LIVE: PM's US visit allowed for high-level interactions, says Foreign Secy

Development should be all-inclusive, universal and one that nurtures all, says PM Modi at 76th Session of UNGA

6:38 PM

PM Modi speaks at UNGA

6:35 PM

EAM, NSA, Foreign Secy at UN HQ

6:30 PM

PM Modi arrives at UN headquarters

6:23 PM

Indian diaspora gather outside Modi's hotel in New York

5:35 PM

27 new cases in Delhi

5:04 PM

UP becomes first Indian state to administer over 100 mn vaccine doses

4:59 PM

7th serosurvey in Delhi to be largest exercise: Jain

In total 28,000 samples will be collected for the seventh Covid serosurvey, making it the largest exercise in the national capital that seeks to determine the prevalence of antibodies among the populace, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain said on Saturday.

 

The survey got underway on September 24. According to sources, vaccination history will be collected from the participants of the survey. A large segment of the city population has already received anti-coronavirus vaccine doses.

 

The previous survey was conducted a few months ago when Delhi was reeling under the brutal second wave of the pandemic.

4:34 PM

Andhra sees 1,167 new cases

3:06 PM

Cinemas in Maharashtra to re-open from Oct 22 in compliance with health norms

1:52 PM

Mandatory school masks prevented Covid cases among kids: US CDC

Mandatory school mask requirements lowered Covid-19 infection outbreaks among children, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

 

The CDC analysed 520 US counties and found that paediatric cases rose sharply in places where school mask requirements were not made mandatory, The Washington Post reported.

 

Schools without mask requirements were 3.5 times more likely to experience an outbreak than schools with them, revealed a separate report on Arizona's two most populous counties. Read on...

1:15 PM

Kids below 14 account for highest Covid rates in Ireland

Children aged below 14 now account for the highest Covid-19 infection rates among all age groups in Ireland, according to the figures released by the country's Central Statistics Office (CSO).

 

In the week ending September 17, a total of 8,662 confirmed cases were reported in Ireland, of which children aged below 14 accounted for 34 per cent, the highest figure among all age groups, Xinhua news agency quoted the CSO as saying on Friday.

 

Of all the cases reported in the above-mentioned week, people aged 25 to 44 accounted for 27 per cent, followed by 17 per cent for those aged 45 to 64, 15 per cent for those aged 15 to 24 and 7 per cent for those aged 65 and over.

 

The CSO figures also revealed that the share of children aged below 14 in the weekly cases reported in Ireland has almost tripled when compared with two months ago.

 

1:00 PM

Over 825.7 mn coronavirus vaccine doses given to states, UTs so far: Govt

More than 82.57 crore Covid vaccine doses have been provided to states and union territories so far and over 94 lakh doses are in the pipeline, the Union Health Ministry said on Saturday.

 

Over 4.15 crore balance and unutilised vaccine doses are still available with the states and the union territories for inoculation, it said.

 

The Union government is committed to accelerating the pace and expanding the scope of Covid vaccination throughout the country, the ministry said in a statement.

 

"More than 82.57 crore (82,57,88,115) vaccine doses have been provided to states/UTs so far through the government of India (free of cost channel) and through direct state procurement category. Further, more than 94 lakh doses (94,37,525) are in the pipeline," it said. Read on...

12:47 PM

Poorly circulated room air raises potential exposure to Covid contaminants

New experiments by indoor air researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have shown that certain circumstances will result in poor mixing of room air, meaning airborne contaminants may not be effectively dispersed and removed by building level ventilation.

 

The findings of the study were published in the journal 'Indoor Air'.

 

Using CO2 as a tracer to track small respiratory aerosols that travel by air currents in a room, the Berkeley Lab team found that when overhead vents (or diffusers) are supplying heated air, it created thermally stratified conditions that block the flow of clean air down to the "breathing zone" in the middle height of the room.

 

As a result, even when people are sitting more than 6 feet from each other, some occupants may be exposed to respiratory aerosols from others at a rate 5 to 6 times higher than if the same room were well mixed.

11:46 AM

US deaths peaking

The number of people dying with Covid-19 in U.S. hospitals appears to have peaked, the latest sign of reprieve after the delta variant fueled record spikes in infections in some states. 

11:44 AM

Singapore to spend S$650 million in virus aid as curbs tightenedq

Singapore will spend S$650 million ($480 million) to provide additional support measures and cushion the impact of its renewed virus-related restrictions on workers and businesses.

 

The package will be funded from higher-than-expected revenues and there won’t be a further draw from its past reserves, the government said Friday. Authorities will boost jobs support and waive rentals for some business owners, and give financial assistance to taxi and private hire car drivers as part of the plan, it said.