Coronavirus LIVE: Delhi adds 53 cases, lowest since April 15 last year

Coronavirus LIVE updates: India on Saturday recorded 42,766 new Covid cases. Stay tuned for corona-related news

8:08 AM

Next pandemic risk: Woman dies after infection with two Covid-19 variants

A 90-year-old woman died after becoming infected with two different strains of Covid-19, revealing another risk in the fight against the disease, Belgian researchers found.

 

In the first peer-reviewed analysis of an infection with multiple strains, scientists found the woman had contracted both the alpha variant, which first surfaced in the U.K., and the beta strain, first found in South Africa. The infections probably came from separate people, according to a report published Saturday and presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases. READ MORE...

7:50 AM

West Bengal reports 997 fresh Covid-19 cases, 17 more fatalities

West Bengal's COVID-19 tally rose to 15,11,205 on Saturday as 997 more people tested positive for the infection, while 17 fresh fatalities pushed the death toll to 17,903, a bulletin issued by the health department said.

 

At least 1,336 more people were cured of the disease in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of recoveries in the state to 14,77,998, it said. The recovery rate among coronavirus patients in West Bengal now stands at 97.80 per cent. The state now has 15,304 active cases. READ MORE...

7:37 AM

Health workers cross a river to carry out Covid vaccination in Rajouri district

7:36 AM

UK reports another 32,367 coronavirus cases

Britain has reported another 32,367 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 5,089,893, according to official figures released on Saturday.

 

The country also recorded another 34 coronavirus-related deaths. The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Britain now stands at 128,399. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test, the Xinhua news agency reported.

 

Nearly 87 per cent of the country's adults have been inoculated with their first dose of Covid-19 vaccine while over 65 per cent have had their second jab, according to the latest figures.

7:30 AM

Africa's Covid-19 cases surpass 5.87 million-mark

The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Africa reached 5,873,990 as of Saturday afternoon, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said. The Africa CDC, the specialised healthcare agency of the African Union, said the death toll from the pandemic stands at 150,517 while 5,117,334 patients across the continent have recovered from the disease, the Xinhua news agency reported.

 

South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, Ethiopia and Egypt are the countries with the most cases in the continent, according to the Africa CDC.

 

In terms of the caseload, southern Africa is the most affected region, followed by the northern and eastern parts of the continent, while central Africa is the least affected region in the continent, according to the Africa CDC.

7:22 AM

'Too early to say anything on Kappa variant': UP doctor on detection of new strain of Covid-19

As the emerging new strains of the Covid-19 virus are causing a lot of concern for the people, an Uttar Pradesh doctor on Friday said it is too soon to comment on the Kappa variant as it's still a 'variant of interest'.

 

"It is too early to say anything (on Kappa variant). When we tracked the patient's medical history, we found that he experienced a very high fever and breathing difficulty in a very short span of time. He was admitted in a very critical condition and died after almost 5 days," Dr Amresh Singh, assistant professor, and Head Microbiologist at BRD Medical College in Gorakhpur told ANI.

 

"We had sent around 72 samples to IGIB Gene Sequencing Centre in Delhi and received the reports for 30. The Delta variant was found in 27 of them, while Delta Plus was confirmed in 2, and 1 patient had Kappa variant," he added.

7:22 AM

Sydney imposes stricter rules to curb spread of Delta variant

Authorities in Australia's largest city, Sydney imposed new stricter rules to curb the spread of the Delta variant of coronavirus. Lockdown measures in Sydney were due to end on Friday, but have been extended for another week through July 16, reported NHK World.

 

The variant outbreak has mostly affected Sydney. On Friday, 44 new cases were reported in the south-eastern state of New South Wales, where Sydney is located. New stricter rules restrict how people exercise, saying they must stay within 10 kilometers of their home and not meet up with more than one person from another household, reported NHK World.

7:13 AM

Shimla Police urge tourists and local residents to follow Covid protocols

7:12 AM

Our policy is not to make everyone sick, but to prevent from Covid: Kerala CM

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday said the policy of the government is not to make everyone sick and acquire social (collective) immunity, but to prevent the disease from reaching as many people as possible and prevent deaths as much as possible until the vaccine is available.

 

Addressing a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram, Pinarayi said, "From the very beginning, our state has adopted a policy of protecting as many people as possible from disease. Our policy is not to make everyone sick and acquire social (collective) immunity, but to prevent the disease from reaching as many people as possible and prevent deaths as much as possible until the vaccine is available."

7:12 AM

Welcome to the Business Standard's live blog on coronavirus pandemic

Welcome to the Business Standard's live blog on coronavirus pandemic