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The Serum Institute of India, the world's largest manufacturer of vaccines by volume, will first focus on supplying AstraZeneca Plc's Covid-19 vaccine to Indians before distributing it to other countries, Serum's Chief Executive Adar Poonawalla said on Monday.

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There is a risk that the poor and vulnerable will be trampled on in the stampede for coronavirus vaccines, the head of the World Health Organization said on Monday, adding that $4.3 billion was needed urgently for a world vaccine-sharing scheme.

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The United Kingdom reported 15,450 new Covid-19 cases on Monday, bringing the total over the past seven days to 40,504, a 23% drop compared with the previous seven-day period.

Government data also showed that 206 new Covid-19 deaths were reported on Monday. The seven-day total of 3,084 deaths was up by 6%.

The United Kingdom has the highest death toll from the virus in Europe.

A record 22 coronavirus fatalities in a single day were reported in Himachal Pradesh on Monday, raising the death toll to 551, officials said.

Twelve deaths were reported from Shimla, three each from Mandi and Kangra, two from Bilaspur and one each from Kullu and Solan, according to date provided by the Health Department.

The Delhi government has directed private hospitals here to reserve ICU and normal beds for coronavirus patients once these get vacant after discharge of non-Covid-19 patients.

The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) of the Delhi government in orders issued last week had enhanced the percentage of ICU and non-ICU beds in many private hospitals in view of rising number of Covid-19 cases in Delhi.

Gujarat on Monday reported 1,487 fresh coronavirus positive cases, taking the count of infections to 1,98,899, the state health department said.

With 17 more people succumbing to the viral infection, including 13 in Ahmedabad, the cumulative toll in the state mounted to 3,876, the department said in a release.

At the same time, 1,234 patients were discharged after treatment, taking the tally of recoveries to 1,81,187, it said.

The number of Covid-19 cases in Nagpur increased by 357 on Monday, while 10 people died of the infection and 276 people were discharged after recovery, an official said.

The district's caseload is 1,09,205, including 3,604 deaths, and 1,01,468 people have recovered, leaving it with 4,133 active cases, the official added.

Haryana on Monday reported another big spike of 2,663 fresh novel coronavirus cases, raising the infection tally to 2,19,963 while 28 more fatalities pushed the death toll in the state to 2,216.

According to the state health department's daily bulletin, of the fresh cases, the worst-affected Gurugram district reported 866 while 577 infections were from Faridabad.

Gurugram and Faridabad, both of which fall in the National Capital Region (NCR), are the two districts hardest hit by the pandemic.

Madhya Pradesh on Monday reported 1,701 fresh Covid-19 cases, taking the tally of infections to 1,94,745, while ten fatalities pushed the toll to 3,172, health officials said.

A total of 1,120 patients were discharged from hospitals in the last 24 hours, raising the number of recoveries to 1,79,237.

Uttarakhand's Covid-19 tally rose to 71,632 on Monday with 376 more people being confirmed positive for the disease.

The state also reported seven coronavirus-related deaths.

Deharadun district reported the highest number of 133 cases

Rajasthan recorded 18 more fatalities due to coronavirus on Monday, taking the death toll to 2,181, while 3,232 new cases pushed the infection count to 2,47,168 in the state, a health department bulletin said.

Karnataka on Monday reported 1,509 new cases of Covid-19 and 24 related fatalities, taking the total number of infections to 8,74,555 and the death toll to 11,678, the health department said. The day also saw 1,645 patients getting discharged after recovery.

Out of 1,509 fresh cases reported on Monday, 725 cases were from Bengaluru urban alone.

The Uttar Pradesh government on Monday restricted the number of people attending an indoor event to 100, while less than 40 per cent of the area of an outdoor programme venue will be allowed to be occupied by people in view of the Covid-19 outbreak.

However, in both the scenarios, use of face masks, sanitisers, thermal scanning and maintaining social distancing remain intact, an official said.

The 'Sunday effect' had its bearing on the Covid-19 chart in Andhra Pradesh as only 545 fresh cases were reported from 47,130 sample tests in 24 hours ending 9 am on Monday.

This is by far the lowest number of daily cases reported in the state after a gap of close to five months. While an average 70,000 samples were tested in weekdays, the number is far lesser on Sundays, which results in lower addition of new coronavirus cases.

As Covid-19 cases rage in parts of India and a possibility of a second wave looming large, the Maharashtra government on Monday made RT-PCT negative reports compulsory for people arriving by air and rail from the National Capital Region of Delhi and Gujarat, Rajasthan and Goa.

Apart from this, land border districts will have to make arrangements to test for symptoms and take their body temperature of people from these places by road. The fresh set of guidelines will come to effect from Wednesday.

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The Covid-19 death toll of Jharkhand went up to 951 after five more persons succumbed to the disease in the last 24 hours, a health department report said on Monday.

It said that 137 new infections pushed the tally to 1,07,469.

The state currently has 2,289 active cases.

US officials prepared to begin inoculating Americans against the novel coronavirus by mid-December as another global drug company on Monday announced promising trial results toward a vaccine, providing hope as the pace of infections accelerated.

The head of the US campaign to rapidly deploy a vaccine said on Sunday that US healthcare workers and other high-risk people could start getting shots within a day or two of regulatory consent next mont

Bustling waiters and the smell of coffee returned to Barcelona's pavements on Monday as bars and restaurants in the Spanish region of Catalonia reopened in a phased easing of coronavirus restrictions.

Suppliers rolled in carts with groceries and masked attendants spaced out tables on bar terraces and inside establishments as the first customers ordered their morning coffee with croissants.

Maharashtra government on Monday announced that people with Covid-19 symptoms seeking to enter the states from Delhi, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Goa would be turned back.

"The passengers without symptoms will be allowed entry. Passengers with symptoms shall have the option of turning back and going to their home to recuperate," a state government order said.

AstraZeneca will start discussions this week with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to change the design of its experimental Covid-19 vaccine trial to add a likely more effective dosage regime, a senior executive said on Monday.

The British drugmaker on Monday released interim data from late-stage trials that showed the shot was on average about 70% effective in preventing coronavirus.

Russia reported a record 25,173 new coronavirus infections on Monday as the Kremlin said it was up to regional authorities to decide what measures needed to be imposed in their regions to curb its spread.

Russian authorities have said they will not impose nationwide lockdowns as they did earlier in the pandemic, stressing the importance of hygiene and targeted measures in certain regions instead.

Schools and colleges for classes IX to XII reopened in the rural areas of Pune district on Monday for the first time since the coronavirus outbreak started in March, with officials claiming student attendance was around 30 per cent.

Educational institutions in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad civic areas continue to be shut till December 13 and November 30 respectively.

The Meghalaya government has identified around 25,000 health workers who will be administered the Covid-19 vaccine on priority, as and when the first batch is rolled out, an official said on Tuesday.

In accordance with the directions of the central government, the state has enlisted around 25,000 healthcare workers, both public and private, who would be covered during the first phase of vaccination, Health Commissioner and Secretary Sampath Kumar said.

The rollout is expected to be smooth and successful, the health commissioner said.

The experimental Covid-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University would have a higher efficacy rate if trials were only measuring whether the shot prevents hospitalisation and severe disease, Oxford's vaccine chief said on Monday.

Speaking in a briefing, Andrew Pollard, director of the Oxford Vaccine Group, said it is hard to explain the different efficacy rates between the AstraZeneca/Oxford shot and the other vaccines developed by Pfizer and BioNTech and one by Moderna.

The first Americans to receive a Covid-19 vaccine could be as early as the second week of December, according to the White House vaccine czar.

American pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech submitted an application to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on November 20 for emergency use authorisation for its Covid-19 vaccine candidate. An FDA vaccine advisory committee is slated to meet December on 10.

India has been registering less than 50,000 Covid-19 cases daily since November 8, which assumes significance as several countries in the Western Hemisphere are witnessing a surge in cases at the onset of winter, the Union Health Ministry said on Monday.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease has surged to 85,62,641 which exceeds active cases by 81,19,155.

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Indonesia hit a grim milestone on Monday in surpassing more than half a million cases of the coronavirus, as hospitals across the country's most populated province edged closer towards capacity.

Indonesia now has 502,110 infections and 16,002 deaths from Covid-19, the highest numbers in Southeast Asia, having struggled to contain the spread since its first case in March.

Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Monday attributed the high Covid-19 death rate in the city to the pollution caused by stubble-burning and expected a downtrend in it in the next two-three weeks.

The minister told reporters here that the pollution due to stubble-burning created a big problem in Delhi. It caused problems in breathing and those who had Covid-19 inhaled the smoke, which aggravated the seriousness, he said.

AstraZeneca's chief executive officer Pascal Soriot said on Monday that the lower first dose of its experimental Covid-19 vaccine meant more people can be vaccinated more quickly, as the British drugmaker unveiled interim late-stage trial results.

"Being able to vaccinate more people faster is a really a big plus," he told a briefing.

Chinese authorities are testing millions of people, imposing lockdowns and shutting down schools after multiple locally transmitted coronavirus cases were discovered in three cities across the country last week.

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Delighted to hear that, Covishield, soon to be widely available Covid-19 vaccine, will offer protection up to 90% in one dosage regime & 62% in another: Adar Poonawalla, CEO Serum Institute of India

The Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is being made in partnership with Serum Institute.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday lauded the contribution of everyone involved in the task of dealing with the coronavirus pandemic in the state and said their efforts have also been acknowledged at the global level.

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The British government is looking at reducing the time people have to self-isolate if they come into contact with someone with Covid-19 from the current 14 days through the use of a new testing regime, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Monday.

Experts have opined that we shouldn't take any decision till December end. We will meet again and take an appropriate decision at the time, with regard to the situation. We shouldn't start SSLC (Class 10) and PUC until then: Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa

The Covid-19 Technical Committee of the Health and Family Welfare Department has reportedly recommended the state government against the reopening of schools in December citing a possible surge in the cases due to extreme winter conditions.

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British drugs group AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford on Monday said their jointly-developed vaccine against Covid-19 has shown "an average efficacy of 70 per cent" in trials.

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In a further dip in fresh coronavirus cases, the Union Territory of Puducherry reported just 27 additions, taking the overall infection tally to 36,718 on Monday.

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Dakshina Kannada district has recorded more number of Covid-19 fatalities, but the death rate among children is negligible as per the statistics of the Department of Health and Family Welfare.

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When confectioner Laszlo Rimoczi decided to put masks on his chocolate Santas in his small workshop in rural Hungary, he intended it as a light-hearted joke to raise people's spirits amid a worsening coronavirus pandemic.

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Odisha reported 668 new Covid-19 infections on November 22, taking total positive cases to 3,14,629, out of which 7,106 are active cases. 3,05,813 people have recovered while 1,657 deaths have been recorded.

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal gives orders for MBBS students & dentists to be allowed to assist in hospitals & Covid ICUs to meet manpower shortage. Delhi govt hospitals can now engage 4th and 5th-year MBBS students and dentists to assist doctors in the treatment of Covid-19 patients.

Supreme Court seeks affidavit from Delhi, Maharashtra, Gujarat, & Assam governments on the steps taken by them in regard to the current Covid-19 condition in the states. A Bench headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan also pulls up Gujarat & Delhi for worsening Covid-19 situation.

In a tweet on Sunday evening, Maurya said, "My corona report has come out positive. I am asymptomatic and have no problems. I have isolated myself under the supervision of doctors. I request everyone who came in contact with me over the last few days to get themselves tested."

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After seven weeks, the number of active Covid-19 cases for the first time increased on Sunday by more than 1,200 in what is probably an early indication of a second surge in the epidemic following the Dussehra-Diwali-Chhath festivities.

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Wishing my ministerial colleague, Dr. Raghu Sharma ji speedy recovery from #COVID19. May he gets well soon. @RaghusharmaINC

— Ashok Gehlot (@ashokgehlot51) November 23, 2020

Satish Dhupelia, the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, has succumbed to coronavirus-related complications here in South Africa, three days after his 66th birthday, a family member said.

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The UT govt had earlier ordered the closure of these markets on the grounds of "violations of Covid-19 guidelines and social distancing norms."

Delhi: Shops at Nangloi market being unsealed after UT govt withdrew order to seal it on grounds of violation of #COVID19 protocols. Subhash Bindal, General Secretary of Shukar Bazar Market Assn, Nangloi Market says, "Order withdrawn last night. Copy of official order is awaited" pic.twitter.com/k1soIdi95l

— ANI (@ANI) November 23, 2020

Coronavirus has wrought havoc across the world, but for Thailand's "sea gypsies" it has brought welcome respite from the threat of mass tourism.

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South Korea reported another daily rise of over 200 new coronavirus cases on Monday, a day before tighter social distancing rules aimed at blunting a third wave of infections take effect.

The daily tally of 271 new cases fell from 330 reported on Sunday after hovering above 300 for five straight days, a level not seen since August, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Germany increased by 10,864 to 929,133, data from the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases showed on Monday. The reported death toll rose by 90 to 14,112, the tally showed.

People travel in a truck as its owner was fined by the Delhi Civil Defence (DCD) volunteers along with Covid-19 enforcement team for not maintaining social distancing as a preventive measure against the coronavirus, in transporting people in New Delhi. Credit: AFP Photo

A woman from Thirthahalli in Shivamogga district missed the flight to Dubai at Mangalore International Airport, owing to a mistake in the spelling of Shivamogga in the Covid-19 negative certificate.

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A total of 29 final year students of various courses in Dakshina Kannada have tested positive for Covid-19. They are ITI, diploma, engineering and medical students.

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Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah, who missed Sunday's 3-0 Premier League win over Leicester City after contracting Covid-19, has now tested negative and can return to training, manager Juergen Klopp has said.

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The United States hopes to begin coronavirus vaccinations in early December, a top government health official said Sunday, the latest positive news to emerge even as cases surge across the worst-hit nation and elsewhere around the globe.

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The head of one of the world’s largest vaccine manufacturers had a problem. Adar Poonawalla, chief executive of the Serum Institute of India, needed $850 million for everything from glass vials to stainless steel vats so he could begin producing doses of promising coronavirus vaccines for the world’s poor.

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Brazil's health ministry said on Sunday it will sign non-binding letters of intent to purchase coronavirus vaccines from four companies and Russia's sovereign wealth fund, adding that any purchase will depend on the approval of the nation's regulators.

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Uruguay forward Luis Suarez has apologised for the team "letting their guard down" during the international break after 16 members of their squad and staff, including Suarez, tested positive for Covid-19.

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Nearly 2 billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines will be shipped and flown to developing countries next year in a "mammoth operation", the UN children's agency UNICEF said on Monday, as world leaders vowed to ensure the fair distribution of vaccines.

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If there was any lingering doubt that climate change threatens human health and well-being, this year put it to rest. Wildfire smoke aggravated heart disease and lung disease up and down the West Coast and across the country. A record-breaking hurricane season killed and injured people from North Carolina to Texas, and left tens of thousands homeless and at risk of PTSD and other mental health problems. Oppressive heat across the Southwest imperilled outdoor workers and athletes, the elderly and the poor, and people with underlying health problems, with risks ranging from heatstroke to heart attacks and even death.

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The UK government will announce on Monday that self-isolation will no longer be required for those who have come into contact with people who have tested positive for Covid-19, the Telegraph reported.

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Telangana reported 602 new Covid-19 cases, 3 deaths and 1,015 recoveries on November 22. Total cases in the state rise to 2,64,128 including 1,433 deaths and 2,51,468 recoveries. Active cases stand at 11,227.

The rapidness at which coronavirus vaccines are being developed will have a significant effect on new technologies that will help in faster drug discoveries, lowering the cost and making it more affordable for the poor, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Sunday.

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Several newborns across the city have tested positive for Covid-19 within 24 to 48 hours of their birth.

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Britain could give regulatory approval to Pfizer-BioNTech's Covid-19 vaccine this week, even before the United States authorises it, The Telegraph news site reported on Sunday.

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Warehouses are increasingly automating their operations due to the pandemic, which is reshaping the way business is done in the post-Covid world.

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While children are largely believed to be immune to Covid-19 complications, a 14-year-old girl with the disease ended up at the hospital with serious issues.

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