Is coronavirus an airborne infection? Uncertainity surrounds this as the World Health Organisation admitted that there is evidence emerging of that possibility , after a group of scientists urged the global body to update its guidance on how the respiratory disease passes between people.
This is particularly worrying for the densely-populated metro cities in India, which have already emerged as hotspots of COVID-19. The Union Health Ministry has said that it is " closely watching the dynamic evolution of the virus situation in India."
Here is a list of State Helpline numbers . You can track coronavirus cases, deaths and testing rates at the national and State levels here .
Here are the latest updates:
Madhya Pradesh records 316 new cases
Madhya Pradesh on Friday registered 316 new COVID-19 cases, taking the tally to 16,657. The number of active cases stands at 3,538. Four patients died of the illness on the day, taking the State-wide death toll to 638. As for recoveries, 249 patients were discharged from hospitals on the day. So far, 12,481 persons have been cured of the illness, says the State Directorate of Health Services.
One more Minister tests positive for virus in Tamil Nadu
Minister for Cooperation Sellur K. Raju, who is also a senior AIADMK leader based at Madurai in southern Tamil Nadu, has tested positive for coronavirus, the government said on Friday.
Raju is the third minister to test positive and he was admitted to a hospital for treatment.
Chief Minister and AIADMK co-coordinator K Palaniswami said he prayed for the speedy and complete recovery of the minister and his wife, who has also tested positive.
Maharashtra reports biggest one-day spike of 7,862 COVID-19 cases
With a staggering surge of 7,862 new Covid-19 cases on Friday, Maharashtra posted its highest single-day surge till date as its total case tally reached 2,38,461. As many as 226 new deaths pushed the total death toll to 9,893. Of the total case tally, 95,647 are active ones, said State Health Department officials. With 5,366 patients being discharged today, the cumulative recoveries till date has gone up to 1,32,625. With 1,337 new cases reported today, Mumbai's total case tally reached has 90,461 of whom only 23,035 are active though.
With 73 new deaths reported today, the city's death toll has risen to 5,205. Pune district reported as many as 37 deaths, while significant fatality surges were reported from the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) fatalities with Thane reporting 17 deaths, Navi Mumbai reporting 12, Kalyan-Dombivli reporting 10 and the Vasai-Virar civic body reporting nine fatalities.
Punjab government cancels pending class 12, open school exams
Amid the continuing COVID-19 crisis, the government on Friday cancelled all the pending examinations of various classes which had been slated to be held after July 15 by the Punjab School Education Board (PSEB).
Punjab School Education Minister Vijay Inder Singla said the state government has decided to cancel all the pending examinations of class 12, open school and several other categories.
He said the decision has been taken in view of the “hard times” due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
West Bengal records 26 more deaths, highest one-day spike of 1,198 COVID-19 cases
West Bengal on Friday recorded its highest single-day spike of 1,198 COVID-19 cases, bringing the virus count to 27,109 while 26 more people succumbed to the disease, raising the death toll to 880, the health department said.
Of the new fatalities, Kolkata registered 13, followed by six in North 24 Parganas, four in Howrah and one each in Hooghly, Malda and Purba Medinipur districts, it said in a bulletin.
At least 12 months for vaccine to be commercially available: Officials to Parliamentary Committee
A novel coronavirus ( COVID-19 ) vaccine will take at least 12 months to be commercially available and a realistic deadline for it would be some time next year, a group of government officials informed the Parliamentary Panel on Science and Technology headed by Congress leader Jairam Ramesh at a meeting held in the Parliament House complex on Friday.
This is contrary to the letter sent out by Director General, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Dr. Balram Bhargava, exhorting institutions involved in the Covaxin trial to ready the vaccine for “public health use by August 15”. The ICMR backtracked from this date the next day.
The meeting was attended by Principal Scientific Advisor to the Prime Minister K. VijayRaghavan. Officials from the Department of Biotechnology, the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research and the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research deposed during the meeting.
Tamil Nadu records 3,680 new COVID-19 cases,64 deaths
Tamil Nadu on Friday recorded 3,680 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the total number of those affected by the contagion in the state to 1,30,261, the health department said on Friday.
With 64 fatalities reported, the death toll has gone up to 1,829, a health department bulletin said.
There was a significant jump in recoveries reported today which surpassed the number of those infected as 4,163 people got discharged from various health care facilities.
With this, the cumulative figure of those who recovered has gone up to 82,324.
Maharashtra government to buy anti-viral drugs on big scale: Minister
Amid complaints of shortage of anti-viral drugs Remdesivir and Tocilizumab, Maharashtra minister Anil Deshmukh on Friday said the government will buy them “on a big scale” to ensure that they are available for the needy across the state “soon“.
He also said that the government will take strict action against black marketeers of the drugs, which are used in treating COVID-19 patients.
Jharkhand HC directs government to submit report on steps taken to fight COVID-19
The Jharkhand High Court on Friday directed the State government to submit a detailed report on steps taken by it in the fight against the coronavirus outbreak.
Hearing a suo motu petition, the division bench of Chief Justice Ravi Ranjan and Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad directed the government to file the report by July 31, when the matter will be taken up again.
The bench asked the state government to give details of methods adopted by it to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease and facilities set up for treatment of COVID-19 patients.
Dharavi’s COVID-19 case count rises to 2,359
The number of coronavirus positive patients in Dharavi, the biggest slum in Mumbai, increased to 2,359 on Friday with the addition of 12 cases, a Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) official said.
Dharavi currently has 166 active cases and 1,952 patients have been discharged from hospitals following recovery so far, the official said.
Central team to assess COVID-19 situation in Tamil Nadu meets Chief Minister
A team, deputed by the Central government to assess the COVID-19 situation in Tamil Nadu, met Chief Minister K Palaniswami here on Friday and discussed the strategy to contain the spread of the virus.
State Health Minister Dr. C. Vijaya Bhaskar and health secretary J Radhakrishnan briefed the team on the strategies adopted to contain the pandemic and the steps taken to ramp up the testing for COVID-19.
Chief Secretary K. Shanmugham and senior officials too participated in the meeting.
Measures of treatment taken to improve the recovery rate were also explained at the meeting.
Puducherry Chief Minister rules out imposition of total lockdown on Sundays
Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy on Friday ruled out categorically imposition of total lockdown in the Union Territory on Sundays, saying it was not the ‘exclusive solution’ to check the spread of coronavirus.
Addressing reporters here through video mode, the Chief Minister said, “Health Minister Malladi Krishna Rao had on the basis of a report of doctors felt that a lockdown would be of help to prevent spread of the pandemic.”
“There was a representation meanwhile from traders and merchants and public to the government that total lock down need not be imposed on Sunday,” he said adding “lock down alone was not the exclusive solution to tackle the pandemic.”
The spread can be contained if there was strict adherence on the part of the people to safety norms such as wearing of masks, maintaining social distance and adopting sanitation.
India’s COVID-19 case fatality rate dips to 2.72%: Health Ministry
From 2.82% a month earlier, India’s COVID-19 case fatality rate has declined to 2.72% which is lower than that of many other countries, the Union Health Ministry said on Friday.
It also noted that 30 States and Union Territories have a fatality rate lower than the national average.
Also, there is an upward trend in the recovery rate which was recorded at 62.42% on Friday. In 18 States and UTs the recovery rates are higher than the national average, the Ministry said.
“At the national level, the case fatality rate has declined to 2.72%. This is lower than the fatality rates observed in many other countries in the world. The focus of COVID-19 management in the country has been to keep the fatalities low,” it said.
Pune to go on 10-day lockdown starting July 13
In a bid to stem the spread of COVID-19, a 10-day lockdown will be imposed in Pune, neighbouring Pimpri-Chinchwad and a few other parts of the district starting July 13, a senior official said on Friday.
The lockdown will come into force from midnight of July 13 and end on July 23, he said.
The district reported a record spike of 1,803 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday that pushed the tally to 34,399, while the toll rose to 978.
Graduation, PG exams only for final semester students in Karnataka
The Karnataka government on Friday announced its decision to promote all intermediate semester students pursuing degree and post-graduation courses including engineering and diploma for the academic year 2019- 20 without examinations, due to prevailing COVID-19 situation.
It said examinations for the final semester students would be conducted before the end of September 2020, as per UGC guidelines and Governor Vajubhai Vala has given his assent for the same.
18 States/UTs have recovery rate higher than national average of 64.2%
Eighteen States/Union Territories are currently clocking a recovery rate more than the national average of 62.42 %, the Health Ministry said on Friday. Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Tripura, Rajasthan, Delhi and Ladakh, among others have a recovery rate of over 70 %.
“States/UTs have also taken many steps to keep the fatality rate low with mapping of the communities to focus on the high risk group like the elderly/aged and population with co-morbidities, and providing special care to them,’’ said the Health Ministry.
There was a focus on improving the quality of the medical care for COVID patients. A strong network of ASHAs and ANMs, along with Ayushman Bharat – Health and Wellness Centres, have helped in effective surveillance and contact tracing of the cases, including lakhs of migrants and returnees, the Ministry said.
Several senior Punjab officials found COVID-19 positive; Minister takes corona test
Two IAS and 13 PCS officers as well as two other government officials were confirmed positive for coronavirus in Punjab, officials said on Friday, as the state battles surge in infections.
Punjab Rural Development and Panchayats Minister Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa underwent a COVID-19 test after an IAS officer, who has contracted the disease, was present in a meeting attended by him, the officials said
VIT engineering entrance exam cancelled
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) has cancelled its engineering entrance examination this year.
The institution has been conducting VIT Engineering Entrance Examination (VITEEE) for admission to various engineering programmes offered by the VIT group of Institutions in Vellore,Chennai, Amravati and Bhopal. As it is risky to conduct the exams in various cities during the pandemic, VIT has announced that admission this year will be based on Class 12 (Plus Two)/ Pre-University marks in Physics,Chemistry and Mathematics/Biology.
26 more BSF personnel test COVID-19 positive in Meghalaya
Twenty-six more personnel of the BSF have tested positive for COVID-19 in Meghalaya, taking the number of infections in the border-guarding force in the state to 91, Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma said on Friday.
They are all posted at the Border Security Force (BSF) frontier headquarters in Umpling, which has been declared a containment zone.
A senior health official said more tests will be conducted among the BSF personnel.
Tamil Nadu Minister Sellur K. Raju tests positive for COVID-19
Minister for Co-operation Sellur K. Raju, has tested positive for COVID-19. He has been admitted to a private hospital in Chennai.
Mr. Raju is the third Tamil Nadu Minister to test positive for COVID-19. Earlier, Higher Education Minister K.P. Anbalagan had tested positive on June 18. On July 8, Electricity Minister P. Thangamani tested positive, and is being treated at a private hospital.
Mr. Raju is believed to have contracted the virus from his wife, who had tested positive for the infection four days ago.
Rs 500 fine for violating COVID-19 protocols
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said that the state government has decided to impose fine of Rs 500 on people who violate the COVID-19 safety protocols which include social distancing, wearing of mask, not spitting in public places.
“For first time violators, a fine of Rs 500 will be imposed and this will be increased to Rs 1,000 for repeated offence. We need to ensure people take the protocols seriously. These are simple rules which will help you to protect your family,” he said.
Karnataka CM to ‘work from home’ after staff test positive for coronavirus
Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said he would work from home as a precautionary measure after some of the staff in his office- cum-residence tested positive for coronavirus.
In a statement, Mr. Yediyurappa said, “I am going to discharge my duties from home from today for the next few days in view of some of the staff in the office-cum-residence Krishna testing positive for coronavirus.”
He said he would give necessary directions and suggestions online.
Noting that he was healthy, Mr. Yediyurappa appealed to the people not to panic.
ASHA workers boycott work; contact tracing hit
Demanding a fixed honorarium of ₹12,000 and adequate personal protection equipment, ASHA workers in the State stopped work on Friday.
Following this, tracing of primary and secondary contacts of COVID-19 positive patients and coordination work for quarantining of asymptomatic patients, apart from regular activities including immunisation and mother/child tracking, have been hit across the State.
With record spike of 1,803, Pune COVID-19 tally reaches 34,399
Pune district in Maharashtra reported its highest single-day spike of 1,803 new COVID-19 cases, which pushed its overall count to 34,399.
This single-day rise was reported on Thursday, an official said.
The death toll in the district reached 978 with 34 more people succumbing to the infection on Thursday, the official said.
“Of the 1,803 cases, as many as 1,032 were reported from the areas located in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) limits, where the number of patients has reached 24,977,” he said.
A total of 581 patients were discharged from hospitals post recovery across the district during the day.
Nurses at Ramanathapuram government hospital stage protest
Opposing the ‘sudden’ transfer of two senior male nurses from the Ramanathapuram headquarters hospital to taluk units in the district, about 50 nurses resorted to a demonstration by sitting in front of the Government Hospital on Friday morning.
Representatives of the agitating nurses, affiliated to the Tamil Nadu Nurses Association (Ramanathapuram branch), told journalists that substandard food was served to quarantined nurses, who had worked in the COVID-19 ward. “Last week, two of our colleagues complained of vomiting and diarrhoea,” a nurse alleged, adding that authorities had dismissed the issue.
The nurses said that they had a strong suspicion that those who questioned the quality of food have been shifted out of the hospital.
Housing sales down 67% in April-June: Report
Housing sales fell 67% at 21,294 units across nine major cities during April-June due to outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic and natiowide lockdown, according to data analytics firm PropEquity.
Recently, property consultant Anarock had released its data that showed an estimated 81% fall in sales at 12,740 units across seven cities during April-June this year.
According to PropEquity, total housing sales during April-June 2020 stood at 21,294 units, down 67% from 64,378 units in the year-ago period.
Barring Noida, all other eight cities witnessed a decline in sales.
City | Decline in sales |
Gurugram | 79% |
Chennai | 74% |
Hyderabad | 74% |
Bengaluru | 73% |
Kolkata | 75% |
Mumbai | 63% |
Thane | 56% |
Pune | 70% |
WHO experts to visit China as part of COVID-19 investigation
Nearly eight months after the emergence of coronavirus in China's Wuhan, two World Health Organisation experts have headed to Beijing to lay the groundwork for a larger mission to investigate the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic.
One animal health expert and one epidemiologist during their visit will work to fix the scope and terms of reference for the future mission aimed at learning how the virus jumped from animals to humans, the statement from the United Nations body said.
The last WHO coronavirus-specific mission to China was in February, after which the team’s leader, Canadian doctor Bruce Aylward, praised China’s containment efforts and information-sharing. Canadian and American officials have since criticised him as being too lenient on China. - AP
Patterns get complicated
In Kerala, about 500 homesteads, mainly comprising women belonging to the Mannadiyar community, have been making ‘murukku’ for around 300 years. The homesteads are concentrated at Mangalamkunnu, Cherpulasseri, Karipode, and Koduvayur. The COVID-19-imposed lockdown and subsequent drop in demand have hit the business hard.
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Mumbai Metropolitan Region needs to catch up in COVID-19 battle, says CM
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray expressed concern at the surge in COVID-19 cases in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) in recent days and urged municipal commissioners of Mumbai’s neighbouring districts to emulate the efforts made by officials in the State capital, where fresh infections have been slowed down and healthcare capacity ramped up in the past few months.
The MMR, including Thane, Navi Mumbai, Vasai-Virar, Palghar, Raigad, Panvel and Kalyan-Dombivli, reported 2,816 cases on Thursday, while Mumbai city reported 1,268 cases. These corporations now account for over 70,000 of the nearly 1.6 lakh cases from the region, which in turn forms a bulk of the 2.3 lakh plus cases in the State.
UP govt imposes 'curbs' from Friday night to Monday morning
The Uttar Pradesh government has imposed what is essentially a lockdown in the State from 10 p.m. on Friday till 5 a.m. on Monday, except for essential and some other services.
The curbs have been imposed in the State to check the spread of COVID-19 and other communicable diseases, Chief Secretary R.K. Tiwari said in an order communicated to all district authorities in the State.
The government, however, insisted that it is not a lockdown. - PTI
Update on India's COVID-19 numbers:
India has registered another record single-day jump of 26,506 COVID-19 cases. With this, the country's tally is now 7,93,802.
The death toll has climbed to 21,604 with 475 new fatalities, according to Union Health Ministry data.
According to government's data, there are currently 2,76,685 active cases in India.
West Bengal’s containment zones go into 7-day complete lockdown
West Bengal’s 434 containment zones went into strict seven-day lockdown on Thursday as the State recorded yet another highest single day spike with 1,088 cases of COVID -19 infection .
With 27 deaths in the past 24 hours, the overall toll rose to 854. Thirteen deaths were recorded in Kolkata, six in North 24 Parganas, three in Howrah, two in South 24 parganas and Darjeeling districts. The total number of cases in the State has touched 25,911 with 8,231 active cases.
As India crosses Russia in case count, the worrying trend in our doubling rates
On June 5, India overtook Russia in the number of cumulative cases. Among nations with a high case load, infections continue to double in less than 20 days only in India.
Our Deputy National Editor Srinivasan Ramani discusses this trend and other salient findings from India's COVID data in this episode of our The Hindu In Focus podcast .
Chennai accounts for less than a third of fresh cases in TN
Chennai accounted for less than a third of the 4,231 fresh COVID-19 cases recorded in Tamil Nadu on Thursday. While the total number of persons discharged after treatment went past 50,000 in the city, a 25-day-old baby with a congenital anomaly was among the 65 fatalities reported across the State.
Chennai continued to stay at the 1,200-mark for the third day running. With 1,216 fresh cases, the city’s overall count stood at 73,728.