India logged 30,615 new coronavirus infections, taking the country’s tally of COVID-19 cases to 4,27,23,558, while the active cases dipped to 3,70,240, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Wednesday.
The death toll climbed to 5,09,872 with 514 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 a.m. stated.
The daily COVID-19 cases were recorded less than one lakh for ten consecutive days The active cases comprise 0.87% of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has further improved to 97.94%, the health ministry said.
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.
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Here are the latest updates:
Nursery schools across T.N. reopen amidst declining COVID-19 cases
Nursery schools across Tamil Nadu reopened on Wednesday after a long gap of two years, amidst a sharp decline in coronavirus positive cases, and with the government insisting that face masks are not mandatory for kindergarten children.
Teachers welcomed the students with balloons, chocolates, and flowers on day one to help them cope up with a new environment. Several schools which have been conducting online classes, too, shifted to the physical mode today.
Reopening of Schools for class LKG, UKG after lockdown on Wednesday. The scene at Chennai Corporation Primary School, Shenoy Nagar | Photo Credit: M. Vedhan
India records 514 fresh fatalities
India logged 30,615 new coronavirus infections, taking the country’s tally of COVID-19 cases to 4,27,23,558, while the active cases dipped to 3,70,240, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Wednesday.
The death toll climbed to 5,09,872 with 514 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.
The daily COVID-19 cases were recorded less than one lakh for ten consecutive days The active cases comprise 0.87% of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has further improved to 97.94%, the health ministry said. -PTI
TAC recommends daily tests in Karnataka to be limited to 75,000 under revised strategy
In view of a steady decline in the incidence of COVID-19 cases and Test Positivity Rate (TPR), both in districts and the capital, the COVID-19 Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) has recommended that Karnataka can reduce its testing target to 75,000 from the current daily tests of around 1.2 lakh. After deliberations on this issue at its 155th meeting on Sunday, the TAC said while 25,000 tests should be conducted in Bengaluru daily, the remaining 50,000 should be done in the rest of the State.
“Indian Council of Medical Research’s (ICMR) guidelines on the purposive testing strategy of COVID-19 issued on January 10, 2022, should be duly followed and only symptomatic persons should be tested,” stated the TAC’s report.
Hospitals overflow as Hong Kong faces ‘tsunami’ of COVID-19 cases
Hong Kong’s government said on Tuesday it was facing “a tsunami” of new COVID-19 cases that had overwhelmed its hospitals and left more than 10,000 people waiting for treatment.
“A tsunami of new cases has far exceeded the enhanced capacities of Hong Kong on various fronts including testing, tracing, quarantine, isolation and treatment,” a statement from the government said, adding that hospitals “are facing immense pressure, and cannot admit all cases tested preliminarily positive or confirmed for COVID-19.”
Higher education institutes, colleges open in Kashmir
Several institutions of higher learning, including colleges, opened in Kashmir on Tuesday, two days after the administration decided to allow offline classes in view of declining COVID-19 cases.
Students at different colleges in the city and elsewhere in the valley made way to the institutions after a gap of nearly two months, officials said. They said students and staff observed Covid appropriate behaviour, including mandatorily wearing masks, and students were allowed inside only after temperature screening at the main entrance. -PTI
Canada to ease travel requirements as COVID-19 cases decline- govt source
Canada is going to ease entry for fully vaccinated international travelers starting on March 1 as COVID-19 cases decline, allowing a rapid antigen test for fully vaccinated travelers instead of a molecular one, a government source said.
The new measures, which include dropping compulsory testing on entry, are due to be announced later Tuesday. Canada will also drop testing requirements for fully vaccinated Canadians who make short trips - less than 72 hours - abroad, the source said. -Reuters
Netherlands to drop most COVID-19 measures starting Friday
The Dutch government will lift most of its coronavirus restrictions as of Friday, as the record levels of infections triggered by the Omicron variant have not translated in a peak of hospitalisations, health minister Ernst Kuipers said on Tuesday.
“The country will open up again ... happily we are in a different phase now,” Kuipers said during a press conference. -Reuters
