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