Covid LIVE: 39,923 cases in Maharashtra; BMC halts vaccination for 2 days

Coronavirus live updates: India recorded 343,144 fresh Covid-19 infections today, taking the caseload tally to 24 million. Stay tuned for corona-related news

4:36 PM

Coronavirus Latest: Maharashtra CM urges sugar cooperatives to produce oxygen

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray urged the sugar cooperative industry to produce oxygen, much needed for hospitals treating Covid-19 patients.

 

He was speaking after attending the virtual inauguration of an oxygen production plant of Dharashiv Sugar Cooperative in Osmanabad district.

 

The sugar cooperative is the first in the state to start oxygen production, an official release said. (PTI)

4:20 PM

Telangana HC stays state govt's order to allow ambulances only if they have prior tie-up with hospitals

Telangana High Court stays the state government's order to allow ambulances with patients coming from neighbouring states only if they have prior tie-up with hospitals.

4:17 PM

270 black fungus cases reported in Pune; therapy SOPs framed

Around 270 cases of Mucormycosis, a rare but dangerous fungal infection, have been reported so far in Pune district, prompting a government task force to come up with a set of standard operating procedures (SOPs) for patient management in hospitals, officials said on Friday.

 

Symptoms of Mucormycosis, also known as black fungus, include headache, fever, pain under the eyes, nasal or sinus congestion and partial loss of vision.

 

It affects the sinuses, the brain and the lungs and can be life-threatening in people who are diabetic or have suppressed immunity.

 

Mucormycosis, whose treatment requires a multidisciplinary approach, has come in focus during the pandemic as it has been detected in some recovering and recovered coronavirus patients. (PTI)

4:00 PM

German infection rate at 2-month low, vaccinations speed up

Germany's coronavirus infection rate dropped to its lowest level in nearly two months on Friday, while the health minister said the country had the most successful day yet of its vaccination campaign this week.

 

Still, Jens Spahn called for caution as authorities move toward allowing a more normal life, urging officials to hold off on fully reopening restaurants and calling for Germans to choose vacation destinations carefully.

 

The national disease control center, the Robert Koch Institute, said the number of weekly new cases per 100,000 inhabitants stood at 96.5, the first time since March 20 it has been under 100. There are still considerable variations between regions, many of which are still subject to an overnight curfew and other rules that kick in when an area's weekly infections top 100 per 100,000 people. (AP)

3:41 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: FinMin asks states to vaccinate all bank employees on priority

3:29 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: Over 2 million vaccine doses administered on May 13, says Health Ministry

Coronavirus LIVE: Over 2 million vaccine doses administered on May 13, says Health Ministry

3:25 PM

Nearly 1,000 power sector employees have succumbed to Covid, says AIPEF

All India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF) on Friday said as many as 1,000 power sector employees have succumbed to Covid-19 and more than 15,000 have been infected from the virus.

 

In Maharashtra, a total of more than 7,100 power employees are Covid positive and about 210 have died. While, in Uttar Pradesh, more than 4,000 power sector employees are suffering from coronavirus and there have been 140 casualties.

 

"Amid a record surge in Covid-19 cases in the country, around 1,000 employees working in the power sector have died and more than 15,000 employees have tested positive for the virus," AIPEF Spokesperson V K Gupta said in a statement.

 

In the list of casualties, there are at least three chief engineers (2 from Uttar Pradesh and 1 from Haryana), and more than two dozen superintending engineers including nine from Uttar Pradesh, it said. (PTI)

3:14 PM

Japan to expand virus emergency ahead of Tokyo Olympics

Japan is set to further expand a coronavirus state of emergency, currently in Tokyo and five other prefectures, to nine areas as the government is determined to hold the Olympics in just over two months.

 

Japan has been struggling to slow the infections ahead of the Games. The three additions include Japan's northern island state of Hokkaido, where the Olympic marathon will be held, as well as Hiroshima and Okayama in western Japan.

 

The three areas on Sunday will join Tokyo, Osaka and four other prefectures already under the coronavirus restrictions, until May 31, Economy Revitalization Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura told reporters. Bars, karaoke parlors and most entertainment facilities are required to close. Business owner who comply will be compensated; those who don't face fines. (AP)

3:02 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: We will get vaccines as soon as possible, says Karnataka CM

2:43 PM

Oxygen shortage claims 13 more lives at Goa hospital; 75 dead in 4 days

Thirteen more Covid-19 patients died at the Goa Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) in the early hours of Friday, a senior health department official said, taking to 75 the number of people who have succumbed at the government-run facility here in the last four days.

 

The horror at the GMCH is continuing even as the Goa bench of the Bombay High Court is hearing petitions related to deaths during the "dark hours" at the premier hospital. Read here

2:26 PM

Coronavirus LIVE: MP govt to bear Covid treatment cost of journalists

2:21 PM

Reliance Jio announces offer free talk time for JioPhone users for pandemic

Reliance Jio on Friday said it is working with Reliance Foundation to provide 300 free minutes of outgoing calls per month, which amounts to 10 minutes per day, for the entire period of the pandemic.

 

The scheme will be available to JioPhone users who have not been able to recharge due to the ongoing pandemic, the company said in a statement.

 

Reliance Jio is the first company to announce free talk time for users in the second wave of pandemic wherein many states have imposed lockdowns or lockdown-like restrictions as a desperate measure to restrict the spread of the virus. (PTI)

2:02 PM

40 new cases take Covid-19 tally of Andamans to 6,510

The Covid-19 caseload in Andaman and Nicobar Islands rose to 6,510 as 40 more people tested positive for the disease in the Union Territory, a health department official said on Friday.

 

Thirty-nine new cases were detected during contact tracing and one fresh patient has a travel history, he said.

 

The death toll rose to 83 as two more persons succumbed to the disease in the last 24 hours, the official said. (PTI)

1:50 PM

Will bear cost of education and other expenses of those children who were orphaned by Covid: Delhi CM

We will bear cost of education and other expenses of those children who were orphaned by Covid-19 pandemic: Delhi CM Kejriwal

1:50 PM

Delhi govt will extend all help to families which have lost earning members to Covid-19, says CM

Delhi govt will extend all help to families which have lost earning members to Covid-19, says CM Arvind Kejriwal