Page 15 - Coronavirus

Covid-19 spike: WHO advises to scale up surveillance, protective measures

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has urged countries in South-East Asia to strengthen surveillance in view of the increasing cases of respiratory diseases, including due to COVID-19 and its new sub-variant JN.1, and influenza. The WHO also urged people to take protective measures. "The COVID-19 virus continues to evolve, change, and circulate in all countries globally. While current evidence suggests the additional public health risk posed by JN.1 is low, we must continue to track the evolution of these viruses to tailor our response. "For this, countries must strengthen surveillance and sequencing, and ensure sharing of data," said Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, regional director, WHO South-East Asia. WHO has classified JN.1 as a variant of interest following its rapid global spread. In recent weeks, JN.1 was reported in multiple countries, and its prevalence has been rapidly increasing globally. Considering the limited available evidence, the additional public health risk posed b

Citizens, tourism industry need not panic: Union minister on Covid spike

Union Minister of State for Tourism Shripad Naik on Sunday said citizens and the tourism industry need not worry about the latest wave of COVID-19, as the country has fought the disease in the past. The minister was speaking at the 'Sagar Manthan 2.0' event organised by the weekly magazine 'Panchjanya' in South Goa. Asked if the country will witness another lockdown in case of an outbreak, Naik said, "There is no need to panic. We can fight it even if it occurs again. We have fought it in the past. According to the Union Health Ministry's updated data on Sunday, the country saw a single-day rise of 656 COVID-19 infections while the active cases have increased to 3,742. India reported 22 cases of the JN.1 Covid variant till December 21, of which 21 were traced in Goa and one in Kerala. Naik said the Indian economy bounced back after the COVID-19 pandemic because of the progressive policies of the Central government. The Centre's policies have helped the tourism sector to go beyond

Kerala records 128 new Covid-19 infections, one death in last 24 hours

Kerala reported 128 fresh COVID-19 infections and one death due to the disease in the last 24 hours, according to data on the Union Health Ministry website on Sunday. Of the 334 active coronavirus infections reported nationwide till 8 am today, 128 were from Kerala, taking the active cases in the state to 3,000, as per the website. With one death reported in the state, the total number of people who have died due to coronavirus in Kerala since its outbreak three years ago reached 72,063. The number of people who were cured, discharged, or migrated in the last 24 hours after being diagnosed with the infection stood at 296. With that, the total number of cases under this category rose to 68,38,282 till date. On Tuesday, Health Minister Veena George reassured the people of the state that despite the rise in COVID cases in Kerala, there is no cause for alarm. The hospitals are adequately equipped to manage virus infections, she said.

India logs 656 new Covid-19 infections; active cases rise to 3,742

India saw a single-day rise of 656 Covid infections while the active cases have increased to 3,742, according to Union health ministry data updated on Sunday. The death toll was recorded at 5,33,333 with one new death reported from Kerala in a span of 24 hours, the data updated at 8 am showed. The country's Covid case tally is 4.50 crore (4,50,08,620). The number of people who have recuperated from the disease has increased to 4,44,71,545, and the national recovery rate stands at 98.81 per cent, according to the health ministry's website. The case fatality rate stands at 1.19 per cent. According to the ministry's website, 220.67 crore doses of Covid vaccines have been administered in the country so far.

2 fresh Covid-19 cases detected in Gurugram, active cases rise to four

The number of active Covid cases in Gurugram district reached four after two more instances of the infection was detected, the health department said on Saturday. District Surveillance Officer Dr Jai Prakash Rajliwal said a 36-year-old man who had returned from Indonesia got tested for Covid due to sore throat, cold and cough and was found infected. Apart from this, a 32-year-old woman was also found Covid infected but the health department did not find any travel history of the woman, he added. On the other hand, the health department collected samples from 102 people on Saturday and sent those for testing, officials said. An official of the health department said that between December 18 and 23, the Health Department collected samples of more than 200 people for testing. Of them, three women and one man were found infected. As the patients have mild symptoms of Covid, all have been kept in home isolation, the official said.

Evidence of brain injury present months after acute Covid infection: Study

Markers of brain injury developed due to COVID-19 were found in patients even months after the infection and despite blood tests measuring inflammation returning normal results, according to a new research. Researchers from universities in the UK explained that during the acute phase of the viral infection, when symptoms develop quickly, key inflammatory proteins and brain injury markers are produced. They analysed over 800 hospitalised patients' samples from across England and Wales. Surprisingly, even months after being discharged from the hospital, there is on-going robust biomarker evidence of brain injury developed due to COVID-19, the researchers said in their study published in a journal, Nature Communications. The biomarker evidence was more prominently seen in patients experiencing neurological dysfunction during the acute illness, and continued in the recovery phase in patients suffering acute neurological complications, the researchers said. "While some neurological ...

752 Covid cases, 4 deaths reported in 24 hours, highest rise since May

India saw a single-day rise of 752 coronavirus infections, the highest since May 21, 2023, while the active cases have increased to 3,420, according to Union health ministry data updated on Saturday. The death toll was recorded at 5,33,332 with four new deaths -- two from Kerala, one each in Rajasthan and Karnataka -- reported in a span of 24 hours, the data updated at 8 am stated. The country's Covid case tally stood at 4.50 crore (4,50,07,964). The number of people recuperated from the disease has increased to 4,44,71,212, and the national recovery rate stands at 98.81 per cent, according to the health ministry's website. The fatality rate stands at 1.19 per cent. The ministry's website stated that 220.67 crore doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the country so far.

Number of new Covid cases increased 52% globally in past one month: WHO

The number of new deaths decreased by 8 per cent as compared to the previous 28-day period, with over 3,000 new fatalities reported, World Health Organization (WHO) said in its latest press release

Covid possibly peaked in Singapore, says minister but experts cautious

The latest wave of COVID-19 cases in Singapore has possibly peaked, and there is no need for additional measures, like wearing a face mask mandate, to be implemented, said Minister for Health (MOH) Ong Ye Kung. We might have a slight surge, but I think more or less, we are seeing the peak of this wave, Channel News Asia quoted Ong as saying on Friday at the soft opening of a health campus at Woodlands in northern Singapore. However, having about 600 to 700 hospital beds taken up by COVID-19 patients is quite a strain on the system, the minister noted. We are a 10,000 bed-strong system. To take up 600 or 700 beds, it's six-seven per cent, which is not small. It's a significant workload on our healthcare workers and our system." "Nevertheless, I think our assessment remains ... that we can withstand this without additional SMMs (safe management measures)," said Ong. Noting that the estimated infection numbers have come down over the past few days, he said, "The indications are that

Will Covid sub-variant JN.1 bring mask mandates? Here's what experts say

Health experts suggest that people should consider wearing masks, especially in public places, to contain the spread of the new variant of Covid-19, JN.1

LIVE news: Plane with over 300 Indians on board grounded in France

Catch all the latest updates from across the globe here

TMS Ep591: Telecom Bill 2023, end of WFH, airline stocks, Covid-19 JN.1

Telecom Bill 2023: Is allocation better than auction? Was 2023 the year work from home ended? Will IndiGo and SpiceJet stocks face turbulence? What is JN.1, the latest Covid-19 variant? Answers here

1 death reported as fresh Covid cases rise by 328, active tally nears 3,000

Kerala reported 265 new cases, taking the state's total active caseload to 2,606

A year in politics: A recap of all key global events that shaped 2023

From geopolitical conflicts to historic political shifts, 2023 has been a year of significant milestones. Dive into the key political events that left an indelible mark on the world stage

Serum Institute of India to apply for licence of JN.1 Covid variant vaccine

Covid cases in India: On Friday, India recorded 640 fresh Covid-19 infections and the number of active cases now stands at 2,997

3 persons, including a 6-month baby, test positive for Covid-19 in Bengal

Three persons including a six-month-old baby tested positive for COVID-19 in West Bengal, officials said on Friday. However, it was yet to be ascertained whether the trio were infected by the new JN.1 strain of COVID-19, they said. The child, a resident of neighbouring Bihar, is undergoing treatment at the Medical College and Hospital Kolkata (MCHK) while the other two are admitted at two separate private hospitals, they said. "These were suffering from high fever, cough and cold. and underwent RT-PCR and tested positive for COVID-19," the officer of the private hospital said. When contacted a senior official of the West Bengal Health Department said that they were "keeping a tab" on this. "The state health department never said that COVID-19 has been eradicated. We have to realise that this is going to stay. As of now, we have not come across any such case. However, our department is very much vigilant," the official told PTI. The state health department will continue its ...

Amid rising Covid-19 cases, govt not planning mask mandate or vaccine shots

On Thursday, India reported 358 new cases of Covid-19, of which 300 cases were from Kerala; Insacog said no traces of widespread infection were found yet

JN.1 outbreak: As new cases rise, 10 things you must know about new variant

JN.1 Covid variant: On Friday, a new Covid-19 case was reported in Noida, the first in many months. The patient, a 54-year-old male who lives in Noida, works at a multinational firm in Gurugram

Kerala records 265 fresh Covid-19 cases, one death in last 24 hours

Kerala reported 265 fresh COVID-19 infections and one death due to the disease in the last 24 hours, according to data on the Union Health Ministry website on Friday. Of the 328 coronavirus infections reported nationwide till 8 am today, 265 were from Kerala, taking the active cases in the state to 2,606, as per the website. With one death reported in the state, the total number of people who have died due to coronavirus in Kerala since its outbreak three years ago reached 72,060. The number of people who were cured, discharged, or migrated in the last 24 hours after being diagnosed with the infection stood at 275. With that, the total number of cases under this category rose to 68,37,689 till date. The state reported 300 new COVID-19 infections and three deaths due to the disease on Thursday. On Tuesday, Health Minister Veena George reassured the people of the state that despite the rise in COVID cases in Kerala, there is no cause for alarm. The hospitals are adequately equipped

Noida reports first Covid-19 case in months as man tests positive

A Noida resident has tested positive for Covid, in a first case of the infection in Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddh Nagar after several months, officials said. The patient is a 54-year-old male who lives in Noida but works at a multinational company in Gurugram, Gautam Buddh Nagar Chief Medical Officer Dr Sunil Sharma said on Thursday. "His test sample has been sent to Delhi for genome sequencing. The result is awaited," Sharma said. District Surveillance Officer and public healthcare expert Dr Amit Kumar said the patient travelled to Nepal earlier this month and also went to work at his Gurugram office after returning. "The patient is asymptomatic and went for the COVID-19 test on his own," Kumar said, adding that this is the only confirmed case in Gautam Buddh Nagar so far. CMO Sharma said testing for the virus had come down in the district this year. People can get themselves tested for Covid at primary and community health centres here and the district hospital, he added. The