Covid-19 Cases in India: The recovery rate is 97.01 per cent.
India's total tally of COVID-19 cases surged to 3,04,58,251 with 46,617 new infections being reported in a day, while the recoveries have crossed 2.95 crores, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Friday.
The death count increased to 4,00,312 with 853 new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed.
Meanwhile, Johnson & Johnson said that its single-shot coronavirus vaccine neutralizes the fast-spreading delta variant and provides durable protection against infection more broadly.
The company said in a statement Thursday that recipients of its vaccine produced strong neutralizing antibodies over the course of at least eight months against all variants including delta, which was first seen in India and has been spreading around the globe.
Here are the Highlights on coronavirus (COVID-19) cases:
WHO Recommends COVID-19 Tests In Schools To Avoid ClosuresThe World Health Organization said Friday that Covid-19 tests should be carried out in schools in some circumstances to avoid the "harmful" effects of closures and remote learning.
"The summer months offer a valuable window of opportunity for governments to put in place the right set of measures that will help keep infection rates down and avoid resorting to school closures," Hans Kluge, WHO's regional director for Europe, said in a statement issued together with UNICEF and UNESCO.
He added that closing schools "as we have seen, have such a harmful effect on the education, social and mental well-being of our children and youth."
Flexible, Agile Vaccination Strategy Vital In Saving Lives In India: Lancet ReportFlexible and agile vaccination strategies can play a vital role in protecting lives in India as COVID-19 pandemic continues to unfold, according to a latest Lancet report.
The report ''Responsive and Agile Vaccination Strategies Against COVID-19 in India'' published by the Lancet Global Health on Friday highlighted the importance of sentinel site based surveillance and detection of early warning signal through test positivity ratio (TPR).
West Bengal Logs 1,422 New COVID-19 Cases, 23 More DeathsThe COVID-19 toll in West Bengal rose to 17,158 after 23 fatalities were registered in the state on Friday, the health department said in its bulletin.
As many as 1,422 fresh cases pushed the tally to 15,02,706, the department said.
North 24 Parganas district accounted for eight deaths and the city for five fatalities, the bulletin said.
Assam records 27 COVID-19 deaths, 2,453 new positive cases
Assam reported 27 COVID-19 deaths and 2,453 new cases on Friday, pushing the coronavirus caseload to 5,13,606, according to the bulletin of the National Health Mission. The death count increased to 4,604 while the number of active cases in the state currently is 23,914.
Chhattisgarh records 305 new COVID-19 cases, 7 deaths
The COVID-19 count of Chhattisgarh increased by 305 to reach 9,95,195, while the day also saw seven deaths, which took the death count to 13,450, an official said. The number of recoveries reached 9,76,125 after 85 people were discharged from hospitals and 382 completed home isolation during the day, leaving the state with 5,620 active cases, the official said.
Punjab records 10 deaths, 200 new COVID-19 casesTen more people died from coronavirus in Punjab today as 200 new cases took the state's infection count to 5,96,094, according to a medical bulletin. So far, the infection has killed 16,086 people in the state.
The deaths were reported from districts including Amritsar, Bathinda and Ferozepur. Faridkot and Jalandhar reported 19 infections each, followed by 16 in Amritsar. The state currently has 2,752 active cases with the positivity rate of 0.42 per cent.
Delhi Records 93 New COVID-19 Cases, 2 DeathsDelhi recorded two more Covid-related deaths and 93 new cases today with a positivity rate of 0.13 per cent, according to a health department bulletin. The number of active cases in the city decreased to 1,041 from 1,357 on Thursday.
As many as 407 patients recovered from the disease in the last 24 hours, as the recoveries again outnumbered the new cases. A total of 73,565 COVID-19 tests were conducted in the last 24 hours.
Both doses of vaccine provide around 98 per cent protection from death due to Covid: Centre citing studyBoth the doses of Covid vaccine provide around 98 per cent protection from death due to the disease, while one dose gives nearly 92 per cent shield, the government said on Friday citing a study conducted on police personnel in Punjab.
The study was done by the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh in collaboration with the Punjab government. Sharing the data of the study, NITI Aayog member (Health) Dr VK Paul said 4,868 police personnel were not vaccinated and out of them, 15 died due to coronavirus infection, which comes down to 3.08 incidence per thousand.
Sikkim reports 111 new COVID-19 cases
Sikkim reported 111 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, pushing the caseload to 20,777, a health department bulletin said. The coronavirus death count in Sikkim remained at 308 as no fatality was reported in the past 24 hours, it said. Sikkim now has 2,062 active COVID-19 cases, while 253 patients have migrated to other states, and 18,154 people have recovered from the disease.
UK PM meets German Chancellor, focus on Covid travel restrictionsBritish Prime Minister Boris Johnson and German Chancellor Angela met with COVID-19 travel restrictions high on the agenda as cases of the highly transmissible Delta variant surge in Britain.
PM Johnson is seeking to argue that Britain's advanced vaccine programme should permit its citizens to travel abroad more widely this year - something a hard-hit travel industry says it needs to survive after more than a year of pandemic restrictions. But while Britain looks at easing quarantine requirements for the fully vaccinated when they return from holiday, some European states including Germany are implementing a period of quarantine for British arrivals, regardless of vaccination status.
Russia rejects new lockdown despite record virus deathsRussia on Friday said it would not impose a new lockdown despite reporting a record number of coronavirus deaths for the fourth day in a row. A government tally showed 679 pandemic-related deaths in the previous 24 hours, as Russia battles a surging outbreak driven by the highly infectious Delta variant and worsened by a lagging vaccination drive.
Russia, the fifth worst-hit country in the world in terms of total cases, has refused to impose a full lockdown since the first wave of the pandemic last year. It continues to host mass events, including Euro 2020 football fixtures in Saint Petersburg. The surge in infections prompted President Vladimir Putin again this week to urge Russians to get vaccinated in a televised phone-in session with the nation.
WHO recommends COVID-19 tests in schoolsThe World Health Organization said Covid-19 tests should be carried out in schools -- even when no cases have been detected -- to avoid the "harmful" effects of remote learning. Screenings in schools had previously only been recommended if a cluster of coronavirus cases has been identified, but the WHO now believes PCR or rapid antigen tests should be given even in the absence of symptoms among students and staff.
"The summer months offer a valuable window of opportunity for governments to put in place the right set of measures that will help keep infection rates down and avoid resorting to school closures," Hans Kluge, WHO's regional director for Europe, said in a statement issued together with UNICEF and UNESCO. He added that closing schools "as we have seen, have such a harmful effect on the education, social and mental well-being of our children and youth."
Coronavirus LIVE Updates: States to receive 44.9 lakh COVID-19 vaccine doses in the next three days, says Centre
The Union Health Ministry on Friday said that 44.9 lakh COVID-19 vaccine doses will be received by the states and UTs within the next three days. More than 33.63 crore vaccine doses have been provided by the Centre and UTs so far through the Government of India (free of cost channel) and direct state procurement category, PTI reported.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates: Security guard arrested in dubious COVID-19 vaccine camps case, 8 arrested so far
A private security guard was arrested from near Kolkata in connection with the dubious
COVID vaccination camps case, police said on Friday. Officers of the Special Investigation Team of the Kolkata Police's Detective Department arrested him from his house in Sonarpur in the South 24 Parganas district on Thursday night, PTI reported.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates: Ladakh reports 17 new COVID-19 cases, tally at 20,090
Ladakh recorded 17 new Covid cases, pushing the tally to 20,090, while 34 patients were discharged after being recovered, taking the overall recoveries to 19,626, officials said on Friday.
Out of the total cases, 10 were reported in Leh and seven in Kargil. While, a total of 3,663 sample reports in Ladakh, including 2,205 from Leh and 1,458 cases from Kargil, were found negative on Thursday, PTI reported.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates: Mizoram reports 278 new COVID-19 cases, tally rises to 20,770
At least 278 more people, including 13 inmates of Aizawl central jail, have tested positive for COVID-19 in Mizoram, pushing the state's tally to 20,770, a health official said on Friday.
The COVID-19 death toll rose to 94 as a 73-year-old man from Kolasib district died due to the infection on Thursday night, PTI reported.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates: Without ICUs, doctor in Jakarta hospital battles to help COVID-19 patients
Indonesian doctor Cheras Sjarfi says the small public hospital where she works in south Jakarta was not ready for the influx of COVID-19 patients who arrived after a surge of new infections in the world's fourth-most-populous country.
Only equipped for basic health care, her facility has had to treat COVID-19 patients even though it lacks the life-saving ventilators and intensive care units they sometimes require, reuters reported.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates: Puducherry adds 175 fresh COVID-19 cases; 8 deaths push death count to 1,759
The union territory of Puducherry recorded 175 new coronavirus cases during the last
24 hours pushing the overall tally to 1,17,640, a senior official of the Department of Health and Family Welfare Services said on Friday. While the number of fresh cases declined, the
fatalities rose to eight, PTI reported.
COVID-19 Updates: Uttarakhand government cancels ''Kanwar Yatra'' to Haridwar
Uttarakhand government on Friday cancelled the annual Kanwar Yatra to Haridwar in the month of Sawan due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
While speaking to ANI, State government spokesperson Subodh Uniyal told that the government has decided to cancel the Kanwar Yatra as a precautionary measure.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates: Andaman and Nicobar Islands report only two new COVID-19 cases
The union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands reported only two new COVID-19 cases in
the last 24 hours, pushing the tally to 7,469, a health official said on Friday. One new case was detected during contact tracing and another was airport arrival, PTI reported.
Coronavirus LIVE Updates: Australia to halve arrivals from overseas, offers COVID-19 exit roadmap
Australia will halve the number of arrivals from overseas as its coronavirus hotel quarantine system creaks under pressure from outbreaks of the highly transmissible Delta variant, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Friday.
The new restrictions on travel come as Australia fights outbreaks of the Delta variant simultaneously in three state capital cities, meaning nearly half of all Australians are currently under strict orders to stay at home. Most recent outbreaks have been traced to leaks in hotel quarantine.
Australia shut its international borders early last year largely to non-citizens. Permanent residents and returning Australian travellers, except those exiting New Zealand, have to quarantine in hotels for two weeks at their own expense.
Coronavirus India Updates: Arunachal Pradesh reports 311 new COVID-19 cases, 4 more deaths
Arunachal Pradesh's COVID-19 tally rose to 36,168 as 311 more people tested positive for the infection, while four more fatalities pushed the death toll to 176, a senior health official said here on Friday.
Two persons from Namsai, one from Changlang and another from the Capital Complex Region died due to Covid pneumonia while undergoing treatment at various health facilities, State Surveillance Officer (SSO) Dr Lobsang Jampa said.
The Capital Complex Region reported the highest number of new cases at 80, followed by Upper Subansiri (30), West Kameng (27), Anjaw and Changlang at 20 each, Lower Dibang Valley (19), Papumpare (15), East Siang (14) and Lohit at 13 cases, the official said.
Just In| Over 4 lakh COVID-19 deaths in India, 853 in 24 hours; 46,617 fresh cases, 4.4% lower than yesterday
COVID-19: No RT-PCR report needed if travellers from Kerala to Karnataka have vaccine certificate
The Karnataka government on Thursday said that passengers from Kerala with at least one dose of COVID 19 vaccine certificates will be exempted from producing negative RT-PCR reports, as the state has taken special surveillance measures for people coming from Kerala.
According to the order regarding special surveillance measures for persons arriving from Kerala, vaccination certificate of having received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine will be exempted form producing RT-PCR certificate.
Earlier in its order on Thursday, the Karnataka government made it mandatory for travellers entering the state from Kerala via rail, road or air to produce the RT-PCR negative not be older than 72 hours or a vaccination certificate of at least one dose, as the State has taken up special surveillance measures in the wake of Delta Plus variant of COVID-19 being reported from several districts of Kerala.
Jamui becomes first panchayat in Madhya Pradesh to achieve 100 per cent Covid vaccination
Jamui in Shahdol district of Madhya Pradesh has become the first panchayat in the state to achieve the target of 100 per cent vaccination against COVID-19.
"Jamui gram panchayat achieved the 100 per cent vaccination against COVID-19. Here 1,855 beneficiaries have been administered the vaccines. Six other gram panchayats, Burhar Nagar panchayat and Dhanpuri Nagar Palika in the Shahdol district have also achieved 100 per cent vaccination," Satyendra Singh, District Collector Shahdol told ANI.
A 75-year-old villager said majorly of the people in the village have received their first dose of the COVID vaccine.
Despite Gujarat government's permission, cinema hall owners in Rajkot have decided to keep the halls shut
"Since no new movie has been released in the recent past, there is no point in reopening cinema halls," Hasmukh Bhai Soni, owner of Rajshree Cinema, said yesterday.
Update| BMC says COVID vaccination will take place only for 3 hours (2pm-5pm) at a limited number of its centres in Mumbai today
Covaxin will be given only for second dose & Covishield to only people above 45 years of age, it says.
WHO Chief Calls For Vaccinating 10% Population In Every Nation By SeptemberVoicing concern over many countries failing to vaccinate their people, WHO chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Thursday called for vaccinating at least 10 per cent of the population of every country by September as he emphasised that vaccination is the best way to control the pandemic and reboot the global economy.
"Vast inequities in the access to vaccines are fuelling a two-track pandemic. While some countries have reached a high level of coverage, many others don't have enough to vaccinate health workers, older people & other at-risk groups," the World Health Organisation Director General said in a virtual address to India Global Forum.