Coronavirus News Highlights: Puducherry government extends Covid-19 restrictions till July 31

India on Thursday reported 41,806 new Covid-19 cases and 581 fresh fatalities over the past 24 hours. More than three million Indian children didn't get their basic vaccines in the first year of Covid-19, the WHO and UNICEF said on Thursday, observing that the pandemic led to major reductions in childhood vaccinations in South Asia where millions of kids missed out on their routine immunisation in 2020.

IIT Hyderabad researchers develop AI powered Covid-19 test kit

Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad researchers have come out with an Artificial Intelligence-powered Covid-19 test that can be performed at home.

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Covid-19: Centre seeks proposals from the states on health infrastructure improvement

The Union Health Ministry on Thursday asked the states to carry out a “gap analysis” of their health infrastructure and quickly submit expenditure proposals to the Centre to bridge such gaps under the government's new Rs 23,000 crore Covid package to boost the health infrastructure in the next nine months.

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No plans to reopen schools in Delhi for now: Arvind Kejriwal

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Thursday ruled out the reopening of schools in the national capital in the near future in view of the coronavirus pandemic.

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Telangana has reported 710 new Covid-19 positive cases, 808 recoveries, and 4 deaths in the last 24 hours.

India wicketkeeper Pant on 'way to recovery' after positive Covid test in England

India wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant is "on his way to recovery" after testing positive for Covid-19 as the squad prepares for a Test series in England, the Board of Control for Cricket in India said Thursday.

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India administered more than 35.15 lakh Covid-19 vaccine doses today, taking total vaccine coverage to 39.49 crores: Union Ministry of Health.

WHO panel advises against Covid-19 vaccination proof for travel

The World Health Organization's Emergency Committee on Thursday maintained its stance that proof of Covid-19 vaccination should not be required for international travel, amid a growing debate on blocking the entry of travellers if they are unvaccinated.

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WHO experts warn of 'strong likelihood' of more dangerous Covid variants

The World Health Organization's emergency committee warned Thursday that new concerning variants of Covid-19 were expected to spread around the world, making it even harder to halt the pandemic.

"The pandemic is nowhere near finished," the committee said in a statement, highlighting "the strong likelihood for the emergence and global spread of new and possibly more dangerous variants of concern that may be even more challenging to control". (AFP)

Puducherry government extends Covid-19 restrictions till July 31; allows reopening of tourist spots like boathouse with 50% capacity while adhering to Covid-19 norms. (ANI)

China must co-operate better with Covid-19 origin probe: WHO

China must co-operate better in the probe into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, the first cases of which were seen in Wuhan in December 2019, the head of the World Health Organization said on Thursday.

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Wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant nears completion of his self-quarantine period while net bowler Dayanand Garani has tested positive for Covid-19. Pant is asymptomatic and currently undergoing self-isolation at the place where he reported positive: BCCI.

Karnataka reports 1,977 fresh Covid-19 cases, 3,188 discharges, and 48 deaths

Tapering second wave brightens economic prospects but demand may take time to return: RBI

The tapering of the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic coupled with aggressive vaccination has brightened the near-term prospects of the Indian economy, though a solid increase in aggregate demand may take some time, said the Reserve Bank of India on the state of economy.

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Centre launches Covid-19 vaccination campaign for tribals

Seeking to dispel myths, misconceptions and fears about Covid-19 vaccines among tribals, the Centre on Thursday launched a campaign involving traditional leaders and local influencers that will cover over 50,000 villages in 309 districts.

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Delhi | DC Chowk Market in Sector-9 of Rohini shut till 19th July for violation of Covid-19 norms: SDM, Alipur. (ANI)

Mass exodus in Dhaka as virus lockdown lifted for festival

Hundreds of thousands of people fled the Bangladesh capital Thursday in every available car, train and bus after authorities lifted a coronavirus lockdown despite soaring infections and deaths.

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India has highest number of unvaccinated, under-vaccinated children at 3.5 million: UNICEF

India has the highest number of under-vaccinated or unvaccinated children worldwide at 3.5 million, an increase of 1.4 million from 2019, amid the Covid-19 pandemic outbreak, the UNICEF said.

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India's Covid-19 infection rate edges up, with second-wave yet to abate

A rise in India's Covid-19 infection rate is worrying authorities who are concerned that pilgrimages and tourism could prove to be "superspreader" events in the battle to douse a devastating second wave of infections that has killed thousands.

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Long Covid has more than 200 symptoms, study finds

Patients who experience long Covid report more than 200 symptoms across 10 organ systems, according to the largest global study to date of 'long-haulers' published on Thursday.

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Karnataka will receive 5.73 lakh doses of Covishield vaccine today and another tranche of 1.26 lakh doses by tomorrow morning as part of emergency supply: Karnataka Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar (ANI)

Melbourne to lockdown for 5 days from Thursday

Australia's second-largest city will lockdown for five days from Thursday night due to growing Covid-19 clusters.

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Govardhan’s Giriraj Parikrama cancelled due to Covid-19

The Giriraj Parikrama at Mudiya Poono fair in Govardhan has been banned in view of the coronavirus pandemic, officials said on Thursday.

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Over 40.31 crore Covid vaccines provided to states, UTs so far: Centre

Over 40.31 crore Covid-19 vaccine doses have so far been provided to states/UTs in the country and more than 1.92 crore balance and unutilised jabs are still available with them and private hospitals, the health ministry said on Thursday.

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Zero risk of Covid spreading from participants: IOC President

International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach said on Thursday there was "zero" risk of Tokyo Olympics participants infecting Japanese residents with coronavirus, because cases would be isolated immediately after detection.

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Karnataka cabinet has decided not to conduct Zilla/Taluk panchayat elections till December 2021 due to Covid-19. A decision will be taken after December: Karnataka Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai. (ANI)

Uttar Pradesh's control over second wave of Covid-19 'unprecedented', says PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday praised the Uttar Pradesh government for its handling of the Covid crisis and said the way it had controlled the second wave of the infection was “unprecedented”.

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20 children in Puducherry hospitalised after testing Covid positive

Twenty children hailing from Puducherry were hospitalised on Thursday after testing positive for Covid-19, Director of Health and Family Welfare services S Mohan Kumar said.

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Athlete tests positive for Covid-19 in Tokyo quarantine

An Olympic athlete under a 14-day quarantine period has tested positive for the new coronavirus in Tokyo, the organising committees' website reported on Thursday.

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Mass gathering will be disastrous for India, says IMA President on Kawad Yatra

It's our duty to caution the govt that at this time, any mass gathering is going to be disastrous for our country: IMA president Dr JA Jayalal on UP govt nod to Kawad Yatra

Today UP is a state that does the maximum number of testings across the country. It is a state that does maximum number of vaccinations: Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Varanasi

Delhi High Court refuses to entertain a PIL seeking reduction of interval gap between two doses of Covid-19 vaccine Covishield.

(ANI)

8 test Covid-19 positive at Japan hotel hosting Brazilian Olympians

At least eight staff at a Japanese hotel hosting Brazil's Olympic judo team have tested positive for coronavirus, local officials said Thursday.

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Saudi hosts vaccinated pilgrims for 2nd downsized hajj

Saudi Arabia will host another downsized hajj from Saturday, with only residents fully vaccinated against the coronavirus permitted and overseas Muslim pilgrims barred for a second year.

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India reports over 39,000 single-day Covid-19 recoveries

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India reports 41,806 new Covid-19 cases, 39,130 discharges and 581 deaths in the last 24 hours, as per Union Health Ministry.

Beneficiaries wait in queues to register for Covid-19 vaccine dose, at a district hospital in Noida, Wednesday, July 14, 2021. Credit: PTI Photo

Argentina logs 1,00,000 virus deaths as Delta variant looms

Argentina on Wednesday reported more than 1,00,000 deaths from Covid-19 since the pandemic began, a heavy blow to a country that intermittently imposed some of the most severe lockdowns in the world, only to see erratic compliance by many people.

(AP)

Child diseases on rise as Covid-19 slows routine vaccinations -UN

Nearly 23 million children missed out on routine vaccinations last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the highest number in more than a decade, fuelling outbreaks of measles, polio and other preventable diseases, UNagencies said on Thursday.

Measles, one of the world's most contagious diseases, can be fatal to children under the age of five, especially in African and Asian countries with weak health systems, according to the World Health Organization. Polio can cripple a child for life. (Reuters)

Sewa International raises $30 million, airlifts medical equipment to India

An Indian-American non-profit body said it has raised more than $30 million towards its Covid-19 relief efforts in India and has airlifted a fresh lot of medical equipment to the country.

Sewa International USA is procuring needed medical equipment like oxygen concentrators and shipping them to India, it said in a statement.

Sewa said that a planeload of medical equipment have reached New Delhi marking yet another milestone in its efforts to supply much-needed medical equipment to India to help the country fight the Covid-19 pandemic. (PTI)

South Korea reports 1,600 new Covid-19 cases

South Korea reported 1,600 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday, a slight drop from the record number the previous day, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.

The country tightened social distancing rules across most of the country on Wednesday, when it reported a record number of 1,615 infections, to tackle its worst-ever outbreak of coronavirus. (Reuters)