Coronavirus News Highlights: Over 163 crore Covid doses administered in India

The single-day rise in Covid-19 infections was recorded at 2,55,874, taking India's total tally of cases to 3,97,99,202. The death toll has climbed to 4,90,462 with 614 daily fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated. Stay tuned to DH for live updates.

Italy reports 186,740 coronavirus cases on Tuesday, 468 deaths

Italy reported 186,740 Covid-19 related cases on Tuesday, against 77,696 the day before, the health ministry said, while the number of deaths rose to 468 from 352.

Italy has registered 144,343 deaths linked to Covid-19 since its outbreak emerged in February 2020, the second-highest toll in Europe after Britain and the ninth highest in the world. The country has reported 10.2 million cases to date. - Reuters.

Maharashtra reports 86 Covid-19 deaths; 33,914 new cases

Over 163 crore Covid doses administered in India so far: Govt

The cumulative Covid-19 vaccine doses administered in the country crossed 163.49 crore on Tuesday, the Union Health Ministry said.

More than 51 lakh (51,64,473) vaccine doses have been administered till 7 pm. Over 93 lakh (93,53,837) precaution doses have been given to healthcare workers, frontline workers and citizens aged 60 and above with comorbidities so far. - PTI.

Tokyo reports record virus cases as Japan tightens measures

Tokyo on Tuesday reported a record high of Covid-19 cases, as Japan prepared to implement new anti-virus measures amid surging infections driven by the highly contagious omicron variant.

The capital city logged 12,813 new cases, while Japan's No. 2 business district of Osaka also reported a record caseload of 8,612.

Rising infections have begun to disrupt hospitals, schools and other sectors in some areas. - Reuters.

Nine deaths, 1,026 fresh Covid cases in Himachal Pradesh

Nine more people died from Covid in Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday as 1,026 fresh cases pushed the state’s infection count to 2,63,113, a health official said.

So far, the state has reported 3,936 deaths.

Two women were among nine people who died due to the infection, the official added.

The youngest of them was a 23-year-old girl in Hamirpur. - PTI.

Delhi BJP delegation meets L-G, demands lifting of weekend curfew, odd-even rule for shops

A delegation of Delhi BJP MLAs met Lt Governor Anil Baijal on Tuesday and requested him for lifting of weekend curfew and odd-even system of opening shops dealing in non-essential items, citing improvement in Covid situation in the city.

Leader of Opposition Ramvir Singh Bidhuri said after the meeting that the L-G responded positively to the requests of the BJP legislators.

The legislators also raised other issues like liquor shops opened in residential areas of Delhi in violation of the Master Plan-2021 and non-payment of salaries to the staff of 12 colleges of Delhi University funded by the Delhi government, Bidhuri said. - PTI.

Nepal confirms over 12,000 new Covid cases

Nepal on Tuesday recorded 12,008 new cases of Covid-19 along with 3,040 recoveries and 8 deaths, the health ministry said.

As many as 25,909 swab samples were tested for Covid-19 on the day. Of them, 9,432 PCR and 2,576 antigen tests turned out to be positive for the deadly virus, the Ministry of Health and Population said. - PTI.

IMF cuts growth forecasts for US, China and the world as Omicron spreads

The International Monetary Fund lowered its economic forecasts for the United States, China and the global economy on Tuesday, and said uncertainty about the pandemic, inflation, supply disruptions and US monetary tightening posed further risks.

"We project global growth this year at 4.4%, 0.5 percentage point lower than previously forecast, mainly because of downgrades for the United States and China," Gita Gopinath, the IMF's No. 2 official, wrote in a blog on the latest update of the World Economic Outlook. - Reuters.

Mandaviya asks states, UTs to bolster teleconsultations

In view of a substantial number of Covid-19 patients recuperating in home isolation, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday asked states to focus on expanding the reach of teleconsultation services to provide timely healthcare.

Read more

Delhi reports 6,028 Covid cases, 31 deaths; positivity rate at 10.55%

Karnataka reports more discharges than Covid cases for first time in third wave

Atletico goalkeeper Oblak tests positive for Covid

Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak has tested positive for Covid-19, the Spanish club announced on Tuesday.

Oblak "has tested positive for COVID-19," Atletico said in a brief statement.

"Our goalkeeper remains isolated, strictly complying with the recommendations of the health authorities," the club added. - AFP.

South Africa to punish 940 Covid fraud cases

South African investigators have referred for prosecution and disciplinary action 940 cases of malfeasance and fraud involving more than $900 million of Covid funds, President Cyril Ramaphosa said Tuesday.

The Special Investigating Unit (SIU), an independent law enforcement agency with similar powers to the FBI, probed 5,467 contracts awarded for Covid-19 services and supplies. More than half of the contracts were found to be irregular. - AFP.

Kerala reports 55,475 Covid cases, 30,226 recoveries, and 70 deaths; active cases at 2,85,365

Education loss due to Covid insurmountable: UNICEF

Even as the Covid-19 pandemic nears its two-year mark, in the report Unicef shares the latest available data on the impact of the pandemic on children's learning.

Read more

Pfizer and BioNTech launch trial of Omicron-targeted Covid vaccine

Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE said on Tuesday they started a clinical trial to test a new version of their vaccine specifically designed to target the Covid-19 Omicron variant, which has eluded some of the protection provided by the original two-dose vaccine regimen.

The companies plan to test the immune response generated by the Omicron-based vaccine both as a three-shot regimen in unvaccinated people and as a booster shot for people who already received two doses of their original vaccine. - Reuters.

Danish PM to announce removal of all Covid restrictions on Wednesday

Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen is on Wednesday expected to announce the removal of all Covid-19 restrictions by the end of this month, daily Jyllands-Posten reported on Tuesday citing several sources. - Reuters.

Indian households wrestle with inflation as incomes dip

India's households are grappling with rising living costs at a time when jobs and incomes have taken a hit amid the pandemic, but economists are not hopeful the government's annual budget due next week will provide much relief.

Read more

UK police to investigate lockdown parties at PM Johnson's office

British police will investigate reports of a spate of parties held at Prime Minister Boris Johnson's residence and office during Covid-19 lockdowns, two media reports said on Tuesday.

The Telegraph newspaper said London police were poised to announce that they would launch a criminal investigation into the allegations surrounding Downing Parties, after previously declining to do so. - Reuters.

Germany to receive 3.8 million doses of Novavax's new Covid vaccine in Q1

Germany expects to receive 3.8 million doses of Novavax's newly approved Covid-19 vaccine Nuvaxovid by March 20, the health ministry said on Tuesday, as the government looks to persuade unvaccinated Germans to get a shot.

Germany will receive 1.4 million doses in the week of Feb. 21 and should receive the rest of the 3.8 million doses in the subsequent few weeks. - Reuters.

Union Health Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya during today's meeting with states/UTs advised them to send Covid testing & vaccination data timely. He also said that testing should be ramped up in the states where it has gone down. Mandaviya also told the states/UTs that as a large number of people are opting for home isolation, they should be monitored as per national guidelines. Official sources - ANI.

Will an Omicron-specific vaccine help control Covid? There’s one key problem

In November last year, Australians began to feel a wave of optimism that Covid would no longer define their everyday existence.

Soaring vaccination rates provided some measure of confidence the threat from Covid was beginning to recede.

But by mid-December, this wave of hope had been swept away by a surge of Omicron infections.

So, are variant-specific vaccines the way we regain control of Covid?

Read more

Global education loss due to pandemic nearly insurmountable: Unicef

More than 616 million students remain affected by full or partial school closures, a Unicef report on Tuesday said marking the International Day of Education.

Even as the Covid-19 pandemic nears its two-year mark, in the report Unicef shares the latest available data on the impact of the pandemic on children's learning.

"In March, we will mark two years of Covid-19-related disruptions to global education. Quite simply, we are looking at a nearly insurmountable scale of loss to children's schooling," said Robert Jenkins, Unicef Chief of Education, in a statement.

Children have lost basic numeracy and literacy skills.

Indian economy has recovered 'handsomely' from pandemic-induced disruptions: Panagariya

The Indian economy has recovered 'handsomely' from the pandemic-induced disruptions, former Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Arvind Panagariya said on Tuesday, while expressing hope that the recovery will be sustained and the growth rate of 7 to 8 per cent will be restored.

Panagariya suggested that the government must now signal its intention to wind down fiscal deficit by cutting it by half-to-one percentage point in 2022-23.

"The Indian economy has recovered handsomely, returning to its pre-CovidGDP... Only private consumption is still below its pre-Covid-19 level," the eminent economist told PTI in an interview.

"Soon we will try to do away with (Covid) restrictions and bring your life back to normalcy. We will make all efforts in that direction,"Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal said.

Pfizer, CornoaVac vax linked to heart inflammation risk in adolescents

Despite low absolute risk, there is an increased relative risk of carditis -- a type of heart inflammation -- associated with Covid vaccine developed by US drugmaker Pfizer and China's CoronaVac, researchers have found.The findings, published in Annals of Internal Medicine, show a significant increased risk in adolescents after the second dose.Patients who received Pfizer were three times more likely to experience carditis than unvaccinated patients.On the other hand, patients who received CoronaVac had a similar chance as unvaccinated patients to experience carditis.Researchers from the University of Hong Kong also observed that risk increase associated with Pfizer's Covid vaccine was predominant in males and was more likely to be seen after the second dose.

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal said Covid-19 positivity rate has reduced by 20 per centin the span of 10 days in Delhi. "Today it's about 10 per cent, opposed to 30 per centpositivity rate on January 15. All of this is because of the consistent pace of vaccination," he said.

After being over three lakh for five consecutive days, the single day rise in Covid-19 infections was recorded at 2,55,874, taking India's total tally of cases to 3,97,99,202, according to Union health ministry data updated on Tuesday.

The death toll has climbed to 4,90,462 with 614 daily fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The ministry said that active cases have decreased to 22,36,842 and comprise 5.62 per cent of the total infections, while the national Covid-19 recovery rate has decreased to 93.15 per cent.

A reduction of 12,493 cases has been recorded in active cases in a span of 24 hours.

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 15.52 per cent while the weekly positivity rate was 17.17 per cent, according to the health ministry.

The number of people who have recovered from the disease increased to 3,70,71, 898, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.23 per cent, it said.

Fighting Covid, solemn-faced Hong Kong leader explains maskless appearances

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam defended herself against criticism on Tuesday by saying she appears for newsconferences without a face mask so that people could see how "solemn" she was when talking about the coronavirus outbreak.

A surge in locally transmitted infections with the Omicron and Delta variants of COVID-19 this year have led to the imposition restrictions that have made the global financial hub one of the most isolated major cities in the world.

Lam has been criticised on social media and by some health experts for not wearing a mask while asking society to follow the strict rules her government has reimposed.

Lam told reporters her decision not to wear a mask during media briefings was "well thought out" and that she wears one during other activities.

Battle for UP: Babita Phogat booked for Covid, poll code violation

Wrestler Babita Phogat and BJP candidate from Baghpat, Krishanpal Malik, have been booked along with around 60 others for flouting the poll code in Baghpat.

They were booked on Monday under IPC sections 269, 270 and 188 and the Epidemic Diseases Act after a video, in which they could be seen holding a public rally in Baghpat, went viral.

According to police, Phogat had gone to the Bali village of Badaut to campaign for Krishanpal Malik, who is also the sitting MLA from the area.

JUST IN | India's daily Covid-19 cases rise by 2,55,874

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya will hold a meeting with health ministers of nine states andUTs on the Covid-19 situation today.

Japan panel to approve extending Covid curbs to more regions

The Japanese government's advisory panel is set to approve expanding stricter anti-COVID-19 measures to 18 additional regions on Tuesday, putting over 70% of the country under restrictions.

The Osaka and Kyoto prefectures in western Japan are among the areas to be covered by the measures, which were introduced in response to a surge of infections and hospitalization driven by the Omicron variant.

Japan logged over 44,000 new cases Monday, according to a tally compiled by public broadcaster NHK.

The restrictions will be enforced from Sunday through Feb. 20, and governors in those regions can request restaurants and bars to shorten business hours and stop serving alcohol.

South Korea's daily Covid count tops 8,000 for first time amid Omicron spread

South Korea's daily count of new coronavirus cases topped 8,000 for the first time on Tuesday, as the highly infectious Omicron variant spreads rapidly despite the recent extension of strict social-distancing rules to slow infection.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency reported 8,571 cases for Monday, exceeding the previous high posted in mid-December of 7,848.

Neglected infectious diseases may be tomorrow's pandemic, warns Bharat Biotech chief Krishna Ella

Bharat Biotech International Limited Chairman Dr Krishna Ella on Monday said today's neglected infectious diseases could be tomorrow's global pandemic and stressed the need to have a coherent strategy to fight them.

Read More

UK scraps Covid tests for fully vaccinated travellers from February 11

Britain on Monday announced that it will scrap Covid-19 test requirements for fully vaccinated travellers entering England from next month.

Read More

Good morning readers! Welcome to our live coverage of coronavirus news updates