News Analysis India

Tag: coronavirus latest updates

  • COVID-19: Online exam for students of Class 9 and 11 in Goa

    By PTI
    PANAJI: In the wake of rising COVID-19 cases in Goa, the state education department has directed the higher secondary schools and junior colleges to hold examinations for Classes 9 and 11 in online mode.

    The department had earlier announced that examinations for students of Class 1 to 8 would be held online and they can appear for the test from home.

    On Friday evening, director of education D R Bhagat issued a fresh circular, in which he asked the educational institutions to hold exams for Classes 9 and 11 also in online mode.

    The circular has been issued to all the higher secondary schools in the state, which were gearing up to hold offline exams for the students from this week.

    “It is informed that the examinations for Standard ninth and eleventh should be conducted by allowing students to answer from their residences, in the same way the students up to standard eight have been allowed,” the circular read.

    The COVID-19 caseload of Goa rose by 482 to touch 61,239 on Friday.

    There were 3,597 active cases till Friday night.

  • Rahul Gandhi asks PM Narendra Modi to halt COVID vaccine exports, BJP takes potshot

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday wrote to PM Narendra Modi, demanding an immediate moratorium on Covid-19 vaccine exports and opening up of the vaccination to “everyone who needs it”, while Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad hit out at him, claiming the shortage in the Congress-ruled states was not of vaccines but commitment.

    In the letter, Gandhi sought more say to the state governments in vaccine procurement and distribution. He also asked for a provision of direct income support to the vulnerable sections amid the second wave of Covid-19 in India, as he extended his support to the vaccination drive.

    “I humbly request you to provide vaccine suppliers with necessary resources to increase manufacturing capacity and place an immediate moratorium on vaccine export,” Gandhi said.

    “Open up vaccination to everyone who needs it,” he demanded, seeking fast-tracking of approval of other vaccines as per norms. Prasad took a potshot at the Congress leader, wondering “after failing as a part-time politician, has Gandhi switched to full-time lobbying”.

    “First, he lobbied for fighter plane companies by trying to derail India’s acquisition programme. Now, he is lobbying for pharma  by asking for arbitrary approvals for foreign vaccines,” tweeted Prasad.

    “Rahul must know that shortage in the Congress-ruled states is not of vaccines but basic commitment towards healthcare. He should write letters to his party’s governments to stop their vasooli ventures and concentrate on administering the vaccines they are sitting upon,” added Prasad.  

  • Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray to hold all-party meet on April 10 to discuss COVID-19

    By Express News Service
    MUMBAI: Maharashtra CM Udhav Thackeray has called an all-party meeting on Saturday to discuss taking stringent measures to contain the pandemic. According to the CMO, it has been decided to call an all-party meeting on Saturday, but the time of the meeting is yet to be fixed.

    “The leaders can join the meeting via video conference as well and it is not mandatory for them to be physically present,” a source said adding that it will be a “crucial meeting”.

    “Maharashtra government has taken measures like closing down non-essential shops and crowded places, but that is not helping to bring down the cases. The CM wants to take opposition parties in confidence before announcing more stringent measures or complete lockdown,” a senior Shiv Sena leader said.

    The Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders are putting a united face over “vaccine shortage” and other issues. While the Centre charged the MVA government of “vaccine mismanagement”, the state ministers countered the criticism by “exposing” the Centre’s claims.

    ALSO WATCH:

  • 10 states account for more than 83 per cent of COVID cases

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI:  Over 83 per cent of the new Covid cases in the country were reported from 10 states, the Union Health Ministry said on Friday. Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Rajasthan accounted for 83.29 of new infections.

    The country registered a record single-day surge of 1,31,968 cases on Friday taking the cumulative number of cases to 1,30,60,542. 

    There were 780 deaths recorded in the day with total toll rising to 1,67,642. There were new 61,899 recoveries, according to data shared on Friday.

    The 12 states which showed an upward trajectory in daily new cases were Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Punjab, Karnataka, Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala.

    The five states of Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Uttar Pradeshand Kerala cumulatively accounted for 73.24 per cent of India’s total active cases. Maharashtra alone accounted for 53.84% of the total active caseload of the country.

    At a high-level meeting of Group of Ministers (GoM) held by Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Friday, it was pointed out that India’s seven-day case growth rate of 12.93 per cent was next to USA and Brazil.  

    Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan chaired the 24th meeting of the high-level Group of Ministers (GoM) on Covid-19 on Friday.

    During the meeting, it was pointed out that starting February, a steep increase in cases was observed in 11 states.

    While a majority of the cases were reported in the younger population in the age group of 15-44, a majority of the deaths were reported among the elderly population. A high-test positivity rate was noted in Maharashtra at 25 per cent and Chhattisgarh at 14 per cent.

    The total number of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered so far was over 9.43 crore. Over 36 lakh doses were completed in a span of 24 hours, the government said. Twelve states/UTs which did not report any Covid-19 deaths since Thursday were Rajasthan, Odisha, Puducherry, Ladakh (UT), D&D & D&N, Nagaland, Tripura, Sikkim, Mizoram, Lakshadweep, A&N Islands and Arunachal Pradesh.

    Also, no fresh Covid-19 case has been reported in 149 districts in a week, while eight have not registered any new infection in a fortnight, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Friday.

  • COVID-19: Maharashtra’s April surge beats September peak

    Express News Service
    MUMBAI: Coronavirus cases this month in Maharashtra have almost doubled than the previous year’s peak in September, and the experts say the worst is yet to come.

    There are 53,46,003 active cases, 57,329 total deaths and 26,95,148 recoveries across the state. Last year in September, the highest number of positive cases was around 24,000 per day, while today these cases are surpassing the 50,000-mark daily.

    According to the state health department data, 79,368 active positive cases were reported in Mumbai in the first eight days of April against 34,259 positive cases in September the previous year.

    In Thane, this month has so far seen total active cases at 61,127 against 38,388 in September last year. In Pune, this month’s tally of active positive cases is 84,309 against 30,330 in the previous year’s peak in September.

    The trend continues in Nasik, Nagpur and Aurangabad. State Health Minister Rajesh Tope said the second wave situation is grim.

    “In the first wave, there was strict lockdown, so we were able to successfully trace the people. Since the downward curve, we have opened everything, so it is very difficult to maintain tracing and testing. That’s why the virus is spreading at a super speed without effective checking. People need to guard themselves,” Tope said.

    He said this time the authorities are facing a shortage of oxygen and life-saving drugs. “The Central government should extend all help and support,” Tope added. Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar appealed to all sections to cooperate.

    “We were able to contain the virus and bring down the daily cases from 24,000 to 2000. The state government has again taken the bitter decision of lockdown, but it is the only means, as per health experts, to breaking the virus chain,” said Pawar.

  • Not just COVID vaccine, Remdesivir too in short supply in several states

    By Express News Service
    MUMBAI/JAIPUR/BHOPAL/BENGALURU: Amid states grappling with stretched Covid facilities and vaccine shortage, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh chief ministers sent SOS to the Centre regarding vaccine supply on Friday, even as more inoculation centres were shut in Maharashtra, taking their total count to 592.

    There were also reports of shortage of Remdesivir that is used to treat Covid patients, in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh.

    Seventy-five of the 120 centres across Mumbai, including a jumbo facility in the Bandra Kurla Complex that was inoculating 4,000 people daily, halted vaccinating people on Friday as supply dried up.

    EDITORIAL: Full lockdown not feasible, mandatory vaccination needed

    “We have been asking the Centre to ramp up the supply, but there is no positive response. To set up a centre, we spend a lot of money on infrastructure and engage many trained people. Shutting down the centres is a big setback to our vaccination drive,” said a senior health official in Maharashtra.

    In Rajasthan, the vaccine stock will last only two days, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and sought immediate supply of 30 lakh doses to ensure smooth continuation of the inoculation drive, particularly during the ‘tika utsav’ proposed by the PM.

    ALSO READ: ‘Fine’ for now but if COVID spreads, night curfew is on the way in TN

    With hospital beds filling up and demand for oxygen growing, supply is drying up in some states. Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray has already stated that the state is in “dire need” of oxygen of 1,700-2,500 MT oxygen by April-end. 

    Long queues at pharmacies for Remdesivir

    In Madhya Pradesh, there were reports about deaths of Covid patients due to lack of oxygen at government hospitals in Sagar, Ujjain and Khargone, though the State government denied it. As for Remdesivir, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray expects a demand in his state of 90,000 to 1 lakh vials by the end of April while the current stock is 50,000 to 60,000 vials.

    In Gujarat, cities like Ahmadabad had people lining up before the medical stores for Remdesivir, as the injection is in short supply. In Madhya Pradesh, Indore and Bhopal reported shortage of Remdesivir.

    Long queues outside pharmacies were seen in Indore’s Dawa Bazar area for it. Sources said the MP government had ordered 20,000 vials of Remdesivir, but got only 2,000.

    ALSO READ: Night curfew in 7 Karnataka cities from Saturday night

    In Indore alone, the need is in the range of 5,000 to 7,000, but it received just 400 vials on Thursday. The state requires 10,000 to 13,000 vials daily.

    As for Karnataka, while the official position was they were adequately stocked, sources said it is not available in most private hospitals and the drug is being sold on the black market for Rs 4,000.

    However, Odisha, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh have reported thst they were comfortable with their Remedisivir stock position.

    Black market

    In Karnataka, sources said that the drug is not available in most private hospitals and is being sold on black market for Rs 4,000.

  • Maharashtra adds highest 49,447 COVID-19 cases in day; 277 die; Pune officials make plans to vaccinate 30 lakh

    By PTI
    MUMBAI: Maharashtra on Saturday reported 49,447 fresh COVID-19 cases, the highest rise in a day so far, taking the tally to 29,53,523 while 277 fatalities pushed the toll to 55,656, the state health department said.

    Mumbai city also registered 9,108 new infections, the highest spike in a single day.

    Previously, Maharashtra had recorded the highest number of 24,619 cases in a day on September 17, 2020.

    With 1,84,404 new tests, the total number of samples tested so far in Maharashtra rose to 2,03,43,123, the department said.

    The case recovery rate in the state now stands at 84.49 per cent while the fatality rate is 1.88 per cent, it said.

    Of the 277 fatalities, 132 deaths had occurred in the last 48 hours, the statement said.

    A total of 37,821 patients were discharged during the day, taking the count of recoveries in Maharashtra so far to 24,95,315, it said.

    The state is now left with 4,01,172 active cases.

    Out of the total population tested so far, 14.52 per cent have tested positive for the virus.

    Currently,21,57,135 people remain admitted in the home quarantine while 18,994 people are in the institutional quarantine, the department said.

    Earlier in the day, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said the state government was considering diverting all industrial use oxygen supply for medical use.

    In an online interaction with newspaper owners, editors and distributors, Thackeray said a decision on imposing stringent measures to tackle the pandemic will be taken soon but he did not confirm if there will be a statewide lockdown.

    The CM also discussed ways to break the virus transmission chain with owners of gyms, multiplexes, and newspaper editors.

    Thackeray had on Friday said the health infrastructure would be overwhelmed if the present situation continues for another fortnight in the state.

    On Saturday, the Mumbai division, comprising Mumbai city and its satellite towns, recorded 15,989 cases and 58 deaths, taking the tally to 9,35,371 and fatalities to 20,578, the department said.

    Nashik division reported 8,418 fresh cases, including 2,459 infections in Nashik city.

    Pune division saw 12,268 cases, including 5,778 infections in Pune city and 2,798 detections in Pimpri Chinchwad, the department said.

    Nagpur division reported 5,747 cases, including 2,853 infections in Nagpur city, followed by 2,693 infections in Latur division, 1,940 in Akola division, 1,877 in Aurangabad division, and 515 cases in Kolhapur division, it said.

    Meanwhile, in Mumbai, 43,597 new tests were conducted during the day, out of which 9,090 people tested positive for coronavirus, the city civic body said.

    The case recovery rate in the Mumbai district is 83 per cent while the overall growth rate of cases from March 27 to April 2 is 1.54 per cent.

    The doubling rate of cases in Mumbai is now 44 days.

    The COVID-19 figures in Maharashtra are as follows: Positive cases 29,53,523, deaths 55,656, rcoveries 24,95,315, active cases 4,01,172, total tests 2,03,43,123, tests today 1,84,404.

    Meanwhile, the Pune district administration has launched an initiative to vaccinate approximately 30 lakh people against COVID-19 amid a sharp spike in infections over the past few days, officials said on Saturday.

    The district saw 9,086 cases on Friday and the health directorate of Maharashtra has said chances of the daily addition touching the 10000-mark on April 6 and 7 were high, they added.

    “Such a sharp rise could trigger a shortage of health infrastructure. We are currently vaccinating 50,000 people per day. We plan to cover one lakh people per day so that all 30 lakh eligible beneficiaries, as per figures provided by the Centre, can be vaccinated in Pune district as soon as possible,” an official said.

    He said the aim was to vaccinate 1.1 lakh people from Monday.

    The state will also make an adequate number of beds and ambulances available for the treatemnt of COVID-19 patients, state minister Eknath Shinde said on Saturday.

    Shinde inaugurated via a video link the COVID dedicated health centre set up by the CIDCO at Kalamboli in Panvel in Navi Mumbai.

    “The rapid increase in the number of patients is the matter of a great concern,” Shinde added.

  • Will take strict measures to tackle coronavirus: Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot

    By PTI
    JAIPUR: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Saturday said strict measures will be taken to tackle the surge in coronavirus cases and detailed guidelines will be released soon.

    Gehlot said this after a virtual review meeting here.

    He said it is a priority for his government to stop the infection spread and save lives of people.

    “After the review meeting on coronavirus, it has been decided to take strict decisions for the next 15 days. Detailed guidelines and standard operating procedure will be released in this regard soon,” Gehlot said in a tweet.

  • COVID-19 surge: School for classes I-IX shut in Gujarat

    By PTI
    AHMEDABAD: School for classes I to IX were directed to be shut for an indefinite period in Gujarat from Monday amid a rise in COVID-19 cases, officials said.

    However, as per the decision taken at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Saturday, classroom teaching for standards X and XII as well as colleges would continue, they added.

    “All offline classes of standard 1 to 9 in government and private schools will be closed down for an indefinite period from Monday. Online education will be encouraged. The decision was taken keeping in mind safety of students when COVID-19 cases have surged in the state,” a release from the CM’s office said.

    Schools and colleges in the state, which were closed since March last year after a lockdown was imposed to tackle the outbreak, were reopened in phased manner from January this year.

    School for classes X to XII as well as lectures for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in colleges resumed on January 11, which was followed by resumption of classes IX and XI from February 8.

    Gujarat, on Friday, reported 2640 cases, the highest single-day addition, as well as 11 deaths.

  • Pune 12-hour curfew begins, BJP protests for bus services

    By PTI
    PUNE: The BJP held a protest on Saturday demanding resumption of municipal transport bus services as a 6 pm to 6 am curfew began in Pune in a bid to tackle a recent surge in COVID-19 cases.

    Pune BJP MP Girish Bapat and Pune BJP president Jagdish Mulik led the party’s protest in front of the PMPML bus depot at Swargate, police said, adding that they were detained and released some time later.

    “The decision to not run Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited’s buses will impact people who work in factories, banks, hospitals etc. The state government must not misuse its power to impose such restrictions in the name of tackling COVID-19,” Bapat said.

    The decision to impose 6 pm to 6 am curfew in Pune from April 3 for seven days was taken a after review meeting chaired by state Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday.

    The COVID-19 tally in Pune increased by a record 9,086 in a 24-hour period ending Friday, taking the district’s tally to 5,51,508.