Category: NATIONAL NEWS

Chandigarh: Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Thursday said that he was closely monitoring oxygen supply and pointed out that the systems put in place were working well and other states too were being given stock as per the quota fixed by the Centre. Khattar, who was responding to questions on the COVID situation and availability of liquid medical oxygen supply, said the state has been in touch with the Centre and has briefed officials in this regard. The chief minister also said that as per the quota fixed…

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Kerala: Shops and restaurants will have be closed by 7.30 pm, but home deliveries can continue till 9 pm. Thiruvananthapuram:  Announcing stringent curbs to control the unprecedented coronavirus surge, the Kerala government has ordered that cinema halls, malls, gyms, sports complexes, swimming pools and bars in the state will remain shut indefinitely. The Pinarayi Vijayan government has said all social, political, cultural and religious gatherings will also remain banned until further orders. The government said only essential and emergency services will be allowed on Saturdays and Sundays. It said Saturdays…

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Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan clarified on what he called “a great deal of misinformation” about the third phase of vaccination beginning May 1 for all ages above 18. Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan in a Facebook post today said the government does not give vaccines directly to anyone and said that the Centre getting the vaccine cheaper than the states is “patently false”. “The 50% quota, that is at Government of India’s pricing, is for free distribution of vaccines and distribution of all of this will be done…

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US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan spoke to his Indian counterpart, Ajit Doval, to discuss possible aid from his country as India fights a devastating Covid wave.The United States will “immediately” make available sources of raw materials required to scale up production of the Covishield coronavirus vaccine – of which there is a critical shortage as India fights daily new cases over over three lakh and an active caseload of nearly 27 lakh. US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan spoke to his Indian counterpart, Ajit Doval, on Sunday to confirm…

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Thirteen COVID-19 patients, including five women, died in a blaze at the intensive care unit of a private hospital in Palghar district of Maharashtra on Friday, police said There were 90 patients in the hospital, 18 of them in the ICU, when the fire broke out after a blast in the AC unit, an official said. TV visuals showed the smoke-filled ICU in a disarray after the blaze, with the ceiling falling off in some places, beds and other furniture strewn around and kin of the deceased wailing outside the…

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The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here has decided to discontinue contact tracing of exposed healthcare workers and quarantine of asymptomatic contacts amid the current COVID-19 situation that has led to insufficient resources and shortage of staff. Only symptomatic healthcare workers (HCWs) will be tested and only those testing positive will be isolated and managed as per the clinical condition. The decisions were taken at a COVID-19 review meeting held under the chairmanship of AIIMS Director Dr Randeep Guleria on Thursday. “In view of the current situation of…

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 Looking to ramp up supplies ahead of the opening of Covid-19 vaccination to all citizens over 18 years of age, the government has approved a payment of about Rs 4,500 crore as advance to vaccine makers like Serum Institute of India (SII) and Bharat Biotech against future supplies, sources said. SII will supply 200 million doses and Bharat Biotech is to supply another 90 million doses to the government by July at a pre-agreed rate of Rs 150 per dose. Sources said the finance ministry has relaxed rules to allow…

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 Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar on Wednesday said India will raise its climate ambitions but not under pressure, and that it will not allow anybody to forget their historical responsibility. He also said that India is suffering because of the mistakes of others and “is not responsible for climate change that is happening”. Javadekar made the remarks during a speech after a meeting with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian at the French Embassy. The minister said the collaboration between India and France will go “deep and deeper”, as Prime…

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India hit a new coronavirus infection record with 1,68,912?new cases, the highest single-day rise so far, taking the total tally of cases to?1,35,27,717, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Monday The national COVID-19 recovery rate has fallen below 90 per cent The active cases have surpassed?the 12-lakh mark, while the?death toll increased to?1,70,179?with 904 daily new fatalities, the highest since October 18,?2020, the data updated at 8 am showed Registering a steady increase for the 33rd day in row, the active cases have increased to?12,01,009?comprising 8.88?per cent…

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Describing the incident of firing in Cooch Behar as a “genocide”, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday said the Election Commission has restricted the entry of politicians in the district for 72 hours as it seeks to “suppress facts”. The TMC supremo, while addressing a press meet here, claimed that central forces “sprayed bullets aiming at the torso of the victims” in Sitalkuchi area, when the fourth phase of polling was underway in the state. “There was genocide at Sitalkuchi. I would like to visit Sitalkuchi by April…

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