Coronavirus LIVE: Nearly 48,000 cases in Karnataka; positivity rate at 32%

Coronavirus live updates: Hospitals around India have been overwhelmed by a fresh wave of infections with oxygen supplies running short in medical facilities due to the sudden surge in demand.

2:34 PM

Rajasthan Royals pacer Chetan Sakariya's father passes away due to Covid

Rajasthan Royals pacer Chetan Sakariya lost his father on Sunday, who succumbed to Covid-19.

 

Speaking to ANI, sources in the Rajasthan Royals team management confirmed the development. "It is unfortunate and our prayers with the family at this time," the source said.

 

Sakariya, who took seven wickets in IPL 2021, had lost his brother in January this year. The young pacer was playing in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy when his brother passed away.

 

Earlier this week, Indian women's cricketer Veda Krishnamurthy lost her sister Vatsala to Covid-19. (ANI)

2:23 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: UP CM inspects DRDO-built hospital at BHU premises

2:14 PM

DRDO's anti-Covid drug is safe, will help patients recover faster: Dr Sudhir Chandna

Dr Sudhir Chandna, Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS) scientist, on Sunday said the recently approved anti-Covid drug 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) is completely safe and will help patients recover faster.

 

2-DG has been developed by INMAS, a lab of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), in collaboration with Dr Reddy's Laboratories (DRL), Hyderabad.

 

"During clinical trials, it has yielded an effective result in curing patients infected with Covid-19. The medicine has gone through clinical trials on around 110 patients in the second phase. In the third phase, it was tried on 220 patients. It has shown better efficacy in phase two itself as compared to the standard care," Dr Chandna said.

 

"Recovery was two to three days faster for COVID-19 patients," he added. (ANI)

1:58 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: 'Corona Curfew' in Jammu and Kashmir extended till May 17

'Corona Curfew' in Jammu and Kashmir extended till May 17. Essential services allowed, gathering permissible for marriages reduced to 25.

1:48 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Delhi govt issues guidelines for lockdown extension

1:32 PM

Centre releases Rs 8,923 crore to 25 states as grants for rural governance

The finance ministry on Sunday said it has released Rs 8,923 crore to 25 states for providing grants to the rural local bodies for various prevention and mitigation measures needed to fight Covid-19. The grants are meant for the three tiers of Panchayati Raj Institutions: village, block and district.

1:29 PM

Chhattisgarh to deliver liquor at home

The Chhattisgarh government has allowed home delivery of liquor in the state through online sale during the ongoing coronavirus-enforced lockdown, PTI said quoting government officials said on Sunday. The opposition BJP in Chhattisgarh criticised the ruling Congress over the decision.

12:59 PM

Modi speaks to 4 chief ministers

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday spoke to the chief ministers of Punjab, Karnataka, Bihar and Uttarakhand about Covid-19, PTI reported quoting unnamed government officials. India this morning reported 4,03,738 new cases in a day, which pushed the tally to 2,22,96,414.

12:29 PM

UP extends curfew till May 17

Uttar Pradesh on Sunday said it is extending till May 17 a curfew imposed to slow down Covid-19 cases. The curfew was to end on 7am Monday.

12:24 PM

Delhi can't afford leniency , says Kejriwal

Chief Minister Kejriwal says Delhi is extending its lockdown to ensure infections come down. "The positivity rate has gone down but still we can't afford leniency. We need to extend to lockdown," he said in a televised address.

12:14 PM

Delhi extends lockdown for a week

Delhi lockdown extended by another week, "will be stricter this time": Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Extension will continue till May 17; Metro services will be suspended during this period, says Kejriwal, news agency ANI reports.

11:39 AM

Nagaland says it has enough medical oxygen

Nagaland’s health department on Sunday said the state has sufficient stock of oxygen to deal with Covid-19 cases. As many as 250 oxygen concentrators have been distributed in districts.

11:36 AM

Indian players of Punjab Kings IPL team back home

All Indian members of the Punjab Kings IPL team have reached home after the tournament was suspended on May 4 due to infections burst the bio security bubble. The club urged its fans to "wear masks, follow social distancing norms and hygiene protocols".

11:11 AM

Arunachal finds no new Covid deaths in 24 hours

Arunachal Pradesh on Sunday reported 244 new Covid-19 cases, the state’s highest single-day spike that took the total tally to 20,046. Total fatalities continued at 60 as the state did not report any new death in the last 24 hours. The coronavirus recovery rate in the state now is 89.71 per cent, PTI reported quoting the heath department.

 

10:36 AM

Three oxygen generators, 1,000 ventilators arrive from UK

A total of three oxygen generators and 1,000 ventilators arrived from the United Kingdom on Sunday as part of COVID assistance for India's fight against the pandemic.

 

Following the delivery of the medical aid, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) expressed gratitude to the UK, for taking forward the "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership" between the two countries.

 

"Taking forward our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Consignment of 3 O2 generators & 1,000 ventilators arrives from UK. Each generator has capacity to produce 500 litres of O2/min, enough to treat 50 people at a time. Deeply value the contribution from our close friend," MEA spokesperson tweeted.