Covid-19: Many vaccines in third phase of trials ‘but there may never be a silver bullet’, says WHO

10.45 pm: Here are the top updates of the day.

10.11 pm: West Bengal’s Covid-19 toll rises by 53 to 1,731, reports PTI. Highest single-day rise of 2,716 cases takes toll to 78,232.

10.10 pm: Karnataka registers 4,752 new Covid-19 cases, taking state tally to 1,39,571. There are 74,469 active cases and toll rises by 98 to 2,594, reports PTI.

10.09 pm: Sikkim registers 30 new coronavirus cases. The overall tally is 688 and there are 390 active cases, reports PTI.

10.07 pm: Police in Raigarh distributes more than 12 lakh face masks on the occasion of Raksha Bandhan under “Raksha Sutra Mask” campaign amid the outbreak of the coronavirus, reports ANI.

10.03 pm: Himachal Pradesh’s coronavirus case count rises to 2,705, reports ANI. There are 1,081 active cases in the state.

9.33 pm: Goa reports 286 coronavirus cases, taking tally to 6,816 including 4,876 recoveries and 56 deaths, reports ANI, citing a health department bulletin. There are 1,884 active cases.

9.31 pm: Rajasthan records 1,145 new coronavirus cases and 13 deaths today, taking the state tally to 45,555, according to ANI. Of these, 12,785 cases are active, and 32,051 patients have recovered.

9.13 pm: A Central Reserve Police Force Inspector posted in Srinagar has died due to Covid-19, reports PTI, citing officials. This is the 19th death in the paramilitary force amid the pandemic.

9 pm: Haryana reports 654 new cases and seven deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the state tally to 37,173, including 30,470 recoveries and 440 deaths. The state’s number of active cases stands at 6,263.

8.56 pm: Punjab registers 677 coronavirus cases and 19 deaths. The state’s tally rises to 18,527, including 11,882 recoveries and 442 deaths, reports ANI, citing a state health department bulletin.

8.54 pm: Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit cancels the “At Home Reception” at Raj Bhawan on the occasion of Independence Day, reports ANI.

8.50 pm: Maharashtra records 8,968 coronavirus cases, taking the state’s case count to 4,50,196, including 2,87,030 recoveries and 15,842 deaths, reports ANI. The number of active cases is 1,47,018. Of these, Pune accounts for 41,664 cases.

7.04 pm: The beginning of Tour de France from Copenhagen has been delayed from 2021 to 2022 due to the coronavirus, reports AFP.

7.03 pm: Norway’s Hurtigruten puts a stop to cruises due to the pandemic, reports Reuters.

7 pm: Kerala records 962 new infections, taking the state tally to 26,867. The toll in the state stands at 84 after two more deaths, reports PTI.

6.58 pm: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi criticises Prime Minister Narendra Modi over India’s coronavirus situation. “The right decisions at the right time means India is better off than other countries,” he tweets, in a reference to a comment made by Modi.

6.55 pm: Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa is doing well and is in a clinically stable condition, reports ANI, citing a statement from Manipal Hospitals. Yediyurappa on Sunday announced that he had tested positive for the coronavirus. He has been admitted to Manipal Hospital in Bengaluru.

Also read:

Coronavirus: Karnataka CM Yediyurappa tests positive, admitted to Manipal Hospital

6.53 pm: Odisha allows normal functioning of public and private sector banks, Regional Rural Banks, state co-operative banks and insurance companies with 50% staff in big branches and full strength in small outlets with under five employees till August 31, according to ANI.

6.50 pm: Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation eases restrictions for phased opening of lockdown, reports ANI. Malls,market complexes have been allowed to resume services between 9 am and 7 pm from August 5, but theatres, food courts, or restaurants will remain shut. Only restaurants with the option of home delivery via aggregators will be allowed to open.

6.47 pm: Manipur records 84 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, taking the state’s case count to 2,920. Of these, 1,147 are active, seven patients have died, reports ANI, citing the state’s health bulletin.

6.43 pm: Delhi registers 805 new coronavirus cases and 17 deaths, taking the Capital’s tally to 1,38,482 and toll to 4,021. There are 10,207 active cases in the city and 1,24,254 patients have recovered so far.

5.55 pm: Himachal Pradesh’s tally of coronavirus cases rises to 2,725, ANI reports, quoting the state health department. The toll from the outbreak stands at 12 and the state has 1,081 active cases.

5.53 pm: Tamil Nadu registers 5,609 coronavirus cases and 109 deaths in 24 hours on Monday, ANI reports. With this, the state’s total tally of infections rises to 2,63,222 and the toll stands at 4,241.

5.29 pm: World Health Organization’s Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says the number of coronavirus cases globally has increased more than fivefold and the number of deaths has more than tripled to 6,80,000 since WHO’s emergency committee on Covid-19 three months ago.

4.55 pm: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan urged people of the state to maintain physical distancing and abide by the quarantine rules and guidelines. Till Monday morning, the state had reported 25,911 Covid-19 cases. This included 11,366 active cases, 14,463 recoveries and 82 deaths.

Also read:

Coronavirus: Complacency has led to surge in cases in Kerala, claims CM Pinarayi Vijayan

4.53 pm: Gyms and yoga centres across India will open from August 5.

Here are the guidelines

4.49 pm: World Health Organization’s Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says several vaccines are now in phase three of clinical trials. “...and we all hope to have a number of effective vaccines that can help prevent people from infection,” he adds, during a briefing. “However, there is no silver bullet at the moment and there might never be.”

4.46 pm: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will remain in hospital after a coronavirus test conducted on the ninth day came back positive, reports PTI, citing health officials and a state minister.

On July 25, Chouhan was admitted to Chirayu Hospital in Bhopal city.

4.44 pm: West Bengal Bharatiya Janata Party chief Dilip Ghosh urges the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government to withdraw complete lockdown on August 5 – the day slated for “bhoomi pujan” or ground-breaking ceremony at Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, for Ram temple, reports PTI.

On July 20, the West Bengal government had announced a complete lockdown in the state for two days every week, in order to stem the rising number of coronavirus infections.

4.04 pm: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath says that all arrangements for the foundation-laying ceremony of Ram Temple in Ayodhya have been made keeping in mind the coronavirus outbreak, ANI reports. “Main focus is Covid-19,” he adds. “The protocol has to be enforced very strictly. All devotees want to come but the prime minister will represent them all.”

3.56 pm: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will undergo further hospitalisation after a Covid-19 test conducted on the ninth day returned positive, PTI reports. Chouhan has been receiving treatment in Chirayu Medical College and Hospital in Bhopal since July 25.

3.10 pm: Karnataka Congress leader R Prasanna Kumar tests positive for the coronavirus in Shivamogga after returning from Bengaluru, ANI reports. He had attended a party event in the city on July 27. “I don’t have symptoms,” Kumar says. “Those who came in contact with me should get tested.”

3.08 pm: The Kerala High Court extends the ban on all protests in public spaces until August 31, in view of the coronavirus pandemic, ANI reports.

2.51 pm: The union health ministry releases the standard operating procedure for reopening gyms and yoga centres from August 5. The new guidelines include spacing out equipment, staggering fitness sessions and disinfection of the premises.

Read more here:

Coronavirus: Six-feet distance, staggered session timings made mandatory as gyms get ready to reopen

2.39 pm: Singapore says it will make some incoming travellers wear an electronic monitoring device to make sure that they comply with coronavirus quarantine rules, Reuters reports. The city-state has reported 52,825 cases so far.

2.35 pm: The United Kingdom will soon introduce two new tests to detect the coronavirus within 90 minutes, PTI reports.

2.05 pm: Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has gone into self-isolation after he met Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday evening, reports ANI, citing a statement from his office.

2 pm: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor asks why Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who tested positive for coronavirus on Sunday, has been admitted to a private hospital. “Wonder why our Home Minister, when ill, chose not to go to AIIMS but to a private hospital in a neighbouring state,” he tweets. “Public institutions need the patronage of the powerful if they are to inspire public confidence.”

Shah has been admitted to the Medanta Hospital in Gurugram.

1.58 pm: The Mizoram government will treat security personnel and civilians for coronavirus at separate coronavirus hospitals, PTI reports, citing an official.

1.56 pm: Telangana records 983 new coronavirus cases, taking the the tally of positive cases in the state to 67,660, reports PTI. The toll rose to 551 after 11 more deaths.

1.45 pm: Tripura reports 141 new cases, taking the total number of cases to 5,392, PTI reports on Monday. The toll has increased to 27.

1.18 pm: Six staff members of Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa test positive for the coronavirus, NDTV reports.

11.50 am: Congress MP Karti Chidambaram says he has tested positive for the coronavirus. “My symptoms are mild and as per medical advice I am under home quarantine,” he tweets. “I would urge all those who have recently been in contact with me to follow medical protocol.”

11.39 am: The number of coronavirus tests conducted in India crosses 2 crore mark with 2,02,02,858 tests conducted till Sunday, according to the Indian Council of Medical Research.

11.35 am: Karnataka Medical Education Minister Sudhakar K says Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa might have to stay in the hospital for eight to 10 days, reports The Hindu. “All those who met the chief minister in the last 3-4 days...ideally they should be quarantined till they receive their results/report,” he adds. “Those who came in contact with him in the couple of programmes will have to isolate themselves and subject themselves for testing.”

10.55 am: Rajasthan registers 565 new coronavirus cases and nine deaths as of 10.30 am on Monday, ANI reports, quoting the state health department. With this, the state’s total tally of infections rises to 44,975 and the toll is 715.

10.53 am: Odisha registers 1,384 positive coronavirus cases in 24 hours, taking the total tally of infections in the state to 36,297, ANI reports.

9.36 am: India records 52,972 new cases of the coronavirus, taking its total tally to 18,03,695. The toll rose by 771 to 38,135.

9.25 am: Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti has said that he has contracted the coronavirus and will self-isolate for two weeks, reports AFP. “I have no signs [of the disease], except a very mild cough,” says Hoti.

9.19 am: Bharatiya Janata Party leader Uma Bharti says she would travel to Ayodhya city in Uttar Pradesh, but avoid the ground-breaking ceremony for the construction of the Ram temple on Wednesday as a precaution against the coronavirus. Bharti says she would visit the site of the temple only after everyone left.

“I will leave Bhopal this evening and until I reach Ayodhya tomorrow evening, I may be exposed to the infection,” she tweets. “In this situation, I will stay away from the place where Prime Minister Modi and others will be present. I will reach there only after everyone has left the spot.”

9.15 am: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has said that though she had alerted the Uttar Pradesh government of the worsening coronavirus situation in the state, the Adityanath government failed to act on time. “People don’t get their test reports even after a week of giving samples and those who are infected don’t get hospital beds,” she tweeted on Sunday. Vadra also tagged a news report that claimed infected doctors were also not getting beds to get treated.

9.12 am: White House experts say that United States is in a new phase of the coronavirus outbreak with infections “extraordinarily widespread” in rural areas as well as cities, reports Reuters. Dr Deborah Birx, the White House task force coordinator, says that people living in multi-generational households in an area that is experiencing an outbreak should wear masks inside the home to protect the elderly or those with underlying conditions.

Admiral Brett Giroir, an assistant Health and Human Services secretary, says: “If we don’t limit the indoor crowded spaces, the virus will continue to run”.

8.28 am: Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa’s daughter has also tested positive for the coronavirus, reports ANI. She is admitted to Manipal Hospital in Bengaluru along with her father.

8.25 am: Manipal Hospital in Bengaluru, where Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa is admitted after testing positive for the coronavirus, has said that his condition is stable and that he will be monitored closely, reports ANI.

7.25 am: Victoria in Australia has declared a state of disaster and imposed a night curfew for the capital Melbourne to contain the coronavirus crisis, reports Reuters. The second-most populous state recorded 671 infections, one of its highest, on Sunday.

7.20 am: Odisha’s coronavirus tally jumped to 34,913 on Sunday with 1,434 fresh cases, while 10 more fatalities pushed the toll to 197, reports PTI.

7.19 am: The Serum Institute of India has received approval from the Drugs Controller General of India to conduct Phase II and III clinical trials of the coronavirus vaccine developed at Oxford University, reports PTI. Government officials told PTI that the approval was granted by DCGI’s Dr VG Somani after a thorough evaluation based on the recommendations of the Subject Expert Committee on the coronavirus.

7.17 am: Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa announced late on Sunday that he has tested positive for the coronavirus. The chief minister has been admitted to the Manipal Hospital, according to PTI.

“I have tested positive for coronavirus,” he tweeted. “Whilst I am fine, I am being hospitalised as a precaution on the recommendation of doctors. I request those who have come in contact with me recently to be observant and exercise self quarantine.”

7.15 am: Here are the top updates from Sunday:

• India’s coronavirus count crossed the 17-lakh mark after 54,735 new cases were reported in the last 24 hours. With this, the country now has 17,50,723 cases. The toll rose to 37,364 after 853 deaths were recorded. More than 11.45 lakh patients have recovered from the infection.
• Union Home Minister Amit Shah was admitted to the Medanta Hospital in Gurugram after he tested positive for the coronavirus. He requested people who had come in contact with him to isolate and get themselves tested.
• Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit tested positive for the coronavirus but is asymptomatic and in a stable condition, a statement from a Chennai hospital said. A total of 87 employees of the Raj Bhavan, the official residence of the governor, have tested positive for infection in the last few days.
• Actor Amitabh Bachchan, who was admitted to Nanavati Hospital in Mumbai on July 11 after being diagnosed with Covid-19, was discharged after his test results came negative. However, his son Abhishek Bachchan tweeted that he will remain in the hospital and has not tested negative yet.
• Andhra Pradesh, which has seen a surge in cases over the past two weeks, surpassed Delhi as the third-most affected state in India. Delhi recorded 15 deaths in the evening, the lowest number of fatalities since July 1.
• Uttar Pradesh Cabinet Minister Kamla Rani Varun died of the coronavirus in Lucknow. She was 62. The minister tested positive for the coronavirus on July 18 and was on oxygen and ventilator support for the last few days. Meanwhile, the chief of Uttar Pradesh’s Bharatiya Janata Party unit, Swatantra Dev Singh, tested positive for the infection and has quarantined himself at his home.