Covid LIVE: 31,183 new cases in Karnataka; UP curfew extended till May 31

Coronavirus live updates: India reported 257,299 fresh Covid-19 infections today, taking the caseload tally to 26,285,069. Death toll nears 300,000. Stay tuned for corona-related news

9:22 AM

India conducts 2,066,285 Covid tests in a day; positivity rate at 12.4%

9:00 AM

Global Covid-19 caseload tops 165.8 mn; deaths surge to more than 3.43 mn

The overall global Covid-19 caseload has topped 165.8 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 3.43 million, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

 

In its latest update on Saturday morning, the University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload and death toll stood at 165,862,407 and 3,438,086, respectively.

 

The US continues to be the worst-hit country with the world's highest number of cases and deaths at 33,084,897 and 589,223, respectively, according to the CSSE. Read on...

8:56 AM

Kejriwal gives Rs 1 Cr aid to family of teacher who succumbed to Covid

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday provided financial assistance of Rs 1 crore to the family of Nitin Tanwar, a teacher in the government school who succumbed to COVID-19.

 

The Delhi Chief Minister handed over a cheque of Rs 1 crore to the family members of Nitin Tawar and also promised every possible help from the Union Territory government.

 

He hailed the selfless service of Tawar and expressed grief.

 

"Tanwar was a very hardworking and dedicated teacher in our Delhi government school. He was posted on various duties during the corona crisis. He was initially posted at the ration distribution centre, and later on many such duties. He passed away after getting infected while being on COVID duty last year," Kejriwal said. Read on...

8:50 AM

HC issues instructions to Uttarakhand, central govts on coronavirus spread

Uttarakhand High Court on Friday issued a set of instructions to the state and central governments while hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in connection with the spread of coronavirus.

 

The bench of Chief Justice RS Chauhan and Justice Alok Kumar Verma, while hearing the Public Interest Litigation filed by Advocate Dushyant Mainali and others stated that the State should increase the number of daily tests because the state government cannot reduce the number of tests as per ICMR instructions. Read on...

8:35 AM

Covid-19: London Heathrow to open separate terminal for high-risk arrivals

London Heathrow airport will devote a terminal to arrivals from countries with high levels of Covid-19 infection amid concern that having them share a building with other passengers risks spreading the virus.

A dedicated facility for flights from so-called red list nations will open in Heathrow’s Terminal 3 from June 1, the airport said in a statement Friday. The hub had been in protracted talks over government funding for the plan, which it said will be very challenging logistically. Read on...

8:27 AM

India remains greatest rising power despite Covid-19 tragedy: Report

Despite the damage caused by the record rise in COVID-19 cases, India remains the "greatest rising power" on the planet and has a number of fundamental strengths that will make it one of the "most powerful" countries in the world, according to report published in a Saudi daily.

 

Rebuffing critics of India's handling of the pandemic, American foreign policy expert Dr John C Hulsman in an op-ed for Arab News has said that India's political power structure is stable and both Modi and the BJP are politically secure in a way that other "developing countries can only envy." Read on...

8:13 AM

IMF proposes $50 billion global vaccination plan

The International Monetary Fund has proposed a $50 billion global vaccination plan that would cover at least 40 per cent of the global population by the end of 2021 and at least 60 per cent by the first half of 2022. With strong and coordinated action now—and with little in terms of financing relative to the outsized benefits—the world can durably exit this unprecedented health and economic crisis, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said in her address to the G20 Health Summit. “For some time, we have been warning of dangerous divergence of economic fortunes. It will only worsen as the gap widens between wealthy countries that have access to vaccines and poor countries that do not,” she said.

8:04 AM

Brazil reports 2,215 more Covid-19 deaths

Brazil on Friday reported 2,215 more deaths from Covid-19, raising the national count to 446,309, the Ministry of Health said. The ministry said that 76,855 more infections were detected, raising the nationwide tally to 15,970,949. According to the ministry, Brazil now has a death rate of 212.4 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants. Brazil has the world's second highest Covid-19 death toll, after the United States, and the third largest caseload, following the United States and India.

7:05 AM

UP coronavirus update: 7,735 new Covid-19 cases detected

Uttar Pradesh reports 7735 new Covid-19 cases, 17,668 recoveries and 172 deaths in the last 24 hours.

 

Total recoveries 15,34,176 

Death toll 18,760

Active cases 1,06,276