Covid LIVE: Kerala logs 54k new cases; night curfew in Gujarat till Feb 4

The number of active cases in Kerala are at 333,447

10:32 PM

Night curfew extended in 27 Gujarat cities till Feb 4

Night curfew imposed in 27 cities in Gujarat to curb the coronavirus pandemic has been extended till February 4, an official said on Friday.

 

The decision to extend the date of the night curfew was taken by Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel during a core committee meeting in Gandhinagar, a release said, adding that though number of new coronavirus cases were declining in Gujarat, 12,131 persons were found infected during the last 24 hours.

 

After a sudden surge in cases, the state government had, on January 21, announced night curfew in 19 cities apart from eight major ones where it was imposed much earlier.

 

The tenure of the curfew between 10 pm to 6am was to end on January 29, so the decision was taken to extend it, an official said.

 

While shops, shopping complexes, marketing yards, salons, spas and beauty parlors, etc are allowed to operate till 10 pm, home delivery of food from hotels and restaurants is allowed 24 hours, said the release.

9:55 PM

Delhi records 4,044 Covid cases, 25 deaths; positivity rate down to 8.6%

Delhi on Friday reported 4,044 fresh COVID-19 cases and 25 deaths, while the positivity rate dropped slightly to 8.6 per cent, according to data shared by the city health department. With this, the national capital's case count increased to 17,64,41 and the death toll climbed to 25,769.

 

The number of COVID-19 tests conducted a day ago stood at 47,042, the data shared in a bulletin stated.

 

Delhi had on Thursday reported 4,291 cases with a positivity rate of 9.56 per cent and 34 deaths. On Wednesday, it had logged 7,498 cases with a positivity rate of 10.59 per cent, and recorded 29 deaths.

9:39 PM

Determination of inadequate representation of SC/STs in govt jobs discretion of State: SC

The Supreme Court Friday refused to "lay down any yardstick" for granting reservation in promotion to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in government jobs saying determination of their inadequate representation is the discretion of the State.

 

The top court said it is neither legal nor proper for the Courts to issue directions or advisory sermons to the executive in respect of the sphere which is exclusively within their domain under the Constitution.

 

"Determination of inadequate representation of SCs and STs in services under a State is left to the discretion of the State, as the determination depends upon myriad factors which this Court cannot envisage...

9:22 PM

Tamil Nadu logs 26,533 new Covid cases, 48 deaths

Tamil Nadu on Friday added 26,533 new Covid-19 infections, pushing the caseload to 32,79,284, while 48 more deaths took the death toll to 37,460, the health department said.

 

Recoveries eclipsed new infections with 28,156 people getting discharged in the last 24 hours, aggregating to 30,29,961 leaving 2,11,863 active infections, a medical bulletin said.

 

Chennai accounted for the majority of new coronavirus infections with 5,246 followed by Coimbatore 3,448, Tiruppur 1,779, Chengalpet 1,662, Salem 1,387, Erode 1,261, while the remaining was spread across other districts.

 

A total of 1,45,376 samples were tested in the last 24 hours, pushing the cumulative number of specimens examined to 6,13,46,285, the bulletin said.

9:12 PM

Rajasthan adds 8,125 Covid cases, 21 deaths

Rajasthan on Friday logged 8,125 fresh coronavirus cases and 21 more deaths, according to health department data. Of the fresh cases, Jaipur reported 2,300, Jodhpur 707, Udaipur 657, Bharatpur 478, Kota 458 and Alwar 408, the data showed.

 

Of the latest deaths, five each were reported in Jaipur and Jodhpur, two each from Ajmer, Barmer, Bikaner and Jhalawar, and one each from Karauli, Nagaur and Udaipur. So far, 9,202 people have succumbed to coronavirus in Rajasthan, the data stated.

9:04 PM

Soon, no fuel without valid pollution-under-check certificate in Delhi: Govt

Having a valid pollution-under-check certificate will soon be made mandatory for refueling vehicles at fuel pumps in the national capital. The city government will put a draft policy in this regard in the public domain for inviting suggestions and objections.

 

Environment Minister Gopal Rai said the policy will help ensure that polluting vehicles do not ply in Delhi and residents enjoy cleaner air.

 

Reena Gupta, advisor to the minister, said the policy affirms the commitment of the Kejriwal government towards ensuring clean air for all citizens of Delhi.

8:56 PM

Night curfew to remain imposed in Gujarat

8:32 PM

Akhilesh Yadav's chopper delayed due to high air traffic at Delhi: Airport official

7:50 PM

India, China agreed to stay in close contact to work out mutually acceptable resolution: MEA

India and China agreed at the previous round of Corps Commander-level talks to stay in close contact and maintain dialogue via military and diplomatic channels to work out a mutually acceptable resolution of the remaining issues related to the LAC in the western sector at the earliest, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Friday.

 

Asked about the border standoff with China, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, "As you are aware, the 14th round of India-China Corps Commander level meeting was held on January 12 this year. The two sides agreed that resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest would help in the restoration of peace and tranquillity along the LAC in the western sector and enable progress in bilateral relations."

7:49 PM

Bihar Rail Exam agitation: Bandh hits normal life

Normal life in Bihar was on Friday affected by a dawn to dusk 'bandh' called by students' bodies in protest against anomalies in the format of exams conducted by the Railway Recruitment Board and police high handedness against protesting students.

Opposition parties like the RJD, the Left and the Congress extended their support to the bandh, took active part in many places and expressed satisfaction over its "success".

The BJP, which is in the focus of the agitation as it rules at the Centre besides shares power in the state, urged the student community to have faith in the Narendra Modi government and be wary of playing into the hands of RJD-led opposition.

7:48 PM

Sikkim reports 165 new Covid-19 cases, one more fatality

Sikkim reported 165 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, which pushed the tally to 37, 816, the health department said in its bulletin.

One more person succumbed to the infection, raising the toll to 428, the bulletin said. East Sikkim logged 96 fresh cases followed by West Sikkim at 57, South at seven and North Sikkim at five.

Currently, the Himalayan state has 1,450 active cases. Altogether, 35,296 people have recovered from the disease, while 642 others have migrated out.

7:11 PM

Bikram Singh Majithia filed his nomination today

7:08 PM

Delhi reports 4,044 new Covid cases

6:48 PM

Andhra Pradesh records 12,561 fresh coronavirus cases

Andhra Pradesh reported 12,561 fresh cases of COVID-19 and 12 more deaths on Friday.

 

The latest health bulletin said 8,742 infected people also got cured in the state in the last 24 hours ending at 9 am on Friday. The active case count now stands at 113,300, the bulletin said.

 

The gross COVID-19 positive cases in the state touched 22,48,608 while the number of recoveries reached 21,20,717. The death toll now stands at 14,591.

6:32 PM

Kerala reports 54,537 new Covid cases

5:14 PM

Manohar Singh, brother of Punjab CM, files his nomination from Bassi Pathana

3:03 PM

The postmortem of Soundarya is underway at Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital in Bengaluru

2:43 PM

Yediyurappa's granddaughter found hanging at Bengaluru apartment

1:52 PM

DCGI grants nod to Bharat Biotech for intranasal booster dose trials

1:14 PM

Kia India names new chief for sales

Kia India on Friday said it has appointed MyungSik Sohn as Chief Sales Officer Sohn will oversee the planning and execution of sales strategies aimed at driving the automaker's growth, PTI reported.

1:05 PM

L&T unit wins ONGC contract for oil pipeline

Larsen & Toubro (L&T) on Friday said that its subsidiary has won a large offshore contract from ONGC for the seventh development phase of their pipeline replacement projects. This contract, awarded through international competitive bidding, reposes ONGC's confidence in L&T Hydrocarbon Engineering (LTHE) capabilities in strategic oil and gas sector, said the private company.

12:24 PM

China to jail 47 execs of steel firm for faking air pollution data

China will jail forty-seven steel company officials for faking air pollution data, in a sign that Beijing’s crackdown on firms that are flouting environmental rules is intensifying. The officials who worked at four mills in Tangshan city near Beijing, China’s top steelmaking hub, were give prison sentences from six to eighteen months, the municipal government said in a statement on its WeChat channel that cited court documents, Bloomberg reported.

11:35 AM

SC refuses to set yardstick for reservation in promotion to SCs/STs

The Supreme Court Friday refused to lay down a yardstick for granting reservation in promotion to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in government jobs. The court said states are obligated to collect data on inadequacy of representation of SCs/STs, PTI reported.

11:10 AM

SC stays for 3 weeks Madras HC order winding up Spicejet

The Supreme Court on Friday stayed for three weeks an order by the High Court in Madras directing winding up proceedings against SpiceJet after the airline claimed that it is looking to settle the dispute over its outstanding dues with Credit Suisse. ANI reported this.

10:53 AM

Railway job exam results spark Bihar protest

The protests in Bihar involve the Railway Recruitment Board's Non-Technical Popular Categories (RRB-NTPC) exam 2021. Students have opposed a decision by the railways to hold the exam in two stages, claiming that the second stage is unfair to those who have cleared the first stage, results for which were released on January 15, said NDTV.com.

10:24 AM

Apple sells iPhone worth $71.6 bn despite supply constraints

Despite supply constraints, Apple iPhone revenue grew 9 per cent (on-year) to an all-time record of $71.6 billion in the October-December quarter of 2021. The company expects another record January-March quarter this year despite global supply chain issues and chip shortage.

According to the company, thanks to a remarkable customer response to its new iPhone 13 family, it set records in both developed and emerging markets.

"We reached an all-time high in the iPhone active installed base and the latest survey of US consumers from 451 research indicates iPhone customer satisfaction of 98 per cent," Apple CFO Luca Maestri said in the earnings call late on Thursday.

9:53 AM

New Zealand reports 105 new community cases of COVID-19

New Zealand reported 105 new COVID-19 cases in the community on Friday, including 15 infections with the Omicron variant of the virus, bringing the total tally in the country's current community outbreak to 11,713.

The newly reported community cases of COVID-19 included confirmed infections with the Omicron variant and those linked to a previously reported Omicron case, according to the Ministry of Health.

"The number of cases and contacts are expected to grow given the highly transmissible nature of Omicron and as we learn more from case interviews," the ministry said in a statement.

9:52 AM

India reports over 252,209 Covid cases, 627 fatalities

With 251,209 people testing positive for the coronavirus infection in a day, India's total tally of cases increased to over 40.6 million, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Friday.

 

The death toll has climbed to 492,327 with 627 fatalities reported during the 24-hour period, the data updated at 8 am showed.

 

The active cases decreased by 96,861 to reach 2,105,611 -- 5.18 per cent of the total infections -- while the country's recovery rate stands at 93.60 per cent, the ministry said.

 

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 15.88 per cent, while the weekly positivity rate was 17.47 per cent, according to the health ministry.

 

9:28 AM

Global Covid caseload tops 365.6 mn

Amid an ongoing resurgence across the world, the global coronavirus caseload has topped 365.6 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 5.63 million and vaccinations to over 9.89 billion, according to Johns Hopkins University.

In its latest update on Friday morning, the University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload and the death toll stood at 365,609,893 and 5,635,890, respectively, while the total number of vaccine doses administered has increased to 9,892,070,039.

The US continues to be the worst-hit country with the world's highest number of cases and deaths at 73,401,269 and 878,335, according to the CSSE.

9:27 AM

Malaysia reports 5,439 new COVID-19 infections, 10 new deaths

Malaysia on Friday recorded 5,439 new COVID-19 infections for the past 24 hours, bringing the total tally to 2,850,408, according to the health ministry.

The newly reported infections included 332 imported cases and 5,107 local transmissions, showing data released on the ministry's website.

An additional 10 deaths from the pandemic were reported in the Southeast Asian country, bringing the total death toll to 31,940.