India recorded more single-day recoveries than new cases recorded in the past 24 hours with more than 90,000 people recuperating from the disease.
The country crossed the 59-lakh mark as the country recorded 85,362 fresh cases in a day, the Ministry of Health and Welfare reported today.
Meanwhile, the demand for medical oxygen grew four times the normal, forcing the National Pharmaceutical Pricing body, India to step in and cut down the soaring prices.
On Friday, the World Health Organization warned that coronavirus deaths could more than double to two million if infection-fighting measures are not kept up, as US crossed another bleak milestone of 7 million confirmed cases.
AAP MP Sanjay Singh said the Union government should postpone the Bihar Assembly elections and instead focus on tackling the COVID-19 pandemic. Singh spoke to the media at the Sadarpur village here after meeting a group of farmers staging a protest demanding adequate compensation for their agricultural land acquired by the government.
Cinema halls are set to reopen in Bengal from October 1 after remaining closed for over six months in the wake of the pandemic. (READ MORE)
The COVID-19 tally in Pune district of Maharashtra mounted to 2,73,012 with addition of 4,180 new cases in the last 24 hours, a health official said on Saturday. With 93 people succumbing to the infection, the total fatality count in the district reached 6,220, he said.
Sikkim Assembly Speaker L B Das tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday along with 16 members of his staff and family, officials said. A total 48 new case, 31 of them from the capital city of Gangtok, were reported during the day increasing the number of active cases in the mountain state to 705.
Chhattisgarh on Saturday recorded the highest single-day spike of 3,896 coronavirus cases, taking the statewide tally to 1,02,461, a health official said. The death toll also rose to 817 with 23 more people succumbing to the infection and co-morbidities during the last 24 hours, he said.
Fifty-five fresh coronavirus cases were detected in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar on Saturday, an official said. According to District Magistrate Selva Kumar J, results of 796 samples were received, of which 55 tested positive for the infection.
Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy on Saturday said Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan had assured that an amount of Rs 700 crore would be allocated to the union territory to manage the ongoing COVID- 19 situation.
Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain Saturday said the surge in COVID-19 cases recorded in September "seems to have plateaued" and should show a "rapid fall".
The COVID-19 tally in Ahmedabad district rose to 36,048 on Saturday with the addition of 195 fresh cases, Gujarat health department said. With three persons succumbing to the infection in the city, the total toll in the district went up to 1,816, it said.
Karnataka on Saturday reported 8,811 new COVID-19 cases and 86 related fatalities, taking the total number of infections to 5,66,023 and the death toll to 8,503, the Health department said.
Meghalaya recorded the highest single-day recovery of 311 COVID-19 patients on Saturday, taking the number of cured people to 3,654, a senior health department official said. Fifty-four more people also tested positive for coronavirus, pushing the tally to 5,212, Health Services director Aman War said.
Chandigarh reported 207 new coronavirus cases, pushing the infection tally to 11,380, a medical bulletin issued on Saturday said. There are 2,298 active cases in the city as of now, it said.
The recovery rate of COVID patients in Bihar climbed to 91.98 per cent on Saturday, while 1457 fresh infections took the tally of positive cases to 1,77,354 lakh in the state, health department bulletin said. Bihar reported five fresh casualties from coronavirus in the past 24 hours, taking the death toll from COVID to 886.
Fifty-four more fatalities due to COVID-19 pushed the toll to 3,188 in Punjab while 1,588 new cases took the infection tally to 1,08,684 on Saturday. Ten deaths were reported from Mohali, eight from Jalandhar, six each from Ludhiana and Amritsar, five from Patiala, four from Sangrur and three from Pathankot, according to the medical bulletin.
Manipur's COVID-19 caseload went past the 10,000-mark with 260 fresh cases, including 20 security personnel, an official said on Saturday. The northeastern state's coronavirus tally now stands at 10,051.
Himachal Pradesh recorded 317 fresh COVID-19 cases on Saturday, taking the infection tally in the state to 13,997. The COVID-19 death toll in the state rose to 160 with seven more fatalities, officials said.
Andhra Pradesh conducted a staggering 75,990 sample tests in 24 hours that returned 7,293 fresh cases of COVID-19, pushing the state's aggregate to 6,68,751. The latest bulletin said 9,125 patients got cured and discharged from hospitals while 57 more succumbed in 24 hours ending 9 am on Saturday.
Rajasthan reported 2,045 fresh coronavirus cases on Saturday while the state's death toll due to the infection rose to 1,426 with 14 more fatalities, according to a health department bulletin. The state's infection tally now stood at 1,26,775.
Mumbai city reported 2,282 new cases, taking its overall count to 1,96,585, while fatalities rose to 8,750 with 44 more people succumbing to the infection. (READ MORE)
At least 1,205 new cases of COVID-19 were detected, while 38 patients died of the infection in Maharashtra's Nagpur district on Saturday, an official said. The fresh infections have taken the count in the region to 74,231, the official said.
Uttar Pradesh's Gautam Buddh Nagar recorded 120 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday that pushed the district's infection tally to 12,373, official data showed. The number of active cases stood at 1,637, down from 1,723 on Friday, according to the data released by the UP Health Department for a 24-hour period.
Adar Poonawalla, Chief Executive Officer of Serum Institute of India (SII) which is producing the potential coronavirus vaccine developed by Oxford University, asked on Saturday if the government will have Rs 80,000 crore available to buy and distribute the vaccine. (READ MORE)
With the addition of 503 fresh infections, the count of COVID-19 cases in Goa rose to 31,574 on Saturday, an official from the health department said. At least 688 patients were discharged from hospitals, taking the number of recoveries in the coastal state to 25,759, the official said.
The COVID-19 death toll in West Bengal on Saturday went up to 4,721 with 56 more people succumbing to the disease, the state health department said in a bulletin. The tally increased to 2,44,240 after 3,181 people tested positive for the infection.
Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday recorded 1,217 fresh coronavirus cases, while 20 deaths took place in the past 24 hours, taking the total number of cases to 71,049 and the death toll to 1,125, officials said. It was for the 24th consecutive day that the number of fresh cases crossed 1,000 in a 24-hour period.
The COVID-19 death toll in Uttarakhand rose to 566 on Saturday with 11 more fatalities, while 949 fresh cases pushed the infection tally in the state to 46,281. A state health department bulletin said, of the fresh cases, Dehradun reported the highest 295 cases, followed by Haridwar 178, Almora 92, Nainital 65, Pauri 80, Udham Singh Nagar 63, Uttarkashi 59, Pithoragarh 48, Champawat 37, Chamoli 15, Tehri 12, Rudraprayag three and Bageshwar two.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday expressed apprehensions of a second wave of coronavirus transmission as more people are moving out for work, and called for stricter compliance with norms. (READ MORE)
Kerala's daily COVID-19 graph continues to surge with 7,006 new cases being reported on Saturday, taking the infection count to 1,66,939 and over 50,000 people are presently under treatment, state Health Minister K K Shailaja said.
As many as 4,412 fresh COVID-19 cases took Uttar Pradesh's infection tally to 3,82,835 on Saturday, while 67 more deaths pushed the toll to 5,517. There are 57,086 active cases in the state, according to officials. A total of 4,412 fresh coronavirus cases were reported. (READ MORE)
PM Narendra Modi raised questions on the response of the United Nations in combating the COVID-19 pandemic and assured the global community that India will use its production and delivery capacity to help all humanity in fighting the deadly disease. (READ MORE)
Sukhdev Singh Sidhu, president, Punjab Marriage Palace and Resort Association (PMPARA), said they could not understand why they were not being permitted to operate despite having spacious gardens, halls and proper parking. (READ MORE)
Rajasthan reported 2,045 new #COVID19 cases, 1,706 recoveries & 14 deaths today, taking total positive cases to 1,26,775 including 1,05,994 recoveries, 19,355 active cases & 1,426 deaths: State Health Department, Government of Rajasthan pic.twitter.com/ysonxq0eoc
— ANI (@ANI) September 26, 2020
#Kerala's #CoronaVirusUpdates #Sat:
— Dileep V Kumar (@dileepvk_TNIE) September 26, 2020
7006 fresh cases (highest)
6004 contact cases
664 unknown source of infection
21 deaths
3199 recovered
Total:
52, 678 active cases
1, 14, 530 recovered
656 deaths@xpresskerala @NewIndianXpress #IndiaFightsCorona
Tamil Nadu on Saturday registered 5647 fresh cases of COVID-19 infections taking the state tally to 575017.
The condition of Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who is suffering from COVID-19 and dengue, has further improved, a day after he was administered convalescent plasma therapy, and he is likely to be shifted from the ICU to a normal ward, officials said. (READ MORE)
Odisha: MLAs, PSOs (personal security officers) and Assembly staff undergo COVID-19 test at State Assembly in Bhubaneswar, ahead of Assembly's monsoon session that begins from September 29. pic.twitter.com/hIT4pYQF7N
— ANI (@ANI) September 26, 2020
Himachal Pradesh Congress lawmaker Mohan Lal Brakta tested positive for coronavirus on Saturday. The 55-year-old shared this information on Facebook and asked those who came in contact to isolate themselves.
Quick question; will the government of India have 80,000 crores available, over the next one year? Because that's what @MoHFW_INDIA needs, to buy and distribute the vaccine to everyone in India. This is the next concerning challenge we need to tackle. @PMOIndia
— Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) September 26, 2020
The threat has eased so much that many people see no need to be cautious. With his face mask stuffed into his pocket, Omega Chibanda said he’s not worried about COVID-19. (READ MORE)
"Hotels in Maharashtra pay Rs 18.50 per unit of electricity. Hotels were given the status of industry 21 years back. But when it comes to power tariff, other industries pay only around Rs 8 per unit," Harpreet Singh, president of Aurangabad Hotels and Restaurant Association, said.
A body of ethical doctors, which includes top medical professionals, has expressed disappointment over the recent government disclosure in Parliament that there is no decision to make the Uniform Code of Pharmaceutical Marketing Practices mandatory. (READ MORE)
Equine Biotech, a startup incubated at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), has developed an indigenous RT-PCR diagnostic kit called 'GlobalTM diagnostic kit' for accurate and affordable diagnosis of COVID-19: Indian Institute of Science pic.twitter.com/cpmJ8TyqLJ
— ANI (@ANI) September 26, 2020
It has been approved for use in authorised COVID-19 diagnostic labs by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). The test takes about 1.5 hours to confirm the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in patient samples: Indian Institute of Science https://t.co/87GbckzJGj
— ANI (@ANI) September 26, 2020
1,457 fresh COVID-19 cases were detected in the state yesterday. The total count of active cases in Bihar is 14,963: Bihar Health Department.
After a gap of six months, the government in Meghalaya has decided to reopen all places of worship from October 1.
Do you remember the last time you watched a movie in the theatre? Owner of Balaji Saravana Theatre in Otteri, Chennai is renovating it while awaiting govt order to reopen it. #COVID19 #lockdown @xpresstn
— The New Indian Express (@NewIndianXpress) September 26, 2020
Express Video | @haisat2005 pic.twitter.com/Dz7f5ZqqDl
Police and civic officials took out marches in parts of the desert city to sensitise people about the prevailing situation and request them to stay indoors. (READ MORE)
#AndhraPradesh government has postponed the D.El.Ed first year exams till further notice due to #COVID19 . The exam was scheduled for #September 28. @NewIndianXpress #pandemic #coronavirus #APfightsCorona #fightagainstcorona #pandemiclife #examsincovid pic.twitter.com/pkDlKMXYmJ
— TNIE Andhra Pradesh (@xpressandhra) September 26, 2020
Chinese companies earlier drew attention for giving the vaccine to their top executives and leading researchers before human trials to test their safety and efficacy had even begun. In recent months, they have injected a far larger number under an emergency use designation approved in June, and that number appears poised to rise, reported The Associated Press.
The Health Minister in Australia's Victoria state has resigned in the fallout from an inquiry into why security guards were used instead of police or the military at quarantine hotels. READ MORE
.@nppa_india steps in to cap price of liquid medical oxygen and medical oxygen cylinders
— PIB India (@PIB_India) September 26, 2020
The demand of medical oxygen has gone up almost four times, from 750MT/day to 2800 MT/day
Read: https://t.co/USOF14OilJ
#IndiaFightsCorona
— Ministry of Health (@MoHFW_INDIA) September 26, 2020
India’s steady trend of Very High Recoveries continues.
More than 93 thousand recoveries registered in the last 24 hours.
With this, the total number of recoveries are 48,49,584.https://t.co/oFogdQEsWV pic.twitter.com/qGxUrUR0oB
As we approach a million deaths, here's a timeline of how Covid-19 spread across the world@AFP pic.twitter.com/wkGkeYimzH
— AFPgraphics (@AFPgraphics) September 25, 2020
#Odisha reports 4356 #COVID19 cases, a new high, 16 die
— Hemant Kumar Rout (@TheHemantRout) September 26, 2020
Khurda 902
Cuttack 409
Angul 197
Balasore 194
Nuapada 173
Jagatsinghpur 171
Puri 168
Mayurbhanj 153
Jajpur 136
Bhadrak 124
Rayagada 121
Jharsuguda 120
Kendrapara 119
Bargarh 106
Sundargarh 101
Tally 205452
Tests 3062717 pic.twitter.com/D7zx3Qc6lx
Case trends in regions since February and in countries in the week to Sept 25 @AFPgraphics pic.twitter.com/vbdpVMVPTv
— AFP news agency (@AFP) September 26, 2020
Arunachal Pradesh's COVID-19 tally rises to 8,671 as 253 more people, including 45 security personnel and five health care workers, test positive for the disease: Official
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 26, 2020
The Dragonfly Experience, the high-end, high-energy Asian bar and dining space at Aerocity, will be introducing patrons to what could be the future of eating out, tonight.
With several coronavirus infectees going ‘missing’ after giving their samples for testing, the Prakasam district adminstration is in a fix.
Six more people, including an 89-year old woman, succumbed to COVID-19 in Puducherry on Saturday taking the toll to 500.
Director of Health and Family Welfare S Mohan Kumar said in a release that 555 fresh cases were recorded after examination of 5,032 samples during last 24 hours, PTI reported.
He said 424 patients recovered and were discharged during last 24 hours from hospitals.
Covid testing camp for members and staff before the monsoon session of the #Odisha Assembly ?@NewIndianXpress? ?@XpressOdisha? pic.twitter.com/osU9Glch50
— Siba Mohanty (@Siba_TNIE) September 26, 2020
The State also recorded highest single day recovery with the discharge of 4,388 patients on the day.
In yet another instance that raises suspicion on the actual number of Covid-related deaths against official figures, a couple from Kujang block in Jagatsinghpur reportedly breathed their last due to the virus but only one has been updated by the Health department. More than 25 days have passed since their deaths.
India's #COVID19 case tally crosses 59-lakh mark with a spike of 85,362 new cases & 1,089 deaths in last 24 hours.
— ANI (@ANI) September 26, 2020
The total case tally stands at 59,03,933 including 9,60,969 active cases, 48,49,585 cured/discharged/migrated & 93,379 deaths: Ministry of Health & Family Welfare pic.twitter.com/fTL9qjTu8p
Most of the states with the highest Covid-19 case burden are not adhering to the retesting rules laid down by the ICMR for a large number of symptomatic patients, information accessed by this newspaper has confirmed.
Around 900 people including MLAs of the State Assembly will be tested for #COVID19, during the next three days starting from tomorrow: Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation Commissioner Prem Chandra Choudhary #Odisha pic.twitter.com/oyysAKApFv
— ANI (@ANI) September 25, 2020
“Total 1,437 antigen negative symptomatic who have not undergone RT-PCR. Kindly ensure that this is made NIL from today i.e. from today onwards there should be no antigen negative symptomatic case who is not tested for RT-PCR,” read a directive by Special Secretary (Health and Family Welfare) Udit Prakash Rai to all districts.
The active cases rose to 48,892 in Kerala, 2,506 more than nearby Tamil Nadu. The state reported 6,000-plus cases for the second straight day.
COVID-19 Testing Update. For more details visit: https://t.co/dI1pqvXAsZ @MoHFW_INDIA @DeptHealthRes #ICMRFIGHTSCOVID19 #IndiaFightsCOVID19 #CoronaUpdatesInIndia #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/dTPdJKPpcn
— ICMR (@ICMRDELHI) September 26, 2020
Media briefing on #COVID19 with @DrTedros https://t.co/4ro4un8oni
— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) September 25, 2020
The WHO warning came as Spanish officials expanded a lockdown in and around Madrid on Friday to cover one million people. Across Europe, new spikes were springing up, with Poland and France the latest to register record figures.