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Coronavirus LIVE: Russia's Covid-19 vaccine over 91% effective, says study

Coronavirus LIVE updates: Globally, nearly 104 million people have been infected by the virus and the death toll stands at 2,247,005

BS Web Team New Delhi
coronavirus vaccine
The front line workers of Aanganbari Sevika of the rural area being given the Covid-19 vaccines by the health department at Referal hospital, in Ranchi on Monday.

1 min read Last Updated : Feb 02 2021 | 11:00 PM IST

Key Events

11:00 PM

Delhi records 2 Covid-19 deaths, lowest in 10 months

The national capital reported 114 fresh COVID-19 cases and two deaths due to the disease on Tuesday, the lowest in around 10 months, authorities said. The death toll stood at 10,858, while the cumulative COVID-19 case count rose to 6,35,331, they said. The 114 cases came out of 58,598 tests, including 31,159 RT-PCR and 27,439 rapid antigen ones, conducted the previous day for detection of COVID-19, according to a bulletin issued by the Delhi Health Department.


The tally of active cases has dropped to 1,217 from 1,265 on Monday, the bulletin said, adding that 6,23,256 patients have recovered, been discharged or migrated so far. According to the bulletin, 5,684 beds out of the total 6,305 in the city's COVID-19 hospitals are vacant. The number of people in home isolation dropped to 466 from 504 on Monday.


Earlier in the day, Health Minister Satyendar Jain said56.13 per cent of those covered under the latest serological survey in the city in January have developed antibodies against coronavirus.

10:41 PM

Rajasthan reports 87 new Covid-19 cases, 235 recoveries

10:40 PM

Delhi reports 114 new Covid-19 cases, 160 recoveries

8:47 PM

395 new Covid-19 cases in Karnataka, 412 recoveries

Karnataka's COVID-19 tally moved up marginally to 9.40 lakh with the addition of 395 new cases while three fatalities took the toll to 12,223, the Health department said on Tuesday. As many as 412 people were discharged after being cured of the disease as the cumulative recoveries rose to 9.22 lakh, leaving 5,924 active cases.
 
Bengaluru Urban district accounted for 199 of the fresh cases, followed by Mysuru (28), Dakshina Kannada (23) and Tumakuru (18) while the remaining was scattered over the state.
 
As of February 2 evening, cumulatively 9,40,170 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed in the state, which includes 12,223 deaths and 9,22,004 discharges, a Health department bulletin said.

8:28 PM

Maharashtra records 1,927 new Covid-19 cases, 4,011 recoveries, 30 deaths

Maharashtra recorded less than 2,000 new coronavirus cases on the second straight day on Tuesday which took the state's caseload to 20,30,274, the Health department said. The state added 1,927 new cases during the day, while on Monday 1,948 new infections had come to light.
 
As many as 30 people succumbed to COVID-19 on Tuesday, taking the death toll to 51,139, an official statement said. Of 30 deaths, 19 were from the past 48 hours, while 11 were from the last week but recorded on Tuesday. On the other hand, 4,011 patients were discharged from hospitals on Tuesday, taking the overall number of recoveries in Maharashtra to 19,36,305, the department said.

The state now has 41,586 active cases. Maharashtra's case recovery rate now stands at 95.37 per cent, while the fatality rate is 2.52 per cent. At 334, Mumbai city reported the highest number of fresh cases alongwith seven deaths. The total of cases in Mumbai went up to 3,09,637 and the death toll to 11,368.

8:07 PM

512 train passengers in Mumbai fined for not wearing masks

The Mumbai Division of Railways and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) have fined 512 train passengers for not wearing face masks, a mandatory health protocol to be followed amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
In a joint drive with the BMC, Mumbai division of Railways has fined 275 passengers for not wearing a mask in the train, informed the Chief Public Relation Officers (CPRO), Central Railway. They were charged Rs 200 each.
 
Meanwhile, the Western Railways CPRO said 237 passengers were fined for not wearing masks while onboard. This comes as local train services have resumed in Mumbai after months of COVID-19 lockdown. READ MORE...

7:40 PM

UK variant of Covid-19 has mutated again: Scientists

Scientists have found that the Kent variant of Covid-19, which has been spreading around the UK, appears to be undergoing some worrying new genetic changes. The tests on some samples showed a mutation, called E484K, which has already been found in the South Africa and Brazil variants.
 
According to the scientists, although this change may reduce vaccine effectiveness, the current ones in use should still work.
 
The UK has already stepped up measures to control the spread of new variants as urgent testing for the South Africa variant is starting in parts of the country and travel restrictions have been introduced to stop more cases entering from abroad, the BBC reported on Tuesday. The experts found only 11 out of 214,159 samples with the E484K mutation.

7:31 PM

Over 80 people arrested in China for smuggling fake Covid-19 vaccines

China has arrested over 80 people for smuggling and supplying counterfeit COVID-19 vaccines, amid reports that some of the jabs have already made their way to Africa, the official media reported on Tuesday. Apart from the arrests, 3,000 doses of the fake vaccines were confiscated from the accused in a special drive that China has carried out to curb vaccine-related crimes, the Global Times reported.
 
The raids were carried out in a joint action by police in Beijing and East China's Jiangsu and Shandong provinces, among other regions. The criminal activity was scattered across multiple cities, the report said.
 
The suspects were profiting from the illegal manufacture and sale of the vaccines since September last year, the report added. The accused made the counterfeit vaccines by injecting saline into pre-filled syringes, the newspaper said, adding that the "doses" were being sold for high prices.

6:55 PM

PM-CARES Fund to foot over 80% cost of 1st phase of Covid vaccination drive

The PM-CARES fund, which has been set up to provide relief during the coronavirus pandemic, has contributed over Rs 2,200 crore for the first phase of vaccination drive, which is looking to inoculate frontline healthcare workers, the Expenditure Secretary said on Tuesday.
 
Set up in March 2020, the exact collections made by the fund through voluntary contribution by individuals and corporates, are not known but the corpus managed by the PMO has been providing relief to pandemic-hit sectors.
 
With the Budget for the current fiscal, which was presented before the onset of the pandemic, making no separate allocation for vaccination, more than 82 per cent of the cost of the same during January to March is being borne by the PM CARES Fund. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget for the next fiscal beginning April 2021 has set aside Rs 35,000 crore towards COVID vaccination.

6:26 PM

Russia's Covid-19 vaccine shows over 91% efficacy in phase 3 trial: Lancet study

Russia's Sputnik V vaccine against COVID-19 has shown 91.6 per cent efficacy in the phase 3 trial without any serious side effects, according to an interim analysis of data published in The Lancet journal on Tuesday.

The findings are based on analysis of data from nearly 20,000 participants, three-quarters of whom received the two-dose regimen of the adenovirus-based vaccine, Gam-COVID-Vac, and one quarter received a placebo. Serious adverse events or those requiring hospital admission were rare in both the placebo and vaccine groups and none were considered associated with vaccination, the researchers said.
 
Four deaths were reported in the trial, none of which were considered related to the vaccine, they said, adding most reported adverse events were mild, including flu-like symptoms, pain at injection site and weakness or low energy.

5:48 PM

Supply order for Covishield was placed after drug regulator's nod: Govt

For the procurement of COVID-19 vaccines, a supply order dated January 11 was placed with the Serum Institute of India after Covishield was approved for restricted use in emergency situation by India's drug regulator, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Tuesday.
 
Union Minister of State for Health Ashwini Choubey was responding to a question on whether the government has finalised a pricing and supply agreement with the Serum Institute of India Limited for COVID-19 vaccines.

Covishield is being manufactured by the Pune-based firm with technology transfer from AstraZeneca/Oxford University. READ ON...

5:19 PM

80.10% of the daily new cases are from 6 States and UTs: Health Ministry

5:02 PM

No data generated with Covishield, Covaxin on 'European' strain of coronavirus, Rajya Sabha told

No data has been generated with Covishield and Covaxin vaccines specifically on the new "European" COVID-19 virus strain, Union Minister Ashwini Choubey said on Tuesday. Two strains of the coronavirus that originated in the United Kingdom and South Africa have already spread in several countries around the globe.
 
To a question on whether the Covishield and Covaxin are able to provide protection from the new coronavirus variant that was traced in the UK, Choubey told Rajya Sabha, "At present, there is no data generated with the above vaccines specifically on new European COVID-19 virus strain."
 
The Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine Covishield is being produced in this country by Serum Institute of India while Covaxin has been developed indigenously by Bharat Biotech.

4:18 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: 56.13% people in Delhi have antibodies against Covid-19

Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain said on Tuesday that 56.13 per cent of those covered under the latest serological survey in January have developed antibodies against COVID-19. The minister also said that Delhi was moving towards herd immunity, "but only experts will be able to give a clear picture". The fifth sero survey, the largest in the country so far, was conducted from January 15 to January 23, he said.
 
At 62.18 per cent, SouthwestDelhi districtreported the maximum seroprevalence, while North Delhi recorded the lowest at 49.09 per cent, Jain said.
 
"A new, better technology was used during the survey. Samples were collected from every ward. In all, 28,000 samples were taken," a senior official said.
 
The minister said the number of cases, fatalities and hospital admissions have declined significantly, but insisted that people continue to use masks for a few more months and maintain "COVID-19-appropriate behaviour".

4:06 PM

US Democrats file budget resolution for Covid-19 relief

US Democratic leaders have filed a joint budget resolution for fiscal year 2021 that could pave the way for Congress to quickly pass President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief proposal, with or without help from the Republicans, AP reported.
 
"Congress has a responsibility to quickly deliver immediate comprehensive relief to the American people hurting from Covid-19," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a joint statement on Monday night.
 
"The cost of inaction is high and growing, and the time for decisive action is now. With this budget resolution, the Democratic Congress is paving the way for the landmark Biden-Harris coronavirus package that will crush the virus and deliver real relief to families and communities in need," the Democratic leaders said.

Coronavirus update: India recorded merely 8,587 fresh Covid-19 cases of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19). The total number of active cases in the country has fallen to 164,586, while the caseload tally stands at 10,768,991. Globally, nearly 103.9 million people have been infected by the virus. The country continues to be second-most-affected globally, and ranks 17th among worst-hit nations by active cases.

The five most affected states by total cases are Maharashtra (2,026,399), Karnataka (939,387), Kerala (929,178), Andhra Pradesh (887,836), and Tamil Nadu (838,340).

World coronavirus update: Coronavirus cases rise unabated across the globe, with nearly 104 million infected by the deadly contagion. While 75,893,395 have recovered, 2,250,670 have died so far. The US remains the worst-hit country with 26,915,712, followed by India, Brazil, Russia and the United Kingdom. However, it terms of the total number of active cases, US tops the charts, followed by France, UK, Brazil and Belgium.

Stay tuned for the latest coronavirus-related news.

Topics :CoronavirusWorld Health OrganizationCoronavirus VaccineHealth Ministry

First Published: Feb 02 2021 | 8:33 AM IST