Delhi on Wednesday recorded 5,673 new coronavirus cases – its highest single-day jump so far – taking the city’s tally to 3,70,014. The toll climbed to 6,396 with 40 more fatalities reported in 24 hours.
Meanwhile, Union minister Smriti Irani said she has tested positive for Covid-19.
Earlier in the day, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation extended the ban on international flights till November 30. The restrictions will not apply to international all-cargo operations and international scheduled flights approved by the aviation watchdog.
India’s coronavirus tally rose to 79,90,322 as it recorded 43,893 new cases in 24 hours. The country’s toll rose by 508 to 1,20,010. India’s active cases stood at 6,10,803, while the number of recoveries reached 72,59,509.
Globally, the coronavirus has infected more than 4.39 crore people and killed 11,66,127, according to the Johns Hopkins University. Worldwide recoveries crossed 2.97 crore.
The national helpline number for the coronavirus is 011-23978046, and a toll-free number 1075.
These are the helpline numbers for states and the Union Territories.
Here are the day’s updates
9.33 pm: Delhi records 5,673 new coronavirus cases – its highest single-day jump so far – taking the city’s tally to 3,70,014. The toll climbs up to 6,396 with 40 more fatalities reported in 24 hours.
7.42 pm: Rajasthan reports 1,785 new Covid-19 cases and 10 deaths, pushing the tally in the state to 1,91,629, according to ANI. The toll stands at 1,877.
7.37 pm: Former football player Diego Maradona goes into isolation after one of his bodyguards tested positive for the coronavirus, reports Reuters. The 59-year-old is not displaying symptoms and will do a Covid-19 screening on Thursday. according to local media.
7.34 pm: Aerospace company Boeing reports its fourth straight quarterly loss as the coronavirus pandemic continues to affect its sales, reports Reuters. The company estimates a full return to pre-pandemic levels in about three years, in line with other industry estimates.
7.30 pm: Pope Francis describes Covid-19 as a “lady” who must be obeyed as he and his most close aides appear before the general audience without wearing masks, according to Reuters. “If I come down, immediately people will form groups ... and this is against the care, the precautions, we must have in the face of this lady named Covid, who is doing us much harm,” he says, refusing to come down to meet the public.
7.14 pm: Tamil Nadu reports 2,516 new coronavirus cases, taking the tally in the state to 7,16,751, which includes 6,79,377 discharges and 11,018 deaths, reports ANI. There are 26,356 active cases in the state.
7.10 pm: The Covid-19 cases in Jammu and Kashmir rises to 93,213 with the Union territory reporting 536 new infections, according to ANI. The overall tally includes 6,976 active cases, 84,782 recoveries and 1,455 deaths.
7.08 pm: Manipur reports 205 new Covid-19 infections, taking the total cases to 17,6809 out of which 4,233 are active cases, ANI reports. The toll is 156.
7.03 pm: The coronavirus tally in Punjab rises by 528 to 1,32,263, reports ANI. The overall tally includes 1,23,866 discharges, 4,239 active cases and 4,158 deaths.
7 pm: Kerala reports 8,790 fresh Covid-19 cases and 7,660 new recoveries, according to ANI. The cases tally includes 94 healthcare workers. The toll stands at 1,403.
6.58 pm: Ministry of Civil Aviation says an air bubble has been established between India and Tanzania, reports ANI. Designated carriers are now allowed to operate flights between the two countries, the ministry adds.
6.54 pm: Maharashtra shuts down 11 temporary Covid-19 care centres after a decline in the number of coronavirus cases and rise in recoveries, reports PTI, citing an official.
6.42 pm: Union minister Smriti Irani says she has tested positive for the coronavirus.
5 pm: Mizoram reports its first Covid fatality, a 62-year-old man. It was the only state without any deaths so far, The Hindu reports.
“The first COVID-19 related mortality in Mizoram comes as a huge shock to the entire state. We are pained and will continue putting up our guards against this pandemic,” Chief Minister Zoramthanga says.
4.23 pm: South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has gone into self-quarantine after a few people he came in contact with at a charity dinner tested positive for Covid-19, reports AFP.
4.19 pm: Hong Kong bars Air India flights for the fourth time as travellers test positive for Covid-19, reports PTI.
2.14 pm: The Centre extends ban on international flights till November 30.
2.10 pm: American multinational pharmaceutical corporation Pfizer says it could start distributing coronavirus vaccine in 2020, even as it said important data on the vaccine would not be released before the US election on November, AFP reports.
2.02 pm: Puducherry’s coronavirus count rises to 34,583 on Wednesday, as it records 102 new cases in the last day, PTI reports. The Union territory’s toll rises by two to 590.
1.57 pm: The Delhi High Court dismisses a petition for conducting the JEE (Advanced) examination again for a candidate who could not take it in September because he contracted the coronavirus, Bar and Bench reports.
1.51 pm: The Union health ministry says India is among the countries with the lowest per million cases and deaths.
12.10 pm: Delhi Education Minister Manish Sisodia announces that all government and private schools in the national Capital will remain shut until further orders, reports ANI.
11.51 am: Greece registers a single-day record of 1,259 new infections and 12 deaths on Tuesday, say health authorities. The country’s education minister tests positive.
11.48 am: Odisha’s tally rises to 2,85,482 with 1,540 new coronavirus cases and 12 deaths.
10.55 am: Mexico’s coronavirus tally crosses 9 lakh, according to the Johns Hopkins University. The country now has 9,01,268 cases and 89,814 deaths.
10.51 am: Mizoram registers 80 new cases on Wednesday, which take its tally to 2,607, PTI reports.
10.44 am: Telangana reports 1,481 new cases on Wednesday, which take its tally to 2.34 lakh, PTI reports. The state’s toll rises by four to 1,319.
9.49 am: The Indian Council of Medical Research says 10,66,786 samples were tested for the coronavirus on Tuesday. The total number of tests reaches 10,54,87,680.
9.38 am: India’s coronavirus tally rises to 79,90,322 as it records 43,893 new cases in the last 24 hours. The country’s toll rises by 508 to 1,20,010.
9.36 am: Jharkhand’s coronavirus tally rises to 1,00,224 on Wednesday as it records 318 cases in the last 24 hours, PTI reports. The state’s toll rises by four to 876.
9.28 am: United States Vice President Mike Pence’s Political Adviser Marty Obst may have sparked the outbreak of coronavirus on his team, Reuters reports, citing unidentified officials.
9.23 am: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is facing pressure for a new lockdown, amid concerns that the second wave of coronavirus cases in the country will be more fatal than the first, The Telegraph reports.
9.19 am: France is considering imposing a month-long national lockdown amid a surge in coronavirus cases, Reuters reports. The restriction may come into force from Thursday midnight.
9.16 am: Mainland China recorded 42 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, according to Reuters. This was the biggest one-day rise for the country in more than two months.
9.13 am: United Kingdom Vaccine Taskforce Chair Kate Bingham says in an article published in The Lancet that the first generation of coronavirus vaccines “is likely to be imperfect” and “might not work for everyone”.
“However, we do not know that we will ever have a vaccine at all,” she says. “It is important to guard against complacency and over-optimism. The first generation of vaccines is likely to be imperfect, and we should be prepared that they might not prevent infection but rather reduce symptoms, and, even then, might not work for everyone or for long.”
9.10 am: The health ministry says India’s average daily new cases have continuously declined over the past five weeks.
9.06 am: Voters in Bihar get their temperature checked outside a polling station, ANI reports.
8.36 am: The Indian Council of Medical Research cites international studies to say that rising air pollution levels will add to coronavirus mortality. It adds that wearing masks was the only effective way to tackle the twin public health crises.
Also read
Air pollution adds to Covid-19 mortality, says ICMR, cites international studies
8.32 am: Former United States President Barack Obama says Donald Trump is jealous of coronavirus’ media coverage and accuses him of converting the White House into a virus “hot zone”, reports PTI. “He’s jealous of Covid’s media coverage!” says Obama at a drive-in election rally in Orlando city of Florida. “If he had been focused on COVID from the beginning, cases would not be reaching new record highs.”
8.29 am: Sikkim registers 23 fresh infections in the past 24 hours and two additional fatalities. With this, the state’s count is now 3,863 including 67 deaths.
8.28 am: Meghalaya’s tally rises to 9,136 with 70 more cases.
8.27 am: Odisha reports 1,247 new cases and 13 additional fatalities.
8.26 am: Mizoram Health Minister R Lalthangliana says the state could face shortage of facilities if the number of symptomatic patients needing ventilation increases, reports PTI.
8.25 am: Prime Minister Narendra Modi urges voters in Bihar to exercise caution.
8.20 am: Here are the top updates from Tuesday
- India’s coronavirus count rose to 79,46,429 as it reported 36,470 new cases in a day. The country’s toll rose by 488 to 1,19,502. India’s active cases stood at 6,25,857, while the number of recoveries reached 72,01,070.
- The health ministry said that India reported 10 lakh recoveries in a span of 13 days, taking the country’s recovery rate to 90.62%.
- Delhi on Tuesday recorded 4,853 new coronavirus cases – its biggest single-day jump – taking the city’s tally to 3,64,341. The toll rose to 6,356 with 44 more deaths.
- The Centre extended the “Unlock 5” guidelines, released in September, till November 30. The government has not made any new changes in the guidelines. In a statement, the Ministry of Home Affairs said it will take a decision regarding certain places involving large crowds on the basis of an assessment of the situation.
- Union minister Ramdas Athawale on Tuesday tested positive for the coronavirus and was admitted to a hospital in Mumbai. On Monday, Athawale held a press conference and inducted actor Payal Ghosh into the RPI-A. At the event, the Union minister was seen wearing a mask but his nose was not covered. Both Athawale and Ghosh were photographed without their face masks standing with other people.
- About 15% of global Covid-19 deaths may be linked to air pollution, according to a new study published on Tuesday. In East Asia, about 27% of the deaths could be attributed to long-term exposure to air pollution, while it was 19% in Europe and 17% in North America. The study was published in Cardiovascular Research by researchers from Germany and Cyprus.
- Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said that there were visible signs of revival in the economy and predicted the growth rate for this fiscal year (2020-’21) to be in the “negative zone or near zero”.
- Globally, the coronavirus has infected more than 4.34 crore people and killed 11,58,882, according to the Johns Hopkins University. Worldwide recoveries crossed 2.91 crore.