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1:33 PM

BJP's 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra' invitation for 3rd wave of Covid-19: Sanjay Raut

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Wednesday claimed the 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra', being carried out by a number of Union ministers in various states, was an "invitation for a third wave of Covid-19".

 

Talking to reporters here, Raut said they have asked the BJP to have patience.

 

The 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra' is an invitation for a third wave of Covid-19. The BJP is doing it deliberately," the Rajya Sabha member claimed.

 

11:59 AM

Puducherry logs 151 new infections

Puducherry reported on Wednesday 151 new infections of Covid-19 in 24 hours to its total to 122,542. The health department tested 5,424 samples, reported PTI.

11:29 AM

New Zealand orders mask use as new cases found

New Zealand's first coronavirus outbreak in six months has grown to seven people. The announcement Wednesday came a day after Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern imposed a strict lockdown after the first case was reported. The lockdown is for at least three days for the country and at least a week for the cities of Auckland and Coromandel, the AP reported.

10:50 AM

Virus outbreaks temporarily close 4 Texas school districts

As the new school year begins for Texas students and mask mandates are debated in various state courts, at least four school districts have already closed campuses due to COVID-19 outbreaks.

 

The shutdowns are taking place as more school districts and communities continued this week to defy Governor Greg Abbott's ban on mask mandates and require students and residents to wear face coverings. Tuesday afternoon, Abbott's office announced he had tested positive for COVID-19. Abbott, who is vaccinated, was experiencing no symptoms.

 

The school district in Gorman, located about 70 miles (112.65 kilometers) east of Abilene, had been set to begin the new school year on Wednesday but is now delaying that by a week due to positive COVID cases within the school community of both faculty and students, Superintendent Mike Winter said in a statement.

 

"This decision was not made lightly or quickly, and it was made with the best interest of all students, staff, and parents' safety in mind, Winter said.

 

"In East Texas, the Bloomburg school district announced it was shut down this week due to the number of staff members out with Covid."

 

Classes had started on August 9.

10:37 AM

Covid-19 pandemic: Record daily vax at 8.8 mn, rural India takes the lead

India achieved its highest daily Covid vaccination numbers on August 16, with more than 8.8 million doses being administered across the country, the health ministry said. The vaccination trend shows that demand for jabs is far higher in rural areas as compared to urban, with more than 70 per cent vaccines given in villages on Monday, according to data on the CoWIN dashboard.

 

The last record for the highest daily doses (over 8.4 million) was achieved on June 21, when the new vaccination guideline was launched.

Health experts say the demand in urban areas may be plateauing, while rural areas, which have far wider coverage, are seeing an increase. This could be because of greater awareness about vaccination and fears of another wave. Read on...

10:24 AM

China: Parents and teachers are divided amid crackdown on private tutoring

China is furthering its nationwide crackdown on the private education industry by encouraging citizens to report schools that host extracurricular tutoring classes as well as public school teachers who earn extra income through private tutoring.
 

The reporting system has stirred up debate on social media as reflected in a recent viral story about a parent's complaint about a teacher's private tutoring sessions.

10:20 AM

India prepares for another Covid surge but vaccine coverage is a problem

The first wave of Covid-19 in India – in the summer of 2020 – was efficiently flattened by a rapid country-wide lockdown. A consistent drop in case numbers from September 2020 to February 2021 allowed a cautious but smooth return to what was almost normal life.

 

But the ensuing second wave – starting in March 2021 – proved catastrophic, with over 400,000 cases reported each day during its peak. The virus spiralled out of control, mainly because of behavioural and political complacency. Large religious gatherings, election rallies and recreational socialising allowed the virus to take hold in a huge population pool.

10:17 AM

World coronavirus update: New Zealand confirms 7 Delta cases in latest community outbreak

New Zealand confirmed six new Delta cases of Covid-19 in the community on Wednesday, including one fully-vaccinated nurse from an Auckland hospital.

 

All the six cases were linked to the first community case that resulted in the country's second national top level lockdown starting Tuesday midnight. That brings the total number of community cases to seven. Under the lockdown, businesses and schools are closed except for essential ones such as supermarkets and service stations, Xinhua reported.

 

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said genome sequencing results confirmed that it is the Delta variant that is linked to genome sequencing of cases in Australia's New South Wales outbreak.

 

"Our case has originated in Australia," Ardern told a press conference. The trans-Tasman free quarantine travel started in April and was suspended last month due to the outbreak in Australia's several states.

 

10:00 AM

Coronavirus LIVE updates: India logs 35,178 new cases

India added 35,178 new coronavirus infections, taking the total tally of Covid-19 cases to

 

3,22,85,857, while the national recovery rate improved to 97.52 per cent, the highest since March 2020, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Wednesday.

 

The death toll climbed to 4,32,519 with 440 fresh fatalities, according to the data updated at 8 am.

 

The active cases declined to 3,67,415, the lowest in 148 days, and comprise 1.14 per cent of the total infections, the lowest since March 2020, the ministry said.

 

A reduction of 2,431 cases has been recorded in the active Covid-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.

9:45 AM

Japan's imports, exports grow on overseas economic rebound

Japan's exports in July jumped 37% from a year ago, the government said Wednesday, highlighting an overseas recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

 

Imports also grew, rising 28.5%, according to Finance Ministry data, for the second straight month of a trade surplus for the world's third largest economy.

 

Japan's exports grew to the US, Asia and Europe; while imports increased from Brazil, Belgium and Kuwait. By category, exports grew in food, iron and steel products, and electronic parts. Imports rose in food, auto parts and oil. Japan marked a trade surplus with the US, but a deficit with China in July.

 

The strong trade numbers come even as Japan is seeing a surge in COVID-19 cases that are causing some hospitals to turn away patients.

9:32 AM

Coronavirus in India: Latest update by MoHFW

Summary of MoHFW data (August 18)

Active cases: 367,415 (Net decrease: 2,431)

Deaths: 432,519 (Net increase: 440)

Cured: 31,485,923 (Net increase: 37,169)

Total cases: 32,285,857 (Net increase: 35,178)

Total vaccination: 560,652,030 (Increase over previous day: 5,505,075)

 

9:22 AM

Rupee, inflation, stocks: What sets gold prices in India during Covid-19

Gold is India's most popular investment option and the country is one of the largest consumers of the metal, contributing around 25 per cent of the global demand.

 

Gold is regarded a safe investment, especially during economic and financial crises. Investors use gold as an instrument to shield their portfolio investment. Gold prices fluctuate in financial and political uncertainties as well as changes in interest and exchange rates, government policies and other reasons. Read on...

7:59 AM

World coronavirus update: Israel reports 6,265 new Covid-19 cases

Israel's Ministry of Health reported 6,265 new Covid-19 cases on Tuesday, bringing the tally of infections in the country to 954,323.

 

The death toll from the coronavirus rose by 12 to 6,699, while the number of patients in serious condition rose from 528 to 579.

 

The number of active cases increased to 56,634, while the total recoveries from the virus climbed to 890,990 after 2,788 newly recovered cases were added, the ministry said.