India Sees 11,271 New Covid Cases, 285 Deaths; Active Infections Lowest Since June, 2020

Covid-19 death compensation, or ex-gratia compensation, of Rs 50,000 from the Maharashtra government will be given to the next of kin of coronavirus victims only if the RT-PCR report of the deceased was positive, even if the death certificate does not mention the cause of death as Covid. READ MORE 

Covid-19 death compensation, or ex-gratia compensation, of Rs 50,000 from the Maharashtra government will be given to the next of kin of coronavirus victims only if the RT-PCR report of the deceased was positive, even if the death certificate does not mention the cause of death as Covid. READ MORE 

Noticing their vulnerabilities, Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Sunday demanded Covid-19 vaccination for all diabetes patients, including a third dose, if needed. The IMA on Sunday launched a campaign for early detection and mitigation of diabetes complications with organising of walkathon, marathon, screening camps, and a social media drive. The campaign also included research paper promotion among young doctors and an “intense” personal intervention at hospitals.

In an effort to curb the further spread of Covid-19 in Gurugram, the district Health Department has decided to include three areas in the containment zone. The three zones are South Close of Nirvana Country, Chandra Apartment Sector-55, and Ridgewood Estate. The Health Department has given the recommendation to Deputy Commissioner Gurugram.

People in Gujarat’s Surat, who are yet to take their second dose of a coronavirus disease (Covid-19) vaccine, will not be allowed to enter public spaces such as gardens and zoos, the city’s municipal corporation has announced. The rule, the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) said, will come into effect from November 15.

Daily cases of COVID-19 in Delhi were reported in excess of 60, nearly 25 times in the four-month period from July to October, according to official data. The national capital on Friday had recorded 62 fresh coronavirus cases, the highest daily count since August 8, and two deaths due to it after a gap of nearly three weeks as the positivity rate rose to 0.12 per cent.

Five members of a family, including three-year-old twins, have tested positive for coronavirus in Gujarat’s Surat city after returning from a trip to Mahabaleshwar in neighbouring Maharashtra, a health official said on Sunday. Three adult members of the family, including a 67-year-old man, his son and daughter-in-law, are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, the official said. The elderly person first went on a trip to Pune in Maharashtra. He then came back to Surat following which all the five family members, including the twins, went to Mahabaleshwar, for a one-day trip, Surat Municipal Corporation’s medical officer of health P H Umrigar told PTI.

Carlton Blues defender Liam Jones has announced his Australian Football League (AFL) retirement for personal reasons, the club announced on Sunday, days after local media reported he had chosen not to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Jones, 30, had a contract with the Melbourne-based club for the 2022 season and was required by the AFL to be fully vaccinated before their return to training next month. “It is understood Jones’ decision to retire is related to the vaccination policy implemented by the AFL in preparation for the 2022 season,” the AFL said.

At least 42 children were among 262 people who tested positive for COVID-19 in Odisha on Sunday, pushing the tally to 10,45,471 while two fresh fatalities pushed the coronavirus death toll to 8,377, a health department official said. The rate of infection among children and adolescents in the age group of 0 to 18 years increased to 16.03 per cent from 14.97 per cent the previous day. Of the state’s total 10,45,471 COVID-19 cases reported so far, 90,368 were children and adolescents in the age group of 0 to 18 years, he said. The second wave of the pandemic has so far claimed the lives of 46 children and adolescents in Odisha. At least 13 of these deaths were reported between August 10 and 31, he said.

Two people died of coronavirus in Ladakh, while 13 fresh cases pushed the overall virus tally in the Union Territory to 21,148, officials said on Sunday. In view of the recent spike in the cases, the Leh district administration ordered closure of all government and private schools from November 15 but said the board examinations for classes 10, 11 and 12 would be conducted as per schedule. The officials said both the patients died of coronavirus in Leh district on Saturday, taking the overall death toll in Ladakh to 211 153 in Leh and 58 in Kargil. Of the new cases, 12 people tested positive in Leh and one in Kargil, they said, adding that nine people were discharged after successful treatment for COVID-19 in Leh, thereby taking the number of recoveries in Ladakh to 20,783.

Morocco will conduct rapid COVID-19 tests to passengers arriving in its airports and ports, and will deny access to any visitor with a positive result, the government said on Saturday. The measure, which strengthens an existing requirement of a negative PCR test 48 hours before departure, aims to protect the country amid a surge of cases in Europe, the government said in a statement. Travelers with positive test must be returned at the cost of the airline that brought them into the country, unless they have a permanent residency document, it said.

Australia, quickly becoming one of most-vaccinated nations against COVID-19, will likely start administering the shots for children under the age of 12 in January, officials said on Sunday. Health Minister Greg Hunt said medical regulators are still reviewing the health and safety data for the vaccinations to be administered for children between the ages of five and 11 and are unlikely to decide this year. “The expectation that they have set is the first part of January, hopefully early January,” Hunt told the Australian Broadcast Corp’s Insiders programme. “But they’re going as quickly as possible.”

Thane has reported 155 new cases of coronavirus, taking the infection count in the Maharashtra district to 5,67,564, while two more deaths pushed the toll to 11,553, an official said on Sunday. These new cases and fatalities were recorded on Saturday, he said. The COVID-19 mortality rate in the district is 2.03 per cent, he added. In neighbouring Palghar district, the COVID-19 case count has gone up to 1,38,302, while the death toll stands at 3,289, another official said.

The Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands did not record any new COVID-19 case in the last 24 hours, a health department official said on Sunday. The COVID-19 tally in the archipelago remained at 7,670. The union territory now has seven active COVID-19 cases and all the patients are in the South Andaman district while the other two districts – North and Middle Andaman and Nicobar – are coronavirus free, he said. Two more persons recuperated from the disease in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of COVID-19 recoveries to 7,534. The COVID-19 death toll remained at 129 as no fresh fatality was reported. The administration has so far tested over 6.12 lakh samples for COVID-19 and the cumulative test positivity rate is 1.25 per cent.

India on Sunday reported 11,271 new Covid-19 cases, and 285 deaths in 24 hours as 11,376 people also recovered from the disease. Active cases in the country, at 1,35,918 are now the lowest since June 11, 2020.

The civic body in Gujarat’s Surat city has barred people who have not taken the second dose of COVID-19 vaccine from entering public spaces such as gardens, zoos and boarding city buses, an official said on Saturday. At least 6.68 lakh people in the city have not taken the second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine shots despite crossing their due date, Surat Municipal Commissioner Banchhanidhi Pani said. Such people will be barred from entering public gardens, parks, zoos, aquariums, science centres, etc., and using city BRTS buses, the official said, adding that the new rule will come into force on November 15 (Monday).

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida outlined on Friday an urgent plan to increase hospital beds and medical resources in preparation for a possible resurgence of COVID-19 infections this winter. After a deadly fifth wave of infections almost overwhelmed the medical system during the summer, infections and deaths have fallen dramatically as vaccinations have increased to cover more than 70% of the population. Emergency measures covering most of the country were lifted last month, but health experts warn that cases will likely rebound, as they did in Japan last winter. Ahead of that, the government plans to boost hospital bed capacity by about 30%, bolster in-home care, and collect data to predict which hospitals will come under pressure.

Eight residents of a nursing home in Connecticut have died during a coronavirus outbreak while 89 residents and employees have tested positive for the disease, nursing home officials say. The outbreak at the Geer Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Canaan began Sept. 30, chief executive Kevin O’Connell and nursing director Cady Bloodgood said in a statement Friday. The eight residents who died had serious health problems, according to the officials. Those who tested positive included 67 residents and 22 staff members. The officials said 48 residents and 21 employees have recovered.

Protests broke out in a northern Dutch city Saturday night as a new coronavirus lockdown imposed amid soaring infections forced bars and restaurants to close at 8 p.m. Dutch broadcaster NOS reported that hundreds of young people gathered in a central square in Leeuwarden, 140 kilometers (85 miles) north of Amsterdam. Video showed them setting off fireworks and holding flares billowing smoke. NOS reported that riot police later moved in to push the protesters off the square. Elsewhere in the Netherlands, media reported that bars in the southern city of Breda remained open beyond the new lockdown mandated closing time.