Morning Digest: First phase of COVID-19 vaccination to cover 30 crore Indians, 3 coronavirus patients killed in Rajkot hospital fire, and more

A select list of stories to read before you start your day.

Members of farmer organisations react as police fire tear gas to stop protesters during the ‘Delhi chalo’ match at Punjab-Haryana border in Ambala district, on November 26, 2020.

Coronavirus | First phase of COVID-19 vaccination to cover 30 crore Indians

About 30 crore people will be part of the first “wave” to get the  COVID-19 vaccine  in India. They consist of health care workers, police personnel, those above 50 and those younger with underlying illnesses that make them vulnerable, said Principal Scientific Adviser K. VijayRaghavan.

3 COVID-19 patients killed as fire breaks out at Rajkot hospital

Three coronavirus patients were killed after a fire broke out in the ICU of a designated COVID-19 hospital in Gujarat’s Rajkot in the early hours of Friday, a fire brigade official said.

Cyclone Nivar | Three killed, crops damaged as storm crosses Tamil Nadu coast

Severe cyclonic storm Nivar , which made landfall early on Thursday at Marakkanam in Villupuram district, between Puducherry and Chennai, left three persons dead and caused considerable damage to crops and fields, besides leaving many areas inundated. The storm system is likely to move northwestwards and weaken into a low pressure by Friday.

India to offer incentives for solar modules: PM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said production-linked incentives similar to those for electronic manufacturing will be offered for high-efficiency solar modules to boost the generation of electricity from renewable sources which has the potential to generate an annual business of $20 billion.

Police stop farmers march to Delhi at Haryana, U.P. borders

Tens of thousands of farmers are planning to storm Delhi on Friday to protest against the  Centre’s new farm reform laws . With the Delhi Police moving to prevent their entry, the alliance of farmers groups demanding the repeal of the laws has called for an  “indefinite siege” of the capital .

Those in high offices should be above prejudices: President

President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday said persons occupying high constitutional posts should strive to set an example by rising above partisanship and prejudices.

'It’s a cruelty on farmers': Congress reacts to govt. using water cannon on marching farmers

On a day when the nation is celebrating Constitution Day , don’t farmers have the right to enter Delhi and protests peacefully , the Congress asked on Thursday and accused the BJP governments at the Centre and in Haryana of unleashing ‘cruelty’ on farmers.

AstraZeneca CEO says company likely to run new global trial on COVID-19 vaccine, says report

A test tube labelled with the vaccine is seen in front of AstraZeneca logo in this illustration photo. File

 

AstraZeneca is likely to run an additional global trial  to assess the efficacy of its COVID-19 vaccine, its chief executive Pascal Soriot was quoted as saying on Thursday after questions over the results from its late-stage study.

Akali Dal, Congress, AAP criticise use of force on farmers by BJP government in Haryana

Amid use of tear gas and water canons by the Haryana police against farmers, who were participating in the “Delhi Chalo” march against the Centre’s agriculture laws, the Shiromani Akali Dal, the Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress party on Thursday criticised the BJP-led governments in Haryana and the Centre.

“U.S. presidential transition a fraught period”: expert

Weeks after the 2020 U.S. presidential election, the ferment Washington politics looks to be impacting the broader transition to a new arrangement in the federal government, owing to outgoing President Donald Trump’s refusal to concede power and perhaps also less-than-forthcoming cooperation from the bureaucracy. Professor Karen Hult of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and a board member of the White House Transition Project, spoke about the risks and opportunities within the opaque.

Biden seeks unity as U.S. battles virus

On a day of grace and grievance, President-elect Joe Biden summoned Americans to join in common purpose against the coronavirus pandemic and their political divisions while the man he will replace stoked the fading embers of his campaign to “turn the election over.”

India in Australia | A storied rivalry looks to add more engrossing chapters

In a year that witnessed a virus forcing mankind to be static, it is time for Indian cricket to get back on the rails. The southern hemisphere beckons and Virat Kohli’s men are set to kick-off their Australian tour with the first ODI at Sydney on Friday. And over the next eight weeks, the Men in Blue will play two more ODIs and three Twenty20Is before slipping into their whites for the subsequent four Tests.