat Biotech said that, "Vaccine efficacy refers to the ability of a vaccine to bring about the intended beneficial effects on vaccinated individuals in a defined population under ideal conditions of use. When it comes to efficacy and safety, the efficacy data of Covaxin have been reported at overall efficacy is 78 per cent and efficacy against hospitalizations is 100 per cent."

5:53 PM

Karnataka may go for Covid unlock in 4 to 5 phases, says minister

Karnataka Revenue Minister R Ashoka on Wednesday indicated that the state may go for unlocking in four to five phases after June 14, as the COVID-19 induced lockdown comes to an end.

 

"Keeping the number of deaths and new cases in mind and aimed at bringing down the COVID infections further, lockdown will not be relaxed at one go.

 

Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai, Health Minister K Sudhakar and I have held detailed discussions with the Chief Minister in this regard," Ashoka said. Speaking to reporters here he said, lockdown will be relaxed in phases, most probably it may be done in four to five phases. READ ON...

5:33 PM

Covid-19 caused more complications than flu in kids: Study

Covid-19 produced more symptoms and complications than seasonal influenza in children, while death was rare among them, revealed a large new study.

 

Early in the pandemic, opinions around the impact of Covid-19 on children and adolescents ranged from it being no more than the common flu to fear of its potential impact on lesser-developed immune systems.

 

To understand, researchers from IDIAP Jordi Gol in Barcelona compared the real-world observational data of more than 242,000 children and adolescents diagnosed with Covid-19, including nearly 10,000 hospitalised youths, to more than 2,000,000 diagnosed with influenza across five countries (France, Germany, South Korea, Spain, and the US) to provide a clearer picture of Covid's impact.

5:26 PM

Parents lost to Covid-19, young lives fall vulnerable to exploitation

As India reeled under a brutal second wave of the pandemic, appeals for adoption of children whose parents had succumbed to Covid-19 circulated widely on social media. When an official of the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) called up a number, posing as an interested party, adoption was promised but in exchange for cash — the going rate was Rs 8 lakh for the custody of a boy and Rs 5 lakh for a girl. READ MORE...

 

 

5:21 PM

15 days special casual leave for govt employees whose parents test Covid positive: Centre

All central government employees will be able to get 15 days of special casual leave (SCL) in case their parents or any dependent family members test COVID-19 positive, according to an order issued by the personnel ministry.

 

"In case of active hospitalisation of any of the family members/parents even after 15 days of the expiry of SCL, the government servants may be granted leave of any kind due and admissible beyond 15 days of SCL till their discharge from hospital," it said.

 

The ministry has come out with the detailed order on treatment, regularisation of hospitalization or quarantine period during COVID-19 pandemic after it received several queries related to it and keeping in view the "hardships faced by the government servants".