Coronavirus LIVE: Night curfew in Bhopal, Indore from Wednesday

Coronavirus live updates: Gujarat govt has decided to implement night curfew in Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat and Rajkot from March 17 till March 31. Stay tuned for corona-related news

Coronavirus live updates: India reported 24,492 fresh Covid-19 cases on Monday pushing the overall tally to 11,409,831, according to MoHFW. The death toll from the deadly infection jumped to 158,892. India ranks 11th among worst-hit nations by active cases. Maharashtra reported 15,051 new coronavirus cases on Monday, taking the state's caseload to 23,29,464, while 48 fatalities took the death toll to 52,909. The five most affected states by total cases are Maharashtra (2,329,464), Kerala (1,089,478), Karnataka (959,338), Andhra Pradesh (891,563), and Tamil Nadu (858,967).

World coronavirus update: Coronavirus cases rise unabated across the globe with 120,754,630 infected by the deadly contagion. While 97,394,782 have recovered, 2,671,535 have died so far. The US remains the worst-hit country with 30,136,475, followed by Brazil, India, Russia and the United Kingdom. However, it terms of the total number of active cases, US tops the charts, followed by France, Brazil, Belgium and UK.

11:00 PM

Made micro comtainment zones, lockdown isn't necessary now: Pune Mayor

9:09 PM

Pune reports 3,574 fresh Covid-19 cases, 1,577 recoveries

8:52 PM

Tamil Nadu reports 867 new coronavirus positive infections, five deaths

Continuing with its upward trend, Tamil Nadu logged 867 new COVID-19 infections on Tuesday, pushing the caseload to 8,61,429, while five more fatalities took the toll to 12,556. Chief Minister K Palaniswami during his poll campaign urged people to take the vaccine shots following the rise in new infections, as officials were asked to implement the COVID-19 standard operating procedure strictly.

 

The total recoveries went up to 8,43,423 with 561 patients being discharged today, a health department bulletin said. Active cases stood at 5,450. Chennai accounted for most of the new infections with 352 cases being reported, aggregating 2,39,483 till date. The metropolis also leads in the number of fatalities with 4,182.

8:41 PM

Night curfew in Indore, Bhopal city areas from tomorrow

In view of rising coronavirus cases in the state, the Madhya Pradesh government on Tuesday decided to impose night curfew in Bhopal and Indore municipal areas and also ordered closure of shops at 10 PM in eight other cities.

 

The restrictions would come into force from Wednesday, an official said.

 

The decision was taken by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan after reviewing the COVID-19 situation at a meeting with senior officials, he said. The night curfew will be in place in Indore and Bhopal cities from 10 PM to 6 AM, an order issued by Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Dr Rajesh Rajora said.

8:33 PM

Covid-19 vaccine not exported at expense of Indians: Dr Harsh Vardhan

A total of 5.94 crore doses of Indian-made COVID-19 vaccine has been exported to 72 countries till March 15 but it is in no way being sent at the expense of the people of India, Health Minister Harvardhan informed Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

 

Replying to supplementaries during Question Hour, he said so far around 3 crore people have been administered the COVID vaccine and on Monday alone a total of 30.39 lakh people in the country took the jabs.

 

"So far the government has provided 5.94 crore vaccine doses to 72 countries till yesterday. This has been done as the government considers that the whole world is our family," he told the house. READ MORE...

 

8:24 PM

Punjab reports 1,475 new Covid-19 cases, 751 discharges, and 38 deaths in a day

8:07 PM

China to permit Indians and people from 19 countries to return only if they take Chinese vaccines

China has made it mandatory for people coming from India and 19 other nations to get Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccines if they want to travel to this country.

 

"For the purpose of resuming people-to-people exchanges in an orderly manner, starting from 15 March, 2021, the Chinese Embassies and Consulates in India will provide the persons having taken Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccine and holding the Certificates of Vaccination," a notice posted on the Chinese Embassy in New Delhi said.

 

The announcement makes little difference for thousands of Indian students besides professionals working in China and their family members who are stuck in India awaiting Beijing to permit their return as there are no Chinese vaccines available in India.

8:03 PM

Govt places new purchase order with SII for 10 crore doses of Covishield vaccine

The Centre has placed a new purchase order with the Serum Institute of India (SII) for the supply of 10 crore doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, Covishield, each costing Rs 157.50, including GST, according to a PTI report.

 

The HLL Lifecare Limited, a public sector undertaking, has issued the supply order on behalf of the Union health ministry on March 12 in the name of Prakash Kumar Singh, Director, Government and Regulatory Affairs at the Pune-based SII.

 

The cost of the 10 crore doses would be borne by the health ministry under the budgetary allocation for the purpose. The expenditure for the earlier orders of the vaccines was funded through the PM Cares Fund. India has approved two vaccines against COVID-19 -- Covishield, manufactured by the SII, and the indigenously-developed Covaxin of Bharat Biotech -- for restricted emergency use in the country.

8:02 PM

Night curfew to be imposed in Rupnagar District of Punjab from 11 pm to 5 am

7:58 PM

Karnataka sees 1,135 new Covid-19 cases, 561 recoveries, and six deaths in the last 24 hours

Karnataka reports 1,135 new coronavirus (Covid-19) cases, 561 recoveries, and 6 deaths in the last 24 hours.

7:40 PM

UK's Covid-19 vaccine is safe and works extremely well, says Boris Johnson

The COVID-19 vaccine developed by Oxford University and bio-pharmaceutical major AstraZeneca is safe and works extremely well, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday, amid reports that the doses were causing blood clot-related complications.

 

In an editorial to coincide with the launch of a new 'Integrated Review' of the UK's foreign policy vision, the prime minister reflected on how just six months since its discovery, the vaccine is being produced in multiple countries including India.

 

I could tell from the excitement of the scientists that this was promising and that the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine looked as though it would work. After exhaustive tests, so it has proved, Johnson wrote in The Times'.

7:16 PM

Biotech firm Moderna begins testing Covid-19 vaccine on children

US-based Biotechnology company Moderna on Tuesday announced that it is now testing a Covid-19 vaccine designed to be used on children aged between 6 months to less than 12 years old.

 

To begin with, the company intends to enrol approximately 6,750 paediatric participants in the US and Canada.

 

The trials are being conducted in collaboration with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA). READ MORE...

7:01 PM

1,970 new coronavirus cases, 15 deaths in Kerala

Kerala on Tuesday logged 1,970 COVID-19 cases, including a returnee from South Africa, and 2,884 recoveries as the active cases came down to 26,127, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said.

 

While the total covid caseload has touched 10,94,643, as many as 10,63,444 people have been cured of the infection, he told reporters at Kannur. Fifteen more fatalities took the toll to 4,422. In the last 24 hours, 60,974 samples have been tested and the test positivity rate is 3.23 per cent. So far, 1,23,90,578 samples have been sent for testing.

6:52 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Night curfew in Bhopal, Indore from Wednesday

6:17 PM

1,970 new coronavirus positive cases, 2,884 recoveries and 15 deaths reported in Kerala in the past 24 hours

1,970 new coronavirus positive cases, 2,884 recoveries and 15 deaths reported in Kerala in the past 24 hours. Active cases now at 26,127; so far 10, 63,444 persons have recovered from the disease.