Coronavirus India live updates: cases, deaths and news
Coronavirus live India: latest news - 29 July
India coronavirus latest: 01:30 IST on Thursday, 30 July (22:00 CEST, 29 July)
According to the latest figures published by Johns Hopkins University, 16,849,365 cases have been detected worldwide, with 662,648 deaths and 9,836,182 people recovered.
In India, there have been 1,531,669 confirmed cases and 34,193 deaths, with 988,029 people recovered from the virus.
More than half of Mumbai slum residents have had coronavirus
BBC reports that a survey has found that more than half the residents of cramped slums in Mumbai tested positive for antibodies to the coronavirus. In comparison, only 16% of people living outside slums in the same areas were found to be exposed to the infection, the BBC notes.
Schools in West Bengal set to re-open on Teachers' Day
West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee announced that schools and colleges in West Bengal will remain closed until the end of August with the government considering re-openings on 5 September. Read more...
In pictures: A groom and a bride (R) wearing facemasks wait to perform rituals of their social marriage funtion, during a lockdown imposed by the state government against the surge in COVID-19 coronavirus cases, in Kolkata on July 29, 2020. (Photo by Dibyangshu SARKAR / AFP)
More than half of Mumbai slum residents have had coronavirus
BBC reports that a survey has found that more than half the residents of cramped slums in Mumbai tested positive for antibodies to the coronavirus. In comparison, only 16% of people living outside slums in the same areas were found to be exposed to the infection, the BBC notes.
Third minister tests positive for Covid-19
A third minister in the Shivraj Singh Chouhan cabinet has tested positive for coronavirus, just 12 hours after a second minister confirmed he was infected, along with his wife. It has been reported that the third minister who tested positive for the virus on Wednesday is a minister of state hailing from the Vindhya region.
Assam cuts quarantine period for returnees to 10 days
The Assam government has announced the reduction of the quarantine period for passengers arriving from outside the state from 14 days to 10 days.
"If a passenger spends initial two days in a hotel or institutional quarantine, then he/she will spend the remaining eight days in home quarantine. Similarly, if any passenger directly proceeds for home quarantine, then he/she shall spend 10 days in home quarantine," it said.
India issues Unlock 3.0 guidelines and lifts night curfew
India Unlock 3.0 guidelines issued
The Indian Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) announced on Wednesday the third edition of "Unlock India" guidelines in compliance with the country's plan to lift restrictions gradually amid the fierce battle against Covid-19. Read more here...
Security personnel check the body temperature of a woman as a preventive measure against the spread of the coronavirus as she enters a market among a crowd of people in Chennai on Wednesday.
(Photo: Arun SANKAR / AFP)
Open-air class amid school closures
Students from a slum area in Delhi, who do not have access to internet facilities and miss their online lessons, attend an open-air class taken by Satyendra Pal, a college student, this month. Authorities closed all schools in March following the outbreak of the coronavirus.
(Photo: REUTERS/Adnan Abidi)
Bihar lockdown extension withdrawn, decision to be made
The Bihar government has withdrawn a notice announcing the 16-day extension of a lockdown in place in the state, with lawmakers to meet on Wednesday evening to make a final decision on such a move.
On 16 July, a lockdown initially running until 31 July was imposed in Bihar amid surging coronavirus figures in the eastern Indian state.
Surat office converted into Covid-19 care centre
In this picture taken in Surat, Gujarat state, on Tuesday, a man adjusts a bed inside an office space belonging to Indian businessman Kadar Shaikh, which has been converted into a Covid-19 care facility.
Shaikh, who has recovered from coronavirus after himself testing positive, has converted his office into an 85-bed facility to provide free treatment for the poor.
(Photo: AFP)
Indian firm gets favipiravir approval
The Indian firm Hetero Labs Ltd has been given approval to sell its version of favipiravir, an anti-viral drug used to treat mild to moderate Covid-19 sufferers. Sold for 59 rupees a tablet, the drug will be available for purchase from pharmacists in India as of Wednesday, the company said.
Over 48,500 new cases as India surpasses 1.5m mark
India’s health ministry reported just over 48,500 new coronavirus infections on Wednesday, pushing the country’s total case count over 1.5 million. There were 48,513 fresh cases in the latest 24-hour cycle, meaning there have now been 1,531,669 overall - fewer only than the United States and Brazil. There were 768 new fatalities, the health ministry said, taking India’s death toll to 34,193.
"Fortunately, we are better than the US"
Telangana Health Minister Etala Rajendran said, "Fortunately, we are better than the US. The coronavirus that we have in the state doesn't have the capability of killing people."
Mumbai sees lowest single-day rise in cases in three months
Just 700 new coronavirus cases were confirmed in Mumbai on Tuesday, the lowest figure yet.
"Caution: don't let the guard down! Don't let your mask down! Only get numbers down!" tweeted Maharashtra Minister Aaditya Thackeray
Pfizer vaccine cost
Drug giant Pfizer, which is developing a vaccine with German company BioNTech, has agreed a deal with the US to supply enough to vaccinate 50 million people at a cost of $39 for a two-dose treatment course. (The vaccine began phase 2/3 trials yesterday, with 30,000 volunteers).
And Pfizer has now said it will charge other developed counties pretty much the same amount as it is charging the US. That puts the benchmark at around a seasonal flu shot in the developed world.
What we're waiting for is information on what the costs might be for the developing world and how many doses could be donated or supplied at reduced cost.
Mumbai antibody study
A sero-surveillance study in Mumbai shows that some 57% of the slum population and 16 non-slum residents in three civic wards have developed antibodies to Covid-19. On the one hand that would mean far more people had had the virus than official numbers would suggest, but also that there had been a high proportion of asymptomatic infection in the city. The hope would then be that these people would now be protected against reinfection.
The study began on 3 June, and 8,870 samples were collected in R-North, M-West and F-North.
India confirmed cases go over 1.5 million
The total confirmed number of cases in India breached the 1.5 million threshold on Tuesday, with over 34,000 people having died from the novel coronavirus.
WHO says COVID-19 pandemic is 'one big wave', not seasonal
The World Health Organization on Tuesday warned against complacency about new coronavirus transmission in the northern hemisphere summer, saying that this virus did not behave like influenza that tended to follow seasonal trends.
"People are still thinking about seasons. What we all need to get our heads around is this is a new virus and...this one is behaving differently," Margaret Harris told a virtual briefing in Geneva, urging vigilance in applying measures to slow transmission that is spreading via mass gatherings.
She also warned against thinking in terms of virus waves, saying: "It's going to be one big wave. It's going to go up and down a bit. The best thing is to flatten it and turn it into just something lapping at your feet." (Reporting by Reuters)
Bangalore opens the largest Covid-19 care center in India
Covid-19 care centre
A total of 10,100 beds when it's fully ready.
West Bengal extends two-day-a-week lockdown till the end of August
West Bengal lockdown extended
Avoid coronavirus at all costs
"Ongoing myocardial inflammation" in a substantial number of patients after Covid-19 infection. The long-term effects of the pandemic are very much unknowns as yet.
Coronavirus live India updates: welcome
Hello and welcome to our live, India-focused coverage of the coronavirus pandemic, which as of 05:00 IST on Wednesday had registered over 16.6 million cases and nearly 660,000 deaths worldwide.
In India there have nearly 1.5 million cases and over 33,000 people have lost their lives to virus. Over 950,000 people have recovered from the disease.