Schools and colleges in the Union Territory of Puducherry would re-open on September 1, Chief Minister N. Rangasamy said on Monday.
Indian naval ship Shakti carrying 100 tonnes of liquid medical oxygen reached Sri Lanka on August 22 to help the island nation combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
You can track coronavirus cases, deaths and testing rates at the national and State levels here . A list of State Helpline numbers is available as well.
Here are the latest updates :
Schools, colleges in Puducherry to re-open on Sept. 1
Schools and colleges in the Union Territory of Puducherry would re-open on September 1, Chief Minister N. Rangasamy said on Monday.
Classes IX and X would be held on Mondays and classes XI and XII on Tuesdays.
The Chief Minister said most of the teachers have taken the vaccine against COVID-19 and that the decison to re-open the educational institutions was taken in the wake of a dip in number of virus cases in the Union Territory. - PTI
DIAL signs MoU with Medanta to set up Covid care centre for Delhi airport employees
The Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Medanta hospital to set up a COVID-19 care centre at the Delhi airport for its employees and their family members, a statement said on Monday.
The Covid Care Centre, which is being established at Terminal 2 of the airport in anticipation of "the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic", is expected to be operational early September, said the statement of GMR-group led DIAL.
This Centre will help isolate, clinically treat, clinically support asymptomatic, mild and mild to moderate Covid-positive employees of GMR or their family members, till they are transferred to a hospital or discharged to their homes, it mentioned. PTI
India sees single-day rise of 25,072 new Covid cases, lowest in 160 days
India saw a single-day rise of 25,072 new COVID-19 cases, the lowest in 160 days, while active cases declined to 3,33,924, comprising 1.03 per cent of the total infections, the lowest since March 2020, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Monday.
The tally of COVID-19 cases has increased to 3,24,49,306. while the death toll has climbed to 4,34,756 with 389 daily fatalities, according to the data updated at 8 am.
The active cases have declined to 3,33,924, the lowest in 155 days, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has increased to 97.63 per cent, the highest since March 2020, the health ministry said.
A reduction of 19,474 cases has been recorded in the total number of active COVID-19 cases in a span of 24 hours. - PTI
APSRTC to resume services from Chittoor region to Tamil Nadu
The APSRTC will resume bus services to various destinations in Tamil Nadu from the depots of Chittoor region from Monday, after a four-month lull due to COVID-19 lockdown.
Deputy Chief Traffic Manager (Chittoor) M. Bhaskar said that in Chittoor division, 61 bus services would resume operations to Chennai, Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Krishnagiri, Gudiyattam and other destinations.
The resumption of bus services from the Chittoor region to Tamil Nadu was much awaited as thousands of devotees from the northwestern districts of Tamil Nadu reach Tirumala on RTC buses, after alighting at Vellore, Chennai and other destinations.
Similarly, hundreds of devotees from Chennai and other parts of Tami Nadu visit the Srikalahasti temple. - Staff Reproter
SETC buses to be operated to Bengaluru, Tirupati
With the Tamil Nadu government allowing inter-State bus operations to Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh as part of the new relaxations in COVID-19 lockdown, the State Express Transport Corporation (SETC) announced that buses would be operated from Coimbatore to Bengaluru and Tirupati from Monday.
An SETC official in Coimbatore said on Sunday that eight buses would be operated to Bengaluru from Monday. “These buses were previously operated till Hosur when the inter-State bus operations were restricted,” he said. For Tirupati, three SETC buses from Coimbatore and one bus from Tiruppur will be operated from Monday, the official said. All the buses will be operated in adherence to the COVID-19 safety protocols, he said. - Staff Reproter
More than 300 schools reopen in Mizoram
More than 300 schools in COVID-19 free areas in Mizoram have been allowed to reopen for the new academic session 2021-2022, an official of the School Education department said.
The new COVID-19 guidelines issued by the state government on August 8 had allowed the re-opening of schools in areas outside the Aizawl Municipal Corporation's jurisdiction where there is no coronavirus case, the official said on Sunday. PTI
Railways suffered ₹36,000 cr. loss during pandemic, says Union Minister Raosaheb Danve
Union Minister Raosaheb Danve on Sunday said the Railways had suffered losses to the tune of ₹36,000 crore during the novel coronavirus pandemic, and termed goods trains as the real revenue generators for the national transporter.
“The passenger train segment always runs into losses. Since increasing the ticket fares affects the passengers, we cannot do so. During the pandemic, the Railways suffered losses of ₹36,000 crore,” he said.
“Only goods trains generate revenue. During the pandemic, these trains played an important role in carrying goods and providing relief to people,” the Minister added.
Idol makers stare at financial distress for a second year
With the government ordering a ban on large-scale gatherings ahead of Gowri-Ganesha festivals, idol makers are facing financial distress for a second consecutive year. Prior to the pandemic, shopkeepers in the busy lanes of Malleswaram and other parts of the city would have already stocked up on idols in various hues, and taken orders and advances from customers. But with fears of a third wave, and the government’s ban on cultural gatherings, shopkeepers have not procured any Ganesha or Gowri idols so far, though Ganesh Chaturthi is less than 20 days away.
State increases testing to keep test positivity rate under 2%
With Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai making it clear last week that restrictions will have to be re-imposed and school reopening will have to be put off in districts where the test positivity rate (TPR) is above 2%, district authorities are now under pressure to increase daily testing.
This has been increased, especially in the border districts, and daily tests are now ranging between 1.5 lakh to 1.79 lakh in Karnataka. While 1.79 lakh tests were conducted on August 18, 1.76 lakh, 1.73 and 1.57 lakh tests were conducted on August 19, 20 and 21, respectively.
Lockdowns cannot go on forever, says Australia PM Scott Morrison
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Monday, August 23, 2021, the country must begin to ease strict COVID-19 restrictions once vaccination rates increase, with over half of all Australians enduring weeks-long lockdowns to curb Delta outbreaks.
"(Lockdowns) cannot go on forever. This is not a sustainable way to live in this country," Mr. Morrison said during a televised media conference in Canberra.
New Zealand's Delta outbreak tops 100 cases
New Zealand on August 23 reported 35 new cases of COVID-19, taking the total number of infections in its current outbreak to 107.
The health ministry said in a statement that 33 new cases are in Auckland and two are in the capital Wellington. REUTERS
J&K admin announces resumption of 'Block Diwas' with ceiling of 25 people
Retaining most of the Covid-containment measures, including the night curfew, the Jammu and Kashmir State Executive Committee (SEC) announced the resumption of the "Block Diwas" across the Union Territory on August 23 with a ceiling of 25 people.
It also said it would consider a phased reopening of the educational institutions that have achieved 100% vaccination of the staff and students.
In an order issued after a detailed review of the COVID-19 situation with a focus on the total number of weekly new cases (per 10 lakh people), the positivity rate, bed occupancy, the case fatality rate and the vaccination coverage of the targeted population, Chief Secretary A K Mehta said there is a need to continue with the existing Covid-containment measures in all the districts in view of an uneven trend in the number of daily cases. PTI
BJP MLA says he will defy COVID-19 rules for Ganesh Chaturthi
MLA and BJP leader Basanagouda Patil Yatnal has said he will defy restrictions against Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations as they were 'unscientific and selectively targetting Hindus' .
He announced in a meeting of officers that he would also not follow the COVID-19 restrictions of weekend and night curfews.
"The Deputy Commissioner and Superintendent of Police are here. I am announcing that I will not follow the restrictions. What can you do? At the most, you can shoot me," he said.
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