Covid LIVE: 31,183 new cases in Karnataka; UP curfew extended till May 31

Coronavirus live updates: India reported 257,299 fresh Covid-19 infections today, taking the caseload tally to 26,285,069. Death toll nears 300,000. Stay tuned for corona-related news

Coronavirus live updates: India witnessed 257,299 fresh coronavirus cases on Saturday, taking its tally to 26,289,290, according to MoHFW. The death count rose to 295,525 after 4,194 more patients died in the last 24 hours. Vaccinations showed a downward graph amid fears of a third wave in the next 6-8 months. Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Dr Harsh Vardhan, reviewed public health response to Covid-19 and the progress of vaccination with nine States and UTs. “Recovery outnumbers new active cases for the last 8 days consistently," the minister said.

With 36,184 cases reported in the past 24 hours, Tamil Nadu is leading the state list. It is followed by Karnataka with 32,218 new infections. Maharashtra reported 29,644 cases, Kerala 29,673 and Andhra Pradesh 20,937 cases. The case count was 19,006 for West Bengal

The six most affected states by total cases are Maharashtra (5,527,092), Karnataka (2,367,742), Kerala (2,293,632), Tamil Nadu (1,770,988), Uttar Pradesh (1,659,265), and Andhra Pradesh (1,542,079).

World coronavirus update: Coronavirus cases rise unabated across the globe with 166,451,351 infected by the deadly contagion. While 147,253,554 have recovered, 3,456,917 have died so far. The US remains the worst-hit country with 33,802,324, followed by India, Brazil, France and Turkey. However, in the past seven days, India has added the highest number of fresh cases at 1,984,554, followed by the Brazil (461,731) and Argentina (204,941).

Refer to our previous day's Coronavirus LIVE blog here

9:01 PM

Active cases in Uttar Pradesh drop below 100,000

Active Covid-19 cases in Uttar Pradesh dropped below 1 lakh on Saturday and settled at 94,482, an official said.

 

The infection tally in the state mounted to 1,665,176 with 6,046 fresh cases, while 226 more fatalities pushed the death toll to 18,978.

 

Of the 226 new deaths, state capital Lucknow recorded 21 fatalities, followed by 14 in Varanasi and 12 in Gorakhpur and Kanpur and Meerut 10 each, among others, the UP government said in a statement here. (PTI)

8:52 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: UP extends curfew till May 31

8:30 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Telangana sees 3,308 new cases

Telangana reports 3,308 new coronavirus cases, 4,723 recoveries and 21 death in the last 24 hours, according to the state health department

8:29 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Karnataka reports 31,183 new cases

Karnataka reports 31,183 new coronavirus cases, 61,766 recoveries and 451 deaths, according to the state health department

8:11 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: West Bengal reports 18,863 new cases

West Bengal reports 18,863 new coronavirus cases, 19,202 recoveries and 154 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the state health department

8:04 PM

Coronavirus LIVE | 'Corona Curfew' extended till May 31 in Jammu and Kashmir

Coronavirus LIVE | 'Corona Curfew' extended till May 31 in Jammu and Kashmir

7:53 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: States have mismanaged handling of ventilators, says Piyush Goyal

7:40 PM

Nepal's coronavirus infection count crosses 500,000

Nepal on Saturday reported 8,980 new coronavirus cases, taking the national tally to over 500,000, while the death toll stands at 6,153, according to the health ministry.

 

A total of 129 more fatalities were reported from across the country in the past 24 hours on Saturday, the ministry said., according to Health Ministry officials.

 

Nepal's overall coronavirus infection tally has crossed the 500,000-mark, it said. (PTI)

7:27 PM

AstraZeneca vaccine 80% effective against B1.617.2 variant: UK study

Two doses from either the Oxford/AstraZeneca or the Pfizer vaccine are over 80 per cent effective in preventing infection from the B1.617.2 variant of Covid-19, first discovered in India, a new UK government study has reportedly found.

 

The Oxford/AstraZeneca two-dose vaccine is also being produced by the Serum Institute of India as Covishield and being administered among the adult population in India to protect against the deadly virus.

 

The UK findings are said to be based on data from Public Health England (PHE) and have also revealed that the two doses provide 87 per cent protection from the B.117 variant, first discovered in Kent region of England and also considered highly transmissible. Read here

7:08 PM

Study finds 96% of Covid-19 patients have antibodies year after recovery

A study by Japan's Yokohama City University showed that 96 per cent of people previously infected with Covid-19 still had antibodies a year after recovery, Kyodo News Agency reported.

 

The study looked at results from 250 people aged 21-78 who tested positive for the virus between February and April last year and found that those Covid-19 patients who showed more severe symptoms all had antibodies in the following year, while 97 per cent of those with mild or no symptoms had antibodies in the first six months after being ill.

 

The study also found that only 69 per cent of people who were sick with mild or no symptoms of Covid-19 last year had antibodies to fight the South African variant six months after being ill, 75 per cent against the Indian variant, 81 per cent against the Brazilian variant and 85 per cent against the UK variant. The study further showed that these percentages declined in the following year. Read here

6:51 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: 19,981 new cases in Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh reports 19,981 new coronavirus cases, 18,336 recoveries and 118 deaths in the last 24 hours.

6:41 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: 28,514 new cases in Kerala

28,514 new coronavirus cases, 45,400 recoveries and 176 deaths reported in Kerala today. A total of 2,025,319 recoveries and 7,170 deaths in the state so far. Active cases stand at 289,283: Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan

6:21 PM

Sikkim reports 287 new coronavirus cases, one more fatality

The Covid-19 caseload in Sikkim mounted to 12,808 as 287 more people tested positive for the infection, a health department bulletin said on Saturday.

 

The death toll rose to 221 as one more person succumbed to the disease in the last 24 hours, it said.

 

Of the new cases, 200 were reported from East Sikkim, 55 from South Sikkim, 25 from West and seven from North Sikkim. (PTI)

6:06 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: No events to be organised on 7th anniversary of govt, says BJP chief

5:49 PM

Negative Covid test report must for those coming to Karnataka: State Minister

A negative Covid test report is a must for inter-State travellers coming into Karnataka, said State Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Saturday.

 

"We have barricaded not only major roads but also the minor ones as was done last time," he told reporters here.

 

"We have imposed restrictions, especially in the border districts such as Belagavi, Bidar, Bidar, Kalaburagi, Anekal in Bengaluru (bordering Tamil Nadu) and near Mangaluru (bordering Kerala)," he said.

 

As directed by the Centre, a negative Covid report is a must for the inter-State travellers to enter Karnataka, the Minister said. (PTI)