Mass gatherings should be discouraged but if attending it is essential then full vaccination should be a prerequisite, the Union government said on September 2 and urged people to get the jabs and follow Covid-appropriate behaviour, especially during the festive season.
In a press conference, it warned the second wave of coronavirus infection in India was not yet over even though the weekly positivity rate was showing an overall declining trend.
The Centre said that 39 districts in the country reported over 10% weekly Covid positivity rate in the week ending August 31 while in 38 districts it was between 5 and 10%.
With 47,092 people testing positive for COVID-19, India's total tally of cases rose to 3,28,57,937, while active cases have increased to 3,89,583, according to Union health ministry data updated on Thursday.
The death toll has climbed to 4,39,529 with 509 more fatalities, according to the data updated at 8 am.
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:
Long-COVID now forces hospitals to offer rehabilitation programme
Medical care facilities across the country are now offering “Rehabilitation programme” for COVID-survivors with the hospitals continuing to report cases of Long-COVID while India is registering a downward trend of new COVID cases.
Most common symptoms being reported include muscle weakness/fatigue, sleep problems and hair loss though hospitals are also seeing cases of COVID-19 related development of tuberculosis and fungal pneumonia and cases of increased heart rate especially among those between 30-65 years.
Full vaccination prerequisite if attending mass gathering essential
Mass gatherings should be discouraged but if attending it is essential then full vaccination should be a prerequisite, the Union government said on September 2 and urged people to get the jabs and follow Covid-appropriate behaviour, especially during the festive season.
In a press conference, it warned the second wave of coronavirus infection in India was not yet over even though the weekly positivity rate was showing an overall declining trend.
The Centre said that 39 districts in the country reported over 10% weekly Covid positivity rate in the week ending August 31 while in 38 districts it was between 5 and 10%.
Two States, 1 UT administered one dose of vaccine to all adults
Sikkim, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Himachal Pradesh have administered the first dose of COVID19 vaccination to 100% of their 18 plus population, says Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan.
16% of the country’s total adult population is fully vaccinated and 54% has received atleast one shot.
All mass gathering should be discouraged. And full vaccination should be a pre condition for any gathering, says ICMR chief Balaram Bhargava.
Stressing the importance of vaccination, Niti Ayog member V.K. Paul says “Pregnant women must get their vaccination for the safety of their child and themselves."
Kerala has more than 1 lakh active cases: Union Health Ministry
India is seeing a fall in number of Covid cases, while 69% of total cases last week was reported from Kerala, says Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan.
Kerala currently has more than 1 lakh active cases. Four states have 10,000 to 1 lakh active cases - Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. Rest of the states/UTs have less than 10,000 active cases, he says.
42 districts are reporting more than 100 new cases each day.
We have not seen the conclusion of the second surge in the country, he says.
IRCTC announces new tour packages from Kerala
To revive the tourism industry post COVID-19, the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has announced new air and train packages starting from Kerala.
Some of the exciting domestic flight packages as well as train coach tour cover important historic places and pilgrimage centres commencing from Kochi mid-September, October and November. Incidentally, all tickets for the Ladakh package covering Leh, Nubra and Pangong from Kochi on September 24 was sold out on Thursday itself, an official said.
The Jammu and Kashmir tour packages have been getting huge response in recent times. The Ladakh package was priced at ₹36,800 per passenger, he said.
Self paid RT-PCR test mandatory for passengers from various countries at Mumbai airport
In view of fear of new mutations of Covid-19 (SARS-CIV-2) virus spreading, fresh restrictions have been put in place at Mumbai Airport for international passengers arriving from the U.K., Europe, Middle East, South Africa, Brazil, Bangladesh, Botswana, China, Mauritius, New Zealand, Zimbabwe.
As per a circular issued by Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) all these passengers will need to be mandatorily undergo self-paid RT-PCR test on arrival before being allowed to enter the city.
As per the new guidelines, institutional quarantine mechanism is done away with.
Delhi govt invites applications to set up O2 generation plants
The Delhi government has invited applications for setting up oxygen generation plants at health care facilities and purchase of cryogenic tankers to prepare for a possible third wave of the coronavirus.
The last date to submit applications is September 16. The applications have been invited under the "Medical Oxygen Production Promotion Policy" for providing incentives to the private sector to set up production plants and storage facilities.
This policy aims to make Delhi self-reliant in the production of medical oxygen to meet any crisis or medical emergency in the future.
COVID-19 vaccines effective in reducing severe illness: Lancet study
People infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus after receiving one or two COVID-19 vaccine doses have significantly lower chance of severe disease or hospitalisation than unvaccinated individuals, according to a large-scale study published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal on Tuesday.
Researchers also found that the odds of experiencing long COVID -- illness lasting 28 days or more -- were reduced to half for people who received two vaccines doses.
People most vulnerable to a breakthrough infection after their first vaccine dose included frail older adults, 60 years and older, and those living with underlying conditions such as obesity, heart disease, kidney disease, and lung disease, they said.
- PTI
'Ganeshotsav': negative RT-PCR test report must for travel to Raigad
Ahead of Ganesh Chaturthi , Raigad Guardian Minister Aditi Tatkare has said that travellers to the district must carry a negative RT-PCR report if they are not fully vaccinated.
“Against the backdrop of a possible third wave of the pandemic, let us celebrate Ganeshotsav by following COVID-19 norms. For the safety of all, it is best to get vaccinated. Detailed guidelines will be framed in the coming days,” she said.
Assam eases COVID curbs, allows rehearsal for mobile theatres
The Assam government on Wednesday announced the easing of COVID-19 restrictions and reopening of educational institutions for 18-plus students on the condition that they are vaccinated.
Among the announcements made by Health Minister Keshab Mahanta was the permission granted to the ‘ bhramyoman ’ (travelling theatre) groups to start rehearsal for their plays.
“The mobile theatre groups can start rehearsing for the season ahead. We will assess the situation soon to grant permission for them to stage plays,” he said.
New Zealand says COVID-19 case drop shows lockdown working against Delta
New Zealand reported a drop in new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, which authorities said was a sign that the lockdown enforced nationwide was working in limiting the spread of the infectious Delta variant of the coronavirus.
Authorities reported 49 new cases on Thursday, all in the epicentre of Auckland, taking the total number of cases in this outbreak to 736.
- PTI
U.S. Couple convicted in $18M COVID-19 relief scam now on the run
A Los Angeles couple who were convicted of helping steal $18 million in COVID-19 relief funds are on the lam after cutting off their ankle monitors, the FBI said.
Richard Ayvazyan, 43, and his wife, Marietta Terabelian, 37, are considered fugitives, an FBI tweet said on Tuesday.
The couple, Ayvazyan's brother and a Glendale man were convicted in June of scheming to submit phony loan applications for federal COVID-19 business relief funds. They were scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 4 and were potentially facing decades in federal prison.
Moderna, Japan partner recall over one million vaccine doses
Moderna Inc. and its Japanese partner are recalling more than 1 million doses of the U.S. drug maker’s coronavirus vaccine after confirming that contamination reported last week was tiny particles of stainless steel.
Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. is in charge of sale and distribution in Japan of the Moderna vaccine. The two companies said an investigation at a Spanish factory that produced the vials in question concluded the contamination occurred in the process of putting stops on the vials.
Japanese officials said about a half million people had received shots from the Moderna vials before the problem surfaced.
Taiwan gets first Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines after long delay
Taiwan received its first batch of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines on September 2 after a prolonged purchasing process that gave rise to a political blame game with China.
Taiwan had been unable to buy the vaccine itself directly from BioNTech.
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen earlier accused China of blocking Taiwan from getting the Pfizer vaccine through BioNTech, saying that they had all but signed the contracts when the deal was delayed indefinitely. China has denied any interference.
Over 11 lakh doses given on first day of ‘Lasika Utsava’
On the first ‘Lasika Utsava’ on Wednesday, Karnataka administered 11,37,041 doses till 8.30 p.m., exceeding its target of 10 lakh. With this Karnataka has administered 4,35,58,701 doses so far of which 1,06,63,266 are second doses.
This is the second time that vaccinations in the State have crossed 11 lakh.
Health and Medical Education Minister K. Sudhakar had on Monday announced ‘Lasika Utsava’ wherein vaccination camps will be held every Wednesday to administer 10 lakh doses a day.
Just 21.77% students attend schools in Telangana
Just above 21% of students attended the schools on the first day of the reopening of schools in the State on Wednesday.
Out of the total 52,22,174 enrolled students in the government and private sector, only 11,37,095 students entered the schools registering 21.77% attendance, going by the Department of School Education figures.
The attendance percentage in private schools was dismal at 18.35% while it was far better in the government schools at 27.45%.
Delhi reports 36 new virus cases, no death
The Capital reported no one new COVID-19 death in 24 hours and the total number of deaths stood at 25,082, as per a bulletin released by the Delhi government on Wednesday.
Also, 36 new cases were reported, taking the total cases to 14,37,800. A total of 59,013 tests were done in a day and that test positivity rate (TPR) was 0.06%. Of the total cases, 14,12,375 people have recovered and there are only 343 active cases.
