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Coronavirus LIVE updates: India's active Covid-19 cases drop to 309,575. Delhi reported 28 Covid-19 cases and no fatality. Stay tuned for corona updates

12:25 PM

Protests staged over construction ban in Australian state amid increasing Covid infections

Australia's construction industry workers took to the street for the second day following a two-week ban on the sector in Melbourne in response to construction sites being linked to new Covid-19 infections.

 

On Tuesday morning protesters spilled onto the streets marching through downtown Melbourne.

 

Riot police have been dispatched to monitor and disperse the crowds while also protecting key sites including the state parliament, and the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMMEU) building, where protestors clashed with police on Monday.

 

Monday's clash at the CFMMEU saw broken windows, objects thrown at senior officials, and rubber bullets being used by riot police to disperse crowds.

 

12:00 PM

Ukraine extends Covid quarantine till Dec 31

The Ukrainian government has decided to extend the Covid-19-related quarantine regime till December 31 amid surging cases, the country's Health Ministry announced.

 

According to a statement on the Ministry's website posted on Monday, Ukrainian authorities will soon introduce the "yellow level" of quarantine restrictions nationwide, the third-highest risk level in its four-grade system, reports Xinhua news agency.

 

The anti-pandemic measures during the "yellow level" include a 50 per cent occupancy rule for cinemas and other cultural institutions, as well as limits on the number of people in restaurants, fitness centres and gyms, the Ministry said.

 

Ukraine, which imposed the Covid-19 quarantine for the first time in March 2020, had eased the restrictions this summer due to the improvement of pandemic situation.

11:45 AM

Turkey reports 27,688 daily Covid-19 cases

Turkey on Monday confirmed 27,688 new Covid-19 cases, raising its tally of infections to 6,874,947, according to its health ministry.

 

The death toll from the virus in Turkey rose by 231 to 61,805, while 27,949 more people recovered in the last 24 hours.

 

A total of 346,435 tests were conducted over the past day, it said.

11:37 AM

US Congressman welcomes India's decision to resume export of surplus Covid vaccine

An influential US Congressman has welcomed India's decision to resume the export of surplus Covid-19 vaccines to meet its commitment to the COVAX global pool.

 

India's Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Monday said the country will resume export of surplus Covid-19 vaccines in the fourth quarter of this year under the 'Vaccine Maitri' programme to meet its commitment to the COVAX global pool.

 

He, however, asserted that vaccinating own citizens remains the topmost priority of the government. COVAX is co-led by Gavi, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations and WHO.

11:27 AM

Global Covid-19 caseload tops 229 million

The global coronavirus caseload has topped 229 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 4.69 million and vaccinations soared to over 5.93 billion, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

 

In its latest update on Tuesday morning, the University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload, death toll and vaccination tally stood at 229,031,974, 4,699,187 and 5,935,372,422, respectively.

 

The US continues to be the worst-hit country with the world's highest number of cases and deaths at 42,286,531 and 676,059, respectively, according to the CSSE.

 

In terms of infections, India follows in the second place with 33,478,419 cases.

11:18 AM

2 new Covid-19 cases in Andamans, tally rises to 7,602

The Covid-19 tally of Andaman and Nicobar Islands rose to 7,602 on Tuesday as two more people tested positive for the infection, a health bulletin said.

 

Both the new patients have travel history, it said.

 

The Union territory now has 15 active cases, while 7,458 people have been cured of the disease, and 129 patients have succumbed to the infection so far.

 

The administration has tested over 5.32 lakh samples for Covid-19 thus far, it said, adding that the positivity rate stood at 1.43 per cent.

11:11 AM

Arunachal Pradesh logs 56 new Covid-19 cases, 1 fresh fatality

Arunachal Pradesh's Covid-19 tally rose to 54,126 on Tuesday as 56 more people tested positive for the infection, while the death of a 101-year-old person in Tirap district pushed the northeastern state's coronavirus toll to 272, a senior health official said.

 

Arunachal Pradesh now has 410 active cases, while 53,444 people have recovered from the disease thus far, including 67 in the last 24 hours, State Surveillance Officer (SSO) Dr Lobsang Jampa said.

 

The recovery rate marginally improved to 98.74 per cent from 98.71 per cent on the previous day.

 

The state has tested over 11.19 lakh samples for Covid-19 to date, including 4,162 on Monday, Jampa said, adding that the positivity rate stood at 1.34 per cent.

11:10 AM

Covid vax for younger kids, booster shots being prepared in US

Covid-19 vaccines for younger children and booster shots for at least those over 65 years old are being prepared in accordance with a tight schedule in the US, as the Americans stagger into the 19th month of their fierce battle against the pandemic.

 

A lower dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, one-third the amount given to adults and teens, is safe and triggered a robust immune response in children as young as five years old, the drug companies announced in a news release on Monday morning.

 

"The finding, eagerly anticipated by many parents and paediatricians, is a crucial step toward the two-shot coronavirus vaccine regimen becoming available for younger school-aged children, perhaps close to Halloween," Xinhua news agency quoted The Washington Post as saying on Monday. Read on...

10:40 AM

Active Covid-19 cases in country decline to 309,575: Union Health Ministry

Active Covid-19 cases in country decline to 3,09,575: Union Health Ministry

10:21 AM

Jaishankar raises Covid-19 quarantine issue during his meeting with UK counterpart

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar urged for an "early resolution" of the COVID-19 quarantine issue and discussed the situation in Afghanistan and the developments in the Indo-Pacific during his meeting with the newly appointed British Foreign Secretary Elizabeth Truss.

 

Jaishankar arrived here on Monday to participate in the high-level 76th session of the UN General Assembly. Shortly after his arrival in the city, he held bilateral meetings with Norwegian Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Soreide, Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein and the UK's new Foreign Secretary.

 

Pleased to meet new UK Foreign Secretary @trussliz. Discussed the progress of Roadmap 2030. Appreciated her contribution on the trade side. Exchanged views on developments in Afghanistan and the Indo-Pacific. Urged early resolution of quarantine issue in mutual interest, Jaishankar tweeted.

10:21 AM

Jaishankar raises Covid-19 quarantine issue during his meeting with UK counterpart

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar urged for an "early resolution" of the COVID-19 quarantine issue and discussed the situation in Afghanistan and the developments in the Indo-Pacific during his meeting with the newly appointed British Foreign Secretary Elizabeth Truss.

 

Jaishankar arrived here on Monday to participate in the high-level 76th session of the UN General Assembly. Shortly after his arrival in the city, he held bilateral meetings with Norwegian Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Soreide, Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein and the UK's new Foreign Secretary.

 

Pleased to meet new UK Foreign Secretary @trussliz. Discussed the progress of Roadmap 2030. Appreciated her contribution on the trade side. Exchanged views on developments in Afghanistan and the Indo-Pacific. Urged early resolution of quarantine issue in mutual interest, Jaishankar tweeted.

9:34 AM

Coronavirus in India: Latest update by MoHFW

Summary of MoHFW data (September 21)

Active cases: 309,575 (Net decrease: 8,606)

Deaths: 445,385 (Net increase: 252)

Cured: 32,749,574 (Net increase: 34,469)

Total cases: 33,504,534 (Net increase: 26,115)

Total vaccination: 818,513,827 (Increase over previous day: 9,646,778)

9:28 AM

Thane sees 231 fresh Covid-19 cases, 4 fatalities

With the addition of 231 coronavirus positive cases, the infection count in Thane district of Maharashtra mounted to 5,56,597, an official said on Tuesday.

 

These new cases were reported on Monday, he said.

 

As the virus claimed the life of four more patients, the death toll in the Thane district rose to 11,373. The mortality rate of Thane is 2.04 per cent, he added.

 

In the neighboring Palghar district, the COVID-19 case count has gone up to 1,35,428 while the death toll is 3,273, an official from Palghar said.

9:06 AM

UK begins Covid-19 vaccine rollout for school children aged 12-15

The UK's health service started to roll out Covid-19 vaccines to schoolchildren aged 12-15 on Monday as part of the latest expansion of the country's vaccination programme.

 

Almost 3 million children in this age group are eligible for one dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine following the government's acceptance of the UK Chief Medical Officers' recommendation last week.

 

England and Scotland begin their school vaccines rollout this week, while Wales and Northern Ireland are scheduled to begin by next week. Read on...

8:49 AM

India has capacity to scale up pace of Covid-19 vaccination: WHO

India has the systems in place to administer a large number of vaccine doses and achieve the mammoth feat of vaccinating all the country's people by December 2021, says WHO Southeast Asia Regional Director, Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh.

 

In an interview with IANS, Singh said that India can prevent another surge together with vaccination and adhering to Covid norms, while stressing the need for global vaccine equality to defeat Covid-19 worldwide.

 

She also spoke on reopening schools, and how the country has picked up on routine vaccination that was delayed due to the pandemic last year. Read on...