COVID-19 News: India's daily new covid cases fell below 19,000 for the fifth time.
Travellers coming to Delhi from the United Kingdom will have to undergo a seven-day institutional quarantine even if they test negative for COVID-19, Chief Minister Arvind Kerjiwal announced on Friday, tightening protocols to "protect Delhiites" from the new UK variant of SARS-CoV-2.
After completion of the institutional quarantine, such passengers will have to go under home-quarantine for another seven days which will be ensured through "strict surveillance" by district authorities.
In an order issued on Friday, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority said the new rules would be applicable on a trial basis till January 14. An official said a decision on extending the enforcement of the new rules will be taken after reviewing the situation. Those who test positive for COVID-19 at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport on arrival from the UK will be isolated at facilities set up by the government, the Chief Minister said.
India's daily new COVID-19 cases fell below 19,000 for the fifth time this month, taking the country's caseload to 1,04,13,417, while the recoveries have surged to 1,00,37,398, according to data updated by the Union health ministry today.
A total of 18,139 new infections were reported in a day, while the deaths increased to 1,50,570 as 234 more people succumbed to the disease during the same period, the data updated at 8 am showed.
The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 1,00,37,398, pushing the national recovery rate to 96.39 per cent, while the COVID-19 case fatality rate stood at 1.45 per cent.
The active COVID-19 caseload remained below three lakh for the 18th consecutive day.
A second dry run for the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out in Delhi is being conducted across several districts of the national capital on Friday, officials said. The districts include South Delhi, South East Delhi, North West Delhi and New Delhi, they added.
The first dry run for the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out was held in Delhi on January 2 at three sites -- the GTB Hospital, Shahdara, the Urban Primary Health Centre, Daryaganj and the Venkateshwar Hospital, Dwarka.
Here are the Highlights on Coronavirus Cases:
970 new COVID-19 cases in Karnataka, 3 deathsKarnataka reported 970 new COVID-19 cases and 3 related deaths, taking the total number of infections to 9,25,868 and the death count to
12,134, the Health department said on Friday. The day also saw 657 patients getting discharged after recovery.
Out of the 970 fresh cases, 479 were from Bengaluru Urban alone.
Most COVID-19 patients have at least one symptom 6 months on: StudyMore than three quarters of people hospitalised with Covid-19 still suffered from at least one symptom after six months, according to a study published Saturday that scientists said shows the need for further investigation into lingering coronavirus effects.
The research, which was published in the Lancet medical journal and involved hundreds of patients in the Chinese city of Wuhan, is among the few to trace the long-term symptoms of Covid-19 infection.
Denmark to require negative Covid-19 tests for entryDenmark on Friday announced it would only allow flights into the country where every passenger had tested negative for Covid-19 and the government urged Danes to put off abroad travel all together.
In addition to being negative tests can only be 24 hours old. The rule will apply to both Danish citizens and foreigners, and it will be up to airlines to ensure passengers have been tested.
"That means that, as of January 9 at 5 pm, no airline will be allowed to fly to a Danish airport without having checked that all passengers onboard have tested negative," transport minister Benny Engelbrecht told a news conference.
Canada PM says "frustrated" by slow vaccines rolloutCanada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in his first address of the new year that he was "frustrated" by the slow pace of Covid-19 inoculations across Canada, three weeks into a vaccination campaign.
The Canadian government has so far distributed 424,500 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines -- the only ones authorized to date in Canada -- to its provinces and territories responsible for the vaccination program, according to official figures. But only about 148,000 doses of vaccine have been administered so far, according to local media.
"I think all Canadians, including me are frustrated to see vaccines in freezers and not in people's arms," Trudeau told a news conference.
Joe Biden blasts coronavirus vaccine rollout in US as "travesty"US President-elect Joe Biden slammed the Trump administration's distribution of Covid-19 vaccine as a "travesty." "Vaccines give us hope, but the roll-out has been a travesty," Biden told reporters in Wilmington, Delaware.
He said distribution of the vaccine would be "the greatest operational challenge we will ever face as a nation."
Second dry run of COVID-19 vaccination held in DelhiA second dry run of the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out was conducted at 150 sites across all 11 districts of Delhi on Friday, officials said.
They said 10 vaccination centres were chosen in South Delhi for the dry run, including the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), the Safdarjung Hospital, the Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya Hospital, and the Pushpwati Singhania Hospital and Research Institute.
Ecuador Envoy Takes Part In Covaxin TrialsAfter taking the first shot of Covaxin, Ecuador's Envoy to India Hector Cueva Jacome on Friday said that Bharat Biotech and Serum Institute are good companies, adding that he talked to researchers in US and Ecuador and then took part in the trials.
"Before undergoing trials, I met a lot of researchers who are friends from the United States, Ecuador, and India and they said that it is a convenient and safe vaccine," he was quoted by news agency ANI as saying.
Airport Tweets After Delhi Order Causes Chaos: "Quarantine Must"
Delhi's Indira Gandhi airport on Friday evening tweeted a clarification of coronavirus testing and isolation rules for all passengers arriving on flights from the United Kingdom, stating, among other points, that the waiting time for Covid test results could extend up to 10 hours and that the cost of the test, and waiting period, had to be borne by the passengers.
Three More UK Returnees Test Positive For Covid In Kerala
Three UK returnees were among 5,142 people who tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday in Kerala, which also recorded 23 deaths, taking the total infection count to 8,01,075, PTI reported.
Goa's 2nd Dry Run Of COVID-19 Vaccination Held At 8 Hospitals
The second dry run of COVID-19 vaccination rollout was conducted in Goa on Friday at eight hospitals, a senior health department official said. While six of the hospitals where the mock drill was held were government-run, two others were private facilities, news agency PTI has reported.
Directorate General of Civil Aviation issues guidelines to airlines for carrying COVID-19 vaccines packed in dry ice
Aviation regulator DGCA on Friday issued guidelines to all aircraft operators who plan to transport COVID-19 vaccines packed in dry ice to various parts of the country.
Dry ice transforms into carbon dioxide gas at temperatures higher than -78 degrees Celsius under normal atmospheric pressure and therefore it is classified as "dangerous goods" by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), it said.
"All operators while engaging in transportation of COVID-19 vaccines packed with dry ice shall establish the maximum quantity of dry ice that can be loaded in a given cargo hold or in the main deck (passenger cabin) when a passenger version is deployed for all cargo operations," the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) noted.
Goa records 83 new COVID-19 cases; 105 recoveries
At least 83 persons tested positive for coronavirus, while 105 recovered from the infection in Goa on Friday, an official from the state health
department said. With this, the count of infections in the coastal state reached 51,709, of which 50,088 patients have recovered from the infection, the official said.
As many as 744 people have died of the disease so far, and the state is now left with 877 active cases, he said. With the addition of 2,087 samples tested during the day, the total number of tests conducted in the state has reached 4,12,662, the official added.
319 new COVID-19 cases, 308 recoveries in Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh reported 319 fresh coronavirus cases, 308 recoveries and one death in 24 hours ending 9 am on Friday. The cumulative confirmed positive cases so far touched 8,84,490 after 1.22 crore sample tests, with an overall infection positivity rate of 7.24 per cent, a health department bulletin said.
The total recoveries stood at 8,74,531 and deaths 7,127, leaving 2,832 active cases, it said.
Krishna district reported 46 fresh cases and one death in a day. Chittoor added 44 and Guntur 39 new cases while 10 other districts reported less than 30 fresh cases each. After a lull for several days, wherein it saw daily new COVID-19 cases below 10, Kurnool added 26 anew in 24 hours, pushing its active caseload upwards to 97.
"Tamil Nadu government deserves highest appreciation," says Harsh Vardhan after reviewing COVID vaccination dry run
During his visit to Tamil Nadu to review the COVID-19 vaccination dry run on Friday, Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan said that Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami-led government and the state health department deserve the highest appreciation for good work that they have been doing to combat coronavirus.
"I sincerely appreciate the exemplary work done by the Tamil Nadu government in collaboration with the Centre in fighting COVID-19. Tamil Nadu government and its health department deserve our highest appreciation for good work that they have been doing and are pursuing," Mr Vardhan told reporters here.
As a nationwide dry run is being conducted across 33 states and Union Territories today, Mr Vardhan arrived in Chennai to personally review the dry run for administering COVID-19 vaccine in Tamil Nadu.
Uttarakhand State Disaster Response Force launches COVID awareness campaign ahead of Kumbh Mela
Uttarakhand State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) on Friday launched a COVID-19 awareness campaign in Haridwar in the area where the Kumbh Mela will be held.
As per an official release, eight teams of the SDRF are deployed in ''Kumbh kshetra'' to carry out the COVID-19 awareness campaign and educate more than eleven thousand local residents, devotees and other stakeholders on combating the COVID-19 situation.
"The SDRF has been running public awareness campaigns since the cases of COVID-19 started reporting in the state, but it is a priority to educate people about the ways to prevent the spread of COVID-19. To speed up the process, National Cadet Corps, National Service Scheme, and disaster management groups are also assisting us," the government said.
Mumbai's Dharavi records one new COVID-19 case
With the addition of only one fresh case of coronavirus, the count of infections in Mumbai's Dharavi area stood at 3,842 on Friday, a senior civic official said. The slum-dominated locality had recorded five new cases the day before.
A total of 3,514 patients from the locality have recovered from the infection so far, the official from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation said.
There are currently 16 active COVID-19 cases in Dharavi, he added. Spread over 2.5 sq km, Dharavi is considered as the largest slum in Asia having a population over 6.5 lakh.
COVID-19: 82 persons detected with new UK mutant strain in India
A total of 82 persons were found with the new mutant variant of coronavirus so far, informed Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) on Friday.
"The total number of cases infected with the new strain of the novel coronavirus, first reported in the UK, now stands at 82," the ministry said in a statement.
Flights from the United Kingdom resumed today in a limited capacity amid concerns about the new strain of the coronavirus that was recently detected in the UK.
Georgia's envoy seeks India's cooperation in COVID-19 vaccine
Georgian Ambassador Archil Dzuliashvili on Friday sought India's cooperation in providing COVID-19 vaccine to his country. He discussed the issue during his meeting with Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari at the Raj Bhavan, an official statement said.
"The Ambassador of Georgia to India Archil Dzuliashvili today sought the cooperation of India in providing the coronavirus vaccine to his country," the statement issued by the Raj Bhavan said.
Noting that Georgia has more than 5,000 COVID-19 cases, Dzuliashvili said that like many other countries, Georgia is expecting India to make available the vaccine to his country, it said.
Coronavirus News Updates: Hungary extends lockdown to February 1
Hungary has extended partial lockdown measures aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus until February 1, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Friday.
The measures -- including a curfew between 8 pm and 5 am, a ban on gatherings, mandatory mask-wearing in public, and online tuition for high schools and universities -- were brought in as part of a state of emergency in place since November 11.
"The (government's) operational taskforce has decided to extend the restrictions currently in place until February 1," Orban said during a state media interview.
"As long as there are not enough vaccines, we will stick to the restrictions we have," he said.
EU doubles BioNTech/Pfizer vaccine order to 600 million doses
The EU has struck a deal to double its supply of the BioNTech/Pfizer vaccine against Covid-19 to a total of 600 million doses, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said on Friday.
"We have right now, access to 300 million doses of the BioNTech/Pfizer vaccine... With the new agreement we could purchase a total of up to an additional 300 million doses of the BioNTech/Pfizer vaccine," she told a press conference.
She said that, along with the Moderna vaccine also authorised for use in the EU, "we have already secured an amount of doses that we need to vaccinate 380 million Europeans, and this is more than 80 percent of the European population".
Von der Leyen said that other vaccine authorisations were expected "in the coming weeks and months" so "Europe will have more than enough vaccine within a reliable timeframe".
COVID-19 News: Centre should provide free COVID-19 vaccines in Maharashtra, says Minister
Maharashtra minister and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde on Friday demanded that the centre bear the cost of COVID-19 vaccination in the state.
Speaking at the Thane civil hospital, he said people expect that the government should make coronavirus vaccines available free of cost.
"Therefore, the Union government should bear the expenses of the vaccination in the state. Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope has also urged the Centre to provide free vaccination," Mr Shinde said.
He said that all preparations for the actual vaccination were in place in Thane district, of which he is the guardian minister.
Coronavirus News Updates: 22 students, 3 teachers in Bihar's Munger found COVID positive
About 22 students and 3 teachers of a school in Asarganj here were found COVID positive on Friday, said the health department.
After receiving the information, a medical team rushed to the area and announced it as a containment zone.
Dr Ajay Kumar Bharti, Civil Surgeon at Sadar Hospital, Munger, while speaking to ANI said, "We are prepared and have created a containment zone in Asarganj. For precaution, medical teams have been constituted for screening."
UK Imposes Mandatory COVID-19 Tests For International Travellers
International arrivals from anywhere in the world, including India, will now be required to prove a negative COVID-19 test taken up to 72 hours prior to departure for the UK, as part of new measures announced on Friday to contain the spread of new variants of coronavirus circulating internationally.
Dry Run Of COVID-19 Vaccine Conducted At 36 Centres In Himachal Pradesh
A dry run for vaccination against COVID-19 was conducted at 36 centres in Himachal Pradesh, health officials said on Friday. Twenty-five people were administered the dummy vaccine at the centres during the dry run held on Wednesday, they said. All of them were kept under observation for half an hour, they added. The dry run was done at three centre in the state capital Shimla including IGMC, Ghannahatti and Mashobra, officials said.
7-Day Institutional Quarantine For Those Arriving In Delhi On UK Flights
A 7-day institutional quarantine will be mandatory for those arriving in Delhi from Britain and testing negative for coronavirus, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced today as flights between India and UK resumed today.
Read Here All those arriving from UK, who test positive will be isolated in an isolation facility, says Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
Delhi Cabinet has approved to procure 18 advanced ventilators for ICUs of Neurosurgery Department at GB Pant Hospital: Chief Minister's Office.
Tamil Nadu government and its health department deserves our highest appreciation for the good work that they have been doing and are pursuing: Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan in Chennai.
"COVID-19 Vaccine For Our Countrymen In The Next Few Days": Harsh Vardhan
COVID-19 vaccines could be made available to "our countrymen" as early as the "next few days", Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan said today. The government has, meanwhile, ensured that every detail of the vaccination programme is conveyed to the people, from the national level to the grassroots level, he has said.
Read Here
Health workers prepare for the dry run of COVID-19 vaccine at PMCH Hospital, in Patna.
82 People Tested Positive For New Mutant Variant Of SARS-CoV-2 In India: Government
The number of people who have tested positive for the new UK variant of SARS-CoV-2 has climbed to 82 in India, the health ministry said on Friday. The number of such people stood at 73 till January 6, it added. "The total number of cases infected with the new strain of the novel coronavirus, first reported in the UK, now stands at 82," the ministry said.
Second dry run to administer COVID vaccination underway at centre in Mohali.
Kerala continues to report the highest daily new cases at 5,051. It is followed by Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh with 3,729 and 1,010 new cases, respectively. 81.22% of the new cases are from 10 States and UTs: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan visits Government Omandurar Medical College Hospital in Chennai.
Indian Medical Association (IMA) appreciates the contribution of all Indian scientists & researchers who developed the two indigenous COVID19 vaccines, appeals to all its members to actively participate in vaccination drive across the country.
PM Modi Should Take First Vaccine Shot: Tej Pratap Yadav
Prime Minister Narendra Modi should take first shot of Covid-19 vaccine, then, we will also take it: RJD leader Tej Pratap Yadav.
Arunachal Reports 4 New COVID-19 Cases, Tally At 16,757
Four more people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Arunachal Pradesh, taking the tally in the state to 16,757, a health department official said on Friday.
Preparation underway at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital in Chennai for the second dry run for COVID19 vaccine.
15 vaccination units have been set up. 25 healthcare workers selected for today's dry-run for vaccine administration.
Bangladesh Approves Procurement Of 30 Million Doses Of Covishield Vaccine From India
Bangladesh on Thursday approved procurement of 30 million doses of Covishield COVID-19 vaccine from India, co-developed by European pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca and Oxford University.
Second dry run for the administration of COVID-19 vaccine underway at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi.
Coronavirus: Thane District Records 452 New COVID-19 Cases, 6 Deaths
With the addition of 452 new coronavirus cases, the infection count in Thane district of Maharashtra rose to 2,45,853, an official said on Friday. The virus claimed the lives of six more persons, pushing the death toll in the district to 6,006, he said. So far, 2,35,800patients have recuperated from the infection, showing a recovery rate of 95.91 per cent, the official said.
Coronavirus: Jharkhand Reports 195 New COVID-19 Cases
Jharkhand's COVID-19 tally mounted to 1,16,229 as 195 more people tested positive for the infection, a health department official said on Friday. The death toll rose to 1,041 as one person from Gumla succumbed to the infection in the last 24 hours, he said. Ranchi district registered the maximum number of fresh cases at 102, followed by Dhanbad at 22 and East Singhbhum at 16.
Second Dry Run For Covid Vaccination Rollout Begins In Delhi
A second dry run for the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out in Delhi is being conducted across several districts of the national capital on Friday, officials said. The districts include South Delhi, South East Delhi, North West Delhi and New Delhi, they added. The first dry run for the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out was held in Delhi on January 2 at three sites -- the GTB Hospital, Shahdara, the Urban Primary Health Centre, Daryaganj and the Venkateshwar Hospital, Dwarka.
Air India Flight With 246 From UK To Land In Delhi Amid New Strain Worry
An Air India flight from UK is expected to land in Delhi shortly with 246 passengers on board amid concerns about a mutant fast-spreading strain of the coronavirus that emerged in Britain.
Read Here
Pfizer Vaccine Appears Effective Against Virus Mutation: Study
Pfizer Inc and BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine appeared to work against a key mutation in the highly transmissible new variants of the coronavirus discovered in the UK and South Africa, according to a laboratory study conducted by the U.S. drugmaker.
Coronavirus Vaccine: UP, Haryana, Arunachal Pradesh Will Not Participate In Dry Run
The nationwide drill will be held at three-session sites of 736 districts across 33 States/Union Territories. Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh will not participate in this dry run as they have already gone through it.
In a short time, India has done well by developing vaccines... In the next few days, in the near future, we should be able to give these vaccines to our countrymen. It will be given to our healthcare professional followed by frontline workers: Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan.
We've ensured that every detail is conveyed to the people from the national level to the grassroots level. Lakhs of healthcare workers trained and the process continues: Union Health Minister, on vaccine dry-run, in Chennai.
Coronavirus News: UK To India Flights To Resume Today
An Air India flight from UK is expected to land in Delhi shortly with 256 on board amid concerns about a mutant fast-spreading strain of the coronavirus that emerged in Britain. Flights from UK were to resume today after the government suspended services between Indian and UK on December 23 over the new and more contagious strain of the virus.
18,139 New Covid Cases In 24 Hours Push India's Tally Above 10.4 Million
India reports 18,139 new COVID-19 cases, 20,539 discharges, and 234 deaths in last 24 hours, as per Union Health Ministry.
Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan visits Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital to review the dry run for administering COVID-19 vaccine.
BKC Jumbo a dedicated COVID-19 hospital in Mumbai to take part in the second nationwide vaccine dry run today
Preparation underway at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital in Chennai.
Gujarat Asks Centre To Allow Offline COVID-19 Vaccination In Remote Areas
Ahead of the highly anticipated roll-out of coronavirus vaccine in the country, the Gujarat government on Thursday requested the Centre to allow an offline system of sharing information for remote places in the state where internet connectivity is an issue.
"Maintain Strict Vigil": Centre's Warning To 4 States As Covid Cases Rise
The Union Health Secretary wrote to the Maharashtra, Kerala, Chhattisgarh and Bengal governments on Thursday to underline the need for "strict vigil" and "prompt action" to arrest the recent spike in coronavirus cases in each of the states. These four states account for 59 per cent of all active Covid cases in the country, the Health Secretary, Rajesh Bhushan, said in his letter.
Coronavirus: Second Covid Vaccination Dry Run Across Country Today
A second dry run to check the best way to vaccinate people against COVID-19 and plug loopholes in logistics and training will take place today from which a few states, which had undergone it earlier, will be exempt.
Read Here Moderna CEO Says Vaccine Likely To Protect For "Couple Of Years"
Moderna's COVID-19 mRNA vaccine is likely to offer protection of up to a couple of years, its chief executive said on Thursday, even though more data is still needed to make a definitive assessment. The US biotech company, which stunned the world last year by coming up with a vaccine against the disease caused by the new coronavirus in just a few weeks, received approval for its shot from the European Commission on Wednesday.
Coronavirus News: US Sets New Record With Nearly 4,000 Covid Deaths
The United States counted a record number of daily coronavirus deaths Thursday at nearly 4,000, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The 3,998 deaths were recorded over the 24 hour period ending at 8:30 pm local time (0130 GMT Friday), during which the US notched 265,246 new infections, according to the university.