Coronavirus News highlights: Delhi records zero deaths due to Covid-19 for second time since onset of 2nd wave, reports 66 fresh cases

For the second time since the onset of the second wave, the national capital reported 0 deaths. In Delhi, metro and buses are permitted to operate with 100% capacity from July 26. Cinema halls, theatres, and multiplexes will function with 50% capacity, the DDMA said. Meanwhile, the Maharashtra government is considering granting exemptions from coronavirus-induced restrictions to the fully-vaccinated people, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said.

UK briefed on Covid-19 situation in India to review 'red list' travel ban

The UK Foreign Office officials have been briefed on the currentCovid-19 pandemic situation in India, where many big cities are practicallyCovid-free, and encouraged to consider a review of the travel ban on visitors from India, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said on Saturday.

Shringla, who arrived in the UK for a two-day visit on Friday to take stock of the Roadmap 2030 towards closer UK-India ties agreed between Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Boris Johnson, also shared plans for a reciprocal vaccine certification system to be unveiled by the Indian government soon to facilitate international travel.

(PTI)

Cumulative Covid vaccine doses administered in India exceed 43 crore: Health ministry

India's cumulativeCovid-19 vaccination coverage has achieved the landmark milestone of 43 crore with nearly 46 lakh vaccine doses administered on Saturday, the Union health ministry said.

The 22,80,435 vaccine doses were administered as first dose and 2,72,190 vaccine doses given as second dose in the age group 18-44 years on Saturday.

(PTI)

Myanmar rebel group says received Covid jabs from China

China has supplied over 10,000Covidvaccines to a Myanmar rebel group operating near its southern border, its spokesman said Saturday, as Beijing seeks to halt the influx of cases from the coup-wracked country.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military took power in February, with a resurgent virus wave striking with many hospitals empty of pro-democracy medical staff.

(AFP)

Rajasthan reports 27 new Covid cases, no deaths

Rajasthan reported 27 freshCovid-19 cases on Saturday, while no deaths due to the infection took place in the state, according to an official report here.

Maximum of eight fresh cases were reported from Jaipur, it said.

(PTI)

Goa sees 144 Covid-19 cases, 213 recoveries; over 5,900 tested

Goa's coronavirus caseload went up by 144 and reached 1,70,416 on Saturday, while the toll remained unchanged at 3,126 and 213 people got discharged, an official said.

The recovery count in the state is 1,66,052, while the active caseload is 1,238, the official informed. With 5,991 samples being examined in the past 24 hours, the number of tests in Goa went up to 10,27,335, he added

(PTI)

One death, 42 fresh virus case in UP

One person died from coronavirus in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday as 42 fresh cases surfaced, pushing the state’s infection count to, 17,08, 152, according to a statement.

So far, the disease has killed 22,749 people in the state.

The loneCovid-19 death was reported from Lakhimpur Kheri district, the UP government said in the statement.

Of the 42 fresh cases, six were reported from Gautam Buddh Nagar.

(PTI)

Jordan to vaccinate children aged 12 years and older against Covid-19

Jordan will start vaccinating children aged 12 years and older againstCovid-19 from Sunday, the state news agency said on Saturday.

Children can be given the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine with the approval of a guardian with no prior appointment necessary, the agency quoted the health ministry as saying.

Delhi Metro, buses to function at full capacity from Monday; cinemas, theatres to open at 50%

TheDelhiMetro and public buses in the city will operate at full seating capacity while cinema halls, theatres and multiplexes will open with 50 per cent occupancy from Monday, according to the DDMA's latest unlock guidelines issued on Saturday.

The city witnessed an unprecedented surge of cases and deaths during the second wave of coronavirus in April and May. The situation seems to have been improving over the past few weeks, allowing the government to reopen the city in a phased manner.

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Health worker nabbed for holding unauthorised Covid vaccination camps in Bengal

A health worker was arrested from West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district on Saturday on the charge of operating unauthorisedCovid-19 vaccination camps in the state, a police officer said.

The arrest was made a month after the police apprehended one person for allegedly posing as an IAS officer and organising a vaccination camp in Kolkata's Kasba area, where actor and Trinamool Congress MP Mimi Chakraborty had also got her jab.

(PTI)

Sikkim registers 225 new Covid-19 cases, 1 fresh fatality

Sikkim'sCovid-19 tally rose to 24,823 on Saturday as 225 more people tested positive for the infection, while one fresh fatality pushed the Himalayan state's coronavirus death toll to 330, a health bulletin said.

West Sikkim district reported the highest number of new cases at 81, followed by East Sikkim (72), South Sikkim (71), and North Sikkim (one).

(PTI)

Health worker nabbed for holding unauthorised Covid vaccination camps in Bengal

A health worker was arrested from West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district on Saturday on the charge of operating unauthorisedCovid-19 vaccination camps in the state, a police officer said.

The arrest was made a month after the police apprehended one person for allegedly posing as an IAS officer and organising a vaccination camp in Kolkata's Kasba area, where actor and Trinamool Congress MP Mimi Chakraborty had also got her jab.

(PTI)

AstraZeneca searching for vaccines for virus-hit Southeast Asia

Drugmaker AstraZeneca said Saturday it was scouring its supply chain to find more doses of itsCovid-19 vaccine for Southeast Asia, which is facing its most serious outbreak yet of the virus.

The statement from the Anglo-Swedish company -- which produces its vaccine in Thailand for use domestically and in neighbouring countries -- comes in the wake of a supply shortage which has sparked heavy criticism of Thai Premier Prayut Chan-O-Cha's administration.

(AFP)

Kerala reports 18,531 new Covidcases, 15,507 recoveries, and 98 deaths today. Active cases: 1,38,124 Death toll: 15,969

(ANI)

Vaccination drive underway at Government Ayurveda Medical College & Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram

Haryana government issues order to extend lockdown till August 2, with some relaxations in the state

Delhi eases more Covid-19 restrictions

Preparing hospitals for third wave, making efforts to reduce lifestyle diseases: Kerala health minister

Kerala Health Minister Veena George on Saturday said her department was working on various initiatives, like preparing for aCovidthird wave, reducing lifestyle diseases within five years and improving medical institutions, to strengthen the health infrastructure in the state.

The minister, while presiding over an online function for inaugurating various health projects, said vigilance againstCovidshould not be given up and in this regard hospitals were being equipped and strong measures were being put in place to deal with any third wave of the virus.

(PTI)

Private hospital in Delhi records rise in neurological cases among post-Covid patients

A leading private health facility in Delhi on Saturday said it is reporting a rise in neurological issues among post-Covidpatients, including emergency cases of brain haemorrhage.

Also, in the out-patient department (OPD), up to 60 per cent of patients are presenting increasing mental health issues like anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts, feeling of loneliness, and majority of these are post-Covidcases, the Moolchand Hospital said in a statement.

(PTI)

West Indies, Australia to resume ODI series after negative Covid tests

The second one-day international between West Indies and Australia which was suspended on Thursday because of a positive test forCovid-19, will resume on Saturday, Cricket West Indies announced.

All 152 people involved in the ongoing series returned negativeCovid-19 tests on Friday, prompting the two boards to agree to the resumption.

"CWI is pleased to announce that the ODI series will resume on Saturday and conclude on Monday," the home board said in a statement.

(AFP)

Andhra Pradesh reports 2,174 Covid-19 cases in 24 hours

Andhra Pradesh reports 2,174 Covid-19 cases, 18 fatalities. Infection tally rises to 19,52,513, death toll 13,241. Number of active cases of the disease in the state stands at 22,358.

(PTI)

Singapore reports 127 new local Covid-19 cases

Maharashtra govt considering relaxations for fully-vaccinated people, says Ajit Pawar

The Maharashtra government is considering granting exemptions from coronavirus-induced restrictions to the fully-vaccinated people, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said on Saturday.

Speaking to reporters, Pawar also said the government was mulling an extension of the timings of shops and restaurants from the current deadline of 4 pm. He said a decision on granting relaxations on the weekends is likely next week.

unisia reports a daily record of 317 Covid-19 deaths

Tunisia recorded 317 coronavirus-related deaths in the last 24 hours, a daily record since the start of the pandemic, the health ministry said on Saturday.

The ministry also reported 5,624 new cases, increasing concerns about the country's ability to fight the pandemic, with intensive care units in hospitals completely full and a lack of oxygen supplies.

(Reuters)

'Lebanon can't handle next Covid wave'

Lebanon's deepening economic crisis has piled pressure on hospitals, leaving them ill-equipped to face any new wave of the coronavirus, a top hospital director has warned.

Already struggling with shortages of medicine and an exodus of staff abroad, the country's health facilities are now also having to contend with almost round-the-clock power cuts.

"All hospitals... are now less prepared than they were during the wave at the start of the year," said Firass Abiad, the manager of the largest public hospital in the country battlingCovid.

(AFP)

39 new cases push Jharkhand's Covid-19 tally to 3,46,885

Jharkhand'sCovid-19 tally rose to 3,46,885 on Saturday as 39 more people tested positive for the infection, a health bulletin said.

The state's coronavirus death toll remained unchanged at 5,122 as no fresh fatality was reported, it said.

(PTI)

Puducherry sees slight rise in Covid-19 test positivity rate

Puducherry reported 126 fresh coronavirus cases with the test positivity rate climbing to 2.08 percent on Saturday. The new cases were identified at the end of examination of 6,054 samples in the last 24 hours. The test positivity rate was 1.57 percent on Friday. The new cases were spread over Puducherry 98, Karaikal 18 Yanam two and Mahe 8. The total caseload touched 1,20,227 with the addition of 126 new cases. (PTI)

Covid-19 vaccines for children likely by September: AIIMS chief

As fears of a third Covid wave loom large, AIIMS chief Dr Randeep Guleria said that India is likely to start vaccinating children by September. Read more

India reports 39,097 new Covid-19 cases, 546 deaths

With a single-day rise of 39,097 cases, India's Covid-19 tally climbed to 3,13,32,159 on Saturday, while 546 more fatalities pushed the death toll due to the viral disease to 4,20,016, according to the Union Health Ministry. Yesterday, the country reported35,342 cases, indicating a 10% rise in daily cases in the past 24 hours. Read more

Olympic organisers announce 17 new Games-related Covid-19 cases

The Olympics organisers announced 17 new Games-related Covid-19 cases on Saturday, including one athlete and an event-related personnel staying at the Games village, taking the total number of infections to 123.

As per the official count, the total number of infected athletes now stands at 12. The Olympics officially began on Friday with an opening ceremony here.

Track live updates of Tokyo Olympics 2020 here

How tech won the pandemic and now may never lose

In April 2020, with 2,000 Americans dying every day of Covid-19, Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s chief executive and the world’s richest man, announced he was focusing on people rather than profits. Amazon would spend about $4 billion in the next few months “providing for customers and protecting employees,” he said, wiping out the profit the retailer would have made without the virus. Read more

Most unvaccinated Americans don't want Covid-19 shots: Poll

Most Americans who haven't been vaccinated against Covid-19 say they are unlikely to get the shots and doubt they would work against the aggressive delta variant despite evidence they do, according to a new poll that underscores the challenges facing public health officials amid soaring infections in some states.

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Nine states still have over 10,000 active Covid-19 cases: Government

Nine states still have over 10,000 active coronavirus cases, the government said, noting that it is critical to strictly follow Covid-appropriate behaviour as the second wave is still not over.

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3rd Covid wave may occur either due to mutations in virus or pool of susceptible population: Govt

The third Covid wave may occur either because of mutations in the virus or due to the available pool of susceptible population, and is also dependent on various pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical interventions for management of the pandemic, Lok Sabha was informed on Friday.

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