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Coronavirus news highlights: Kerala reports 7,007 new Covid-19 infections, Rajasthan sees 2,080 casesIndia's Covid-19 caseload went past 86 lakh on Wednesday, while the number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 80.13 lakh, pushing the national recovery rate to 92.79 per cent. Meanwhile, India is also in talks with Pfizer for its Covid-19 vaccine. Globally, markets looked upbeat on vaccine hopes pushing back a second wave of the virus as US registered over one million cases in November thus far.
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2,546 new Covid-19 cases, 25 deaths and 1,829 discharges reported in Haryana (ANI)

52-year-old Covid-19 patient allegedly jumps to her death from fifth floor of Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital in Delhi: Police. (PTI)

Meet Dr Celine Gounder, expert with Tamil roots part of Joe Biden's Covid-19 task force

President-elect Joe Biden's administration has yet another Tamil Nadu link. Dr Celine Gounder, an HIV/infectious diseases specialist who has been named to the coronavirus task force set up by Biden, traces her roots to a nondescript village in Erode.

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Kerala to allow Covid-19 patients missing postal ballots to vote in last hour in civic polls

The Kerala government on Wednesday decided to bring an ordinance for enabling voters who test positive for Covid-19 or quarantined after the deadline for seeking postal ballot to vote in the last hour of polling in the local body elections to be held next month.

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Suburban train services resume in Bengal under strict vigil

Suburban train services resumed in West Bengal on Wednesday after a gap of about seven months since the nationwide lockdown in March following the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Andhra Pradesh: Four students of a Govt school at Konayapalem village in Krishna District tested positive for Covid-19

Madhya Pradesh records 883 fresh Covid-19 cases, taking infection count to 1,79,951, death toll climbs to 3,055 with 13 more fatalities; number of active cases now 8,328: Health officials

703 fresh Covid-19 cases in Punjab bring tally to 1,39,184, toll mounts to 4,389 with 31 more deaths; the number of active cases stands at 5,246: Health dept bulletin

Actor couple Richard Schiff, Sheila Kelly test positive for Covid-19

Should India forget about acquiring Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine?

When Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech SE’s Covid-19 vaccine rolls off production lines, Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group Co. will be waiting to distribute it through a complex and costly system of deep-freeze airport warehouses, refrigerated vehicles andinoculation points across China.

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Texas becomes 1st US state to surpass 1 million Covid-19 cases

Texas has become the first US state with more than 1 million confirmed Covid-19 cases as the nation continues to face a surge of infections, according to data from Johns Hopkins University early Wednesday.

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Viruses can be delicious as well as deadly

Now that we’ve been held hostage by a virus for seven months that feel like seven years, many of us could use some good old-fashioned retribution. Well, it turns out there is a satisfying place where the viruses are the ones that have to worry about social distancing, and that place is the ocean.

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Andhra Pradesh reports 1,732 new cases taking the total positive cases in the State to 8,47,977.

There are 20,915 active cases and 8,20,234 recovered cases in the State; the death toll is at 6,828 as per the State Health Department. (ANI)

Kerala Government has decided to bring in an amendment to allow Covid-19 patients and those advised quarantine after the deadline to apply for postal ballots to cast their vote in last hour of polling during the upcoming local body polls (ANI)

Scientists find evidence of two-way transmission of coronavirus on mink farms

An analysis of outbreaks of the novel coronavirus on 16 mink farms in the Netherlands has revealed that the Covid-19 virus is capable of transmission between humans to minks, as well as from these mammals to people.

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Kerala records 7,007 new Covid-19 cases today; active cases in the state at 78,420.

Total 4,22,410 recoveries have been reported so far: Kerala Government

Dr Harsh Vardhan noted that although active cases have come down in Maharashtra, it continues to have a large Active Caseload, with a high Fatality Rate (2.6%) which increases to 3.5% in & around Mumbai. Active cases are on the rise in the recent days in Manipur: Health Ministry

42 new Covid-19 positive cases and 90 recoveries reported in Nagaland today: Nagaland Health Minister, S Pangnyu Phom.

Gujarat: Secondary schools and colleges to reopen from November 23

Class 10 Jammu and Kashmir board exams begin in Kashmir

The annual board examinations for Class 10, conducted by the Jammu and Kashmir State Board of School Education (JKBOSE), commenced in the Kashmir valley on Wednesday with Covid-19 safety measures in place, officials said.

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Puducherry reported 115 new Covid-19 cases, 107 discharges & 1 death

Total positive cases in the Union Territory rise to 36,114 till date, including 1,077 active cases, 34,432 recoveries & 605 deaths: Department of Health & Family Welfare, Government of Puducherry

Cinema halls allowed to reopen in Raipur district of Chhattisgarh

Stakes high in pandemic, Diwali card games go online

Exams and entertainment, conferences and idle chats, this has been a year of everything online. Now, add to the list card games that are an integral part of Diwali for so many people, including those who usually stay away from any sort of gambling.

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702 new Covid-19 cases reported in Bihar yesterday, taking the active cases in the state to 7,219: State Health Department. (ANI)

Delhi High Court pulls up AAP govt for relaxing norms even as Covid-19 cases spike

The Delhi High Court Wednesday pulled up the AAP government for relaxing norms for public movement and gatherings in the national capital even as Covid-19 cases were increasing and questioned whether it has any policy or strategy in place to deal with the "alarming" situation.

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UK govt plans 'student travel window' ahead of Christmas

University students in England will be allowed to travel home in early December after a four-week lockdown is eased to spend Christmas with their families, under government plans unveiled Wednesday.

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'Natural food-preservative molecule may prevent coronavirus from binding to cells'

Using computer simulation, Indian scientists have found that a natural food-preservative molecule has the potential to bind strongly to the protein which the novel coronavirus uses to enter human cells, and may prevent infection.

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Plasma jets may kill novel coronavirus within seconds: Study

Plasma jets may kill the novel coronavirus on surfaces such as metal, leather, and plastic in as a little as 30 seconds, according to a study which suggests that plasma could promise a significant breakthrough in the fight against the spread of Covid-19.

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AIIMS director hails Pfizer vaccine development

Delhi High Court directs Delhi Government to file a status report explaining the steps taken to control Covid-19, given the spurt in cases over last two weeks.

Court slammed the govt for relaxing norms for public gatherings & transport at a time when cases are increasing.

In Iran, a massive cemetery struggles to keep up with virus

For over half a century, a massive graveyard on the edge of Iran's capital has provided a final resting place for this country's war dead, its celebrities and artists, its thinkers and leaders and all those in between.

But Behesht-e-Zahra is now struggling to keep up with the coronavirus pandemic ravaging Iran, with double the usual number of bodies arriving each day and grave diggers excavating thousands of new plots.

With 1.6 million people buried on its grounds, which stretch across more than 5 square kilometers (1,320 acres), Behesht-e-Zahra is one of the world's largest cemeteries and the primary one for Tehran's 8.6 million people. The golden minarets of its Imam Khomeini Shrine, the burial site of the leader of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution, are visible for kilometers (miles).

But it was not big enough for the coronavirus, which roared into Iran early this year, seeding the region's worst outbreak.

Turkey interested in producing Russia's Sputnik V vaccine - Russian health ministry

Turkey is interested in producing Russia's first coronavirus vaccine, Sputnik V, at domestic facilities, Russia's health ministry said on Wednesday after a phone call between the countries' health ministers.

Russia is already testing two vaccines against the virus and is on the cusp of registering a third. It is rolling out its Sputnik V vaccine for domestic use despite the fact that late-stage trials have not yet finished.

India's active Covid-19 caseload falls below 5 lakh

Crossing another "milestone" in the fight against the pandemic, the COVID-19 active caseload in India has fallen below the 5 lakh-mark for the first time after 106 days and comprises merely 5.73 per cent of the total cases, the Union Health Ministry said on Wednesday.

Seventy per cent of the 44,281 new coronavirus infections reported in a span of 24 hours are from ten states and UTs with Delhi continuing to report the highest daily new cases at 7,830. It is followed by Kerala with 6,010 cases, the ministry said.

There are 4,94,657 active cases of coronavirus infections as on date. It was 4,96,988 on July 28.

"This also indicates a sustained trend of declining active cases in the country. It assumes higher significance in the context of several countries across the globe reporting a surge in the number of new cases," the ministry said.

A total of 12,07,69,151 samples tested for #COVID19 up to 10th November - of these 11,53,294 samples were tested yesterday: Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)

India scales an unprecedented peak. Active cases drop below 5 lakh mark for the first time after 106 days. This assumes significance in the context of many countries reporting a surge in their active caseload: Ministry of Health & Family Welfare

Jharkhand reports 252 new COVID-19 cases and five fresh fatalities.

The COVID-19 tally of Andaman and Nicobar Islands rose to 4,477 on Wednesday as 14 more people tested positive for the infection

Suburban train services resumed in West Bengal on Wednesday after more than seven months, with authorities maintaining a strict vigil and passengers largely adhering to the COVID-19 protocol.

BCCI president Sourav Ganguly on Wednesday acknowledged that it was mentally tough for players to be in the just-concluded Indian Premier League's bio-bubble and thanked them for showing resolve to make the tournament a success.

Mizoram's Covid-19 tally rises to 3,217

Mizoram's Covid-19 tally rose to 3,217 on Wednesday as 61 more people, including an eight-month-old baby, tested positive for the infection, a health official said.

Kerala police receive over 2,800 complaints of domestic violence during lockdown.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said the government will have to define a vaccine distribution strategy to ensure that every Indian gets the COVID-19 vaccine.

3 times more tests are being done now as compared to last peak. No doubt 3rd peak is here, hope cases fall in next couple of days. 17000 RTPCR tests were conducted yesterday, we've increased testing: Delhi Health Minister

Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain on increasing ICU beds for Covid-19 cases in Delhi

We had already issued an order earlier to private hospitals for increasing ICU beds but Delhi HC stayed that. Hope we get a vacation tomorrow from Supreme Court on our plea against HC stay: Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain on increasing ICU beds for Covid-19 cases in Delhi

WHO not sharing enough info about China coronavirus probe: US

A senior US government official complained Tuesday that the World Health Organization has not shared enough information about its planned mission to China to investigate the animal origins of the coronavirus.

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Jair Bolsonaro asks Brazilians not to deal with Covid-19 'like fags'

President Jair Bolsonaro drew criticism Tuesday for telling Brazilians not to deal with Covid-19 like "a country of fags," the far-right leader's latest controversial outburst on the pandemic.

Bolsonaro, who has consistently downplayed the virus even as it has killed 163,000 people in Brazil -- the second-highest death toll worldwide, after the United States -- made the comment during a meandering speech at the presidential palace in which he also appeared to threaten US President-elect Joe Biden.

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US sees over 1 lakh single-day Covid-19 cases for 7th straight day

The United States reported a record number of new Covid-19 cases for the seventh day in a row on Tuesday, according to a Reuters tally, while the number of deaths surged to their highest daily count since August.

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New type of test may better discern immunity to the coronavirus

A new type of test can detect a person’s immune response to the coronavirus better than a widely used antibody test, according to research released on Tuesday. The test, if authorized by the Food and Drug Administration, would be the first commercial product to detect the response of a T cell — a type of immune cell — to the virus.

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Planes, dry ice, pharmacies: The logistical challenges of Covid-19 vaccines

The United States could be the first country to launch one of the most ambitious vaccine operations in history: distributing and administering up to 600 million doses of a Covid-19 vaccine in just a few months.

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Covid-19 threatens people with intellectual and developmental challenges

People with intellectual disabilities and developmental disorders are three times more likely to die if they have Covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus, compared with others with the diagnosis, according to a large analysis of insurance claims data.

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In Brazil’s halt of Chinese vaccine trial, critics see politics

Brazil halted a late-stage trial of a Chinese vaccine on Monday that had been considered a global front-runner in the race to develop a protective shot for the coronavirus, after a “serious adverse” reaction in a participant.

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Today's Covid-19 numbers: With 44,281 new Covid-19 infections, India's total cases surge to 86,36,012. With 512 new deaths, toll mounts to 1,27,571

Total active cases are 4,94,657 after a decrease of 6,557 in the last 24 hrs.

Total cured cases are 80,13,784 with 50,326 new discharges in the last 24 hrs.

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Covid-19 death numbers coming down but not Bengaluru’s share

While the number of Covid-19 deaths in the state has fallen dramatically, an analysis of official data shows that Bengaluru’s share of deaths has not declined. Private hospitals may be to blame, an expert said.

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