Coronavirus LIVE: Maharashtra reports 14,317 new cases, 57 deaths in a day

The 7,25,930 beneficiaries who received the first dose of vaccine on Wednesday included 4,95,026 senior citizens and95,834 individuals aged between 45 and 60 years with specified comorbidities

7:22 PM

LIVE: Night curfew in Punjab's Patiala district from March 12 between 11 pm to 5 am

Punjab: Night curfew to be imposed in Patiala District from March 12 between 11 pm to 5 am; essential services, govt officials and medical emergency services exempted

7:18 PM

WHO still struggling to manage pandemic response

When the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a pandemic one year ago, it did so only after weeks of resisting the term and maintaining the highly infectious virus could still be stopped.

 

A year later, the U.N. agency is still struggling to keep on top of the evolving science of Covid-19, to persuade countries to abandon their nationalistic tendencies and help get vaccines where they're needed most.

 

WHO waved its first big warning flag on January 30, 2020, by calling the outbreak an international health emergency.

7:18 PM

Karnataka reports 783 new coronavirus cases, 406 recoveries and 2 deaths

Karnataka reports 783 new coronavirus cases, 406 recoveries and 2 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the state health department

6:54 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: UK defends AstraZeneca vaccine after Denmark halts jab over blood clot concerns

Coronavirus LIVE: UK defends AstraZeneca vaccine after Denmark halts jab over blood clot concerns

6:29 PM

Active cases touch over 33,000 in Kerala

Kerala's active Covid-19 cases touched 33,785 on Thursday as the state recorded 2,133 fresh infections and 3,753 recoveries, the government said.

 

The toll climbed to 4,355 with 13 more deaths.

 

While the caseload soared to 10,86,012, total recoveries went up to 10,47,226, Health minister K K Shailaja said in a statement.

6:17 PM

Greece outlines new coronavirus relief package

Greece's prime minister has outlined a new 2.5 billion-euro ($3 billion) package of relief measures for businesses and workers affected by the coronavirus pandemic and related lockdowns.

 

Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Thursday the new stimulus package would provide relief for more than 500,000 businesses and freelancers, and millions of workers.

 

The country has been under various forms of lockdown restrictions since early November, with retail businesses and restaurants shut and strict limits imposed on movement outside the home.

 

The new package brings the total funds provided for pandemic relief measures to 11.6 billion euros so far in 2021, Mitsotakis said, adding that 24 billion euros were spent on supporting businesses and workers in 2020.

6:16 PM

Jammu and Kashmir reports 97 new Covid cases, one death

Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday recorded 97 new Covid-19 cases, taking the tally to 1,27,363, while one fresh death was reported in the past 24 hours, officials said.

 

Out of the new cases, 10 were from the Jammu Division and 65 from the Kashmir Division of the union territory, they said.

 

The officials said Srinagar district recorded the highest of 39 cases, followed by 10 in Jammu district.

 

While 11 districts did not report any fresh cases, seven other districts had cases in single digits.

6:12 PM

Kerala reports 2,133 new coronavirus cases, 3,753 recoveries and 13 deaths today

Kerala reports 2,133 new coronavirus cases, 3,753 recoveries and 13 deaths in last 24 hours, according to the state health department 

6:10 PM

Germany: Virus restrictions saved 100,000 lives

The head of Germany's disease control agency says measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus have saved more than 100,000 lives in the country since the start of the pandemic a year ago.

 

In a lecture Thursday to students at the Technical University of Munich, Lothar Wieler said his agency had calculated the lethality of a COVID-19 infection to be about 1.14 per cent for Germany, meaning a nationwide spread of the virus could have led to more than 800,000 deaths.

 

In our country, we saved ten thousands, if not (a) hundred thousand lives already by these public health measures, said Wieler, who heads the Robert Koch Institute.

5:55 PM

Denmark halts use of AstraZeneca vaccine over concerns of blood clots

The health authorities in Denmark said on Thursday that they are temporarily suspending the use of AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine as a precautionary measure after some patients developed blood clots since receiving the jab, including one who died, digital news publisher The Local reported.

 

The move comes "following reports of serious cases of blood clots among people vaccinated with AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine", the Danish Health Authority said in a statement.

 

But it cautiously added that "it has not been determined, at the time being, that there is a link between the vaccine and the blood clots".

5:54 PM

Work-life balance during pandemic burdened women more than men: Report

A majority of women found it much more challenging to manage both professional work from home and personal responsibilities atthe same time than their male counterparts, according to a report.

 

About 61 per cent woman respondents felt that work-life balance during the pandemicwas much more challenging for women than men in their house, job portal SCIKEY Market Network said in a report.

 

It added that the pandemic has been affectingthe woman employees more due to the struggle of managing professional work from home and personal responsibilities atthe same time and location. Eighty-five per cent of women said it was challenging for them to work from home, while81 per cent believed that it was difficult to draw a boundary between personal and professional life, it noted.

5:40 PM

Delhi records 409 fresh Covid-19 cases, highest in over 2 months

Delhi recorded 409 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday, the highest single-day rise in nearly two months, while the positivity rate rose to 0.59 per cent, according to health department data.

 

The city's infection tally stands at 6,42,439, the latest bulletin issued by the Delhi Health Department stated.

 

The death toll rose to 10,934 with three more fatalities, it said.

 

The number of active Covid-19 cases in the city rose to 2,020 from 1,900 on Wednesday, while the positivity rate climbed to 0.59 from 0.52 per cent the previous day.

5:30 PM

Israel vaccinates vast majority of its soldiers

The Israeli military says it has vaccinated the vast majority of its soldiers, allowing the military to resume many of its normal operations.

 

The army announced Thursday that nearly 80 per cent of its soldiers have either been vaccinated or recovered from COVID-19. It expects that number to increase to 85 per cent in the coming days.

 

Military officials say they cannot force remaining soldiers to be vaccinated. But Brig. Gen. Alon Glazberg, the army's chief medical officer, says units in which 90 per cent of the soldiers have been vaccinated or recovered have been branded green status. Such units have much more flexibility in terms of training, gathering and operating.

5:29 PM

Of total vaccines given, 28.77 per cent was in private facilities, 71.23 per cent in public facilities: Govt

Of total Covid-19 vaccine doses administered so far, 28.77 per cent was in private facilities, 71.23 per cent in public facilities: Govt

5:26 PM

Be careful, watchful as pandemic is not over yet, says govt

Be careful, watchful as pandemic is not over yet. Don't take this virus for granted. Please embrace vaccines available: Govt