Coronavirus LIVE: Maharashtra sees 9,798 fresh cases; 5,783 in Karnataka

Coronavirus live updates: Coronavirus-related deaths worldwide pass 4 million, according to one tally, as many countries struggle to procure enough vaccines to inoculate their populations.

3:04 AM

Bengal reports 2,788 new Covid-19 cases, 58 fresh fatalities

West Bengal's Covid-19 tally rose to 14,77,037 on Friday as 2,788 more people tested positive for the infection, while 58 fresh fatalities pushed the state's coronavirus death toll to 17,240, a health bulletin said.
 

North 24 Parganas district registered the highest number of fresh cases at 388 followed by Kolkata (287), Purba Medinipur (265) and Darjeeling (240).
 

North 24 Parganas also recorded the highest number of fresh fatalities at 15, followed by Kolkata (11) and Nadia and Jalpaiguri (six each).
 

As many as 2,112 more people have been cured of the disease, taking the recovery rate among the coronavirus patients in the state to 97.30 per cent.
 

The state now has 22,691 active cases.
 

A total of 1.35 crore samples have been tested in the state so far, in which the positivity rate was 5.04 per cent, it said.
 

The state has thus far vaccinated over 1.86 crore people, including 2.02 lakh on Friday.
 

12:36 AM

Indian sprint icon Milkha Singh dies after a month-long battle with Covid

Indian sprint legend Milkha Singh died on Friday after a month-long battle with Covid-19, during which he lost his former national volleyball captain wife Nirmal Kaur to the same ailment.

 

The Padma Shri awardee was 91 and is survived by his golfer son Jeev Milkha Singh and three daughters.

 

"He breathed his last at 11.30 pm," a family spokesperson told PTI.

 

His condition turned critical this evening as he developed complications, including fever and dipping oxygen saturation levels, after a bout with Covid-19, in the Intensive Care Unit of the PGIMER hospital here.

 

He had contracted Covid-19 last month and tested negative for the virus on Wednesday when he was shifted to general ICU in another block of the hospital.

 

Milkha had been "stable" before Thursday evening.

 

Milkha's 85-year-old wife Nirmal, who had also been infected by the virus, passed away at a private hospital in Mohali on Sunday.

 

Milkha was admitted to PGIMER on June 3 after his oxygen levels dipped at home following treatment at the Fortis hospital in Mohali for a week.

File photo of Milkha Singh | Photo: @ANI

 

The legendary athlete is a four-time Asian Games gold medallist and the 1958 Commonwealth Games champion but his greatest performance remains the fourth-place finish in the 400m final of the 1960 Rome Olympics.

 

He also represented India in the 1956 and 1964 Olympics and was bestowed the Padma Shri in 1959.

9:37 PM

Maharashtra easing of curbs: Most of Thane in level 2, Palghar in level 3

Palghar district on Friday fell from category two to category three as part of the Maharashtra government's five-level plan to ease curbs as per positivity rate and oxygen bed occupancy levels.
 

An order issued by Palghar collector Manik Gursal said this category three notification includes Vasai Virar municipal limits.
 

Meanwhile, Thane collector Rajesh Narvekar, in a notification issued during the day, said Thane, Navi Mumbai and Kalyan-Dombivali have been placed under category two, while all other regions of the district have been kept in category three, which means the extent of relaxation of coronavirus-induced restrictions would be lesser in the latter than others.
 

Under the state government's plan to bring back normalcy amid a fall in cases, cities and districts in category one will see the highest degree of relaxation from curbs, while those in category five will see almost all 'break the chain' restrictions in place.
 

The categorisation of areas, and resultant lifting or reimposing of curbs, is reviewed on a weekly basis. 
 

9:36 PM

Brazil still debating dubious virus drug amid 500,000 deaths

As Brazil hurtles toward an official Covid-19 death toll of 500,000 — second-highest in the world — science is on trial inside the country and the truth is up for grabs.
 

With the milestone likely to be reached this weekend, Brazil's Senate is publicly investigating how the toll got so high, focusing on why President Jair Bolsonaro's far-right government ignored opportunities to buy vaccines for months while it relentlessly pushed hydroxychloroquine, the malaria drug that rigorous studies have shown to be ineffective in treating Covid-19.
 

The nationally televised hearings have contained enough scientific claims, counterclaims and outright falsehoods to keep fact-checkers busy.
 

The skepticism has extended to the death toll itself, with Bolsonaro arguing the official tally from his own Health Ministry is greatly exaggerated and some epidemiologists saying the real figure is significantly higher — perhaps hundreds of thousands higher.
 

Dr. Abdel Latif, who oversees an intensive care unit an hour from Sao Paulo, said the fear and desperation caused by the coronavirus have been compounded by misinformation and opinions from self-styled specialists and a lack of proper guidance from the government.
 

“We need real humane public health policy, far from the political fight and based on science and evidence," he said.
 

Brazil's reported death toll is second only to that of the US, where the number of lives lost has topped 600,000. Brazil's population of 213 million is two-thirds that of the US.
 

9:35 PM

Covid: Delhi Police issues over 1,650 challans for not wearing face masks

Over 1,650 challans were issued to people across the city on Thursday for not wearing face masks, police said.
 

On Thursday, 1,848 challans were issued for various Covid-19-related violations, they said.
 

Of these, 1,676 were for not wearing face masks and 172 for violating social distancing norms, said Anil Mittal, Additional PRO (Delhi Police).
 

According to the data shared from April 19 to June 17, a total of 1,38,348 challans have been issued across the city.
 

Of them, 1,16,800 people were issued challans for not wearing face masks, 19,823 for violating social distancing norms, 1,532 for holding large public gatherings and congregations, 72 for spitting and 121 for consumption of liquor, pan, gutkha, tobacco etc, the data showed.
 

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had announced a lockdown in the national capital on April 19 in view of an exponential rise in coronavirus cases in the city.
 

Delhi recorded 165 new Covid-19 cases and 14 deaths on Friday, while its positivity rate stood at 0.22 per cent, data shared by the Health department here showed.
 

These new fatalities have pushed the death toll in the city to 24,900, it stated.
 

9:34 PM

165 new Covid-19 cases, 14 more deaths in Delhi; positivity rate 0.22%

The national capital on Friday recorded 165 fresh Covid-19 cases and 14 more deaths due to the disease while the positivity rate stood at 0.22 per cent, according to health department data.
 

With the fresh cases, Delhi's caseload has increased to 14,32,033. The latest fatalities pushed the death toll to 24,900, the bulletin stated.
 

The number of active cases dropped to 2,444 on Friday from 2,554 the day before, it said.
 

Delhi is reeling from a brutal second wave of the pandemic that swept the country. Daily cases and deaths began spiralling upwards from April 19 onwards.
 

The city recorded the biggest single-day jump of over 28,000 cases on April 20. It registered a record 448 deaths on May 3.
 

The number of cases has shown a downward trend over the last several days and the positivity rate, too, has been shrinking. The number of daily deaths has also shown a declining trend.
 

The infection rate, which had surged to 36 per cent in the last week of April, has fallen below 0.50 per cent now.
 

A total of 76,480 tests, including 53,724 RT-PCR tests, were conducted the previous day, the bulletin said.
 

Over 14 lakh patients have recovered from coronavirus, it said.
 

The number of people under home isolation dropped to 698 on Friday from 733 the previous day while the number of containment zones fell to 5,452 from 5,799 on Thursday, it said.
 

9:32 PM

Brazil to hit 500K deaths, 2nd highest globally

The official Covid-19 death toll in Brazil is about to hit 500,000, the second highest in the world behind the United States.
 

Official data showed some 2,000 Covid-19 deaths per day in Brazil in the past week, representing one-fifth the global total. Only 11 per cent of Brazil's population is fully vaccinated.
 

Brazil's Senate is investigating how the toll got so high, focusing on why President Jair Bolsonaro's far-right government ignored opportunities to buy vaccines for months while it relentlessly pushed hydroxychloroquine.
 

That's a malaria drug that rigorous studies have shown to be ineffective in treating Covid-19.
 

The nationally televised hearings have contained scientific claims, counterclaims and outright falsehoods.
 

The skepticism has extended to the death toll itself, with Bolsonaro arguing the official tally from his own Health Ministry is greatly exaggerated.
 

However, some epidemiologists saying the real death number is significantly higher — perhaps hundreds of thousands higher.
 

Bolsonaro has waged a 15-month campaign to downplay the coronavirus and keep the economy humming. He dismissed the scourge early on as “a little flu” and scorned masks. He tested positive for Covid-19 last year.
 

The U.S. recently surpassed 600,000 confirmed deaths.
 

9:32 PM

Italy reports 35 coronavirus deaths on Friday, 1,147 new cases

Italy reported 35 coronavirus-related deaths on Friday against 37 the day before, the health ministry said, while the daily tally of new infections fell to 1,147 from 1,325.
 

Italy has registered 127,225 deaths linked to Covid-19 since its outbreak emerged in February last year, the second-highest toll in Europe after Britain and the eight-highest in the world.
 

The country has reported 4.25 million cases to date.
 

Patients in hospital with Covid-19 - not including those in intensive care - stood at 2,680 on Friday, down from 2,888 a day earlier.
 

There were 11 new admissions to intensive care units, down from 15 on Thursday. The total number of intensive care patients fell to 416 from a previous 444.
 

Some 216,026 tests for Covid-19 were carried out in the past day, compared with a previous 200,315, the health ministry said.
 

9:31 PM

Maharashtra records 9,798 Covid-19 cases, 198 deaths

Maharashtra on Friday recorded 9,798 new Covid-19 cases, taking its case tally to 59,54,508, while 198 fatalities raised the death toll to 1,16,674, the health department said.
 

Of 198 deaths, 133 occurred in the last 48 hours while 65 took place in the last week. Another 450 deaths which had taken place earlier were added after reconciliation of records. The death toll, overall, went up by 648.
 

Discharged patients outnumbered new infections. With 14,347 patients getting discharged during the day, the total of recoveries reached 56,99,983.

There are 1,34,747 active cases in the state.
 

The recovery rate of Maharashtra is now 95.73 per cent, while fatality rate is 1.96 per cent.
 

With 2,20,897 tests conducted during the day, the number of samples tested for coronavirus so far rose to 3,90,78,541.
 

There are 8,54,461 people in home quarantine while 4,831 are in institutional quarantine.
 

Mumbai city added 758 cases which increased its caseload to 7,18,590, while 19 deaths took the fatality count to 15,266.
 

The larger Mumbai division including neighbouring satellite towns reported 2,051 Covid-19 cases and 52 deaths, taking the region's caseload to 15,71,515, and death toll to 31,129. Palghar district in the division reported 18 deaths on Friday.
 

9:30 PM

WHO warns of rising Covid cases, deaths in Africa

Top World Health Organization officials warned Friday about rising numbers of Covid-19 cases and deaths in Africa, saying a “huge number” of countries have been forced to suspend giving second doses of coronavirus vaccines because of short supplies.
 

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus cited a 52 per cent rise in coronavirus cases and a 32 per cent rise in deaths in Africa related to the pandemic in the last week, “and we expect things only to get worse.” A growing number of wealthy countries have pledged to share billions of doses, but WHO officials say time is of the essence.
 

Dr. Bruce Aylward, a top adviser to the WHO chief, estimated more than 30 or 40 countries initially set to receive second doses of AstraZeneca doses won't be getting them right away. He says the UN health agency was working with manufacturers for more doses.
 

Aylward says countries in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Latin America, the Middle East, and South Asia “have all been hit hard by this.” 
 

8:58 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: 762 cases in Mumbai in a day

8:45 PM

Haryana govt says all offices in state secretariat will resume working with full staff strength

Haryana government says all offices in state secretariat will resume working with full staff strength

8:39 PM

Decision on pending entrance exams JEE, NEET soon: Ministry of Education

The Ministry of Education is expected to soon decide on conducting the two remaining editions of the engineering entrance examination JEE-Mains and the medical entrance test NEET in August, according to officials.

 

"The situation is being reviewed to decide on the schedule of the pending editions of JEE-Mains and whether NEET-UG can be conducted on August 1," a senior official said.

 

From the current academic session, JEE-Mains is being conducted four times a year to offer flexibility to students and a chance to improve their scores. The first phase in February was followed by the second phase in March, while the next phases were scheduled for April and May. (PTI)

8:35 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: 5,783 new cases in Karnataka

8:21 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Maharashtra sees 9,798 new cases

8:07 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Tamil Nadu reports 8,633 fresh cases

7:52 PM

Covid LIVE: Delta variant becoming globally dominant, says WHO official

The World Health Organization's chief scientist said on Friday that the Delta variant of Covid-19, first identified in India, is becoming the globally dominant variant of the disease."The Delta variant is well on its way to becoming the dominant variant globally because of its increased transmissability," WHO's Soumya Swaminathan told a news conference. Reuters

 

7:45 PM

Second wave may worsen stressed assets in financial system: Rakesh Mohan

The second wave of Covid-19 may worsen stressed assets in the banking system, adding pressure on the financial stability, said former RBI deputy governor Rakesh Mohan.

 

He said the Indian banking system has been reeling under the pressure of non-performing assets (NPAs) since 2015.

 

Various resolution measures including Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code were undertaken to bring down NPAs and then Covid-19 hit in 2020 impacting the growth process, he said during a virtual conference organised by India International Centre and Research & Information System for Developing Countries. Read here

7:38 PM

Uttar Pradesh records 53 coronavirus deaths, 291 new infections

Uttar Pradesh recorded 53 Covid-19 deaths and 291 fresh cases on Friday, taking the total number of fatalities and positive cases to 22,081 and 17,03,882 respectively.

 

The maximum of nine deaths were reported in Lucknow, followed by seven in Shahjahanpur; five in Ayodhya; four in Lakhimpur Kheri; three in Meerut; two each in Mathura, Azamgarh,Ghazipur, Gonda, Pilibhit and Jalaun; and one each in Gorakhpur, Ghaziabad, Deoria, Mahrajganj, Moradabad, Unnao, Mirzapur, Bahraich, Sant Kabirnagar, Chandauli, Bijnor, Shrawasti and Chitrakoot, a Health Department bulletin said.

 

Of the 291 fresh cases, Lucknow reported the highest at 30, followed by Prayagraj (22), Meerut (13), Mathura (12), Muzaffarnagar and Lakhimpur Kheri (11 each) and Gautam Budhnagar (10) among others, the bulletin said. (PTI)

7:28 PM

Decision on further relaxing Covid curbs in Karnataka on Saturday: CM

A decision on further relaxing lockdown restrictions in the state after June 21 when the current curbs come to an end, will be taken on Saturday, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said.

 

"The situation is improving. There is also a possibility of a third wave in the future, but despite that we will have to give some relaxations. We will discuss it at a meeting tomorrow evening, and take a decision," Yediyurappa told reporters on Friday.

 

According to official sources, the government may announce relaxations in 11 districts where lockdown measures have continued, while further relaxations in terms of movement of people and opening of businesses may be announced in the remaining 19 districts from June 21. Read here

7:19 PM

Private sector engagement crucial for success of vaccination drive: Health Ministry

Private sector engagement is critical for the success of the nationwide Covid-19 vaccination program to reach the largest possible number of people, the health ministry said in a briefing on Friday.

 

Dr VK Paul, Member, Health of the Niti Aayog, in the briefing said that private sector procurement of Covid-19 vaccines would also be a systematic process and state governments would play an important role when the Centre's new vaccination program commences on June 21.

 

"75 per cent of domestically produced vaccines will be procured by the Centre and distributed to the state for free for implementation. 25 per cent will be done by the private sector. States will see the demand and vaccination capabilities of private hospitals in the state, aggregate it and share with the Centre," Paul said. (ANI)

7:11 PM

Kerala registers 11,361 new coronavirus infections, 90 fatalities

Kerala on Friday reported 11,361 new coronavirus cases and 90 more deaths, taking the caseload to 27,85,304 and the death toll to 11,833.

 

A total of 12,147 persons recuperated from the disease, taking the number of those cured to 26,65,354.

 

Currently, there are 1,07,682 persons under treatment, and 4,69,522 under observation of which 27,905 are in isolation wards of various hospitals. Read here

7:03 PM

Zydus Cadila likely to seek EUA for its ZyCoV-D vaccine in 7-8 days

Pharmaceutical major Zydus Cadila has told the Centre that it could apply for emergency use authorisation (EUA) for ZyCoV-D vaccine in the next seven-eight days.

 

It will be the second indigenous Covid-19 vaccine to apply for such authorisation. It will also be the world's first DNA vaccine against coronavirus.

 

"Zydus Cadila has told the government that it could apply for emergency use authorisation for ZyCoV-D vaccine in the next seven-eight days," a government source said.

 

ZyCoV-D is a DNA Covid vaccine, which carries the genetic code for that part of a virus that triggers the immune system of the body. Read here

6:56 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: 603 fresh cases recorded in Manipur today

6:51 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: 222 fresh cases in Uttarakhand

6:38 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Goa sees 315 new cases

6:28 PM

Confirmed Covid cases in Moscow hit daily record

Confirmed Covid cases in Moscow hit a daily record Friday and increased nearly 30 per cent from the day before.

 

Authorities reported 9,056 new cases in Russia's capital, the city's highest daily surge since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

 

In all of Russia, 17,262 new infections were registered Friday, the highest daily tally since early February.

 

Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said this week that Moscow was seeing the effects of new virus variant that is more aggressive, more difficult to tolerate, spreads faster. (AP)

6:19 PM

Lockdowns have taken some toll on the economy, altered outlook: Shaktikanta Das

The lockdown restrictions and containment measures undertaken by the states have led to a significant moderation of new infections and active cases; at the same time, it has taken some toll on the economy, as reflected in high-frequency economic and mobility indicators, said Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Shaktikanta Das during the latest monetary policy meeting.

 

According to the minutes of the meeting released by RBI, Das sees a normalised activity across the country from the beginning of July if downward infection trend continues.

 

"Overall, the second wave of Covid-19 has altered the near-term outlook, and policy support from all sides – fiscal, monetary and sectoral – is required to nurture recovery and expedite return to normalcy. The dent on economic activity due to the second wave of the virus has necessitated the continuation of monetary measures to support the process of economic recovery to make it durable," Das added.

 

The MPC has decided to keep the policy repo rate unchanged at 4 per cent and vowed to continue with the accommodative stance as long as necessary to "revive and sustain growth on a durable basis and continue to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 on the economy." Read full RBI release here

6:07 PM

AstraZeneca claims victory in tussle with EU over deliveries

AstraZeneca is claiming victory in a court tussle with the European Union over allegations that the coronavirus vaccine-maker was not producing shots fast enough.
 

AstraZeneca said in a statement Friday that the EU's executive branch, the European Commission, had requested that the drug-maker deliver 120 million vaccine doses in total by the end of June 2021, but that a judge in Brussels ordered delivery of 80.2 million doses by 27 September 2021. (AP)

6:02 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Uttarakhand govt forms SIT to probe fake testing during Kumbh