India registered a single-day spike of over 16,000 COVID-19 cases for the fourth day in a row on Sunday, pushing the infection tally to 1,10,96,731, while the recoveries surged to 1,07,75,169, according to Union Health Ministry data.
A total of 16,752 novel coronavirus cases were reported in a day, while the death count rose to 1,57,051 with 113 new fatalities, showed the data updated at 8 am on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Coronavirus vaccines will be capped at Rs 250 per shot at private hospitals and health centres, the Health Ministry said on Saturday. Vaccines will be free in all government hospitals and centres.
The government on Friday had said it will let people choose their coronavirus vaccination centres when the campaign expands Monday to cover those over 60 and those over 45 with illnesses.
They can register through the government's CoWIN 2.0 portal, the Aarogya Setu app, or walk into vaccination centres; states will also actively mobilise people.
There are more than 10,000 private hospitals in the country that are cleared to give out vaccines apart from all government hospitals and health centres.
Meanwhile, in a boost for the Congress-led coalition before next month's elections in Assam, the Bodoland Peoples' Front or BPF on Saturday announced that it was quitting the alliance headed by the ruling BJP and joining the opposition front.
"To work for Peace, Unity, and Development and to bring a stable government, free from corruption in Assam, the Bodoland Peoples' Front (BPF) has decided to join hands with MAHAJATH. BPF shall no longer maintain friendship or alliance with BJP. In the forthcoming Assam Assembly Election BPF shall work hand to hand with Mahajath," BPF leader Hagrama Mohilary said in a statement on Facebook.
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The health department of the Union Territory has inspected the private hospital sites and interacted with their nodal officers. The number of private hospitals for the drive will be scaled up in the next few days, informed the Chandigarh Health Department
Lockdown in Tamil Nadu extended till March 31; the district administration shall take all necessary measures to promote #COVID19 appropriate behaviour and ensure wearing of face masks, hand hygiene and social distancing pic.twitter.com/OF6uZ6UySM
- ANI (@ANI) February 28, 2021
"The state has so far reported total of 21,55,070 COVID-19 cases, out of which, 77,008 are the active cases," the Maharashtra Health Department said.
A total of 52,154 people have died due to COVID-19 in the state so far. As many as 20,24,704 people have recovered from the disease.
According to the state health department, the recovery rate in Maharashtra is 93.95 per cent and the fatality rate is 2.42 per cent.
As per the notices issued on Saturday, one lab has been asked to stop conducting tests, another has been asked to get swab samples re-checked, while officials in Thane district have been intimated as the third lab is headquartered there, they added.
The number of COVID-19 cases in Nashik is on the rise over the past few days and a study carried out by local health officials found tests conducted in private labs were returning positive in far larger numbers than the ones carried out in government facilities, they informed.
The registration begins from March 1 at 9 am. The eligible beneficiaries can choose the centre of their choice and book an appointment based on the slots available.
According to a guidance note on Co-WIN2.0 issued by the Health Ministry, states and Union Territories will decide the target number of doses to be administered in a vaccination cycle, based on already available vaccine doses and additional doses likely to be available in a vaccination cycle.
The highest mean maximum temperature recorded for February in Delhi was 29.7 degrees Celsius in 2006, the IMD officials said.
On Sunday, a minimum temperature of 15.6 degrees Celsius, three notches above the season's average, was recorded, while the maximum temperature was 32.3 degrees Celsius, the Met Department said.
The weather department has predicted clear sky for Monday with mist in the morning.
The maximum and minimum temperatures are expected to be around 31 and 13 degrees Celsius respectively.
With 15 deaths registered on Saturday, the death count in the state reached 4,197.
At present, the state has a total of 49,420 active cases.
As many as 4,333 recoveries were recorded, taking the total count of recoveries in the state to 10,05,497.
The state has not reported any death due to coronavirus in the last 24 hours. The death count stands at 7,169. At present, a total of 718 cases are active in the state.
Andhra Pradesh has a cumulative count of 8,89,916 positive cases, including 8,82,029 recoveries and 7,169 deaths.
ISRO chief K Sivan told news agency Press Trust of India the satellite was part of the PSLV-51 launch on Sunday.
In the first dedicated mission of its commercial arm NSIL (NewSpace India Limited), the ISRO successfully launched Brazil's earth observation satellite Amazonia-1 and 18 co-passengers, including five built by students, on board a Polar rocket from the spaceport at Sriharikota.
Mr Sivan said ''Sindhu Netra'' was part of the satellites launched.
The vaccination rollout programme for people aged above 60 and those between 45 and 59 years old with specified comorbidities would be launched in 102 centres across the state initially, they said.
The drive would be subsequently undertaken in 1,200 centres.
An avalanche occurred on Chowkibal-Tangdhar Road in north Kashmir's Kupwara district around 11:45 am, they said.
The officials said another avalanche occurred near Army Convoy Ground in Sonamarg in central Kashmir's Ganderbal district in the afternoon.
However, there was no loss of life in both the incidents, they said.
The recovery count in the state stood at 53,585 after 45 people were discharged during the day, leaving it with 606 active cases, he added.
With 1,224 samples being examined on Sunday, the overall number of tests in Goa went up to 4,93,367, he said.
He alleged that the Red Fort violence was planned by the BJP and those who hoisted a flag on the monument on the Republic Day were their party workers.
During an interaction at the St Xavier College at Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu, Mr Gandhi, said he counted on the people's support to defeat the BJP in the upcoming assembly polls.
- Sant Ravidas Ji did not want people dependant on others. He wanted everyone to be independent and innovative.
- On the day of Magha Purnima it is the birth anniversary of Saint Ravidas ji. Even today, Sant Ravidas ji's words, his wisdom, guide us.
- They said- All the devotees of Ekai Mati, the only Creator of all. Ravidas vyapai ek ghat within, all kau ek ghade potters. We are all the same earthen pots, we have all coined each one.
- Sant Ravidas ji always spoke openly about the distortions prevailing in the society. He put these distortions in front of the society, showed the way to improve it and then Meera Ji had said - 'Guru Milia Raidas, the same faction of knowledge'.
- My dear countrymen, Namaskar. Yesterday was the festival of Magha Purnima. The month of Magha is particularly associated with rivers, ponds and water bodies.
- It is said in our scriptures :- "Maghe nimagna: salile sushite, vikumatapapa: tridivam prayanti." That is, bathing in any holy reservoir during the month of Magha is considered holy.
- In every society of the world, there is a tradition associated with the river. Many civilizations have also developed on the river banks. Because our culture is thousands of years old, therefore, it gets more expanded here.
- There will be no day in India when there is no water festival in some corner of the country.
- During the Magh days, people leave their homes and families and go to Kalpavas on the banks of rivers for the whole month.
- This time Kumbh is also happening in Haridwar. Water is life for us, it is also faith and it is also a stream of development.
- Water is, in a way, more important than Paras. It is said that by the touch of Paras, iron is converted into gold. Similarly, touch of water is necessary for life, it is necessary for development.
- Water has been crucial for the development of humankind for centuries
- A few days later, on March 22, 'World Water Day' is also in the month of March!
- Aradhya ji writes to the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji ..
- Sujit ji has written that nature has given us a collective gift in the form of water, so the responsibility to save it is also collective.
- To solve the water crisis, a very good message has been sent by Sujit ji from 'Uttar Dinajpur' in West Bengal to Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.
- This is true that just as there is a collective gift, so is collective responsibility. Sujit ji is absolutely right. River, pond, lake, rain or ground water, these are for everyone.
- Local people have campaigned to preserve their wells here. They are reviving public wells that have been closed in their area for years.
- Friends, there was a time when the village used to take care of wells, pudders, all of them together; now one such effort is taking place in Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu.
- The rain water from this canal started going straight into the lake. Now this lake is filled with water.
- Babita ji's village is in Bundelkhand. There was once a very large lake near his village which had dried up. They took other women from the village along and built a canal to carry water to the lake.
- What Babita Rajput ji of Agrotha village in Madhya Pradesh is doing will also inspire all of you.
- Jagdish ji decided to solve this crisis by planting trees. He along with the people of the village planted thousands of trees all over the area and today the dried up water reservoir of his area has been replenished.
- Jagdish ji's village and surrounding area depended on a natural source for water requirements. But many years ago this source dried up. This led to a deepening of the water crisis in the entire area.
- Friends, Jagdish Kuniyal Ji living in Bageshwar, Uttarakhand also teaches a lot.
- Friends, we have to understand our collective responsibilities in this way with respect to water. In most parts of India, it starts raining in May-June.
- With this thinking, a few days from now, the Jal Shakti Abhiyan - 'Catch the Rain' is also being started by the Ministry of Water Power. The basic mantra of this campaign is - 'Catch the rain, where it falls, when it falls.'
- We will gather from now on, we will get the rain water harvesting system already in place, get it cleaned in the villages, in the ponds, in the ponds, going to the water bodies, the way of water, removing, then more Will be able to store more rainwater than that.
- My dear countrymen, whenever there is a discussion about the month of Magha and its spiritual social importance, this discussion is not complete without a name. This is the name of Sant Ravidas ji.