After Dipping for 5 Days, Mumbai Covid-19 Cases Slightly Up to 6,149; 7 Die, Active Tally Below 50,000

Maharashtra on Tuesday recorded 39,207 new coronavirus cases, 26 per cent more than the previous day, and 53 fresh fatalities linked to the infection, the state health department said. No fresh case of the highly contagious Omicron variant of coronavirus was reported in the state in the last 24 hours, it added. With fresh additions, the state’s Covid-19 tally rose to 72,82,128, while the death toll increased to 1,41,885, the department said. On Monday, the state had reported 31,111 fresh cases and 24 fatalities. It said 38,824 patients were discharged in the last 24 hours, taking the number of recovered people to 68,68,816. The coronavirus recovery rate in the state stands at 94.32 per cent. Currently, 23,44,919 people are in home quarantine and another 2,960 in institutional quarantine, the department said.

Odisha reported 11,086 new Covid-19 cases on Tuesday, 597 more than the previous day, while four more patients died, the Health Department said. The daily test positivity rate (TPR) rose to 15.62 per cent from 14.96 per cent as 70,990 samples were tested in the last 24 hours, a bulletin stated.

Eight more people died from coronavirus in Haryana on Tuesday as 8,388 fresh cases surfaced, pushing the state’s infection count to 8,64,490, according to a Health Department bulletin. So far, 10,124 people have died from the infection in the state. The worst-hit Gurugram district reported 3,141 fresh cases. Faridabad (1,136), Karnal (484), Panchkula (416), Sonipat (326), Ambala (437) and Yamunanagar (298) were among other districts affected by the surge in cases.

Five people succumbed to Covid in Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday even as 3,084 fresh cashes pushed the state’s infection count to 2,48,885, a health official said. So far, 3,885 people have died from the infection in the state. Four women and a man succumbed to the virus, the official said, adding that two deaths were reported from Shimla and one each from Una, Solan and Mandi districts.

Bharat Biotech on Tuesday said it is receiving several reports that children in the age group 15 to 18 are being administered Covid-19 vaccine other than Covaxin. Requesting the health workers to be “highly vigilant” and ensure that only Covaxin is administered to that particular age group, Bharat Biotech in a Twitter post said its vaccine is the only approved Covid-19 jab to be administered to children in the age group between 15 and 18.

Telangana recorded 2,983 fresh Covid-19 cases on Tuesday, taking the tally to 7,14,639 while the death toll rose to 4,062 with two more fatalities. Telangana had recorded 2,447 new Covid-19 cases on Monday. The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) recorded the highest number of fresh cases with 1,206, followed by Medchal Malkajgiri (259) and Ranga Reddy (227) district, a state government bulletin said, providing details as of 5.30 PM today. As many as 2,706 people recovered from the infection on Tuesday. The cumulative number of recoveries till date was 6,88,105. The number of active cases stood at 22,472, the bulletin said. A total of 1,07,904 samples were tested today and the total number examined till date was 3,08,17,562.

After dropping for five days in a row, daily coronavirus cases marginally rose to 6,149 in Mumbai on Tuesday, while seven more patients succumbed to the infection and 12,810 others recovered, the city civic body said. The new cases rose by 193 from a day ago, but fatalities dropped by five.

West Bengal on Tuesday registered 10,430 new coronavirus cases, 1,045 less than the previous day’s count, pushing the tally to 19,17,514, the health department said in a bulletin. Altogether 34 fresh fatalities due to Covid-19, including 10 from Kolkata, took the toll to 20,155, it said. In the last 24 hours, 13,308 patients recovered from the disease taking the total number of cured people in the state to 17,41,648.

Jammu and Kashmir today reported 4,651 new Covid-19 cases. Of these, 1,546 from Jammu and 3,105 from Kashmir were reported in the last 24 hours. The health department said there are 21,677 active coronavirus cases in the union territory.

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday said over 50 per cent of youngsters between 15-18 age group have received their first dose of Covid-19 vaccine.

Russian authorities said Tuesday that the government is shortening the required isolation period for people infected with the coronavirus from 14 to seven days. The move comes as Russia faces another surge of Covid-19 cases, this time driven by the rapid spread of the highly contagious omicron variant. Deputy Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova, who runs the country’s coronavirus task force, said health officials were optimising our approaches to quarantine and testing of our citizens, including shortening the quarantine period to seven days. Golikova added that other policy changes will be adopted in the coming days, without going into details about what these changes might be. She also didn’t explain the rationale for cutting the isolation period.

Gujarat on Tuesday reported 17,119 new Covid-19 cases and 10 deaths due to the infection in the last 24 hours. The maximum number of coronavirus cases has been reported in Ahmedabad which is 4,998.

With the new Omicron variant of coronavirus spreading across parts of the world, scientists have been weighing how long a patient should remain in quarantine. Earlier this month, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) backed its week-old guidance for people seeking to end their Covid-19 isolation at five days, adding they could take a rapid antigen test if they want to and can access one, but is not requiring that. Echoing US CDC’s advice, the United Kingdom also shortened its isolation period for COVID-19 to five days after testing positive. Read More

The vaccination of children aged 15 to 18 against Covid-19 began on January 3 in India. The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) provided emergency authorisation to vaccinate youngsters on December 25 last year. However, the vaccines are still not being administered to children younger than 15 years. the reason? Well, the children in the age group of 12-14 can’t be vaccinated until the DCGI is certain of their safety. The DCGI is still looking for more safety data concerning the vaccination of children under the age of 14. Read More

Delhi today reported 11,684 new Covid-19 cases and 38 deaths in the last 24 hours. According to Delhi Health Bulletin, active cases are 78,112 and positivity rate stood at 22.47 per cent, which is 5.52 per cent less than yesterday. It stated 38 new deaths due to the infection have been reported too.

The Centre has advised people infected with Covid-19 to go for tests for tuberculosis and other conditions if cough persists for more than two-three weeks. It also underlined that there is no evidence of injectable steroids benefitting coronavirus patients not requiring oxygen supplementation or in continuation after discharge. Read More

Kerala on Tuesday recorded 28,481 new Covid-19 cases and the total positivity rate surged to 35.27 per cent in the last 24 hours, said the state health bulletin. It stated that 39 new deaths due to the infection have also been reported, taking the toll to 51,026 in the state.

Sikkim’s Covid-19 tally rose to 35,303 on Tuesday as 374 more people tested positive for the infection, 157 more than the previous day, a health bulletin said. The Himalayan state’s death toll rose to 415 as two more patients succumbed to the infection, it said.

South star Keerthy Suresh on Tuesday said she has tested negative for Covid-19, a week after she contracted the virus. The 29yearold actor, who won the National Award for best actress for her 2018 Telugu movie “Mahanati”, had shared her Covid-19 diagnosis last week.

Several cities including Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Kolkata are witnessing a drop in daily Covid cases with authorities saying that the worst of the third wave is behind us. However, experts believe that the peak is yet to come. Since late December and early January, the number of daily coronavirus cases reported has been increasing in several parts of the country. However, on Monday, Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata reported fewer cases than last week. Read More