“Our public health behaviour over the next 8-10 days will be extremely crucial and could decide the fate of India's COVID wave. Our healthcare workers are exhausted. The general public should avoid super-spreader events. The risks they (health care workers) endure far outweigh any urges to do otherwise. Celebrate sensibly. Give the medical staff reasons to keep fighting,” warned Arvind Singh Soin, chairman of the Institute of Liver Transplantation and Regenerative Medicine, Medanta-The Medicity.
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 updates:
India has initiated an integrated response against COVID-19 pandemic: Vardhan
From development of indigenous vaccines to novel point-of-care diagnostics, India has initiated an integrated response to overcome the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, Union Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Saturday.
Speaking at the 8th BRICS STI Ministerial Meeting held on Friday, Vardhan said India is also hosting clinical trials for all the major vaccines, and about 20 vaccines are in different stages of development.
Two of them are in the most advanced stage of development. COVAXIN developed through ICMR-Bharat Biotech collaboration and COVISHIELD from the Serum Institute of India. Both are in Phase-III clinical trial stage, he added.
“India has initiated an integrated response to overcome this unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic.
“From the development of indigenous vaccines, novel point-of-care diagnostics and therapeutic formulations based on traditional knowledge, to establishing research resources and offering services, Indian R&D entities, both public and private, are working relentlessly to develop effective interventions for combating the pandemic,” Mr. Vardhan, who holds the charge of Health Ministry as well as the Science and Technology Ministry, said.
India’s active caseload has shrunk to 4,80,719: Health Ministry
India’s active caseload of COVID-19 has shrunk to 4,80,719, registering a four-day streak of less than five lakh active cases, the Health Ministry said on Saturday.
In a statement, the Ministry said the share of active cases in the total positive cases has further decreased to 5.48%.
“New cases continue their downward slope indicating adoption of COVID Appropriate Behaviour among the population, and effective containment measures by the State/UT governments following guidelines of the Union Government. The daily new cases on an average show a declining trend over the last five weeks,” the statement said.
Places of worship in Maharashtra to reopen from Nov. 16: Uddhav Thackeray
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray in a statement on Saturday said places of religious worship across the State, which were shut since the COVID-19 lockdown in March, will reopen from November 16.
Extending greetings to people on the occasion of Diwali, he said, “We can’t forget that the demon coronavirus is still amongst us. Even though this demon is slowly falling silent now, we cannot be complacent. Citizens need to follow discipline”.
“Just like discipline and restraint were observed while celebrating Holi, Ganesh Chaturthi,Navratri and Pandharpur wari (annual pilgrimage), followers of other faiths also celebrated festivals like Eid, Mount Mary festival by keeping the COVID-19 safety protocol in mind,” he said.
Elaborate precautionary measures in Sabarimala
With only one day left for the opening of Sabarimala Lord Ayyappa temple for the annual Mandalam-Makaravilakku season, the Kerala government said elaborate arrangements have been made to ensure that no COVID-19 patient reaches the hill shrine for the pilgrimage.
The entire pilgrimage would be through the virtual queue system this time, so the usual heavy rush can be regulated, Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran said after a high level meeting of officials to review the final preparations at the temple on Friday.
Detailing various measures taken by the government to ensure a smooth pilgrimage in the wake of the pandemic, Mr. Surendran said each pilgrim, visiting the shrine, should carry a COVID negative certificate, taken within the last 24 hours. - PTI
Liverpool's Mo Salah tests positive for coronavirus, says Egyptian FA
Liverpool striker Mohamed Salah has tested positive for the coronavirus on the eve of Egypt's Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Togo, the Egyptian Football Association said on Friday.
“The medical swab conducted on the mission of our first national football team showed that our international player, Mohamed Salah, the Liverpool star, was infected with the coronavirus, after his test came back positive,” the federation said in a statement on its Facebook page.
“The player does not suffer from any symptoms. The other members of the team tested negative. Salah underwent the medical protocol after the team's doctor coordinated with his English club. In addition to his isolation inside his room and also isolating all his contacts.”
Hundi collections high despite curbs on visits
Male Mahadeshwara temple at M.M. Hills in Chamarajanagar district has accrued more than ₹2.21 crore by way of ‘hundi collection’ from devotees in the last two months.
The hundis were opened in the presence of Shanthamallikarjuna Swami of Salur Mutt and other officials on Thursday and the count yielded ₹2.21 crore. The counting which began in the morning concluded late at night. The collection is high despite restrictions on visits by devotees due to the pandemic and curbs on mass gatherings. Apart from ₹2.21 crore in cash, the devotees also donated 40 gm of gold and 1.67 kg of silver.
The recent hundi collection at Chamundeshwari temple in Mysuru was also high as nearly ₹65 lakh was collected during October alone.
Curbs again on visitors at Kozhikode, Beypore beaches
The Kozhikode district administration on Friday reinstated curbs on visitors at Kozhikode and Beypore beaches after Tourism and Health authorities pointed to safety threats. Until further notice, no public entry will be allowed at the spots.
The difficulty faced by the authorities in handling crowds on the first day of lifting the ban was also instrumental in reinstating restrictions. According to officials, there was a huge turnout on Thursday when the two beaches were thrown open to visitors on an experimental basis in compliance with the COVID-19 protocol. Many were found violating the safety protocol, and the police were finding it hard to manage crowds, they said.
In an official communication, District Collector Seeram Sambasiva Rao on Friday said the decision to reinstate regulations was taken on the basis of reports submitted by the District Tourism Promotion Council and the Beypore sectoral magistrate. Their reports had indicated the possibility of virus spread if visitors went to the spots in large numbers, he said.
COVID-19 negative report, parents’ approval must to attend college
A COVID-19 negative report of an RTPCR test conducted in the last three days and an approval letter from parents in the stipulated format have been made mandatory for students attending offline or physical classes in colleges falling under the University of Mysore’s (UoM) jurisdiction from November 17.
According to a press statement issued by Registrar of the University on Friday, an SOP was finalised by the varsity after Vice-Chancellor G. Hemantha Kumar’s meetings with officials of Department of Collegiate Education and Social Welfare Department on November 9, 10 and 11. It also decided that the college will offer online classes to students who do not wish to attend the offline classes. The students can come to the college when they wish to clarify a doubt.
The other decisions taken during the meetings include a compulsory COVID-19 negative report of RTPCR conducted three days prior to attending the college by all teaching and non-teaching staff. UoM has also made it mandatory for teaching staff to wear a face shield and masks.
Guidelines revised for international returnees
Guidelines for international travellers returning to Karnataka have been revised. According to the new guidelines released on Friday, all passengers will have to undergo 14 days home quarantine.
Exemptions will be made in the case of submitting a negative RT-PCR report for test done 72 hours prior to undertaking the journey, which has to be uploaded on the portal https://www.newdelhiairport.in/airsuvidha/apho-registration.
They will also have to submit a declaration form vouching for its authenticity, and will be liable for criminal prosecution if found otherwise. Others can opt for a test upon arrival at the airport if there is such a facility to avail of exemption. Exceptions will also be made for pregnancy, death in the family, serious illness, and for parents with children below the age of 10. But they will have to self-monitor their health for 14 days.
ICU beds for COVID-19 patients nearly full in Delhi
ICU beds for COVID-19 patients in the Capital are nearly full with new cases showing an upward trend and often hitting daily highs.
Overall, 87.42% of the total 1,328 ICU beds with ventilators and 84.7% ICU beds without ventilators were occupied. As of 8 p.m. on Friday, there was 52.5% occupancy for COVID-19 beds in city hospitals, but the situation is starker in some cases: in 59 hospitals, all ICU beds with ventilators for COVID-19 treatment were occupied; and in 61 hospitals, all ICU beds without ventilators were full.
When contacted, the Delhi government spokesperson did not comment on the situation.
Unstable Internet, power cuts add to students’ woes
From attending classes online with unstable Internet connectivity, sourcing reading materials that are unavailable online to performing household chores, Delhi University students, spread across the country, are grappling with a variety of issues. So much so that some have complained of escalating mental health issues.
6,405 police personnel tested positive, 5,440 recover so far
With the steep climb in COVID-19 cases in the city during the festival season, the Delhi police have also witnessed a rise in infections in the force. A total of 6,405 personnel have tested positive so far.
However, the recovery rate is impressive, as 5,440 have recovered and resumed their duty. “But unfortunately 23 men died, and most of them were carrying out their responsibilities during the fight to contain the pandemic,” said a senior police officer.
The officer added that around 1,000 are either undergoing treatment at hospital or are under home quarantine . The list includes two senior police officers. While one is undergoing treatment at a hospital, the other is recovering and is in home quarantine.
In North district, a total 289 policemen were tested positive and many of them have recovered. There are only 34 active cases in the district.
Air pollution, cold a lethal pair for COVID-19 patients, say doctors
Warning that the seasonal north Indian winter smog is here and poor quality air causes inflammation in the lungs, making people more vulnerable to breathing-related ailments, Vivek Nangia, Principal Director and Head of Pulmonology at the Max Super Speciality Hospital in Saket in Delhi said: “We see a rise of about 15-20 % in the cases both in OPD and emergency due to respiratory and cardiac ailments.”
“Many people encounter acute exacerbations of their asthma and COPDs. This year the situation is compounded by the ongoing COVID pandemic. Poor associated allergic problems like nasal discharge/sneezing, headache, eye burning, sore throat etc. have also been observed, especially in children. This is also the time when the number of cases of Influenza, H1N1 and pneumonias rise due to change in weather conditions,” he added.
“It has been observed that in areas with poor quality air, not only do the number of people developing COVID increase but so does the death rate. With every 1 micron/cubic meter increase in the PM 2.5 particles, the mortality rate increases by 8%. A direct relationship exists between air pollution and COVID-19 infection. There is a positive association of PM2.5, PM10, CO, NO2 and O3 with COVID-19 confirmed cases observed,” he said.
