Coronavirus news highlights: Punjab govt extends night curfew till Jan 1 as state reports 549 new Covid-19 cases

India's Covid-19 tally inches closer to the 98-lakh mark with the total number of cases rising to 97,96,769. The country's toll climbed to 142,186, with the fatality rate standing at 1.45 per cent. Globally, the United States registered a record of over 3,000 deaths in 24 hours -- the highest daily toll since April.

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Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh orders extension of night curfew in all cities and towns in the state till January 1: Statement

West Bengal reports nearly 3,000 new Covid-19 cases

Where are we in the Covid-19 vaccine race?

Britain became the first country to roll out the Covid-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc and BioNTech on Dec. 8 after final late-stage trial results showed it was 95% effective in preventing the disease.

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India produced 60 million PPEs, 150 million N-95 masks till October from zero in March: Irani

Union Textiles Minister Smriti Irani on Friday said India produced over 60 million personal protection equipment (PPEs) and around 150 million N-95 masks till October, from zero in March.

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74.3% passengers refunded Rs 3,200 crore for lockdown-induced flight cancellations: Govt

The airlines have refunded Rs 3,200 crore to 74.3 per cent of passengers who had their flights cancelled due to the coronavirus-triggered lockdown earlier this year, the Ministry of Civil Aviation said on Friday.

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Gujarat reports 1,223 new coronavirus cases, tally goes up to 2,25,304, death of 13 patients takes toll to 4,148: Health department

Punjab CM orders extension of night curfew till January 1

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Friday ordered an extension of the night curfew in all cities and towns in the state till January 1, an official statement issued here said.

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Maharashtra reports 4,268 new Covid-19 cases, tally rises to 18,72,440; death toll climbs to 48,059 as 87 patients die: Official

Haryana records 1,065 new Covid-19 cases

Haryana recorded 1,065 new cases of Covid-19, 1,812 recoveries, and 23 deaths in the last 24 hours, as per State Health Department Total cases: 2,50,394 Total recoveries: 2,37,009 Active cases: 10,686 Death toll: 2,699

Chandigarh today reported 92 new Covid-19 cases, taking the total positive cases to 18,502, says Health Department, UT-Chandigarh. A total of 17,365 patients recovered from the infection to date, the death toll is currently at 299. Active cases stand at 838.

Coronavirus cases in J&K reach 1,15,207 with 434 new infections

434 new Covid-19 cases (202 from Jammu & 232 from Kashmir), 422 recoveries (226 from Jammu & 196 from Kashmir) & 11 deaths reported from J&K today: Govt of UT of Jammu & Kashmir Total positive cases: 1,15,207 Active cases: 4,849 Total Recoveries: 1,08,572 Death toll: 1,786

India’s first indigenous mRNA vaccine candidate receives DCGI to initiate human trials

India’s first indigenous mRNA vaccine candidate has received approval from Indian Drug regulators to initiate Phase I/II human clinical trial. The novel mRNA vaccine candidate, HGCO19 has been developed by Genova, Pune: Ministry of Science & Technology

Karnataka reports 1,210 new Covid-19 cases

Karnataka reports 1,210 new Covid-19cases, 1,807 discharges, and 16 deaths today. Total cases: 8,99,011 Active cases: 18,593 Total recovered cases: 8,68,471 Death toll: 11,928

Vaccine campaigns gather pace as US nears Pfizer approval

The US could soon be the next country to launch an immunization campaign against the novel coronavirus after experts voted to recommend emergency approval for Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine.

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2,385 new Covid-19 cases take Delhi's tally to over 6.03 lakh; death toll 9,934 with 60 more fatalities: Authorities -PTI

Scientists develop new inhalation delivery system for vaccines

Scientists have developed an inhalation delivery system for vaccines which generates potent immune responses in mice and non-human primates, without causing lung damage, an advance which may lead to new therapeutics for respiratory diseases like Covid-19.

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Rajasthan reports 1,473 new Covid-19 cases, 2,768 recoveries - ANI

Rajasthan reported 1,473 new Covid-19 cases, 2,768 recoveries, and 14 deaths today, says State Health Department.

Total positive cases till date: 2,88,692

Total recoveries till date: 2,68,457

Death toll: 2,514

Active cases: 17,721

US to approve of Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine in coming days: Alex Azar

US approval of Pfizer Inc's experimental Covid-19 vaccine should come within days, with the first Americans getting immunized as early as Monday or Tuesday, US Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said on Friday. -Reuters.

EU drug regulator endorses changes to remdesivir marketing for Covid-19 use

Europe's medicines regulator on Friday recommended adopting changes to the terms of the conditional approval for Gilead's remdesivir as a Covid-19 treatment in Europe, to make clear the conditions under which it can be used. -Reuters.

ADB launches $9-bn Covid-19 vaccine initiative for APAC members

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Friday said it has launched a USD 9-billion initiative that will offer support to its developing member economies to procure and deliver Covid-19 vaccines.

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Review of any adverse effects of Covid-19 vaccine up to national agencies: WHO

Any adverse effects from Covid-19 vaccines are for national authorities to review, a WHO spokeswoman said on Friday, in response to questions on Britain's regulatory agency warning people with a history of anaphylaxis not to take the Pfizer jab.

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Meghalaya CM Conrad Sangma tests Covid-19 positive

German Covid-19 lockdown can't wait until Christmas: Minister

Germany must go into a hard lockdown immediately to slow the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, Interior Minister Horst Seehofer was quoted as saying on Friday.

"The only chance to regain control of the situation is a lockdown, but this must happen immediately," Seehofer told Der Spiegel magazine.

"If we wait until Christmas, we'll have to struggle with high numbers for months," he added.

Germany earlier on Friday reported record daily numbers of new infections and deaths.

Hamilton fit to race at Abu Dhabi GP after Covid-19 recovery

Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton has recovered from the coronavirus and will race at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix this weekend, the Mercedes team said.

Hamilton's presence at the Yas Marina circuit means that George Russell returns to drive for Williams in Sunday's race.

The seven-time world champion tested positive for Covid-19 the day after winning the Bahrain GP on Nov. 29 and missed last weekend's Sakhir GP in Bahrain as he self-isolated for 10 days.

“Lewis tested negative for Covid-19 on Wednesday prior to completion of his self-isolation period in Bahrain. This enabled him to travel to Abu Dhabi on Thursday afternoon, and he tested negative on arrival,” Mercedes said in a statement.

Puducherry logs 24 new Covid-19 cases, two fatalities take toll to 617

Puducherry logged 24 fresh Covid-19 cases while two more people succumbed to the infection pushing the toll in the union territory to 617, a top Health department official said on Thursday.

The two deceased were from the Puducherry region, Director of Health and Family Welfare S Mohan Kumar said in a release.

The two did not have any comorbidities, he said, adding one of them aged 45 years died of septic shock and refractory hypoxemia while the other (aged 72) succumbed to Covid pneumonia and ARDS.

Mohan Kumar said the Health department examined 1,570 samples during the last 24 hours and found 24 to be positive for coronavirus.

18 new cases take Arunachal's Covid-19 tally to 16,479

At least 18 more people, including four Army personnel, tested positive for Covid-19 in Arunachal Pradesh, pushing the tally in the state to 16,479, a health department official said on Friday.

Of the new cases, five each were reported from East Siang, Tawang and West Kameng districts, while one each from Tirap, Namsai and the Capital Complex region, State Surveillance Officer (SSO) Dr Lobsang Jampa said.

Three infections were detected through TrueNat tests and the remaining 15 via rapid antigen tests, he said.

An employee monitors a vial making machine inside a manufacturing unit of Schott Kaisha, India's largest vial manufacturer, in Daman. Credit: Reuters Photo

India's Covid-19 caseload rises to 97.96 lakh with 29,398 fresh infections

India recorded less than 30,000 fresh Covid-19 infections on Friday, the second time this month, which pushed its caseload to 97.96 lakh, while the total number of recoveries surged to 92.90 lakh, according to the Union health ministry data.

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Singapore approves Covid-19 test using saliva from inside throat

Singapore has approved Advanced MedTech Holdings' Covid-19 kit for use in testing saliva from deep within the throat, the company said, as the country looks to ramp up testing to help re-open its borders and resume more economic activity.

The test is the first of its type to receive approval from Singapore's Health Sciences Authority, Advanced MedTech, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore state investor Temasek , said in a statement on Thursday.

Singapore has made testing a pillar of its strategy to gradually re-open its borders that have been largely shut for most of 2020. The island-state is hosting the World Economic Forum in May next year and has said safety protocols will include on-arrival tests, as well as pre-event and periodic antigen testing.

Covid-19 tally in Andamans rises to 4,791 with eight new cases

Eight more people have tested positive for Covid-19 in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, raising the tally in the Union Territory to 4,791, a health department official said on Friday.

The death toll remained at 61 as no new fatality due to the infection was reported, he said.

Of the fresh cases, five were detected during contact tracing and three have travel history, he said.

Five more people were cured of the disease on Thursday, taking the total number of recoveries in the archipelago to 4,652, the official said.

India records 29,398 new Covid-19 cases with taking the total number of cases to 97,96,769. Death toll is at 1,42,186.

According to reports, Texas has reached over 1,390,000 cases, including over 23,700 deaths. Credit: AFP Photo

Here is DH's Covid-19 India Tracker

India, Australia researchers to study future health effects Covid-19

Brazil coronavirus new cases jump by 53,347, death toll nudges 180,000

Brazil reported 53,347 additional confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours and 770 deaths from Covid-19, the Health Ministry said on Thursday.

The South American country has now registered 6,781,799 cases since the pandemic began, while the official death toll has risen to 179,756, according to ministry data, in the world's third worst outbreak outside the United States and India.

A robot dispenses sanitizer as a preventive measure against the Covid-19 coronavirus to a voter at a polling station during the second phase of the local state body elections in Kochi. Credit: AFP Photo

Union home secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla discusses with states possible Covid-19 vaccine roll-out

Covid-19: India's mRNA vaccine receives approval for human trial

The Indian drug regulator, Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation, permitted Pune-based Gennova Biopharmaceuticals to conduct a phase-1/2 clinical trial of its mRNA vaccine on Wednesday with the condition that on completion of the first phase examining the vaccine’s safety, the company would submit its data for a review before starting the phase-2 to evaluate the vaccine’s immune response.