Covid LIVE: Made template for new vaccine against Omicron, says Pfizer CEO

'If there's a need for a new vaccine, we'll make almost 4 billion doses of the new vaccine next year' says Pfizer CEO

Live news: Lok Sabha on Monday passed a Bill to repeal three laws liberalising India’s agriculture markets as Opposition lawmakers shouted slogans against the government, disrupting proceedings on the first day of the Winter Session.

The government is ready to discuss and reply to all issues in parliament, said PM Narendra Modi in a short statement to journalists ahead of the session. The government has scheduled 36 Bills for the session when the Opposition plans to seek debate on the Pegasus spyware, the economy, the women’s reservation bill and other issues.

International passengers to India must give 14 days' travel history and upload negative Covid test results, the government said on Sunday, revising its guidelines for 'Omicron', a new variant of Covid-19 that has been classified as a variant of concern by the World Health Organization.

Amazon has asked India's antitrust regulator to revoke its approval for Future Retail's $3.4 billion sale of retail assets to Reliance, saying it was "illegally obtained", violating an order suspending the deal, Reuters reported citing a letter it had seen. Separately, Future Retail has said Amazon officials walked out of a Competition Commission of India (CCI) hearing in an attempt to browbeat the regulator.

12:43 AM

Bengal reports 511 new COVID-19 cases, 11 more deaths

West Bengal on Monday reported 511 new COVID-19 cases, taking the tally to 16,15,378, as per official data. Eleven more people died in the state, pushing the toll to 19,473, as per data released by the Health Department.

 

The positivity rate was at 2.11 per cent as the new cases were detected after testing 24,269 samples.

 

North 24 Parganas reported four of the latest deaths, while three people died in Kolkata. Kolkata reported 163 new cases. The state's active cases declined by 71 to be at 7,733. In the last 24 hours, 571 people recovered in the state, taking the total recoveries to 15,88,172.

11:54 PM

Omicron brings COVID-19 vaccine inequity ''home to roost''

The emergence of the new omicron variant and the world's desperate and likely futile attempts to keep it at bay are reminders of what scientists have warned for months: The coronavirus will thrive as long as vast parts of the world lack vaccines.

 

The hoarding of limited COVID-19 shots by rich countries creating virtual vaccine deserts in many poorer ones doesn't just mean risk for the parts of the world seeing shortages; it threatens the entire globe.

 

That's because the more the disease spreads among unvaccinated populations, the more possibilities it has to mutate and potentially become more dangerous, prolonging the pandemic for everyone.

 

The virus is a ruthless opportunist, and the inequity that has characterized the global response has now come home to roost, said Dr. Richard Hatchett, CEO of CEPI, one of the groups behind the U.N.-backed COVAX shot-sharing initiative.

11:09 PM

Omicron variant patients in Delhi to be isolated, treated at Lok Nayak Hospital

The Delhi Health Department has designated Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital as the dedicated facility to treat patients testing positive for the new COVID-19 variant Omicron.

 

The hospital has been asked to earmark wards for isolating and treating such patients.

 

The department also said that no patient with the new variant will be denied admission to hospitals on any ground.

 

The Union Health Ministry had Sunday issued new guidelines for international travellers for reporting of Omicron, which has been classified as 'variant of concern' by the World Health Organization (WHO).

 

According to the guidelines, a separate isolation unit has to be set up for the patients indicating the presence of Omicron.

10:39 PM

UK extends COVID-19 booster vaccine to all adults, reduces gap between doses

The UK government on Monday announced to expand its COVID-19 booster vaccination programme, accepting the updated advice from scientists to extend the offer of a third top-up vaccine dose to all adults over the age of 18 and also to halve the minimum gap between second and third doses from six to three months.

 

UK Health Secretary Sajid Javid told the House of Commons that he had accepted the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advice in full because vaccines remain the best line of defence against COVID-19, including the new Omicron variant.

 

The minister stressed that while there is little knowledge about the new variant, it is unlikely that vaccines would not at least prevent severe disease.

10:18 PM

Chandigarh: Man who returned from South Africa tests positive for Covid

A 39-year-old Chandigarh resident, who had returned from South Africa a few days ago, tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday and his sample will now be sent to Delhi for whole genome sequencing.

 

One of his family members and a domestic help have also been found infected with the infection.

 

The man had tested COVID-19 negative upon his arrival here on November 21.

 

He tested positive for coronavirus in a retest on Monday and being shifted to an institutional quarantine facility.

9:49 PM

Fresh Covid guidelines: Delhi airport says arrangements will be in place on time

As worries mount over coronavirus infections caused by a new variant globally, the country's largest airport IGIA on Monday said all necessary arrangements will be ready on time keeping in mind the fresh guidelines and passenger convenience.

 

Besides, the firm carrying out COVID-19 tests at the IGIA in the national capital will be ramping up its manpower to cater to more number of tests as well as provide the results in a shorter time.

 

Other major airports, including at Hyderabad and Bengaluru, are also stepping up efforts to deal with the emerging situation in the wake of concerns over the new coronavirus variant 'Omicron'.

9:34 PM

Scotland detects six cases of Omicron COVID-19 variant; UK total rises to 11

Six cases of the new COVID-19 Omicron variant have been identified in Scotland, taking the UK's total to 11 following three cases in England last week and two in London on Monday. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said the latest two cases found in Camden and Wandsworth areas of London have links to travel in southern Africa.

 

Earlier on Monday, the Scottish government said four cases have been found in Lanarkshire and two in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde area.

 

While all of England's detected cases have a travel link with southern Africa, some of the people identified in Scotland have no travel history and may have caught the potentially highly transmissible variant in the community.

9:18 PM

Maha sees 536 new COVID-19 cases, lowest after April 27 last year, 21 fatalities; 853 recover

Maharashtra on Monday reported 536 fresh coronavirus positive cases, the lowest in a single day after April 27 last year, and 21 fatalities, a state health department official said.

 

On April 27, 2020, Maharashtra had logged 522 cases.

 

With the latest additions on Monday, Maharashtra's tally of infections rose to 66,34,980 and the COVID-19 death toll to 1,40,962.

 

Generally, Maharashtra reports a comparatively fewer number of cases on Mondays owing to the fewer tests carried out during the last 24 hours.

9:13 PM

Will examine if orders mandating COVID-19 vaccination not proportional to personal liberty: SC

The Supreme Court on Monday said that if orders passed by the States mandating COVID-19 vaccinations are not proportional to personal liberty, then it would examine them.

 

The Centre told the top court that being a constitutional court it should take into account the attempts of vested interest groups, which may result in vaccine hesitancy, which the nation has come out with much difficulty.

 

A bench of Justices LN Rao and BR Gavi asked the petitioner to array the States, who have issued such orders as a party, and challenge those orders while clarifying that they also need to be heard if their orders are challenged.

 

The bench said, If the orders passed by State mandating vaccination are not proportional to personal liberty we will go into it. We cannot pass any direction in general.

8:53 PM

Delhi CM to hold a review meeting on Nov 30 over health infra in wake of Omicron

8:11 PM

Suspended MPs may meet Venkaiah Naidu tomorrow to tender their apology: Report

7:33 PM

RBI imposes a Rs 1 cr penalty on Union Bank of India

7:30 PM

Made template for new vaccine against Omicron, says Pfizer CEO

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla on Monday told CNBC in an interview that the company on Friday made a new template on developing new vaccine for Omicron variant. "If there's a need for a new vaccine, we'll make almost 4 billion doses of the new vaccine next year," said Bourla.

6:59 PM

'A meeting of SKM will be held on Dec 1'

6:40 PM

Earthquake of magnitude 6.5 strikes southeast of Honshu, Japan

An earthquake of magnitude 6.5 struck southeast of Honshu in Japan on Monday, the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences said.

 

The quake was at a depth of 10 kilometers (6.21 miles), GFZ added.