LIVE: 25 states/UTs reduced VAT on petrol and diesel so far, says Centre

Covaxin, a vaccine developed in India, was found to have a 77.8 per cent efficacy rate against symptomatic Covid-19, said The Lancet

9:01 PM

Amit Shah in Azamgarh tomorrow, Akhilesh to visit Gorakhpur

Union Home Minister and BJP leader Amit Shah will be visiting Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav's Lok Sabha constituency Azamgarh on Saturday, on a day the opposition leader will be in Gorakhpur, the UP chief minister's home turf, PTI reported.

 

Akhilesh Yadav will start third leg of his "Samajwadi Vijay Yatra" from Gorakhpur.

 

Amit Shah will be in Azamgarh and Basti on Saturday, BJP's regional vice-president Dr Satyendra Sinha said.

8:35 PM

Over 1.11 billion vaccine doses administered in India so far: Health Ministry

The cumulative COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country crossed 111 crore (1.11 billion) on Friday, the Union Health Ministry said, according to PTI.

 

Over 52 lakh vaccine doses were administered on Friday till 7 pm. The tally is expected to increase with the compilation of the final reports for the day by late in the night, it said.

 

The vaccination exercise as a tool to protect the most vulnerable population groups in the country from COVID-19 continues to be regularly reviewed and monitored at the highest level, the ministry underlined.

8:14 PM

Covid-19: 227 new cases, 2 deaths in Karnataka

Karnataka has reported 227 fresh cases of coronavirus and 2 deaths, taking the total number of infections to 29,91,369 and the toll to 38,140, the health department said on Friday, PTI reported.

 

The day also saw 206 discharges, taking the total number of recoveries in the state so far to 29.45 lakh.

 

Out of 227 new cases reported, 147 were from Bengaluru Urban, as the city saw 62 discharges and 1 death.

8:14 PM

Aim to make Indian automobile sector no. 1 in world: Nitin Gadkari

Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Friday said his aim was to make the Indian automobile industry number one in the world, for export of electric vehicles, in five years time, PTI reported.

 

"India's future is very bright, presently our automobile industry's turnover is Rs 7.5 lakh crore. Within five years our it will be more than 15 lakh crore and this is the industry which is generating the highest number of jobs, exports and revenue to state and central governments," Gadkari said.

 

Speaking at the first edition of Ananthkumar memorial lecture virtually, he said his vision and commitment is to make the Indian automobile industry number one in the world for export of electric car, scooter, buses, auto rickshaw and trucks, in five years.

7:50 PM

Pacific leaders agree on vaccines but not on US hosting APEC

Pacific Rim leaders agreed to do all they can to improve access to coronavirus vaccines and reduce carbon emissions, but failed to reach agreement on whether the U.S. should host talks in two years' time, AP reported.

 

U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping were among those taking part in the online meeting of 21 leaders at the end of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum on Friday, which was being hosted virtually by New Zealand.

 

The focus was on areas in which the unlikely mix of leaders could find common ground. But the failure of the group to endorse a U.S. bid to host APEC in 2023 pointed to the deep divisions that lie just beneath the surface.

7:49 PM

Tamil Nadu reports 812 new Covid cases

7:23 PM

NASA's SpaceX Crew-3 mission reaches ISS

Running more than 30 minutes ahead of schedule, the SpaceX Crew-3 astronauts have safely docked to the International Space Station (ISS), less than 24 hours after launching from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, IANS reported.

 

NASA astronauts Raja Chari, Tom Marshburn, Kayla Barron, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Matthias Maurer opened the hatch of their Crew Dragon spacecraft Endurance and participated in a welcome ceremony with their new Expedition 66 crewmates, the US space agency said in a statement.

 

The newest crew to the microgravity laboratory is the agency's third crew rotation mission with SpaceX, and will remain on board until April 2022 as part of Expedition 66.

7:22 PM

Pak's Lahore declared most polluted city globally after breaching AQI 700 mark

Pakistan's Lahore has been declared the most polluted city globally after the city recorded its highest ever smog levels as the Air Quality Index (AQI) went above 700, reported local media, ANI said.

 

The Air Quality Index data was released on Thursday and put Lahore on the list of the most polluted cities in the world.

 

The AQI remained above 500 for the fourth consecutive day in various parts of the city which worsened to 700 after 12 pm on Thursday, reported Samaa TV.

7:00 PM

Kerala reports 6,674 new Covid cases

6:59 PM

Delhi air pollution: Central Pollution Control Board advises people to stay indoors