Coronavirus News Updates: Travellers who arrived in Nagaland after 20 Dec to undergo COVID-19 test, says state govt

Maharashtra reports 2,498 COVID-19 cases, 4,501 recoveries

Maharashtra’s COVID-19 tally rose to 19,22,048 on Monday with the addition of 2,498 new cases, while 50 fresh deaths pushed the toll to 49,305, the state health department said. A health department official said 4,501 patients were discharged during the day, taking the number of recoveries to 18,14,449.

There are now 57,159 active cases in the state, he said.

Maharashtra records 2,498 fresh cases, 50 fatalities

Maharashtra’s COVID-19 tally rose to 19,22,048 with the addition of 2,498 new cases, while 50 fresh deaths pushed the toll to 49,305, reports PTI quoting the the state health department. A health department official said 4,501 patients were discharged during the day, taking the number of recoveries to 18,14,449. There are now 57,159 active cases in the state, he added. So far, 1,25,43,772 people have been tested for coronavirus in Maharashtra, of which 41,218 were examined on Monday, the official further stated.

Compulsory COVID-19 tests for all who entered Nagaland after 20 Dec

In the wake of the emergence of a mutated strain of the virus in the UK, all persons who have come to Nagaland after December 20 have been asked to report to their district-level coronavirus task forces for compulsory COVID-19 testing, a senior health official said on Monday.

“Those arriving after the issuance of this circular are to self declare at the point of entry, inform their respective district task forces and self isolate themselves for standard testing protocols,” Principal Director of Health and Family Welfare, Dr Vizolie Z. Suokhrie, said in a press release.

Meanwhile, Nagaland on Monday recorded an all-time high COVID-19 recovery rate of 96.19 percent as 20 patients recuperated from the disease, while 14 fresh infections pushed the state’s tally to 11,911, another health official said.

Tamil Nadu reports 1,005 COVID-19 cases

Tamil Nadu on Monday reported 1,005 new cases of coronavirus and 11 fatalities, pushing the overall infections to 8.15 lakh and total number of deaths to 12,080. As many as 15 contacts of 13 COVID-infected UK returnees have also tested positive for the dreaded virus, the government said, but assured all the 28 people were doing well.

According to a government bulletin, 1,074 people were discharged today after being cured of the virus, pushing the total recoveries to 7,94,228. Subsequently, active cases stood at 8,867.

Health Minister C Vijaya Baskar said the government was monitoring those having returned from the UK, where a new “out of control” variant of the virus has been detected.

While a total of 13 returnees have been infected with the virus, 15 of their contacts have also tested positive for the contagion, he told reporters.

-PTI

Delhi’s positivity rate now below one percent

Delhi recorded 564 fresh COVID-19 cases, the lowest in at least five months, and 21 more fatalities due to the disease on Monday, even as the positivity rate stood at 0.98 percent, authorities told PTI. The city’s caseload mounted to 6,23,415 and the death toll due to the coronavirus infection rose to 10,474, they said, adding that over 57,463 COVID-19 tests were conducted on Sunday.

SII expects regulatory approval for Oxford’s COVID-19 vaccine  in a few days

“The emergency use authorisation by the UK drug regulator for the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine against Covid-19 is expected by December end or first week of January. In India too, we are hoping for regulatory approval for the Covishield vaccine in a few days. We must respect the process and give the drug regulators in the UK and India enough time to review the data. No one wants to compromise on safety and we hope for some good news in the new year,” Adar Poonawalla said on Monday, as per The Indian Express .

First 6 months of 2021 to witness COVID vaccine shortage globally, warns Ponnawalla

“All data on Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID19 vaccine submitted in India and UK. The re are no concerns, regulators are closely reviewing documents and data,” Serum CEO Adar Poonawalla said on Monday.

Talking about the COVID-19 vaccination drive which has kickstarted in many countries across the world including the UK, US and European nations, Poonawalla said that the first six months of 2021 will see a shortage globally and “nobody can help that.”, reports Mint.  “But we will see easing off by August-September 2021 as other vaccine manufactures will also be able to supply,” he added.

40-50 million COVID19 vaccine doses stockpiled, says Serum Institute CEO

Serum Institute of India’s Chief Executive Officer Adar Poonawalla says that the company has 40 to 50 million doses of its coronavirus vaccine, Covishield, stockpiled, reports ANI. “Once we get regulatory approvals in a few days, it’ll be down to the government to decide how much they can take and how fast,” he adds. “We will be producing around 300 million doses by July 2021.”

The Pune-based Serum Institute of India, which is the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer, has tied up with the University of Oxford and the British-Swedish company AstraZeneca to commercially produce and market this vaccine in India if and when it is approved. On December 8, the company applied for the emergency use authorisation of its vaccine.

We have 40-50 million doses of Covishield stockpiled. Once we get regulatory approvals in a few days, it'll be down to the Govt to decide how much they can take and how fast. We will be producing around 300 million doses by July 2021: Adar Poonawalla, Serum Institute of India pic.twitter.com/SzLTZN1wBg

— ANI (@ANI) December 28, 2020

COVID-positive Uttarakhand CM admitted to AIIMS

Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, who tested positive for COVID-19 recently, was admitted to Delhi’s AIIMS on Monday with an infection in his lungs. He was taken to Delhi in a helicopter in the morning on the advice of doctors after a slight infection was found in his lungs, an official said.

Rawat has undergone some important tests at the AIIMS, he added. The chief minister, who was in home isolation since 18 December after testing positive for the infectious disease, was shifted to the Government Doon Medical College after he developed fever on Sunday evening.

Centre extends COVID-19 guidelines till 31 Jan

The Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday extended the earlier COVID-19 guidelines for surveillance issued till 31 January 2021 and asked states and UTs to strictly enforce them In a press release, the ministry said: “While there has been a continuous decline in the active and new COVID-19 cases, there is need to maintain surveillance, containment and caution, keeping in view the surge in cases globally, and emergence of a new variant of the virus in the United Kingdom (UK).Accordingly, Containment Zones continue to be demarcated carefully; prescribed containment measures strictly followed within these zones; COVID-appropriate behaviour promoted and strictly enforced; and the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) prescribed in respect of various permitted activities followed scrupulously.”

MHA extends Guidelines for Surveillance, Containment and Caution

Press release- https://t.co/LGuuxEKXQF#IndiaFightsCorona

— Spokesperson, Ministry of Home Affairs (@PIBHomeAffairs) December 28, 2020

Case of new coronavirus strain found in Finland

Finland has become the latest European country to report a case of the more contagious coronavirus variant first identified in Britain, reports news agency AP. Health officials on Monday that a Finnish citizen who had recently arrived from Britain for a Christmas holiday was diagnosed with the new COVID-19 variant in the southeast Kymenlaakso region over the weekend. The person’s recent connections were traced and his family members have been isolated. Finnish health officials said they believed the variant hasn’t spread further.

Nordic neighbors Sweden and Norway reported their first cases of the new COVID-19 variant on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. Denmark reported its first such case earlier in December.

Vaccine dry-run exercise gets underway in two Punjab districts

The exercise to conduct a dry run of the distribution and administration of the COVID-19 vaccine over a two-day period in two selected Punjab districts began on Monday, health officials said.The districts of Ludhiana and Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar (Nawanshahr) have been selected for the dry run, aimed at testing the laid out mechanisms for the vaccination roll-out in the health system, Health minister Balbir Singh Sidhu said. 

In Ludhiana, the drill for COVID-19 vaccination started in full swing. Seven centres have been set up in the district, two of which are meant for the city and the remaining five for Jagraon, Rajkot, Machiwara, Payal and Khanna, which fall in the district.In Nawanshahr, during the dry run exercise, stock was taken of the requisite infrastructure and uploading of data like the names of centres where the vaccination will be undertaken, assigning of duties to the medical staff and information about the persons who will administer the vaccine along with their supervisors.  Health officials in Ludhiana and Nawanshahr said at each centre 25 people registered online will be selected for the dry run. They will be sent an SMS each on their respective mobile phones, and these SMSs would be treated as identity proofs for entry into their allotted centres on Tuesday.

PTI

Trivendra Singh Rawat admitted to AIIMS-Delhi: Report

Uttarakhand chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, who had tested positive for COVID-19 and was hospitalised in Dehradun after developing fever, was admitted to AIIMS in Delhi on Monday. He was admitted to AIIMS Trauma Centre, which has been converted into a dedicated COVID-19 facility, around 12.30 pm, sources told news agency PTI, adding his condition was stable.

MoS Health Ashwini Kumar Choubey tests positive

Union minister of state for Health and Family Welfare Ashwini Kumar Choubey said he has tested positive for the novel coronavirus infection. He announced the news on Twitter, saying " On noticing the initial symptoms of corona, I got myself tested today and the report has come positive." The minister added that his health was fine and he was in home isolation on the advice of doctors and following all protocols. Choubey appealed to all those who came into contact with him over the past few days to self-isolate and get themselves tested.

कोरोना के शुरूआती लक्षण दिखने पर मैंने आज टेस्ट करवाया और रिपोर्ट पॉजिटिव आई है। मेरी तबीयत ठीक है, डॉक्टर्स की सलाह पर होम आइसोलेशन में सभी दिशा- निर्देशो का पालन कर रहा हूं। मेरा अनुरोध है, जो भी लोग गत कुछ दिनों में संपर्क में आए हैं, कृपया खुद को आइसोलेट कर अपनी जांच करवा लें

— Ashwini Kr. Choubey (@AshwiniKChoubey) December 28, 2020

Maharashtra govt urges people to celebrate New Year at home

The Maharashtra government has urged people to refrain from venturing out of their homes to usher in the New Year amid the COVID-19 outbreak and

pointed that a night curfew is in force till 5 January in major cities of the state, reports news agency PTI. A circular issued by the state government appealed to

people to “welcome the New Year in a simple way in their homes” and “avoid visiting seashores, gardens, roads even though there will be no day curfew on 31 December”. It specifically said children below the age of 10 and people above 60 should not go out of their homes for New Year festivities in view of the pandemic. The circular asked people to maintain social distancing and wear face masks when stepping out of their homes.

Karnata schools for Classes 10 and 12 to re-open from 1 Jan, confirms education minister

Karnataka will re-open schools for class 10 and class 12 for in-person learning on 1 January, said reports quoting state education Minister S Suresh Kumar. Schools in the state will re-open after nearly seven months.

New COVID-19 strain: Palaniswami stresses on use of face masks

Amid fears following the detection of a new, more virulent variant of COVID-19 in the UK, the Tamil Nadu government on Monday insisted on the use of facemasks, saying it has turned out to be an effective preventive mechanism against the contagion.  Chief Minister K Palaniswami said the blood samples of 13 UK returnees who had tested positive for coronavirus upon their return to the state have been sent for analysis to a Pune lab and that treatment can be initiated accordingly only if they test positive for the new strain.

 “Medical experts say the mutated coronavirus infection is caused by not wearing a mask,” he said at a review meeting with district collectors and officials on the pandemic situation. The only way to prevent the spread of the virus now is for the people to compulsorily wear face masks, he said.

Delhi govt to reduce ICU beds reserved for COVID patients to 60%

The AAP government on Monday told the Delhi High Court that it has decided to reduce to 60 percent the number of ICU beds reserved for COVID-19 patients in 33 private hospitals in the national capital as was recommended by a De-escalation Committee, reports news agency PTI. The Delhi government told Justice Subramonium Prasad that the decision was taken on 27 December after a two-member panel, comprising the Director of AIIMS and a Niti Aayog member, endorsed the recommendations of the De-escalation Committeeto reduce from 80 to 60 per cent the iCU beds reserved in the 33 private hospitals.

The court, thereafter, listed the matter for hearing on 8 January after the Delhi government, represented by Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Sanjay Jain and additional standing counsel Sanjoy Ghose, said that the reservation would be revisited on 5 January. The court asked the Delhi government, also represented by advocate Urvi Mohan, to place its decision on record before the next date hearing.

Delay in delivery of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine to Spain, seven other European countries

Pfizer has postponed the delivery of new batches of its coronavirus vaccine to eight European nations including Spain, the Spanish health ministry said Monday, a day after the EU began its immunisation campaign. The Spanish branch of Pfizer informed Madrid on Sunday night of the delay in shipments to the eight nations due to a “problem in the loading and shipment process” at its plant in Belgium, the health ministry said in a statement. It did not specify which European nations aside from Spain were affected, but said Spain’s next delivery would be on Tuesday, a day later than expected.

AFP

Vaccinators line up as Oxford/AstraZeneca jab on brink of approval in UK

The UK’s National Health Service is lining up thousands of medics and volunteers on Monday to be ready to deliver jabs up and down the country as the Oxford University vaccine against COVID-19 is on the brink of getting regulatory approval. The vaccine, which is being produced by bio-pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca and also has a tie-up with the Serum Institute of India, is being evaluated by the UK’s independent Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) after the final cut of data was submitted by the government last Monday.

According to ‘The Daily Telegraph’, officials have pinpointed 4 January, 2021, as the date the rollout of the mass vaccination programme will begin with so-called trained vaccinators administering the first of two jabs across stadiums, conference centres and race courses among some of the large venues being prepared for the complex task. “At the moment, we are operationalising everything for 4 January for the first Oxford/AstraZeneca jabs in arms. You’ll see it everywhere, while we’ll also be carrying on with Pfizer,” the newspaper quoted a government source as saying. “Tens of thousands of vaccinators and support staff have been recruited,” the source said.

PTI

Ten states, UTs account for over 79 percent of new coronavirus cases, says health ministry 

The health ministry stated that 72.99 percent of the new recovered cases were observed to be concentrated in 10 state and Union Territories. Also, 79.61 percent of the new cases are from 10 states and UTs. Kerala has reported the maximum 3,463 single-day recoveries in a day followed by 2,124 in Maharashtra and 1,740 in West Bengal.

In terms of daily new cases, Kerala tops the list with 4,905 more instances of the infection, followed by Maharashtra and West Bengal with 3,314 and 1,435 new cases respectively.  The country recorded 279 fatalities have been reported in a span of 24 hours. Ten states and UTs account for 80.29 percent of daily deaths. Maharashtra saw the maximum with 66 fatalities, West Bengal 29 and Kerala 25 daily deaths.

PTI

COVID-19 recoveries in India exceed active cases by over 95 lakh: Health ministry

India’s COVID-19 recoveries rose to 97,82,669 on Monday and it exceeded active cases by more than 95 lakh, the health ministry said.  There has been a steady drop in the active caseload as the number of people recuperating daily have been outnumbering new infections recorded in a day for over a month now, it said.

Within a span of 24 hours, a net decline of 1,389 cases from the total active caseload was registered. The country now has 2,77,301 active cases, which is 2.72 percent of the total infections recorded so far. “Daily recoveries have been outnumbering daily new cases for more than a month now. In a span of 24 hours, 20,021 people were found to be COVID positive in the country. During the same period, 21,131 new recoveries were registered ensuring a drop in the active caseload,” the ministry said. The gap between recoveries and COVID-19 active cases is consistently widening and stood at 95,05,368 on Monday, it underlined.

PTI

RT-PCR tests mandatory for all passengers at Mangaluru airport, port

The Dakshina Kannada Health department had made RT-PCR test mandatory for all passengers arriving at the Mangaluru International Airport (MIA) and the New Mangalore Port (NMP), reports news agency PTI. In a release, DK district health and family welfare officer Dr Ramachandra Bairy said a decision to make tests mandatory for all passengers at the MIA and NMP was taken as a precaution against spread of coronavirus variants in the second wave.

Germany’s COVID-19 toll tops 30,000

Germany’s confirmed toll in the coronavirus pandemic has topped 30,000 as the country hopes its lockdown will bring down case numbers, reports news agency The Associated Press. The national disease control center, the Robert Koch Institute, said on Monday that another 348 deaths were reported over the past 24 hours, bringing the country’s total to 30,126. The number of confirmed coronavirus cases rose by 10,976 to 1.65 million. That increase is much lower than a week ago, but lower testing and reporting over the Christmas period likely accounts for much of the difference.

Eight districts in NCR account for 20% of UP’s active cases

Eight districts of Uttar Pradesh that lie in the National Capital Region account for over 20 percent or one-fifth of the active COVID-19 cases in the state and more than 11 percent of deaths linked to the coronavirus, reports news agency PTI citing official data. Gautam Buddh Nagar, Ghaziabad, Hapur, Bulandshahr, Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat and Shamli districts of Uttar Pradesh are a part of the NCR, a wider region that also comprises districts of Haryana and Rajasthan, and entire Delhi. According to Uttar Pradesh government data, updated till Sunday, there were a total of 5,81,980 COVID-19 cases in the state while the number of active cases stood at 15,371 of which 3,134 (20.38 percent) were in its National Capital Region (NCR) districts.

Governor of hotspot province in Thailand infected by coronarvirus

The governor of a province at the center of an expanding COVID-19 outbreak in Thailand has been confirmed infected with the coronavirus after meeting with public health officials, including the deputy prime minister, reports news agency The Associated Press.The meeting on Sunday attended by the Samut Sakhon governor, Deputy prime minister Anutin Charnvirakul and others was considered at low risk of spreading the virus because everyone wore masks, said Dr. Taweesilp Visanuyotin, a spokesperson for the COVID-19 response center. The governor, Weerasak Wijitsaengsri, did not have symptoms but will be treated at a hospital, Taweesilp said.  Anutin, who is also Thailand’s public health minister, wrote on Facebook that he tested negative for the virus and is isolating at home for 14 days.

Vaccine dry-run begins in Gujarat’s Rajkot, Gandhinagar districts

 A two-day dry run to check the  preparedness of health authorities for a future nationwide COVID-19 vaccination programme began on Monday in Rajkot and

Gandhinagar districts of Gujarat, reports PTI. “In Gujarat, the dry run is being carried out in Rajkot district, Rajkot city, Gandhinagar district and Gandhinagar city,” State Immunisation Office Dr Nayan Jani told reporters. He said local health officials of these districts and cities will engage in administrative work on the first day of the drive and the actual field visits will begin on Tuesday. Jani further clarified  that actual (potential) vaccine shots will not be administered on people during the dry run.

Gujarat is one of the four states chosen by the Centre to conduct the mock COVID-19 vaccination drive.

26 UK returnees found positive in Karnataka so far, all in good health, says health minister

The Karnataka health minister said that till now 1,614 people who returned from UK have been tested. and of them, 26 people were found COVID-19 positive till Sunday evening. Their samples have been sent to the designated lab in NIMHANS. Later, the report will be sent to the ICMR.

Sudhakar said all the 26 people have been admitted to the designated hospitals and none of them is in home isolation. “They are under the supervision of the government and are getting the best treatment. All of them are in good health and none of them are suffering from any serious ailment. They do have mild symptoms,” Sudhakar said.

PTI

Karnataka health minister hints at stringent action against untraceable UK returnees

Karnataka health minister Dr K Sudhakar hinted at stringent action against those returnees from the United Kingdom who were untraceable and had switched off their mobile phones, reports news agency PTI. It could even be police action against them, the minister indicated.

“I request the UK returnees to cooperate with us as responsible citizens. You have to get tested. If you don’t get tested and switch off your phone, then it’s a crime in true sense,” Sudhakar told reporters. Replying to queries, he said he would hold a meeting with Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai after the Cabinet meeting because the UK returnees could not be tracked, have switched off their phones and were not responding to requests through media and social media. To a question whether police cases will be registered, Sudhakar said, “I am compelled to say that I will discuss with the home minister and decide the future course of action.”

Coronavirus News LATEST Updates

China sentences citizen journalist for 4 years in prison

A Chinese citizen journalist was jailed for four years for her live stream reporting from Wuhan as the COVID-19 outbreak unfurled, her lawyer said Monday, almost a year after details of an “unknown viral pneumonia” surfaced in the central China city.

Zhang Zhan, a former lawyer, was sentenced at a brief hearing in a Shanghai court for allegedly “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” for her reporting in the chaotic initial stages of the outbreak.

Her live reports and essays were widely shared on social media platforms in February, grabbing the attention of authorities, who have punished eight virus whistleblowers so far as they defang criticism of the government’s response to the outbreak.

Coronavirus News LATEST Updates

Uttarakhand CM Taken to AIIMS-Delhi after COVID complications

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, who had tested positive for COVID-19 and was hospitalised in Dehradun after developing fever on Sunday, is being taken to AIIMS, Delhi for tests, his physician told PTI. The chief minister’s health parameters are normal.

His fever has also gone down since Sunday night. There is slight infection in his lungs, his physician NS Bisht said on Monday.

The chief minister is being taken to AIIMS, Delhi for necessary tests on the advice of doctors there, he said.

Rawat was in home isolation since December 18 after testing positive for COVID-19 and was shifted to the Government Doon Medical College after developing fever on Sunday evening.

His wife and daughter had also tested positive for COVID-19.

Coronavirus News LATEST Updates

11 UK returnees found infected in Mumbai since 25 Nov

A total of 11 out of about 2,200 passengers who returned to Mumbai from the United Kingdom since November 25 have been found coronavirus positive, the civic body officials said on Monday.

Of these 11 passengers, five passengers had arrived last week, while the six others had returned before December 22, Dr Managala Gomare, executive health officer, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), told PTI.

Another official said samples of these 11 passengers have been sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune for genome sequencing to find if they are infected with a new strain of the coronavirus.

“Currently, 187 of the 590 passengers who returned from the UK last week are placed under institutional quarantine at various hotels,” Dr Gomare said.

She said the state government had handed over to the civic body two lists of more than 2,000 passengers, who arrived from England between November 25 and 22 December. She said all of them are not yet contacted.

“Our teams are trying to trace all of them. Meanwhile, six of them who reached Mumbai before December 22 have been found positive for coronavirus,” said Dr Gomare.

In view of the emergence of a new coronavirus variant in the UK, the Mumbai civic body on Sunday issued revised guidelines to ensure the compulsory quarantine for 14 days for all passengers arriving from the UK, Europe, and West Asia.

Coronavirus News LATEST Updates

New passenger tracking system introduced at Delhi airport’s Terminal 3

Delhi airport’s Terminal 3 has installed a new passenger tracking system that would help manage the flow of people, reduce waiting time and ensure social distancing. “The Xovis passenger tracking system (PTS), a queue management system, displays live waiting time, taken at various processes like check-in, security check etc., on screens put up at various places,” said a press release by Delhi airport’s operator DIAL. Since flight operations are currently less than pre-COVID levels, only Terminal 2 and Terminal 3 of the Delhi airport are handling aircraft movement.

In this PTS, passengers are counted and tracked anonymously using the ceiling-mounted sensors. The PTS receives data streams from the sensors and provides the airport operator with valuable key performance indicators (KPIs) such as waiting times, process times and passenger throughput.

-PTI

Coronavirus News LATEST Updates

Centre sets up genomic surveillance consortium

In the wake of a mutated variant of coronavirus detected in the UK, a genomic surveillance consortium has been formed for laboratory and epidemiological surveillance of circulating strains of the SARS-CoV-2 in India, reports PTI. The genomic surveillance consortium, INSACOG, has been formed under the leadership of the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), New Delhi.

Further, more than 50 samples of UK returnees are currently under sequencing at the designated laboratories.

Five percent of the positive cases of COVID-19 from all states and UTs will be tested for Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) as part of the strategy that has been put in place to detect and contain the mutant variant, the Union Health Ministry said after a meeting of the National Task Force (NTF) on COVID-19 on the issue.

“It is proposed to continue enhanced genomic surveillance for early detection and containment of the UK variant SARS-CoV-2 strains. However, it is important to understand that like all other RNA viruses, SARS-CoV-2 will continue to mutate,” the ministry said.

Coronavirus News LATEST Updates

Delhi HC ensured ‘all hands on deck’ to curb COVID-19 spread in 2020

COVID-19, which brought the country to a standstill in March, did not deter the Delhi High Court from ensuring that people had access to justice and “all hands were on deck” to curb the spread of the deadly virus as also to provide treatment and basic amenities to those affected by it, reports PTI.

Before the pandemic brought the country to a grinding halt, the high court conducted two unprecedented midnight hearings, one related to north-east Delhi riots and the other to the Nirbhaya gangrape and murder case.

Throughout the year, the high court dealt with a number of petitions relating to COVID-19, including pleas to provide adequate PPE kits to health workers, sanitation staff, medical cover to media persons reporting on the pandemic, payment of salaries to teachers, doctors, nurses, safai karamchaaris and retired employees of municipal corporations.

Steps involved in dry run

According to News18 , the dry run of coronavirus vaccinations will proceed through four key steps, which will be monitored closely by the Central government:

– Each district will receive the dummy vaccine for 100 beneficiaries from the nearest depot.
– Temperature will be tracked through the vaccine’s journey from the depot to the vaccination site.
– An SMS will be sent in advance to the beneficiaries with the name of the vaccinator, and the time of the vaccination.
– Each beneficiary will be made to sit for 30 minutes after being administered the shot; if an adverse event occurs, its management will be tracked through the central server.

COVID-19 tally above 2,50,000 in 13 states

According to government data, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh have the highest number of total coronavirus cases.
 

#CoronaVirusUpdates:

State-wise details of Total Confirmed #COVID19 cases
(till 28 December, 2020, 8 AM)

➡️States with 1-30000 confirmed cases
➡️States with 30001-250000 confirmed cases
➡️States with 250000+ confirmed cases
➡️Total no. of confirmed cases so far#StaySafe pic.twitter.com/H9RaqeQCjr

— #IndiaFightsCorona (@COVIDNewsByMIB) December 28, 2020

Maharashtra, Bengal report most deaths

Among the 279 new fatalities reported in the past 24 hours, 66 are from Maharashtra, 29 from West Bengal and 25 from Kerala.

Preparations underway for dry run of COVID-19 vaccination

Punjab: Preparations underway at Dayanand Medical College in Ludhiana for a dry run of #COVID19 vaccination.

A dry run for Corona vaccine rollout has been planned for 2 days in 4 states-Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat & Punjab. pic.twitter.com/D61oEjdD3I

— ANI (@ANI) December 28, 2020

Trivendra Singh Rawat shifted to hospital

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, who had tested positive for COVID-19 recently, was shifted to the Government Doon Medical College after developing fever, an official said on Monday.

As he had developed mild fever, he was taken for a check-up on Sunday evening to the GDMC where doctors decided to admit him, the official at the Chief Minister’s Office said.         

Rawat is under the observation of a team of doctors, the official said.        

The chief minister had tested positive for COVID-19 on 18 December after which he had isolated himself at home. His wife and daughter had also tested positive.

PTI

Kerala, Maharashtra report most cases

In the past 24 hours, Kerala has reported 4,905 new coronavirus cases, Maharashtra has reported 3,314 new cases and West Bengal has reported 1,435 new cases.

Over 7 lakh samples tested on Sunday

According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), 16,88,18,054 samples have been tested up to December 27 with 7,15,397 samples being tested on Sunday.

PTI

India reports 20,021 cases in past 24 hours

India’s COVID-19 caseload rose to 1,02,07,871 with 20,021 infections being reported in a day, while recoveries have surged to 97.82 lakh, according to Union Health Ministry data updated on Monday.

The death toll increased to 1,47,901 with 279 new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 97,82,669, pushing the national recovery rate to 95.83 percent, while the COVID-19 case fatality rate stands at 1.45 percent.

The COVID-19 active caseload remained below 3 lakh for the seventh consecutive day.

PTI

No watching NYE fireworks from Sydney harbourside

Authorities have banned New Year’s Eve revellers from congregating in Sydney’s downtown harbourside to see the celebrated fireworks due to the pandemic risk.

New South Wales state Premier Gladys Berejiklian said on Monday that people who live in the city centre can invite up to 10 guests to their homes to celebrate.

The guests will have to apply for permits to enter the area.

Australia’s largest city recorded five new cases of COVID-19 connected to a cluster in the northern beaches region, bringing the total to 126 infections since 10 December.

AP

Donald Trump signs COVID-19 relief, government-funding measure

US President Donald Trump has signed a USD 900 billion pandemic relief package that will deliver long-sought cash to businesses and individuals.

It also averts a government shutdown.

Trump announced the signing in a statement on Sunday night.

The massive bill includes USD 1.4 trillion to fund government agencies through September and contains other end-of-session priorities such as money for cash-starved transit systems and an increase in food stamp benefits.

AP

Dry runs of vaccine distribution to begin today

The Centre is set to begin dry runs of COVID-19 vaccine distribution in four states on Monday. As per  reports , the dry run exercise is set to be the “largest and most ambitious mass immunisation programme in India’s history”.

18,732 COVID-19 cases registered in past 24 hours

India registered 18,732 fresh cases of COVID-19, the lowest in nearly six months, while 97,61,538 people have recuperated so far from the disease pushing the national recovery rate to 95.82 percent, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Sunday.

The death toll climbed to 1,47,622 with the novel coronavirus virus claiming 279 lives in a span of 24 hours in the country, the data updated at 8 am showed.

PTI