The Delhi government on Saturday suggested to the Centre to remove the GST on face masks, sanitisers, oximeters and thermometers, saying these items have become a part of regular expenditure of the people during Covid-19 pandemic.
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia was speaking during a meeting of the GST Council.
He said the central government and BJP-ruled states opposed the idea of making these items tax-free and stressed that the decision to not do away with the tax was against the interest of citizens.
Punjab on Saturday registered less than 1,000 cases of coronavirus infections after almost three months. The state reported 979 cases, taking the total count of infections to 5,86,947, while 56 more fatalities pushed the toll to 15,503, said a medical bulletin. The number of active cases dropped to 14,064 from 15,306 on Friday.
The statement comprises a series of health policy commitments, including slashing the time taken to develop and license vaccines, treatments and diagnostics for any future disease to under 100 days, and reinforcement of global surveillance networks.
UNITED KINGDOM
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that "the G7 will pledge to distribute vaccines to inoculate the world by the end of next year, with millions coming from surplus UK stocks."
Britain says that G7 leaders are expected to agree to provide 1 billion doses via dose sharing and financing to end the pandemic in 2022.
Johnson has pledged to donate at least 100 million surplus coronavirus vaccine doses within the next year, including 5 million beginning in the coming weeks.
EUROPEAN UNION, GERMANY, FRANCE, ITALY
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said the European Union aims to export 700 million Covid-19 vaccine doses to lower-income countries by the end of 2021.