India added 13,405 new coronavirus infections in a single day, taking the virus tally to 4,28,51,929, while the active cases dipped below two lakh after 49 days, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on February 22. The death toll climbed to 5,12,344 with 235 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 a.m. stated.
The daily COVID-19 cases have remained below one lakh for 16 consecutive days.
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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:
Need to ramp up COVID-19 vaccination, necessary to wear mask: Maharashtra CM
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday said the COVID-19 pandemic has not ended and it is still necessary to wear mask and ramp up vaccination.
The CM said vaccine reduces the severity of the coronavirus infection. It acts as “suraksha kawach” (protective shield), he noted.
“The coronavirus pandemic has not ended yet. Question is being asked for how long we need to keep wearing masks. It is difficult to comment on it at this point. We need to use this time (when cases are declining) to ramp up vaccination,” Mr. Thackeray said.
On Monday, Maharashtra reported 806 new COVID-19 cases, as against 1,437 cases a day ago.- PTI
Active COVID-19 cases settle below two lakh after 49 days
India added 13,405 new coronavirus infections in a single day, taking the virus tally to 4,28,51,929, while the active cases dipped below two lakh after 49 days, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on February 22.
The death toll climbed to 5,12,344 with 235 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 a.m. stated.
The daily COVID-19 cases have remained below one lakh for 16 consecutive days.
The active cases declined to 1,81,075 comprising 0.42% of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has further improved to 98.38%, the ministry said.
A reduction of 21,056 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours. — PTI
Iran returns donated vaccines because they were made in US
Iran has returned 820,000 doses of coronavirus vaccines donated by Poland because they were manufactured in the United States, state TV reported Monday.
TV quoted Mohammad Hashemi, an official in the country’s Health Ministry, as saying that Poland donated about a million doses of the British-Swedish AstraZeneca vaccine to Iran.
“But when the vaccines arrived in Iran, we found out that 820,000 doses of them which were imported from Poland were from the United States,” he said.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters, in 2020 rejected any possibility of American or British vaccines entering the country, calling them “forbidden.”
Iran now only imports Western vaccines that are not produced in the U.S. or Britain.- AP
Boris Johnson scraps remaining COVID restrictions in England
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Monday that he is scrapping of the last domestic coronavirus restrictions in England, including the requirement for people with COVID-19 to self-isolate.
Mr. Johnson said the country was “moving from government restrictions to personal responsibility” as part of a plan for treating COVID-19 like other transmissible illnesses such as flu.
“We now have sufficient levels of immunity to complete the transition from protecting people with government interventions to relying on vaccines and treatments as the first line of defense,” Mr. Johnson said.
Despite warnings from scientists that ending restrictions could weaken the country’s ability to monitor and track coronavirus, Mr. Johnson confirmed that mandatory self-isolation for people with COVID-19 will end starting Thursday, and the routine tracing of infected people’s contacts will stop.- AP
COVID-19 vaccine Corbevax gets EUA for the 12 to 18 years age group
The Drugs Controller General of India ( DCGI)) has given emergency use authorisation (EUA) to vaccine maker Biological E Limited’s (BE), Covid-19 vaccine Corbevax for the 12 to 18 years age group.
Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Monday tweeted that the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation(CDSCO) has granted the authorisation.
Tope: Maharashtra COVID-19 curbs may be eased further in March; mask mandate to stay
With daily cases declining and third wave on the wane, coronavirus-related restrictions are likely to be eased further in Maharashtra in March, but mask mandate and social distancing norms will continue to remain in place, Health Minister Rajesh Tope said on Monday.
He cited a letter from the Union government asking States to review, amend or do away with additional COVID-19 restrictions after considering the trend of new cases and positivity rate in their regions.
Mr. Tope said the State task force on COVID-19 also favours easing of curbs, but a final decision on the issue will be taken by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.
“I expect further relaxation in restrictions next month. The Chief Minister will take a decision on this,” he said.- PTI
Domestic flyer count could reach pre-pandemic numbers in two months: Jyotiraditya Scindia
Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Monday that the domestic air traveller count could reach pre-Covid levels in another two months or so.
Before COVID-19 began to spread in India in early 2020, daily domestic travellers were at four lakh per day or 1.27 crore passengers per month. On Sundays, there were 3.5 lakh travellers, according to the Minister.
