Latest News Updates: India has reported 14,264 fresh coronavirus cases (File)
As many as 14,264 new coronavirus cases - 1.9 per cent higher than yesterday - and 90 deaths, said the health ministry on Sunday morning. 13,993 new cases were reported on Saturday. With the news cases, the coronavirus tally in the country has reached 1,09,91,651 including 1,45,634 active cases and 1,06,89,715 discharges. The death count has mounted to 1,56,302 with the loss of 90 more lives due to the virus in the last 24 hours.
As per the Health Ministry, 1,08,38,323 vaccine doses have been given through 2,29,462 sessions till Saturday evening.
"This includes 63,52,713 health care workers who have taken the first dose 8,73,940 health care workers who have taken the second dose, along with 36,11,670 frontline workers who were administered the first dose," it said.
Kerala, Maharashtra, Punjab, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh have recorded an "upsurge" in daily new cases of COVID-19, the Union Health Ministry said. In a statement, the ministry said in the last seven days, Chhattisgarh has also seen a rise in daily active new cases. In the last 24 hours, 259 daily new cases have been reported, it said.
Here are the Highlights:
UK accelerates vaccine rollout with end of lockdown in sight
The UK government on Sunday vowed to offer a first coronavirus vaccine dose to every adult by the end of July, as it readied to announce a gradual easing of its third lockdown in England.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who will outline the lockdown review in parliament on Monday, said the faster inoculation campaign would seek to offer a first dose to everyone aged over 50 by mid-April.
The previous targets were to inoculate over 50s by May, and all adults by September.
"We will now aim to offer a jab to every adult by the end of July, helping us protect the most vulnerable sooner, and take further steps to ease some of the restrictions," Johnson said, while stressing the exit would be "cautious and phased".
Britain, one of the hardest-hit countries in the world by the Covid-19 pandemic with more than 120,000 deaths, was also the first nation to begin a mass vaccination campaign, in December.
Pune reports over 1,100 new COVID-19 cases, 6 deaths in last 24 hours
As many as 1,176 new COVID-19 cases and 6 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours in Pune district, as per Health Department, Pune Zilha Parishad on Sunday. The deaths due to COVID-19 mounted to 9,183. The overall positive cases stand at 3,98,607 including 7,355 active cases.
Maharashtra reported 6,971 new COVID-19 cases and 35 deaths in the last 24 hours.According to the state health department, the total number of COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra has reached 21,00,884 with the addition of new cases. The deaths have risen to 51,788 with the addition of 35 deaths.
A total of 19,94,947 people have recovered from the virus in the state as of today, with 2,417 additional recoveries in the state. The number of active cases in Maharashtra stands at 52,956.
France reports 22,046 coronavirus infections
France reported 22,046 coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, slightly down from 22,371 a day before, according to data released on Sunday by the country's Public Health Agency.
To date, France has recorded 3,605,181 infections, the sixth-highest tally in the world.
The number of French people who have died from the virus rose by 160 to 84,306, compared to a single-day increase of 183 reported on Saturday.
In the Mediterranean city of Nice, the virus was circulating faster due to the spread of the variant that was first identified in Britain. The city''s incidence rate is at 740 cases per week per 100,000 residents, the highest in the country.
BSF jawan injured in landmine blast in Odisha
A Border Security Force jawan was seriously injured on Sunday after a landmine, suspectedly planted by Maoists, went off in Odisha''s
Malkangiri district, police said. The landmine explosion occurred when a group of security force personnel were returning after a combing operation in Gagapadar forest under the jurisdiction of Mathili Police Station. The BSF jawan sustained serious injuries on his left leg and was hospitalised.
Fog delays delivery of Ebola vaccines for Guinea
The delivery to Guinea of vaccines against the Ebola virus has been delayed because of fog disrupting flights to the capital Conakry, a health official said Sunday.
The World Health Organization (WHO) had announced that more than 11,000 doses of the Merck vaccine against the deadly disease were to arrive in Conakry on Sunday.
The plane left Geneva early Sunday but flew on to the Senegalese capital Dakar, according to the head of Guinea's health agency ANSS, Sakoba Keita, who said it would attempt to land in Conakry on Monday, conditions permitting.
The Guinean capital has been cloaked in fog for the past three days because of a strong Harmattan wind carrying dust from the Sahara Desert, and a Guinean official told AFP that all flights in and out of Conakry were cancelled "until further notice".
People flout social distancing norms in Nagpur
India sends 13 boxes of COVID-19 vaccine to Mongolia
In the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, India sent 13 boxes of COVID-19 vaccine to Mongolia on Sunday.
The vaccine was sent from the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA), Mumbai to Mongolia.
Assam Chief Minister inaugurates several projects ahead of assembly polls
Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Sunday inaugurated several projects, including a 100-bed hospital and a veterinary boat ambulance in Majuli district.
In a bid to improve preparedness for disaster and rescue operations, Mr Sonowal also launched an emergency speed boat and five pump-operated rubber boats of the district authorities.
He also dedicated the 100-bed Sri Sri Pitambardev Goswami hospital to the state at Garamur area in the district, besides a veterinary boat ambulance at Kamalabari Ghat.
Mr Sonowal also inaugurated a new branch of Punjab National Bank along with an ATM at Phulani in the district.
Speaking at a meeting held on the occasion, he said it was a very significant day for Majuli as several state government initiatives and projects aimed at benefiting the people were made operational in the district.
No fresh COVID-19 fatality in Assam, anganwadi worker dies days after vaccination
Assam reported no death due to COVID-19 on Sunday, even as nine new infections pushed the caseload to 2,17,392, the National Health Mission (NHM) said. The deaths stand at 1,091.
The NHM said 1,347 more COVID-19 patients have died, but the government's Death Audit Board has not included them in the tally of fatalities caused by coronavirus, as they had other ailments, too.
Assam now has 260 active cases, while 2,14,694 patients have so far recovered from the disease.
The NHM said a total of 1,55,054 people have thus far received the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine across the state, while 11,118 people were administered the second dose.
West Bengal's COVID-19 tally mounts to 5,73,762, deaths at 10,249
Three more COVID-19 fatalities in West Bengal pushed the number of deaths to 10,249 on Sunday, the health department said in a bulletin.
The coronavirus tally climbed to 5,73,762 with 182 fresh cases, it said. At least 233 people were cured of the disease during the day, taking the recovery rate to 97.60 per cent.
West Bengal now has 3,525 active cases, while 5,59,988 people have recovered from the disease so far.
Since Saturday, 20,003 samples have been tested, taking the total number of such clinical examinations to 84,29,395, the bulletin said. The positivity ratio in the state stood at 6.81 per cent, it said.
Four new cases take Manipur's COVID-19 tally to 29,237
At least four people tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 24 hours in Manipur, taking the tally in the state to 29,237, a health department official said on Sunday.
The northeastern state now has 80 active cases, while 28,784 people have recovered from the disease and 373 died. The new cases were detected out of 891 COVID-19 tests conducted in the last 24 hours, the official said.
State Health Society Mission Director N Shyamjai Singh has asked authorities of various facilities to enquire about the medical history of a person before administering the COVID-19 vaccine.
One new COVID-19 case in Nagaland, tally at 12,192
Nagaland on Sunday reported just one new COVID-19 case, which took the state's tally to 12,192, Health Minister S Pangnyu Phom. The new case was detected in Kohima, he said. The northeastern state did not report any fresh case in the last two days.
Six more people were cured of the disease during the day, taking the total number of recoveries to 11,936, the health department director Dr Denis Hangsing said.
The recovery rate among coronavirus patients in the state stood at 97.90 per cent. Ninety-one people have died due to the disease, and 10 of them had comorbidities, the official said. Nagaland now has 13 active cases, while 152 people have migrated to other states.
Go for vaccine or forget quarantine leave: Punjab minister to health workersPunjab Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu on Sunday warned healthcare workers who do not get the COVID-19 vaccine shot of not allowing them quarantine leave if they get infected at a later stage. He said they will have to bear the cost of their treatment.
"The healthcare workers who do not get vaccinated to boost their immunity for COVID-19 despite being given repeated opportunities and in case they get the infection at a later stage, they will have to bear the cost of their treatment and they will not be allowed to avail quarantine/isolation leave," said Mr Sidhu.
Karnataka reports 413 new Covid cases and two deathsKarnataka recorded 413 fresh coronavirus infections and two deaths today, taking the total caseload to 9,48,149 and death count to 12,294, the health department said. According to a health bulletin, so far 9,29,800 people, including 353 on Sunday, had been discharged.
There were 6,036 active cases in the state which includes 127 in intensive care units, the department said. More than half of the fresh cases were contributed by Bengaluru Urban district, which reported 248 infections besides both the fatalities.
US nears 500,000 Covid deathsThe United States was on the brink Sunday of the grim milestone of 500,000 Covid-related deaths since the start of the pandemic, as the nation's top virus expert warned a form of normalcy may not return until the end of the year.
Signs of hope were emerging in the rollout of vaccines and the dropping off of a massive winter spike in infections, but the heavy toll continues to mount in a nation that has reported the most fatalities and cases in the world.
"It's terrible. It is historic. We haven't seen anything even close to this for well over a hundred years, since the 1918 pandemic of influenza," Anthony Fauci, chief medical advisor to US President Joe Biden, said on NBC's "Meet The Press.
Thousands of Covid vaccines from UAE arrive in GazaAround 20,000 coronavirus vaccine doses from the UAE arrived in Gaza Sunday, a delivery reportedly orchestrated by a rival of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas three months before scheduled Palestinian elections. The Russian-made Sputnik V doses entered Gaza via the Rafah crossing with Egypt, AFP journalists said -- meaning they did not pass through Israel, which has maintained a tight blockade on Gaza since 2007.
Last week, Mohammed Dahlan, a former top member of Abbas's Fatah party now exiled in the United Arab Emirates, announced the delivery of the vaccines as a "generous grant" from Abu Dhabi.
Canada providing swab tests for coronavirus at borderCanada will provide mandatory swab tests at over a hundred land crossings on its border with the US from Monday, as concerns over the spread of new coronavirus variants grow.
On Friday, the government extended its closure of the border to all non-essential travellers until March 21 because of the threat from the new variants.
UK accelerates vaccine rollout as end of lockdown in sightThe UK government vowed to offer a first coronavirus vaccine dose to every adult by the end of July, as it readied to announce a gradual easing of its third lockdown in England. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who will outline the lockdown review in parliament on Monday, said the faster inoculation campaign would seek to offer a first dose to everyone aged over 50 by mid-April.
The previous targets in the world-first campaign were to inoculate over 50s by May, and all adults by September. "We will now aim to offer a jab to every adult by the end of July, helping us protect the most vulnerable sooner, and take further steps to ease some of the restrictions," PM Johnson said, while stressing the exit would be "cautious and phased".
The UK government vows to offer a first coronavirus vaccine dose to every adult by the end of July, as it prepares to announce a gradual easing of its third lockdown.
Australia starts vaccinating against Covid
Australia begins its Covid-19 vaccine rollout, with top officials among a small group receiving the first jabs a day before the programme starts in earnest. Prime Minister Scott Morrison gets the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine at a medical centre in Sydney's northwest, in what the government says is a bid to boost public confidence in the vaccinations.
Herd immunity difficult to achieve: AIIMS chief Randeep GuleriaHerd immunity is "very difficult" to achieve and one should not think of it in "practical terms" in India, especially in the times of "variant strains" of COVID-19 and "waning immunity", said AIIMS director Randeep Guleria.
"Herd immunity is something that is going to be very, very difficult to achieve and it is something one should not really think of in practical terms... because the variant strains and varying immunity with times can lead to a chance where people may have reinfection or get infection again," he said.
1-Week Lockdown In Maharashtra's Amravati As Covid Cases RiseAmravati district in Maharashtra has been placed under a lockdown for a week amid rising cases of COVID-19 in the state. Cabinet Minister Yashomati Thakur said the lockdown will kick in from Monday evening.
The government said only essential services will be allowed to function during the strict seven-day lockdown. The lockdown will be extended if people do not follow safety rules, the minister said, adding the decision to stop all non-essential activity was taken after COVID-19 cases continued to rise in Maharashtra.
Gujarat Chief Minister Tests Negative For Covid
Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani has tested negative for COVID-19. He had tested positive on February 15.
Centre Writes To States To Increase COVID-19 Vaccination Pace
The Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan on Sunday directed all the states and Union Territories to significantly enhance the pace of COVID-19 vaccination.
The Health Secretary in a letter to StateD said: "A large number of Health Care Workers (HCWs) and Front Line Workers (FLWs) still remain to be covered and the progress is variable across several States/UTs The pace of vaccination drive and its coverage needs to be accelerated exponentially to cover all identified beneficiaries in a minimum possible time."
The operational strategy for initiating the vaccination of the next priority group of the elderly population and persons with co-morbidities to be taken up from March 21 is also being finalised.
Government Working On Law To Regulate Social Media: BJP Leader Ram Madhav
Senior BJP leader Ram Madhav said that social media has become so powerful that it can even topple governments, leading to anarchy and weakening democracy, and solutions to tackle this are needed to be found within the constitutional framework.
Speaking at the launch of his new book ''Because India Comes First'', Mr Madhav said democracy is stressed and facing new challenges with the rise of "non-political" and "non-state" forces.
Water-Logging In Puducherry After Continuous Rainfall
Streets were waterlogged in parts of Puducherry on Sunday due to continuous rainfall in the Union Territory since Saturday.
According to India Meteorological Department (IMD), rain and thunderstorm were observed from 8:30 am to 5:30 pm on Saturday at few places in Tamilnadu, Puducherry, and Karaikal.
"Isolated thunderstorm and lightning very likely over Puducherry during next 24 hours," said IMD in its daily weather bulletin today.
The department also predicted light to moderate rainfall at isolated or scattered places in Puducherry during the next two days.
Night Curfew In Pune Amid Rising Covid Cases
Gujarat Civic Polls: Amit Shah Casts His Vote In Ahmedabad
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday cast his vote at a polling booth in Ahmedabad for election to the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation and expressed confidence that the BJP will win the civic polls in Gujarat.
Voting is currently underway for elections to six municipal corporations in Gujarat Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara, Rajkot, Jamnagar and Bhavnagar.
More Than 74% Of Active Cases In Kerala And Maharashtra: Health Ministry
No Fresh Covid Case In Arunachal Pradesh In Last Two Days
Arunachal Pradesh did not report any fresh COVID-19 case in the last two days, a senior health department official said.
The coronavirus caseload remained at 16,836, State Surveillance Officer Dr Lobsang Jampa said.
Arunachal Pradesh currently has five active COVID-19 cases, while 16,775 people have recovered from the disease so far, he said.
The COVID-19 recovery rate in the state has touched 99.63 per cent, while the positivity ratio stands at 0.02 per cent and the fatality rate at 0.33 per cent, the official said.
PM Attending Strategy Session Ahead Of Coming Round Of State ElectionsPrime Minister Narendra Modi is participating in a daylong election strategy session in Delhi today. Elections in five states are due over the coming months.
Among these the biggest prize the BJP is looking out for is Bengal, which Amit Shah has been targetting since the BJP came to power at the Centre in 2014.
The others in the list is one more opposition-ruled state -- Kerala. In Tamil Nadu, the BJP has a loose alliance with the ruling AIADMK. But the party is not hoping for any major gains in the two southern states.
14,264 fresh coronavirus cases in India, 1.9 per cent higher than yesterday; 1.09 crore total cases, 1,56,302 deaths
Local body elections underway in Gujarat's Ahmedabad
Voting for the local body elections in Gujarat's Ahmedabad underway on Sunday morning amid COVID-19 pandemic.
The elections in the state were scheduled to be held in two phases -- on February 21 and February 28, the State Election Commission (SEC) said last month.
According to SEC, six municipalities scheduled to undergo polls today, while polling at 81 municipalities, 31 district panchayats and 231 taluka panchayats will be held on February 28.
In Haryana, Farmers Target Caste Divide To Boost Traction For ProtestsFarmers protesting against the Centre's farm laws are teaming up with Dalits as part of their plan to take the protest across the country. The idea is to focus on eliminating the caste divide and give the protest a pan-Indian, broader base.
A mahapanchayat with Dalits was held in Haryana's Hisar on Saturday, at the town of Barwala, which was attended by farm union leader Gurnam Chadhuni.
Twenty per cent of Haryana's population belongs to the Scheduled Castes.
At the meeting, Mr Chadhuni called for greater cohesion between farmers and Dalits. A resolution was passed asking farmers to have images of Dalit icon BR Ambedkar in their homes. Dalits were asked to keep images of Sir Chotu Ram -- a prominent Jat political leader in British India.
New Indian Strains Of COVID-19 Could Be More Infectious, Says AIIMS ChiefHerd immunity for coronavirus is a "myth" in India because at least 80 per cent people need to have antibodies for the whole of the population to be protected, Dr Randeep Guleria told NDTV on Saturday. This, he said, would be difficult if one takes into account the new Indian strains found in Maharashtra -- which could be highly transmissible and dangerous.
The new variant, he said, can even cause re-infections in people who have developed anti-bodies to the virus.
240 new strains of the virus have surfaced across India, which are behind the fresh surge of infections the state has been witnessing since last week, Dr Shahshank Joshi, member of Maharashtra's Covid Task Force has told NDTV.
Brazil exceeds ,245,000 deaths from COVID-19
Brazil registered 1,212 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, raising the deaths to 245,977, the Ministry of Health said Saturday.
The ministry also reported 57,472 more cases, bringing the national count to 10,139,148. The state of Sao Paulo, the most populous in the country, is the hardest hit by the pandemic, with a total of 57,743 deaths and 1,971,423 cases.
Brazil ranks the third in the world in COVID-19 cases, after the United States and India, and second in deaths behind the United States.
So far, the South American country has vaccinated more than 5.75 million people against COVID-19, or 2.72 per cent of the population.
Kuwait bans entry for non-Kuwaiti citizens until further notice: Civil Aviation Authority
Kuwait's Civil Aviation Authority on Saturday announced it was extending an entry ban for non-Kuwaiti citizens until further notice as part of coronavirus restriction measures, it said on Twitter.
Citizens are still allowed to enter but they must spend a week in quarantine at a hotel and another week at home.