Coronavirus News Highlights: Karnataka reports 1,987 new Covid-19 cases, 37 deaths

Punjab government allows reopening of schools for all classes from August 2, with proper protocols to ensure Covid appropriate behaviour. Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Rane told the Legislative Assembly that the Goa Medical College and Hospital did not face any paucity of the life-saving gas during the pandemic. India reported 41,649 new Covid-19 cases, 37,291 recoveries, and 593 deaths in the last 24 hours, as per the Union Health Ministry. The Ministry data also showed that 45.60 crore vaccine doses have been administered so far.

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Kerala's single-day Covid-19 cases remain above 20,000-mark

Fresh Covid cases inKeralaremained above 20,000-mark on Saturday, while a central team visited various parts of the state to review the pandemic situation.

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Karnataka reports 1,987 new Covid-19 cases, 37 deaths

Karnataka reported 1,987 new Covid-19 and 37 deaths on Saturday, taking the total number of infections to 29,05,124 and the toll to 36,562. The day also saw 1,632 discharges, taking the total number of recoveries in the state so far to 28,44,742, a health department bulletin said.

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Thousands protest against Covid-19 health pass in France

Thousands of people protested in Paris and other French cities on Saturday against a mandatory coronavirus health pass for entry to a wide array of public venues, introduced by the government as it battles a fourth wave of infections.

Protesters injured three police officers in Paris, a police spokesperson said.

It was the third weekend in a row that people opposed to President Emmanuel Macron's new Covid-19 measures have taken to the streets, an unusual show of determination at a time of year when many people are focused on taking their summer break.

Kerala may rework Covid strategy as cases surge

Kerala's Covid-19 strategy of delaying the peak has helped in keeping the pandemic under control. The state's health infrastructure is unburdened and the death count remains on the lower side. However, the prolonged lockdown and its effect on the economy and daily life seems to be nudging the government to change its course on the management of coronavirus.

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MP sees 22 Covid-19 cases, active tally now 122

Madhya Pradesh on Saturday added 22 Covid-19 to its tally, which reached 7,91,828, while the toll remained unchanged at 10,513 as no death was reported during the day, an official said. The recovery count stood at 7,81,193, leaving the state with 122 active cases, he said.

For each Covid-19 case detected in India, 30 were missed or undetected: Virologist

For every single Covid-19 case reported in India, there were 30 cases that remained undetected or were missed, according to an analysis of ICMR's fourth sero-survey by independent epidemiologist Dr Chandrakant Lahariya.

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Over 1 crore vaccine doses given in Delhi, 50% of eligible population got at least 1 jab: CM

The total number of anti-coronavirus vaccine doses administered in Delhi so far crossed the one-crore mark on Saturday and of the eligible population in the city, 50 per cent have received at least one jab, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said.

He hoped that more vaccine doses will be soon available for the city.

The national capital has a population of about two crore and among them, about 1.5 crore are eligible for COVID-19 vaccination, the chief minister said.

"Out of the 1.5 crore eligible population, 74 lakh have received vaccine doses. So, about 50 per cent have received at least one dose. Of the 74 lakh, 26 lakh have been administered both the jabs," the chief minister said in an online briefing.

UP CM hands over cheques of Rs 10 lakh each to kin of 55 journalists who died due to Covid

Families of 55 journalists who died due to Covid-19 received a financial assistance of Rs 10 lakh each from Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday.

"We have witnessed many editors, journalists, and members of the media fraternity losing their lives due to coronavirus while fulfilling their duty. The loss cannot be compensated, but we can provide support to the families," the chief minister said.

The government is committed to provide all support to journalists and will continue to encourage them, he added.

2,058 new Covid-19 cases, 23 deaths in Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh reported 2,058 fresh coronavirus cases, 2,053 recoveries and 23 deaths in 24 hours ending 9 am on Saturday.

Consequently, the gross positives increased to 19,66,175, recoveries to 19,31,618 and deaths to 13,377, a health department bulletin said. The number of active cases in the state was 21,180, it said.

Kerala not yet free from Covid second wave, extra caution needed to prevent third wave: Health Minister

Kerala is not yet free from the second wave of Covid-19 and therefore people should be extra cautious and vigilant against transmission of the infection to prevent a third wave from occurring, Health Minister Veena George said on Saturday.

At a special meeting held to review the state's preparedness to handle a third wave, George said about half of the population of Kerala was susceptible to the virus and therefore, precautions have to be taken as presence of the highly contagious delta variant has been detected, according to a state government release.

UP records zero Covid-19 fatality, 32 new cases

No death due to Covid-19 was recorded in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday, while 32 new cases were reported, officials said.

There are a total of 17,08,441 Covid cases in the state while the death toll stands at 22,756, they said.

In the last 24 hours, 48 COVID-19 patients were discharged in the state, taking the total number of recoveries to 16,84,973, they said.

Vaccinated people can carry as much virus as unvaccinated: CDC study

US health officials Friday released details of an alarming new study which could totally muddle current thinking on how the coronavirus spreads in society.

Latest research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that vaccinated people who got infected with Covid-19 or the so-called breakthrough infections carry about the same amount of the coronavirus as those who are unvaccinated.

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Over 3.14 crore Covid-19 doses available with states, private hospitals: Centre

More than 3.14 crore balance and unutilised Covid-19 vaccine doses are still available with the states, union territories and private hospitals to be administered, the Union Health Ministry said on Saturday.

Over 48.78 crore vaccine doses have been provided to states and UTs so far through all sources and further 68,57,590 doses are in the pipeline.

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Vaccinated? Travellers from Kerala, Maharashtra still need RT-PCR test report to enter Karnataka

In the wake of a surge in Covid-19 cases in Karnataka, the stategovernment has made it mandatory for travellersfrom Kerala andMaharashtra toproduce a negative RT-PCR test reportirrespective of their vaccination status.

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TN Serosurvey finds Covid antibodies in 66% population

The third Tamil Nadu Cross Sectional Serosurvey in July, covering over 26,000 samples revealed that atleast 62.2 percent of the population has developed antibodies to SARS-CoV-2, the virus which causes Covid-19.

Among the 26,610 samples tested, 17,624 individuals had IgG (Immunoglobulin G) antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 virus.

While the overall seroprevalence was 66.2 percent, the highest seropositivity was observed in Virudhunagar district at 84 per cent while Erode in west Tamil Nadu reported the lowest at 37, according to the latest serosuvrey conducted by the Directorate of Public Health and Preventive Medicine in 888 clusters across the state.

Active Covid cases drop to 50 in Ladakh

The activeCovid-19 cases in Ladakh dropped to 50 after 14 more patients recovered from the disease, while four new infections pushed the overall tally in the Union Territory to 20,328, officials said on Saturday.

Ladakh has registered 207Covid-related deaths -- 149 in Leh and 58 in Kargil -- since the outbreak of the pandemic last year, while 20,071 patients have recovered till date.

(PTI)

Puducherry adds 100 coronavirus cases, 2 deaths reported

Puducherry registered 100 fresh cases ofCovid-19 on Saturday, raising the overall tally to 1,20,915. The new cases were identified at the end of examination of 5,082 samples.

Puducherry region accounted for 67 new cases out of the total 100 followed by Karaikal 20, Mahe 12 and Yanam one.

(PTI)

Olympics: 21 new Covid-19 cases reported, no athletes among them

Twenty one newCovid-19 cases related to the Olympics were reported by the organisers on Saturday, none of them athletes, amid surging infections in the host city.

Out of the total new cases, 14 were contractors and seven Games-linked officials. Sixteen are residents of Japan and five from overseas.

None of them were staying in the Olympic village, the organising committee said.

Punjab allows reopening of schools with Covid-19 appropriate behaviour

Karnataka requires negative RT-PCR to enter state

Persons entering Karnataka from Kerala & Maharashtra, should produce a negative RT- PCR certificate, that is not older than 72 hours irrespective of vaccination status: Additional Chief Secretary Health Jawaid Akhtar, Karnataka

Over 3.14 cr balance Cpvid-19 doses available with states, pvt hospitals: Centre

More than 3.14 crore balance and unutilisedCovid-19 vaccine doses are still available with the states, union territories and private hospitals to be administered, the Union Health Ministry said on Saturday.

Over 48.78 crore vaccine doses have been provided to states and UTs so far through all sources and further 68,57,590 doses are in the pipeline.

(PTI)

Covid: 150 people take part in religious process in Gujarat; DJ operator among 3 booked

Around 150 people participated in a religious procession in Surendranagar district of Gujarat in violation of the coronavirus norms, following which police have registered an offence against two organisers of the event and a disc jockey (DJ) operator, an official said on Saturday.

The procession was taken out in Patdi town of the district on Friday afternoon, he said. "A religious programme was organised in the town, where around 150 devotees gathered.

(PTI)

Arunachal Pradesh reports 379 new Covid-19 cases, one fresh death

Arunachal Pradesh'sCovid-19 tally rose to 47,856 as 379 more people tested positive for the infection, a senior health official said here on Saturday.

TheCovid-19 death toll in the frontier state increased to 226 with one more person succumbing to the infection on Thursday, State Surveillance Officer (SSO) Dr Lobsang Jampa said.

Of the fresh cases, the Capital Complex Region registered the highest number at 112, followed by Lower Subansiri (35), Changlang (33), Papumpare (28), Lohit and West Kameng at 18 each, Upper Subansiri, West Siang and Namsai at 15 each and East Siang (14), the official said.

(PTI)

Goa minister takes U-turn, tells Assembly no death occurred at GMCH due to oxygen shortage

Over two months after saying that severalCovid-19 patients died due to oxygen shortage at the state-run Goa Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Health Minister Vishwajit Rane has now told the Legislative Assembly that the facility did not face any paucity of the life-saving gas during the pandemic and hence there was no question of any fatality occurring due to it.

In his statement in the House made on Friday, Rane said, "Not a singleCovid-19 patient died due to oxygen shortage at the GMCH." He was replying to a question tabled on the floor of the House by Leader of Opposition Digambar Kamat.

(PTI)

Andaman & Nicobar reports 1 Covid-19 case

The union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands reported only a singleCovid-19 case in the last 24 hours, pushing the tally to 7,535, a health official said on Saturday.

The archipelago now has eight activeCovid-19 cases and all the eight patients are in the South Andaman district. The other two districts - North and Middle Andaman and Nicobar - are nowCovid-19 free as both don't have any active case, the official said.

(PTI)

Pentagon grappling with new vaccine orders; timing uncertain

Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin is vowing he “won't let grass grow under our feet” as the department begins to implement the new vaccine and testing directives.

But Pentagon officials were scrambling at week's end to figure out how to enact and enforce the changes across the vast military population and determine which National Guard and Reserve troops would be affected by the orders.

The Pentagon now has two separate missions involving President Joe Biden's announcement Thursday aimed at increasingCovid-19 vaccines in the federal workforce.

(AP)

Number of active Covid-19 cases rises to 4,08,920 in India: Union health ministry (PTI)

India logs 41,649 new Covid-19 cases, 593 deaths

India saw a single-day rise of 41,649 coronavirus infections taking the total tally of Covid-19 cases to 3,16,13,993, while the death toll due to the viral disease shot up to 4,23,810 with 593more people succumbing to it, the Union Health Ministry said.

The number of active cases has gone up to 4,08,920, accounting for 1.29 per cent of the total caseload, while the national Covid-19 recovery rate was recorded at 97.37 per cent, the data showed.

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Covid-19 cases surge in Sydney, police cordon off downtown to prevent rally

Australia's most populous state, reported 210 locally acquired cases ofCovid-19 on Saturday, as police cordoned off downtown Sydney with multiple checkpoints to prevent a planned anti-lockdown protest.

Sydney and its vicinities have been under a weeks-long strict lockdown that is to last at least until the end of August while battling an outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant. Saturday's numbers bring the outbreak to 3,190 cases.

(Reuters)

China reports 55 new Covid-19 cases as Delta variant spreads in Nanjing

China reported on Saturday 55 new coronavirus cases in the mainland for July 30, compared with 64 cases a day earlier, the health authority said.

The National Health Commission said in a statement 25 of the new infections were local cases, compared with 21 the previous day. There were no new deaths.

(Reuters)

Karnataka sees 1,890 new Covid-19 cases, 34 deaths

After reporting over 2,000 cases on Thursday, the state, in a welcome relief, reported 1,890 new Covid-19 cases on Friday.

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Australia's third-largest city of Brisbane to enter Covid lockdown

Australia's third-largest city of Brisbane and other parts of Queensland state will enter a snap Covid-19 lockdown from Saturday as authorities race to contain an emerging outbreak of the Delta strain.

Millions of residents in the city and several other areas will be placed under stay-at-home orders from Saturday afternoon for three days, state Deputy Premier Steven Miles said.

"The only way to beat the Delta strain is to move quickly, to be fast and to be strong," Miles said.

Arvind Kejriwal urges Centre to give Padma Awards to all doctors who served during Covid

The Delhi Assembly on Friday passed a resolution recommending that Bharat Ratna be conferred on doctors of the country collectively.

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Concern as Karnataka districts along Kerala border inch towards 5% TPR

Against the backdrop of Karnataka reporting a 34% hike in daily new cases on Thursday, virologist and state Covid-19 Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) member Dr V Ravi said that if the test positivity rate (TPR) breaches 5%, it’s a cause for worry.

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OPINION | Kerala’s Covid-19 surge, a concern

The surge in Covid cases in Kerala, which is now leading the country in the number of daily infections and total cases, has caused concern while the pandemic situation is easing in other parts of the country. The state witnessed over 22,000 fresh cases every day in the last few days with a total positivity rate of 13.53%.

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