Covid LIVE: PM Modi asks EU to back India, SA on patent waiver for vaccines

Coronavirus live updates: Coronavirus cases are surging rapidly in states like Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra, Bengal, Bihar, Haryana, Odisha and Uttarakhand. Stay tuned for corona-related news

8:33 AM

Punjab coronavirus update: 8,367 new Covid-19 cases reported

Punjab reports 8,367 new Covid-19 cases, 4,976 discharges and 165 deaths in the last 24 hours.

 

Total cases 4,24,647

Total recoveries 3,44,779

Death toll 10,144

Active cases 69,724

 

8:05 AM

Madras HC asks Centre why Covaxin being manufactured only at pvt institute?

The Madurai Bench of Madras High Court on Friday questioned the Central government why Covaxin, the vaccine against Covid-19 which was developed with the assistance of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and National Institute of Virology (NIV), has been manufactured only at a private institute.

 

The court asked the Centre to explain the amount incurred by the government to procure Covid vaccines and what steps have been taken to revive the vaccine institutes.

 

The Madurai Bench of Madras High Court was also hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking direction to manufacture Covaxin in the Chengalpet HLL unit.

8:03 AM

Chhattisgarh coronavirus update: 13,628 new Covid-19 cases reported

Chhattisgarh reports 13,628 new Covid-19 cases, 414 discharges and 208 deaths in the last 24 hours.

 

Total cases 8,30,117

Total recoveries 1,31,552

Death toll 10,158

Active cases 1,31,041

 

7:49 AM

Maharashtra coronavirus update: 54,022 new Covid-19 cases recorded; 898 deaths

Maharashtra reports 54,022 new Covid-19 cases, 37,386 recoveries and 898 deaths in the last 24 hours.

 

Total cases 49,96,758

Total recoveries 42,65,326

Death toll 74,413

Active cases 6,54,788

7:32 AM

WHO approves emergency use of China's Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccine

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Friday approved the Chinese Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use, paving the way for it to be rolled out globally.

 

The Sinopharm vaccine is produced by Beijing Bio-Institute of Biological Products Co Ltd, a subsidiary of China National Biotec Group (CNBG).

 

"The addition of this vaccine has the potential to rapidly accelerate Covid-19 vaccine access for countries seeking to protect health workers and populations at risk," said Dr Mariangela Simao, WHO Assistant-Director General for Access to Health Products, in a statement. Read on...

7:30 AM

Uttar pradesh coronavirus news: UP reports 28,076 new Covid-19 cases

Uttar Pradesh reports 28,076 new Covid-19 cases, 33,117 discharges and 372 deaths in the past 24 hours

 

Total cases: 14,53,679

Active cases: 2,54,118

7:07 AM

Third Covid-19 wave may not happen if strong steps taken, says govt

If strong measures are taken, then a third wave of Covid-19 may not happen in "all parts of the country or anywhere at all", Principal Scientific Advisor K Vijay Raghavan said on Friday, two days after he sounded the alarm that a third wave was inevitable. On Wednesday, Raghavan had said, "We should prepare for the new waves."

 

He said new opportunities for infections could arise if people became complacent and did not protect themselves. “The frequency and sizes of such ups and downs must be reduced. This is in our hands,” Raghavan said. Read on...

6:48 AM

Covid-19 vaccines must be given to states for free: Bengal to Supreme Court

The West Bengal government on Friday told the Supreme Court that there should be a uniform vaccination policy and the new differential pricing mechanism in the latest phase of inoculations must be scrapped, according to media reports.

 

It said the Centre must take immediate steps to ensure vaccines are made available and given to states free of cost.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Friday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking increased supply of medical oxygen for Covid-19 treatment. READ ON...

6:21 AM

Decoded: Why Supreme Court wants oxygen policy revised amid Covid-19

Before the pandemic, the total demand for medical oxygen in the country was 700 tonne per day (tpd). Given the Covid crisis and the consequent requirement for oxygen, today Delhi alone is asking the Union government for 700 tpd. During the first wave of Covid-19 last year, the overall demand for liquid medical oxygen (LMO) in India had increased four times, to 2,800 tpd. But how is oxygen quota set and why does the Supreme Court want the government’s oxygen policy revised? Read on to find out.

6:19 AM

Coronavirus crisis: On a rebound, Customs clears relief aid in minutes

As the government swung into action to facilitate faster clearance of Covid-19 relief aid shipments arriving from several countries earlier this week, real time customs data indicates a sharp improvement in air cargo approval time across key airports in the country. About 75 per cent of air cargo was cleared within 48 hours on Thursday, compared to just 55 per cent on Monday, according to ICEDASH, an interactive visual dashboard.

 

Facing criticism over slow clearance of relief shipments, the government on Monday put in place a customs support framework, which includes round-the-clock clearance of relief shipments, designating 24 nodal officers to expedite release of goods, integrated goods and services tax (IGST) and customs duty waivers, etc. Read on...