Coronavirus India news summary: Sunday 26 July
Coronavirus live India: latest news - 26 July
India coronavirus latest: 05:00 IST on Monday 27 July (01:30 CEST)
According to the latest figures published by Johns Hopkins University, 16,157,585 cases have been detected worldwide, with 647,159 deaths and 9,325,892 people recovered.
In India, there have been 1,385,685 confirmed cases and 32,063 deaths, with 885,577 people recovered from the virus.
Record single-day recoveries tally
India registered its highest number of recoveries from Covid-19 in a 24-hour period, India’s government said on Sunday, with 36,145 coronavirus patients discharged.
People walk along a deserted street in Siliguri on Sunday, during a lockdown imposed until July 29 as a preventive measure against the spread of the coronavirus.
(Photo: Diptendu DUTTA and DIPTENDU DUTTA / AFP)
Sikkim lockdown extended
The Sikkim state government today announced that it is extending its lockdown until 1 August. In a bid to curb the spread of the coronavirus, an initial week-long lockdown had been imposed in the northeastern Indian state, running from 21 to 27 July.
Three major testing facilities to be launched
India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, is to launch three high-volume coronavirus testing facilities on Monday, as the country bids to ramp up its testing capacity amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
Based in Noida, Mumbai and Kolkata, the new centres will be able to test "over 10,000 samples a day", Modi said in a statement on Sunday, adding that they will "help in strengthening early detection and treatment".
Indian boy along with his mother walks in a deserted road during the weekend lockdown in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India, July 2020. Uttar Pradesh government imposed lockdown for weekend to curb the spread of COVID-19 disease and for intense screening and testing more people after a review of the present situation of Covid-19, demanding offices, markets, including food grain markets to remain closed during weekend.
Photo: EFE/EPA/HARISH TYAGI
PM Modi urges caution over Covid-19
The threat of the coronavirus is far from finished warned PM Narendra Modi today in his monthly Mann ki Baat radio address.
"The threat of the coronavirus is far from being over. At many places, it is spreading fast. We need to be extra vigilant. We have to bear in mind that the coronavirus is as fatal today as it was in the beginning. That is why we have to be fully cautious," Modi said.
Latest case updates on Sunday
Jammu and Kashmir: 615 new confirmed cases (total 17,920), death toll rose to 312, with seven patients dying.
Punjab: 534 new cases (total 13,219), total deaths now stands at 306.
Andhra Pradesh: 7,627 new cases in past 24 hours (total 96,298). Total deaths: 1,041.
Kerala: 927 new cases (total 18,410). Two new deaths (total 61).
Karnataka: 5,199 new cases (total 96,141). 82 new deaths (total 1,878)
Delhi: 1,075 new cases (total now over 130,000). 21 new deaths (total 3,287)
Tamil Nadu: 6,986 new cases (total 213,723). 85 new deaths (total 3,494 deaths)
Call to protect India's migrant workers
An Indian priest is pressing for enforcement of a law to protect migrant workers as they start to return to urban areas after returning home during the coronavirus lockdown.
The Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act of 1979, which has yet to be passed in the Rajya Sabha or upper house of parliament, has provisions to safeguard issues such as minimum wages, working hours and health facilities.
Understand more about the coronavirus
According to the study, published in the journal Nature Communications, the molecule nsp10 modifies the viral mRNAs (which are blueprints for producing proteins) to mimic host cell's own mRNAs.
A message from the MOH
Being physically well is very important, especially at times like these, but just as crucial is your mental well being.
Why won't India admit how Covid-19 is spreading?
Experts say there are many cases that prove "full-blown" community transmission is happening in India.
But the government refuses to accept that community transmission has begun, saying there is no clear definition of the term, and each country can define it based on local conditions.
So far, Kerala and West Bengal are the only two states to accept that they have entered this stage.
But global understanding on the subject is simple: when the source of infection can't be traced in a large number of cases, it's safe to define it as community transmission.
PM Modi addresses the nation
Taking precautions to prevent the coronavirus spread was a key point made by the prime minister.
'We are all in this together & shall emerge stronger in the days to come'
Ambulance driver ensures dignity to Covid-19 victims in Srinagar
Jameel Ahmad has an invidious job of ferrying the Covid-19 dead to the burial ground. In some cases, he has himself dug up the ground for the dead to rest because their relatives had tested positive or were too scared to come over for fear of infection.
He has so far driven 70 of the 85 corona death victims to the graveyard in Srinagar. Of the 302 deaths in Jammu and Kashmir, Srinagar accounts for 85 fatalities. "I have also ferried positive cases in Srinagar to hospitals. My ambulance has now been allocated for Covid-19 casualties only and I ferry only the pandemic victims."
PM Modi to speak to nation at 11:00 IST
India's prime minister, Narendra Modi, will address the nation in his regular Mann Ki Baat radio broadcast at 11:00 IST on Sunday morning.
Weekend lockdown in Uttar Pradesh
An Indian boy walks on a deserted road during the weekend lockdown in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, on Sunday. The Uttar Pradesh state government imposed a lockdown on weekends in a bid to curb the spread of Covid-19, with markets and business establishments remaining closed.
(Photo: EFE/EPA/HARISH TYAGI)
Coronavirus: the complete guide to the Covid-19 pandemic
Coronavirus: the complete guide to the Covid-19 pandemic
All the information you need to understand the coronavirus and ways to stay safe during the Covid-19 pandemic:
Coronavirus live India updates: welcome
Hello and welcome to our live, India-focused coverage of the coronavirus pandemic, which as of 06:00 IST on Sunday had registered nearly 16 million cases and just over 643,300 deaths worldwide.