Coronavirus LIVE: Over 1.6 million vaccinated across the country so far

Coronavirus live updates: India had till Friday vaccinated almost 14 lakh people after starting its inoculation campaign on January 16.

2:32 AM

Italy to take legal action on Covid vaccine delays to get doses

Italy will take legal action and step up pressure in Brussels against Pfizer Inc and AstraZeneca over delays in deliveries of Covid-19 vaccines with a view to securing agreed supplies, Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said on Sunday.
 

The aim was to get the companies to meet the vaccine volumes they had promised and not to seek compensation, Di Maio said on RAI state television.
 

"This is a European contract that Pfizer and AstraZeneca are not respecting and so for this reason we will take legal action... We are working so our vaccine plan programme does not change," he said.
 

Pfizer said last week it was temporarily slowing supplies to Europe to make manufacturing changes that would boost output. On Friday, AstraZeneca said initial deliveries to the region will fall short because of a production problem.
 

Asked why he thought the pharmaceutical companies had been forced to announce reductions, Di Maio said he believed they had simply bitten off more than they could chew.
 

"We are activating all channels so the EU Commission does all it can to make these gentlemen respect their contracts," he said.
 

No one was immediately available to comment at Pfizer in Italy. AstraZeneca did not immediately reply to an email and voice message.
 

Also on Sunday European Council President Charles Michel said the EU would use legal means to ensure pharmaceutical companies respect supply contracts for Covid-19 vaccines.
 

2:31 AM

Israel targets flights, religious scofflaws, as virus rages

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday said Israel will be closing its international airport to nearly all flights, while Israeli police clashed with ultra-Orthodox protesters in several major cities and the government raced to bring a raging coronavirus outbreak under control.
 

The entry of highly contagious variants of the virus, coupled with poor enforcement of safety rules in ultra-Orthodox communities, has contributed to one of the world's highest rates of infections. It also has threatened to undercut Israel's highly successful campaign to vaccinate its population against the virus.
 

In just a month, Israel has vaccinated over a quarter of its 9.2 million people. At the same time, the virus continues to race through the country, with authorities confirming an average of over 8,000 new cases a day.
 

Late Sunday, the Israeli Cabinet approved a tight closure on nearly all incoming and outgoing air traffic. The government said it would make exceptions for a small number of humanitarian cases - such as funerals and medical patients - and cargo flights.
 

“We are closing the skies hermetically, except for really rare exceptions, to prevent the entry of virus mutations, and also to ensure that we progress quickly with our vaccination campaign," Netanyahu said.
 

The order is to begin early Tuesday and remain in effect until Jan. 31. Netanyahu's office said the order still required parliamentary legislation to be finalized.
 

Throughout the pandemic, Israel has restricted entry for most foreigners at its main international airport. But it has made exceptions for certain categories of people, including religious students and Israelis returning from abroad, while allowing Israeli tourists to fly to a handful of “green countries" believed to have low rates of the coronavirus.
 

12:21 AM

Assam reports 16 new Covid-19 cases, 1 fresh fatality

Assam's Covid-19 tally rose to 2,16,992 on Sunday as 16 more people tested positive for the infection, while one fresh fatality pushed the state's coronavirus death toll to 1,078, a health bulletin said.
 

Kamrup Metropolitan and Sonitpur districts reported the highest number of new cases at four each, followed by three in Nagaon, it said.
 

Ninety-nine more people were cured of the disease, pushing the recovery rate among the coronavirus patients to 98.43 per cent.
 

Assam now has 976 active cases, while 2,13,591 people have recovered from the disease, 1,347 coronavirus patients have died due to other reasons and three patients have migrated to other states.
 

The state has so far tested over 63.69 lakh samples for Covid-19, including 6,314 in the last 24 hours, it said.
 

Meanwhile, 13,881 people have been vaccinated in the state so far.
 

12:15 AM

Nine new Covid-19 cases in UP's Gautam Buddh Nagar

Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddh Nagar recorded nine fresh cases of Covid-19 on Sunday that pushed the district's infection tally to 25,315, official data showed.
 

The number of active cases in the district rose to 56 from 55 the previous day, while its recovery rate reached 99.41 per cent, according to the data released by the UP Health Department for a 24-hour period.
 

Eight more patients got discharged during the period with the overall recoveries reaching 25,168, the fifth highest in the state.
 

Gautam Buddh Nagar has a Covid-19 death toll of 91 with a mortality rate of 0.35 per cent.
 

Gautam Buddh Nagar stands 32nd among districts in the state in terms of active caseload and 28th in mortality due to the pandemic, the statistics showed.
 

The number of active Covid-19 cases in UP came down to 7,082 from 7,330 on Saturday while the overall recoveries reached 5,83,114 and the death toll climbed to 8,617 on Sunday, according to the data.
 

9:41 PM

France faces 3rd lockdown if curfew not enough

France's government may impose a third lockdown in the coming days if an existing 12-hour-a-day curfew doesn't significantly slow virus infections.
 

Exactly a year after France announced Europe's first confirmed case of the coronavirus, Health Minister Olivier Veran said in an interview published Sunday in the Le Parisien newspaper that if infections don't drop, and “if the variants start to spread everywhere, we will take extra measures. And that's called confinement. ... We will close down.” An official in French President Emmanuel Macron's office said Sunday that “everything is on the table” but no firm decisions will be made until the effect of the nationwide 6 p.m.-6 a.m. curfew is clear in the coming week.
 

In addition to the curfew, French restaurants, tourist sites and many other public places have been closed since October.
 

But virus infections, hospitalizations and deaths have started rising again this month. France, which has lost at least 72,877 lives to the pandemic, has vaccinated more than 1 million people amid bureaucratic and logistical delays.
 

France on Sunday started requiring a negative Covid-19 test from travelers arriving by air or boat from other European Union countries. Such tests are already required for non-EU visitors, who also must go into 7-day quarantine upon arrival.
 

9:39 PM

Nashik sees 157 Covid-19 cases, 1 death; 1,240 tests conducted

The number of COVID-19 cases in Nashik reached 1,14,781 after 157 people were detected with the infection on Sunday, while the toll rose by one to touch 2,040, an official said.
 

The number of people who have been discharged stands at 1,11,480, he added.
 

With 1,240 samples being tested on Sunday, the overall number of tests in Nashik went up to 4,85,816, he said.
 

9:36 PM

Covid-19: 573 new cases, four fatalities in Karnataka

As many as 573 fresh coronavirus cases and four more deaths in Karnataka on Sunday took the total infections and fatalities to 9.36 lakh and 12,197 respectively, the health department said.
 

The cases include 9,16,325 discharges including 401 on Sunday and 7,510 active cases including 155 patients in the ICU.
 

Most of the cases and deaths occurred in Bengaluru urban district alone with 306 fresh infections and two fatalities.
 

Cumulatively, the city has reported 3,97,133 infections, 4,378 deaths 3,87,763 discharges, including 163 on Sunday, and 4991 active cases.
 

According to the health bulletin, 42 infections were reported in Dakshina Kannada, 31 in Tumakuru, 27 in Mysuru, 19 in Chikkaballapura, 18 in Belagavi, 17 in Udupi, 16 in Kalaburagi, 15 in Hassan and 10 in Davangere.
 

Cases were also reported in Ballari, Bengaluru Rural, Chitradurga, Dharwad, Gadag, Kodagu, Mandya, Shivamogga and Uttara Kannada.

9:32 PM

32 new coronavirus cases, another death in Chandigarh

Chandigarh on Sunday reported 32 new cases of the novel coronavirus, raising the infection tally to 20,718, according to a medical bulletin.
 

The death of a 65-year-old coronavirus positive woman took the toll to 334 in the Union Territory, the bulletin said.
 

There are 136 active Covid-19 cases in Chandigarh, it said.
 

Twenty-two more patients were discharged after they recovered from the infection, taking the number of recoveries to 20,248 in the UT, according to the bulletin.
 

A total of 2,08,107 samples have been taken for Covid-19 testing in Chandigarh and 1,86,447 of them tested negative while reports of 92 are awaited, it said.
 

8:53 PM

Two new Covid-19 cases in Ladakh

Ladakh recorded two fresh cases of the coronavirus, taking the tally to 9,675, even as eight more patients recovered from the infection in the Union Territory, officials said.

 

The new recoveries pushed the Covid-19 recovery count to 9,484 in Ladakh, the officials said.

 

The fresh cases were detected in Leh on Saturday, they said.

8:43 PM

128 new Covid cases in Haryana

Haryana on Sunday reported one fatality linked to Covid-19, bringing the death toll to 3,010, while 128 fresh cases pushed the state's infection tally to 2,67,203, according to a government bulletin.

 

According to the state health department's daily bulletin, the new fatality was reported from Karnal district.

 

8:17 PM

Fourth Zimbabwean Cabinet member dies in Covid surge

Four Zimbabwean Cabinet ministers have died of Covid-19, three within the past two weeks, highlighting a resurgence of the disease that is sweeping through this southern African country.

 

President Emmerson Mnangagwa said the coronavirus is reaping a grim harvest in the country.

 

The pandemic has been indiscriminate. There are no spectators, adjudicators, no holier than thou. No supermen or superwomen. We are all exposed, Mnangagwa said on a nationally televised address.

 

Mnangagwa presided at the burial of one Cabinet minister last week, shortly after the death of the foreign minister was announced. Then came the death of the transport minister. Several other high-profile politicians and prominent Zimbabweans have also died recently.

8:09 PM

Gujarat sees 410 new Covid-19 cases

Gujarat has recorded 410 fresh coronavirus positive cases in the last 24 hours, taking the count of infections to 259,097, the state Health department said.

 

With one more person succumbing to the viral disease, the overall toll in the state mounted to 4,376, the department said in a release.

8:04 PM

US NSA talks to Israeli counterpart

Reaffirming Biden Administration's unwavering commitment to Israel's security, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan in a call with his Israeli counterpart Meir Ben Shabbat extended an invitation to begin a strategic dialogue in the near term, the White House said on Sunday.

 

During the call on Saturday, Sullivan reaffirmed President Joe Biden's unwavering commitment to Israel's security and expressed appreciation for Shabbat's contributions to the bilateral partnership, said National Security Council Spokesperson Emily Horne.

 

Mr. Sullivan confirmed the United States will closely consult with Israel on all matters of regional security. He also extended an invitation to begin a strategic dialogue in the near term to continue substantive discussions, Horne said.

8:01 PM

With 410 new Covid-19 cases, Gujarat's tally rises to 259,097

8:00 PM

Oman extends land border closure for 1 more week over Covid

The authorities of Oman have extended the closure of land borders for one more week, until February 1, as part of efforts to contain the spread of Covid-19, state-run Oman News Agency reported on Sunday.

 

In December, the Arab nation closed land, sea, and air borders for one week as a new Covid-19 mutation was discovered in some countries. On January 17, the authorities closed the land border for one week.

6:52 PM

Tamil Nadu reports 569 new cases

6:26 PM

UP records 297 fresh cases, 8 more deaths

Uttar Pradesh's Covid-19 caseload mounted to 5,98,713 on Sunday with 297 fresh infections while the death toll climbed to 8,617 as eight more people succumbed to the disease.

 

Thirty fresh cases were reported from Lucknow, the state government said in a statement issued here on Sunday.

 

Of the eight fatalities, two were reported from Sonbhadra and one each from Kanpur, Meerut, Gorakhpur, Lakhimpur Kheri, Etawah and Mirzapur.

6:25 PM

PM exhorts youths to defeat 'network of lies and rumours' on vaccination

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said Indian scientists have done their duty by developing the Covid-19 vaccine and "now we have to fulfil ours" by defeating through the right information every network spreading lies and rumours.

 

Addressing NCC cadets, NSS volunteers and artists who would be participating in the Republic Day parade, Modi said such organisations have always played their role in dealing with challenging times.

 

"In Covid times also, the work done by you is laudable. When the government and administration needed it, you came forward as volunteers and provided help," he said.

6:24 PM

Several countries have shown interest in procuring Tejas aircraft: HAL chairman

The delivery of the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) to the Indian Air Force under a Rs 48,000-crore deal will begin from March 2024 and around 16 aircraft will be rolled out annually till the completion of the total supply of 83 jets, Chairman and Managing Director of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited R Madhavan said on Sunday.

 

In an interview to PTI, Madhavan also said that a number of countries have shown keen interest in procurement of the Tejas aircraft and that the first export order is likely to come by in the next couple of years.

 

Madhavan said that Tejas Mark 1A jet has superior performance levels compared to China's JF-17 combat aircraft as it has better engine, radar system and electronic warfare suit, besides an edge in the overall technology.

6:24 PM

Andhra logs 158 new coronavirus cases

Andhra Pradesh's Covid-19 count rose to 887,000 as 158 fresh cases were reported in 24 hours ending 9 am on Sunday.

 

No deaths were reported, but 155 coronavirus patients had recovered in the state in a day, the latest bulletin said.

 

The active cases remained 1,476 after a total of 878,387 recoveries and 7,147 deaths, the bulletin said.

6:14 PM

Maharashtra records 2,752 new Covid cases

Maharashtra's coronavirus infection count on Sunday increased by 2,752 cases to reach 20,09,106, the state health department said.

 

As the virus claimed 45 lives during the day, the death toll reached 50,785, it said in a statement.

 

A total of 1,743 patients were discharged on Sunday following recovery. This took the overall recovery count of the state to 1,912,264.

5:09 PM

UK university scientists finalise nasal spray that blocks out Covid: Report

A nasal spray which can prevent a coronavirus infection for up to two days is being prepped for mass production by scientists at the University of Birmingham with the hope of having them available over-the-counter in pharmacies in a few months, a UK newspaper report said on Sunday.

 

Dr Richard Moakes, the study's lead researcher, told The Sunday Telegraph' that he is confident in the spray's formula to help unlock society from social distancing restrictions and get schools going again.

 

The nasal spray, which has not yet been named, is made from ingredients that are already approved for medical use, meaning it is safe for use by humans and does not require further approval.

5:06 PM

Indonesia reports 11,788 newly-confirmed Covid-19 cases

The Covid-19 cases in Indonesia rose by 11,788 within one day to 989,262, with the death toll adding by 171 to 27,835, the Health Ministry said on Sunday.

 

According to the ministry, 7,751 more people were discharged from hospitals, bringing the total number of recovered patients to 798,810.

 

The virus has spread to all the country's 34 provinces.

5:05 PM

Covid test mandatory for guests attending Varun Dhawan's wedding

Bollywood actor Varun Dhawan is getting married amid the Covid- 19 pandemic. Hence it is not surprising that as a precautionary measure, a Covid test has been made mandatory for all the guests entering the wedding arena.

 

As the preparations have begun in full swing for the Bollywood actor's big fat wedding to be held later in the day, celebrity photographer Viral Bhayani informed in an Instagram post that "a mandatory Covid test was taken for everyone entering the wedding arena."

 

Varun will tie the knot with his childhood sweetheart Natasha Dalal at 'The Mansion House' resort in Maharashtra's Alibaug on Sunday.

4:48 PM

Delhi reports 185 new Covid-19 cases

Delhi reported 185 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours taking the total number of reported cases in the national capital to 633,924.

 

According to the Delhi Health department, the death toll has gone up to 10,808 with nine more people succumbing to the virus.

 

It said 405 Covid-19 patients have recovered taking the total recoveries in Delhi to 621,375.Delhi has 1,741 active cases currently.

3:57 PM

First confirmed case of Covid in pet reported in South Korea

In the first case involving a pet, a kitten has tested positive for the Covid-19 in South Korea.

 

The infected kitten tested positive on Thursday and was found at a religious facility in the southeastern city of Jinju in South Gyeongsang Province, according to government officials.

 

"During a recent tracking process involving a mass outbreak, health authorities found that a pet has tested positive for Covid-19 in the first such case," Yonhap News Agency quoted Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun as saying on Sunday.

 

Twenty-nine people were first confirmed to be infected after visiting there earlier this month, and more than 100 linked to the facility, including them, have since tested positive.

3:56 PM

Vaccinated people may still transmit Covid-19, warns England's chief medic

One of England's leading medical officers on Sunday urged the public to continue to follow the strict lockdown rules because any vaccine-related immunity from Covid-19 takes at least three weeks to kick in.

 

Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, England's Deputy Chief Medical Officer, also warned that there is no clear evidence yet to show that vaccinated people cannot transmit the deadly virus on to others.

 

Regardless of whether someone has had their vaccination or not, it is vital that everyone follows the national restrictions and public health advice, as protection takes up to three weeks to kick in and we don't yet know the impact of vaccines on transmission, said Van-Tam.

3:39 PM

Delhi records 185 fresh cases of Covid-19; 9 new fatalities push death toll 10,808

3:03 PM

Aviation Ministry urges Health Ministry to prioritise vaccination of airlines, airports employees

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has written to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) to consider aviation employees as frontline coronavirus workers and prioritise their COVID-19 vaccination.

 

The letter addressed to the Health Ministry read, "Considering that the frontline workers of airlines and airports are also involved in the movement of vaccines, this Ministry recognises the merit in the proposal and requests the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to include front line workers of airlines and airports along with front line workers mentioned in the operational guidelines released on 28th of December 2020."

 

"If the request is considered favourably, the Ministry would coordinate for enumeration of these personnel to be covered under vaccination program", it added.

2:41 PM

Around 60 paramedical staff of Delhi prisons dept vaccinated

Around 60 paramedical staff of the Delhi prisons department have been inoculated so far during the Covid-19 vaccination drive, officials said on Sunday.

 

The vaccination drive began in the national capital on January 16 and the healthcare workers, who were at the forefront of the battle against the Covid-19 pandemic, got the first shots of the vaccine.

 

"Around 60 paramedical staff of the prisons department have been vaccinated so far. They were vaccinated on different dates at the Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital. The vaccination will help boost the morale of the jail officials and security forces personnel, who were at a high risk of catching the virus due to the nature of their job," Director General (Prisons) Sandeep Goel said.

 

According to a senior jail official, the prisons department has around 200 paramedical staff.