Covid LIVE: Stricter curbs in Maharashtra, offices to work with 15% staff

Coronavirus live updates: India has added 1,628,641 Covid cases in the last 7 days. CM Uddhav Thackeray is likely to take a call on lockdown in Maharashtra today. Stay tuned for corona-related news

3:21 PM

BJP leaders react to Nashik oxygen leak incident

3:03 PM

22 patients die at Nashik hospital

22 patients die at Nashik hospital die due to low oxygen supply following leakage in Nashik, said district collector.

2:21 PM

Nashik: Oxygen leakage from tanker

1:46 PM

15% of active cases may need oxygen, says Maharashtra minister

"We're anticipating that 15% of currently active cases may need oxygen. As of now, we have arrangements of 1550 MT of oxygen in the state. We're trying to distribute the same. We're also expecting the Oxygen which Govt of India will import. As per today's demand, we have sufficient Remdesivir, only challenge is that of distribution. So I appeal to doctors to use oxygen and Remdesivir properly. Maharashtra is currently producing 1250 tons of liquid oxygen, it'll be used for 100% medical use only," said Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope.

1:32 PM

Tracking course of coronavirus infection outbreak in India very closely: US

The United States is tracking the course of the Covid-19 outbreak in India very closely, the State Department has said.

 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has advised Americans to avoid all travel to India.

 

We are tracking the course of the Covid outbreak in India very closely, State Department Spokesperson Ned Price told reporters at his daily news conference.

 

Responding to a question, he said, Secretary of State, Tony Blinken and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar discussed the issue during a phone call on Monday. Read on...

1:06 PM

SII says states to get Covishield at Rs 400 a dose, pvt hospitals at Rs 600; price for centre stays at Rs 150

12:39 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: PM busy with campaign as citizens suffer, says Priyanka

Coronavirus LIVE: PM busy with campaign as citizens suffer, says Priyanka

12:13 PM

When things shouldn't be politicised, Congress, especially Gandhi family is doing politics, says BJP

When things shouldn't be politicised, Congress, especially Gandhi family is doing politics. Priyanka Gandhi gave interview & Rahul Gandhi tweeted. Nation is watching how they're criticising & it'll give them reply. Arrogance of Gandhi family is being reflected: Sambit Patra, BJP

11:31 AM

Maharashtra coronavirus update: Three people arrested in Thane for black marketing of Remdesivir

Maharashtra: Three people arrested from Mira Road in Thane district for black marketing of Remdesivir. Three vials of Remdesivir and stock worth Rs 2.25 Lakhs seized from their possession.

10:56 AM

New immune escape Covid variant found in West Bengal, say experts

After the B.1.617 "new mutant variant" was found in more than 60 per cent of cases sampled for genome sequencing in Maharashtra, a new lineage of SARS-CoV-2 has been found in India. B.1.618, the new variant, is characterised by a distinct set of genetic variants including E484K, and is being called a major immune escape variant -- that is it can escape immunity even if a person has contracted the virus before and has the ability to produce antibodies against it, according to India Today.

10:37 AM

Govt exported 60 million vaccines between Jan-March. Why were Indians not prioritised, says Priyanka

Govt exported 6 cr vaccines b/w Jan-March. During this time 3-4 cr Indians were vaccinated. Why were Indians not prioritised? Vaccine shortage is due to bad planning, Remdesivir shortage due to no planning,oxygen shortage due to no strategy. It's Govt's failure: Priyanka

9:58 AM

India records 295,041 new cases, biggest-ever single-day spike

India also registered the highest-ever single-day spike in Covid-related deaths with 2,023 fatalities.

9:52 AM

Global coronavirus caseload tops 142.6 million: Johns Hopkins University

The overall global Covid-19 caseload has topped 142.6 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 3.04 million, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

 

In its latest update on Wednesday morning, the University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload and death toll stood at 142,621,220 and 3,041,541, respectively.

 

The US is the worst-hit country with the world's highest number of cases and deaths at 31,792,013 and 568,460, respectively, according to the CSSE. Read on...

9:50 AM

There will be no herd immunity against Covid without vaccinating children

More than 910 million Covid-19 vaccine doses have been given and the number is climbing daily. So far, though, the vast majority of those given a shot and targeted by campaigns have one thing in common: They’re adults. That was the right place to start the world’s largest vaccination drive, but it’s not where we should stop.

Children have, it’s true, proven less susceptible to the coronavirus so far. It’s one of the pandemic’s few mercies, even if under-reporting plays a role. But not all have escaped unscathed, and we know infected youngsters have unwittingly passed the illness to others. As with shots for diseases like measles and rubella, Covid-19 vaccinations for kids are about protecting them — and about shielding everyone else. Even if children aren’t “super” spreaders, but merely spreaders, the return to a normality of sorts remains a mirage without them.

 

Unfortunately, this is a corner of the global vaccination campaign where problems like access and hesitancy will be most sharply felt. Trials involving children are only just beginning and are by necessity slow, given safety concerns, which mean researchers work down the age ranges, and lower infection rates. Read on...

9:44 AM

PM Modi needs to get off the stage of the rally where he is laughing and cracking jokes, says Priyanka Gandhi