With 1,34,154 fresh cases, India's COVID-19 tally has climbed to 2,84,41,986, while the daily positivity rate has further dropped to 6.21 per cent, the health ministry said on Thursday.
The death count due to the viral disease has climbed to 3,37,989 with 2,887 more people succumbing to it, while the number of active COVID-19 cases was recorded below 20 lakh for the third consecutive day, according to the ministry''s data updated at 8 am.
Also, 21,59,873 tests were conducted on Wednesday to detect COVID-19, taking the total number of such tests conducted so far in the country to 35,37,82,648, while the daily positivity was recorded at 6.21 per cent. It has been less than 10 per cent for 10 consecutive days now, the ministry said.
The weekly positivity rate has declined to 7.66 per cent.
Meanwhile, after Pfizer and Moderna, Covishield-maker Serum Institute of India (SII) has asked for indemnity from liability, according to sources. All vaccine makers, whether Indian or foreign, should be granted the same protection, the Adar Poonawalla-led company has reportedly told the government.
"Not just Serum Institute of India (SII), all the vaccine companies should get indemnity protection against liabilities if foreign companies are granted it," Serum sources said today, adding that rules should be the same for everyone.
Here are the Highlights on Covid-19 Cases in India:
White House COVID-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients said that unvaccinated people are at risk of getting seriously ill or spreading the disease to others. "Here's the bottom line: The bottom line is that if you are unvaccinated, you are still at risk of getting seriously ill or spreading the disease to others," said Jeff Zients.
Indian pharma major Wockhardt is set to announce a major production deal for an undisclosed vaccine. The formal announcement is due in two weeks and the production of the vaccine will begin in October, Dr Habil Khorakiwala, the Chairman of Wockhardt, told NDTV in an exclusive interview today. The company, he said, will be able to manufacture 500 million doses a year. Read More.
Vice President Kamala D Harris today called up PM Modi to say that India, and a few other countries, will receive the first 25 million Covid vaccine doses the US plans to supply as part of a large framework.
COVID-19 claimed 23 lives and infected 995 people more in Himachal Pradesh, raising the death count due to the disease to 3,217 and the total infection tally to 1,93,137 in the state, an official said on Thursday, according to news agency PTI. According to the state Health Department, there are 11,057 active cases in Himachal Pradesh. The recovery count rose to 1,78,840 with 1,890 patients getting cured of the disease in the past 24 hours, the official said.
A remote circle in Tawang district of Arunachal Pradesh, bordering China, has created a record of sort as almost all the people in the 45 years-plus age group of the area have been administered Covid-19 vaccine, an official said on Thursday, reported news agency PTI. Barring three persons who could not be inoculated due to medical reasons, all the 617 people in that age bracket living in Mogto circle received at least the first dose.
However, it was not easy at the beginning as many villagers, engaged in farming and yak rearing in remote pockets, were not turning up at the vaccination centre, Circle Officer of Mogto, Dorjee Wangchu, said.
As per the data provided by Medical Officer Dr Jiarul Haque, 614 people above 45 years in the circle have been inoculated with the first dose of Covishield vaccine and 295 of them received the second dose till Wednesday.
Karnataka continued to witness a slight increase in daily cases of COVID-19 as the state on Thursday reported 18,324 fresh infections, taking the tally to 26.53 lakh, reported news agency PTI. The day also saw 24,036 discharges, continuing to outnumber the fresh cases. The state had reported 14,304 and 16,387 fresh cases on June 1 and June 2 respectively. With 514 fatalities, the death count in the state went up to 30,531.
Achieving a "milestone", over 3 crore samples have been tested in the state so far, out of which 1,50,168 were tested on Thursday alone. Out of the 18,324 new cases reported on Thursday, 3,533 were from Bengaluru Urban, as the city saw 7,672 discharges and 347 deaths.
As of June 3 evening, cumulatively 26,53,446 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in the state, which includes 30,531 deaths and 23,36,096 discharges, the health department said in its bulletin. Total number of active cases in the state stood at 2,86,798.
Kerala registered 18,853 fresh coronavirus infections on Thursday, taking the total number of those affected by the deadly virus to 25.54 lakh, according to news agency PTI. The death count rose to 9,375 with 153 more deaths. Health Minister Veena George said 1.23 lakh samples were tested in the last 24 hours and the positivity rate was 15.22 per cent. Till now, 2.01 crore samples have been tested.
Among the districts, Malappuram recorded the highest number of cases at 2,448, followed by Kollam with 2,272 and Palakkad 2,201. "Out of those found infected today, 110 reached the state from outside while 17,521 contracted the disease through their contacts. The sources of infection of 1,143 are yet to be traced. Seventy-nine health workers are also among the infected," the minister said in a release.
Currently, there are 1.84 lakh people under treatment in the state.
Despite the availability of vaccines, the response to the COVID-19 vaccination drive in Rajkot district of Gujarat, especially its rural parts, has so far remained below the desired level, with the authorities attributing it to misconceptions and superstitions surrounding inoculation, reported news agency PTI.
Addressing a press conference in Rajkot on Thursday, its district collector Remya Mohan said that as against the available doses, less than half the number of eligible persons are coming forward to get the COVID-19 jabs.
The cumulative COVID-19 tally in Andhra Pradesh increased to 17,28,577 as 11,421 cases were added afresh in the 24 hours ending 9 am on Thursday, reported news agency PTI. While 16,223 patients had recovered from the infection, another 81 succumbed, the latest bulletin said. The total recoveries now rose to 15,78,452 and deaths to 11,213. The active cases decreased to 1,38,912.
Again, East Godavari district logged the highest number of 2,308 fresh cases of coronavirus in 24 hours, while Chittoor added 1,658 and Anantapuramu 1,041. West Godavari added 996, Krishna 841 and Visakhapatnam 814, while seven other districts registered less than 700 cases each. Chittoor continued to log more number of daily fatalities, with 13 on Thursday.
A total of 7.24 lakh doses are currently available with the state, it said. Tamil Nadu has also been provided information of the total number of doses of vaccines available to the state from the government of India channel, which is free of cost, for the first and the second fortnight of June 2021, the ministry added.
Delhi recorded 487 fresh Covid cases, the lowest in over two-and-a-half months and 45 fatalities on Thursday, while the positivity rate slumped to 0.61 per cent, according to data shared by the health department, reported news agency PTI. This is the first time the daily death count has gone below the 50-mark since April 11 when the tally was 48.
According to the health bulletin, these new fatalities pushed the death toll from COVID-19 in Delhi to 24,447. On March 16, Delhi had recorded 425 cases and on March 17, the daily tally was 536, according to official data. On Thursday, 487 fresh cases were recorded with a positivity rate of 0.61 per cent, according to the latest bulletin. The infection rate, which had reached 36 per cent in the last week of April, has come down to below 1 per cent now.