Coronavirus News Highlights: Telangana reports 3464 new Covid-19 cases, 25 deaths today

India on Friday reported 2.59 lakh new Covid-19 infections, however, deaths remained above 4,000 which is still a cause of concern. Karnataka Covid-19 restrictions have been extended till 7 June. Chandigarh administration announced a weekend Corona curfew.

Pharma firms, G20 leaders pledge vaccines for poorer nations (AFP)

Telangana reports 3464 new Covid-19 cases, 25 deaths today

Naveen Patnaik dedicated a 150 bedded District Covid Hospital in the premises of Shri Jagannath Medical College at Puri

Corona curfew in Bhopal extended till 31st May (ANI)

Ludhiana has reported 30 cases of Black Fungus till now: Deputy Commissioner Varinder Kumar Sharma

Uttarakhand reports 3626 new Covid-19 cases, 70 deaths today

Karnataka Covid-19 restrictions extended till 7 June

Chandigarh administration announces weekend Corona curfew from 5 am on 22nd May to 5 am 24th May (ANI)

Rajasthan reports 6225 new Covid-19 cases, 129 deaths in a day

Intern doctors of IGIMS Hospital in Patna held symbolic strike demanding Covid-19 allowance (ANI)

Kerala reports 29,673 Covid-19 cases, 142 deaths today: Kerala CM

Covid-19 lockdown in the state will be extended till May 30th: Kerala CM

Andhra Pradesh records 20,937 new Covid-19 cases, 104 deaths in the past 24 hours (ANI)

Puducherry reports 1,702 Covid-19 cases, 26 deaths today

Residents of Raigadnagar village in Igatpuri hesitant to take Covid-19 jabs due to lack of awareness

Goa reports 1,625 new Covid-19 cases, 30 deaths today

IGST on import of oxygen concentrators unconstitutional: Delhi High Court

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Uttar Pradesh reports 7735 new Covid-19 cases, 172 deaths in a day

Panchkula administration sets up drive-through Covid vaccination center at Parade Ground, Sector 5, Haryana (ANI)

Congress MP writes to PM Modi urging him to direct funds from PM CARES for setting 500-bed makeshift DRDO Covid Hospital in Murshidabad

A DRDO lab develops an antibody detection-based kit DIPCOVAN

Covid-19: Cummins India shuts Pune engine plant till May 23

Engines and power equipment manufacturer Cummins India on Friday said it has temporarily closed its Pune-based engine facility to combat the Covid-19 situation in the city.

The company has shut down the Kothrud-based plant from May 20 to May 23 after the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) officials issued an advisory to the firm.

"Accordingly, in compliance with the advisory, the company has closed the said plant operations from May 20, 2021, to May 23, 2021," Cummins India said in a regulatory filing. (PTI)

Record 20.61 lakh Covid tests done in a day in India; daily positivity rate dips at 12.59%: Govt

More than 20.61 lakh tests for detection of Covid-19 were conducted in a span of 24 hours in the country, the highest-ever tests done in a single day, while the daily positivity rate has declined to 12.59 per cent, the Union health ministry said on Friday.

India's Covid-19 daily recoveries continued to outnumber the daily new cases for the eighth consecutive day, with 3,57,295 patients recuperating in a span of 24 hours. (PTI)

Covid-19 death tolls are likely a "significant undercount", WHO says

Official tolls showing the number of deaths directly or indirectly attributed to the Covid-19 pandemic are likely to be a "significant undercount", the World Health Organization said on Friday, saying 6-8 million people may have died so far.

Presenting its annual World Health Statistics report, the WHO estimated that total deaths from the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 were at least 3 million last year or 1.2 million more than officially reported. (Reuters)

Excess deaths due to pandemic up to three times higher than reported Covid toll: WHO

Up to three times more people have died due to the pandemic than indicated by the officially reported Covid deaths, the World Health Organization said Friday.

"Total deaths are at least 2-3 times higher than officially reported," Samira Asma, WHO Assistant Director-General in charge of data, told reporters as the UN health agency released an annual report on global health statistics.(AFP)

Montoring blood sugar is key: AIIMS Director Dr Randeep Guleria on Black fungus and how to be cautious

We have to seek prevention of this outbreak. Three factors are very important- good control of blood sugar levels, those on steroids must monitor blood sugar levels regularly, and be careful about when to give steroids and their dosage, he says.

Steroid use has become much more in this Covid wave, & steroids given when not indicated in mild or early disease can cause a secondary infection. Those given high dose of steroids when not indicated can lead to high blood sugar levels & a high chance of Mucormycosis, he adds.

There has been an increasing trend in the fungal infection being seen in COVID patients. This was also reported to some extent during SARS outbreak. Uncontrolled diabetes with COVID can also predispose to the development of Mucormycosis

Vaccination has provided protection to our frontline workers, who could serve the people. In the coming days, we will be extending vaccine protection to everyone: PM Modi

With the concept of 'Jahan Bimar, Wahan Upchar', the practice of making containment zones to distributing door-to-door medicines in your city & villages is commendable, PM Modi says.

PM Modi chokes with emotion while thanking doctors, frontline workers during video conference with them. He says fight against Covid-19 is going to be long.

Covid-19 second wave has put health system under pressure; have to fight on many fronts, the Prime Minister says. In our ongoing fight against Covid-19, a new challenge of Black fungus has surfaced. We must focus on taking precaution and preparation to deal with it

Noted environmentalist Sunderlal Bahuguna dies of Covid-19 at AIIMS Rishikesh

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Taiwan says it has asked the US for help in getting Covid-19 vaccines

Odisha reports highest single-day spike of 12,523 new cases

Odisha on Friday reported the highest single-day spike of 12,523 new Covid-19 cases and a record 27 more deaths, a Health Department official said.

The new cases were recorded after testing 61,665 samples on Thursday, taking the positivity rate to 20.30 per cent.

The state has so far reported 6,68,422 cases of Covid-19 and 2,430 deaths.

One case of Black fungus reported in Government Medical College and Hospital in Jammu, Dr Shashi Sudan, Principal GMC Jammu, told ANI.

Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan will chair a meeting on the Covid-19 situation and vaccination strategy with Health Ministers of Chhattisgarh, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Puducherry and LGs/Administrator of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra Nagar Haveli, Daman andDiu, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh andLakshadweep.

32,44,17,870 samples tested for Covid-19 up to 20th May 2021. Of these, 20,61,683 samples were tested yesterday: Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)

Thane district's Covid-19 count rises by 1,137, death toll by 59

The coronavirus tally in Thane district of Maharashtra rose by 1,137 to reach 5,05,837, an official said on Friday. These new cases were reported on Thursday, he said. With the virus claiming the lives of 59 persons during the day, the death toll in the district rose to 8,707.(PTI)

DH Toon | Against Covid-19 vaccine tourism, India's 'moksha'

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Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan says his government will provide financial assistance of Rs 1 lakh to kin of those who died due to Covid-19 during second wave of pandemic. (PTI)

Japan to hold off on using AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine

Japan is likely to hold off on administering AstraZeneca PLC'sCovid-19 vaccine despite expected approval on Friday, amid concerns about blood clots, public broadcaster NHK and other media reported. (Reuters)

People queue up to get themselves tested for the Covid-19 amid the 15 day partial lockdown and travel restrictions in Siliguri. Credit: AFP Photo

China reports 24 new mainland Covid-19 cases vs 12 a day earlier

China reported 24 new Covid-19 cases on May 20, up from 12 cases a day earlier, the country's national health authority said on Friday.

The National Health Commission said in a statement all of the new cases were imported infections. The number of new asymptomatic cases, which China does not classify as confirmed cases, rose to 25 from 16 a day earlier.

Singapore reports 41 new Covid-19 cases in last 24 hours: Report

Singapore has reported 41 new cases of the coronavirus, taking the total number of infections in the nation to 61,730, a media report said on Friday.

Singapore also reported the death of a 70-year-old person in the last 24 hours due to coronavirus, The Strait Times reported.

BioNTech CEO says vaccine up to 75% effective against Indian Covid-19 variant

BioNTech SE Chief Executive Ugur Sahin said on Thursday the Covid-19 vaccine it developed with Pfizer Inc is expected to be 70% to 75% effective in protecting against infections caused by the coronavirus variant first detected in India.

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India sees a worrying dip in daily Covid-19 vaccinations

In a worrying trend, Indiaadministered less than 20 lakh doses of coronavirus vaccine for the sixth consecutive day on Wednesday as vaccination centres across the country halted the nationwide drive owing to a shortage of the life-saving tool amid the pandemic.

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India's Covid-19 vaccine output likely to fall short of target

India's output of Covid-19 shots for August-December is likely to be lower than the government's public estimate, according to internal projections shared with Reuters by two sources.

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Why the second Covid wave is hitting the young hard

The second Covid-19 wave in the country has been much more devastating than the first with fast-spreading variants that seem to be infecting younger people. While official data shows only a slight increase in the trend, several pockets of the country have reported sharp upticks in the proportion of younger people being affected.

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