LIVE! Most Delhiites favour extension of lockdown: Survey

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Sat, 08 May 2021

Most Delhiites favour extension of lockdown: Survey

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20:54 Most Delhiites favour extension of lockdown: Survey

Around 85 per cent of the Delhi residents surveyed support extension of lockdown by at least a week while 47 per cent favour 3-week lockdown extension, according to a survey conducted by online platform LocalCircles.

Around 84 per cent respondents want Delhi to allow contactless home deliveries of all goods so that business continuity can be maintained and consumers face no inconvenience, the survey conducted between May 6-8 said.

"The public opinion suggests that a 2-3-week lockdown be implemented in Delhi along with a model that permits resumption of contactless home deliveries so that small business disruption and consumer inconvenience can be minimised," LocalCircles Chairman and founder Sachin Taparia said.

The findings of the poll indicate that 85 per cent residents of Delhi are in favour of at least 1-week lockdown extension, 70 per cent favour extending it by at least 2 weeks, while 47 per cent favour a 3-week lockdown.

According to the survey, this question received 11,402 responses.

LocalCircles claimed that it covered over 11,000 responses from residents of Delhi located in all 11 districts of Delhi. In this survey, 66 per cent respondents were men, while 34 per cent respondents were women.

"With an unprecedented rise in cases, shortages of oxygen, and people seeing their contacts in social networks struggling to find hospital and ICU beds, COVID-19 management drugs, and losing their lives in many cases have now largely understood the criticality of the situation," the survey said.

Delhi is reporting between 19,000-21,000 coronavirus cases daily at a positivity rate ranging 24-27 per cent this week. And, almost all who are seeking to get a COVID-19 test, hospital bed, ICU bed or an oxygen concentrator or cylinder are struggling, the survey report said.

"LocalCircles has shared the findings of this survey with the chief minister, the Office of Lieutenant Governor of Delhi and the chief secretary so as they finalise the way forward on lockdown in Delhi, this collective public feedback is taken into account," Taparia said. -- PTI

20:45 Stricter curbs in 3 Maha districts from Sunday

District authorities in Amravati, Akola and Yavatmal in Maharashtra's Vidarbha region said stricter COVID-19 restrictions will come into force from Sunday.

These 'break the chain' curbs will start at noon on Sunday and will be in place till May 15, officials said.

As per an order issued by Amravati Collector Shailesh Naval on Saturday, grocery shops, dairies, eateries, bars, vegetable and fruit vending outlets, bakeries etc will remain shut during the period but will be allowed to undertake home delivery between 7am and 11am,

The order also curbs movement of people except for emergency and essential purposes.

It also directs schools, colleges, parks, swimming pools, tuition classes, theatres, saloons, spas, beauty parlour, parks, playing fields etc to remain shut, though online classes will be allowed.

An official said the order exempts private and public hospitals and clinics, medical stores, animal husbandry clinics and eye-wear shops from the curbs.

"All government and semi government offices will remain shut, except those engaged in essential services. Petrol pumps too have been told to sell fuel only to those vehicles which are out for valid reasons. Banks and post

offices will function between 10 am and 2pm during this period," he said.

Similar orders were issued by Akola Collector Jitendra Papalkar and Collector Amol Yedge in Yavatmal. -- PTI

Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur on Saturday condoled the death of 229 taxmen in the line of duty due to COVID-19 complications, saying the nation will always remain grateful to them.

The minister said that as many as 110 officials of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) and 119 officials of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) have lost their lives in the line of duty amid the pandemic.

"You are risking your lives in service of the nation in this hour of crisis and the nation is grateful for your service. It is because of your service that essential medical supplies such as oxygen cylinders and equipment are being swiftly cleared at various ports of entry.

"It is because of your service that the wheels of the government system are running efficiently," the minister said.

The Finance Ministry was one of the hardest hit ministries during the pandemic, Thakur said.

"I also want to take a moment to remember 110 officers of CBIC and 119 officers of CBDT who have lost their lives in the line of duty. My heart goes out to their families and loved ones," the minister said and appealed to everyone to follow COVID-19 protocols and get vaccinated.

The CBDT and the CBIC are primarily into revenue collection. -- PTI

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Saturday that the COVID crisis in the country was the result of the Centre "not doing any work" in the last six months as Union ministers and leaders were visiting Bengal daily to "capture" it.

Banerjee was speaking in the assembly after TMC MLA Biman Bandyopadhyay was elected the Speaker for the third time.

Warning of stern action against communal incitements, the chief minister claimed the BJP was provoking violence after failing to win the elections.

"I can challenge that had the Election Commission not helped them directly, they (BJP) could not have won even 30 seats. In this election, rigging took place in some places under the watch of the poll panel," Banerjee alleged, stressing the need to reform the EC.

"Now, they (BJP) cannot accept the mandate of the people and are trying to incite violence by posting fake videos," she claimed.

She directed the administration to take stern action against those trying to provoke violence and communal tensions.

Banerjee said that personnel of the central forces were in the state during the elections without undergoing RT-PCR COVID tests, resulting in the spread of the infection.

The chief minister claimed that the Centre did no work in the last six months.

"To set up a double-engine government in Bengal, they have pushed India to the brink of destruction. Last six months, the central government did no work and they were all here daily to capture Bengal," she said.

A host of Union ministers and chief ministers of BJP-ruled states, besides the party's top leadership were canvassing West Bengal in run-up to the just-concluded assembly elections.

Banerjee reiterated the demand for universal vaccination, stating that it should have been the priority of the Centre, instead the government is spending Rs 50,000 crore on the new Parliament building, PM's residence and statues, among others.

The opposition BJP legislators boycotted the House proceedings. -- PTI

The Railways has delivered nearly 3,400 tonnes of liquid medical oxygen in more than 220 tankers to various states since April 19, the national transporter said on Saturday.

So far, 54 'Oxygen Express' trains have completed their journey, it said.

The railways said till now, 1,427 tonnes of liquid medical oxygen (LMO) has been unloaded in Delhi, 230 tonnes in Maharashtra, 968 tonnes in Uttar Pradesh, 249 tonnes in Madhya Pradesh, 355 tonnes in Haryana, 123 tonnes in Telangana and 40 tonnes in Rajasthan.

Currently, 417 tonnes of LMO in 26 tankers are on way to Delhi, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana, it said.

"Running of new Oxygen Expresses is a very dynamic exercise and figures keep getting updated all the time. More loaded Oxygen Expresses are expected to start their journeys later in the night," the railways said.

The railways started running 'Oxygen Express' trains to transport liquid medical oxygen last month when the country reported acute shortage of the life-saving gas amid a deadly second COVID-19 wave. -- PTI

Twelve states accounted for 80.68 per cent of India's over 37.23 lakh active coronavirus cases, according to official data.

Maharashtra has the maximum number of active cases at 6.57 lakh, followed by Karnataka 5,36,661, Kerala 4,02,997, Uttar Pradesh 2,54,118, and Rajasthan 1,99,147 cases.

The other states having large active cases are Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Haryana and Bihar.

Ten states accounted for 70.77 per cent of the new cases in the last 24 hours, out of which Maharashtra has reported the highest daily new cases at 54,022, followed by Karnataka 48,781 and Kerala 38,460 new cases.

Among the remaining seven states and union territories with high daily new cases are Uttar Pradesh (27,763), Tamil Nadu (26,465), Delhi (19,832), West Bengal (19,216), Rajasthan (18,231), Andhra Pradesh (17,188) and Haryana (13,867).

A record 4,187 COVID-19 fatalities in a day took India's death toll to 2,38,270, while 4,01,078 new infections were reported during the period, pushing the tally of cases to 2,18,92,676, according to Union Health Ministry data on Saturday.

The data showed that the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.09 per cent.

The 4,187 new fatalities include 898 from Maharashtra, 592 from Karnataka, 372 from Uttar Pradesh, 341 from Delhi, 208 from Chhattisgarh, 197 from Tamil Nadu, 165 from Punjab, 164 from Rajasthan, 162 from Haryana, 137 from Uttarakhand, 136 from Jharkhand, 119 from Gujarat and 112 from West Bengal.

Registering a steady increase, active cases have reached 37,23,446 which account for 17.01 per cent of the total infections, the data showed.

The national COVID-19 recovery rate has dropped to 81.90 per cent, the data showed, as the number of people who have recuperated from the disease recorded at 1,79,30,960. In the last 24 hours, 3,18,609 recoveries were registered in the country, it said.

Ten states accounted for 72 per cent of the new recoveries in the country. These are Maharashtra, with maximum recoveries, followed by Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Haryana.

A total of more than 30 crore tests have been conducted so far across the country while the cumulative positivity rate stands at 7.29 per cent, the ministry said.

According to official figures shared by the ministry, more than 14.8 lakh beneficiaries in the age group 18-44 have been administered the first dose of vaccine under Phase-3 of the vaccination drive so far.

On the other hand, the cumulative number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country so far has crossed 16.73 crore on Saturday, it said.

In the last 24 hours, nearly 23 lakh vaccination doses were administered with 9,87,909 beneficiaries getting the first dose and 13,09,348 beneficiaries receiving their second dose of vaccine, the ministry said. -- PTI

18:11 Mukul Roy quashes rumours of quiting BJP

Bharatiya Janata Party vice president and its senior West Bengal leader Mukul Roy on Saturday rejected speculation that he may quit the party, asserting that his fight would continue as a "soldier of BJP to restore democracy in our state".

Once considered the second most powerful leader in the Trinamool Congress before he fell out with its head and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and joined the BJP in 2017, Roy took to Twitter to scotch speculation about his next political move.

"My fight would continue as a soldier of BJP to restore democracy in our state. I would request everyone to put the concoctions and conjectures to rest. I am resolute in my political path," he said.

Roy has been elected as a BJP MLA during the recent state assembly polls in which the TMC scored a big win over its saffron rival.

BJP president J P Nadda praised Roy's statement, saying this is exemplary for every BJP worker and will guide everyone. -- PTI

While 1,70,841 COVID patients across the country are on ventilator, as many as 9,02,291 patients are on oxygen support, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Saturday.

In his virtual address at the 25th meeting of the Group of Ministers to discuss the pandemic situation, the minister said that 1.34 percent of COVID caseload was in ICU, 0.39 percent of cases were on ventilators and 3.70 percent COVID patients were on oxygen support.

He said that across the country, the number of patients in ICU beds is 4,88,861 while 1,70,841 patients were on ventilators and 9,02,291 patients were on oxygen support.

The meeting was attended by Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar, Minister of Civil Aviation Hardeep S Puri, Minister of State for Ports, Shipping and Waterways and Chemical and Fertilizers Mansukh Mandaviya and Minister of State, Ministry of Home Affairs Nityanand Rai.

Ashwini Kumar Choubey, Minister of State, Health and Family Welfare and Dr Vinod K Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog were present virtually.

Paul gave a detailed report on the work of the Empowered Group-1 and highlighted the various efforts made towards ramping up hospital infrastructure for effective clinical management of hospitalized patients.

Giridhar Aramane, Secretary, Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways (Chair, EG-2) presented the current scenario of Liquid Medical Oxygen Production, Allocation and Supply.

Aramane stated that the production of Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO) has been maximized to meet the present demand of COVID patients.

The domestic production has increased to more than 9400 MT/day, the health ministry quoted him, adding that he also enumerated steps to import LMO, the status of establishment of PSA oxygen plants through the support of PMCARES fund with the support of DRDO and CSIR, enhancement of tanker availability, the functioning of the web portal and mobile application for Real-Time Tracking of LMO Tankers. -- PTI

Hollywood star Drew Barrymore has requested people across the globe to help India in its fight against the coronavirus pandemic and urged her fans in the country to "stay strong".

The 46-year-old actor said her heart goes out to the people of India who are trying hard to "hold it together" amid the surge in COVID-19 cases in the country.

"Today, as we cope with the worldwide situation, my heart goes out to the people of India who are trying hard to hold it together. My sincere wishes and prayers to you to stay strong and believe that we will come out stronger together," Barrymore said in a special message.

In the video, shot on the sets of her The Drew Barrymore Show that airs on Zee Cafe in India, the actor opened up about her deep-rooted connection with the country and the impact its culture and people have left on her.

"I've always loved India for its culture, its people and so much more! It truly holds a very special place in my heart. In my visits, I've met so many wonderful people who have truly inspired me as a person which propelled me to write a chapter in my book too," she said referring to her 2015 book Wildflower.

Barrymore said she came across a couple of articles about some people emerging victorious in their battles against the disease which invigorated a sense of faith and positivity in her.

The actor said making a contribution in India's fight against coronavirus is the need of the hour.

"A small contribution could really help and make a giant difference, and even save a life! I'm doing my bit and urge you to do whatever is in your capacity," she added.

In recent days, many international personalities including actors Jennifer Aniston, Hugh Jackman, James McAvoy, Robert Pattinson, Ewan McGregor, Lily Collins, singers Camila Cabello and Shawn Mendes, have appealed to their fans on social media to donate for various relief funds to help India.

On Saturday, a record 4,187 COVID-19 fatalities in a day took India's death toll to 2,38,270, while 4,01,078 new infections were reported during the period, pushing the tally of cases to 2,18,92,676, according to Union Health Ministry data. -- PTI

In a bid to break the chain of coronavirus, the authorities in Maharashtra's Solapur have announced stricter restrictions for a week in the city as well as other parts of the district.

As part of the fresh curbs, which will come into effect from 8 pm on Saturday, shops selling essential commodities, such as milk, groceries, vegetables and fruits, will remain closed and only home delivery of these items will

be permitted, officials said.

As per the earlier guidelines, shops selling essentials were allowed to operate from 7 am to 11 am in the district.

The restrictions will remain in place in Solapur city and other parts of the district till May 15, officials said.

"In view of the rise in COVID-19 cases, a decision was taken to make the lockdown stricter in the district. As per the new restrictions, shops selling essential commodities will remain shut, and only home delivery of these items will be permitted from 7 am to 11 am," Solapur district collector Milind Shambharkar said.

As section 144 of the CrPC is already imposed in the district, the movement of the people is not allowed except for valid reasons, he said.

All the essential services, such as hospitals, medicals, diagnostics services, vaccination centres, insurance offices, pet shops, animal care centres, veterinary clinics, banks and all other services, which are related to healthcare

will remain open, he added.

"Shops selling agriculture-related products are allowed to remain open till 11 am," the official said.

According to him, hotels and restaurants are closed, but home delivery of food items has been permitted. -- PTI

A 12-member National Task Force has been set up by the Supreme Court to assess availability and distribution of medical oxygen across the country.

A Supreme Court bench, headed by Justice DY Chandrahud, in its order, constituted a National Task Force to assess, recommend the need and distribution of oxygen for the entire country.

In a significant directive to the states and Union Territories, the Union health ministry on Saturday said requirement of a positive COVID-19 test report is not mandatory for admission to a health facility.

In its revised national policy for admission of COVID patients to various dedicated health facilities, both public and private, the Union health ministry said no patient will be refused services on any account, including oxygen and essential drugs, even if the he or she belongs to a different city.

"In a significant directive to states, the Union ministry of health and family welfare has revised the national policy for admission of COVID patients to various categories of COVID facilities.

"This patient-centric measure aims to ensure prompt, effective and comprehensive treatment of patients suffering from COVID-19," the ministry said.

"Hospitals under the central government, state governments and UT administration, including private hospitals managing COVID patients, shall ensure that requirement of a positive test for COVID-19 virus is not mandatory for admission to a COVID health facility.

"A suspect case shall be admitted to the suspect ward of COVID Care Centre, Dedicated COVID Health Centre (DCHC) of Dedicated COVID Hospital (DHC) as the case may be," the directive to all the states and Union Territories said.

It said no patient will be refused services on any count which includes medications such as oxygen or essential drugs even if the patient belongs to a different city.

"No patient shall be refused admission on the ground that he/she is not able to produce a valid identity card that does not belong to the city where the hospital is located," it said.

The ministry also said admissions to hospital must be "based on need".

"It should be ensured that beds are not occupied by persons who do not need hospitalization. Further, the discharge should be strictly in accordance with the revised discharge policy," it said.

The ministry said it has advised to the chief secretaries of states/Union territories to issue necessary orders and circulars, incorporating these directions within three days, which shall be enforced till replaced by an appropriate uniform policy.

The Union health ministry has earlier enunciated a policy of setting up three-tier health infrastructure for appropriate management of suspect/confirmed COVID-19 cases.

The guidance document issued in this regard on April 7 envisaged setting up of COVID Care Centre that will offer care for mild cases. These have been set up in hostels, hotels, schools, stadiums, lodges etc., both public and private, it said.

Functional hospitals like CHC and others, which may be handling regular and non-COVID cases, may also be designated as COVID Care Centres as a last resort, it said. -- PTI

16:35 Sarma, Sonowal meet Nadda, Amit Shah in Delhi

Amid speculation over the next chief minister of Assam, Bharatiya Janata Party leaders from the state Himanta Biswa Sarma and Sarbananda Sonawal separately met party president J P Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah here on Saturday.

Both incumbent Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Health Minister Himanta Sarma were on Friday called to New Delhi by the BJP central leadership, apparently to discuss the leadership issue of the next government.

Though both leaders from Assam reached Delhi on Saturday morning it was Sarma who reached Nadda's residence first to meet him and BJP general secretary (Organisation) B L Santhosh. They were later joined by Amit Shah.

After Sarma left, Sonowal met the BJP's top brass.

Talks related to formation of the next government in Assam and who will be the chief minister dominated the meetings.

Sonowal, who belongs to Assam's indigenous Sonowal-Kachari tribals, and Sarma, the convenor of the North East Democratic Alliance, both are contenders for the top post of the Assam government.

The BJP had not announced a chief ministerial candidate before the Assembly polls in Assam.

In the 2016 Assembly polls, the BJP had projected Sonowal as its chief ministerial candidate and won, forming the first saffron party government in the northeast.

This time, the party has been maintaining that it would decide who would be the next chief minister of Assam after the elections.

In the results announced for the 126-member Assam assembly last Sunday, the BJP won 60 seats while its alliance partners AGP got nine seats and UPPL six. -- PTI

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has urged the central government to allow states to develop their ownapplications for COVID-19 vaccination programme.

In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Thackeray said the vaccination drive in Maharashtra has been the "fastest and the most efficient in the country".

At present, people have to register their names on CoWIN platform introduced by the central government for the vaccination.

"As we plan to open up vaccination for the 18 to 45 age group through the state's procurement, the CoWIN app is seeing a sudden surge in the number of citizens wanting to register nationally. There is fear about the app

malfunctioning and crashing as it did on the first day of registration of the age group," he said.

"We propose either a separate app developed by states, where the data can be shared with the Union government's ministry of health or a CoWIN app for each state, developed and assigned by the government of India," he said.

This would ensure better interface and experience for citizens who are really keen to take the vaccine shot, the chief minister added.

Thackeray wrote that the vaccine supply was also a major challenge.

"If possible, the state is willing to procure the requisite stock of vaccines in a single procurement. However, the producers do not have enough stocks. If the states are allowed to procure vaccines from other manufacturers as well, a large population would be covered in a shorter time and help reduce the impact of a possible third wave," the CM said.

He also requested that the ICMR may set the medical framework for the FDAs of each state, within which various vaccines available to the world may be procured to fight COVID-19. -- PTI

A drug to treat coronavirus patients, developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation, has been approved for emergency use by the country's top drugs controller.

The drug comes in powder form in a sachet and is taken orally by dissolving it in water.

A DRDO lab and Hyderabad-based Dr Reddy's Laboratories developed the anti-Covid therapeutic application of the drug 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG).

The Drugs Controller General of India cleared the drug after clinical trial results showed that a molecule present in the drug helps in faster recovery of hospitalised patients and reduces supplemental oxygen dependence.

A higher proportion of patients treated with the drug tested negative for Covid in RT-PCR tests.

The Gujarat government has requested the Centre to raise to 1,400 metric tonnes the allocation of medical oxygen to the state by May 12, saying that due to the shortage of the life-saving gas, it was unable to operationalise 11,500 additional beds for COVID-19 patients.

It said that the Centre's current allocation of 975 metric tonnes (MT) is way below the requirements of the state.

"The Government of India has not increased the allocation of (medical oxygen to) Gujarat beyond 975 MT, which is creating tremendous distress to the patients seeking hospitalisation and oxygen therapy, resulting in denial of medical treatment to needy despite availability of beds and qualified personnel in hospitals," Gujarat Chief Secretary Anil Mukim said in a letter to Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla.

The letter written on May 6 was annexed to an affidavit that the state government filed on Friday in the Supreme Court, which was hearing a suo motu PIL on issues related to COVID-19.

There is an immediate demand of 1,190 MT liquid medical oxygen in Gujarat, Mukim said.

The total number of oxygen beds (in the state) have gone up from 53,913 on April 26, when the additional allocation was sought, to 57,368, due to an increase in COVID-19 cases, the letter said.

Accordingly, Gujarat's requirement of medical oxygen has gone up from projected 1,250 MT (as on April 30), to 1,400 MT for today (May 6) and is likely to increase to 1,600 tons by May 15, Mukim said in the letter.

Despite mobilising additional oxygen from all ASU/PSA plants, etc, the state is not able to meet the rising demand for oxygen and as a consequence, is not able to operationalise additional 11,500 beds, created with oxygen line, just for want of oxygen, he added.

This is causing tremendous distress in rural areas, because now the COVID-19 cases are picking up there and yet, hospitalisation with oxygen therapy is not available resulting in long wait before the hospital admission, the letter said.

"Under these circumstances, I request you to immediately enhance allocation of medical liquid oxygen under central allocation to Gujarat to 1,200 MT for today (May 6) and 1,400 MT for May 12," Mukim said.

Meanwhile, in the same affidavit, the state government said that it has administered 2,24,749 doses of COVID-19 vaccine to 18-44 age group till May 5, and orders have been placed for two crore doses of Covishield from Serum Institute of India in Pune, and 50 lakh doses of Covaxin from Bharat Biotech in Hyderabad on April 25 for that purpose. -- PTI

Marketing companies of remdesivir, used in the treatment of COVID-19 patients, will supply 53 lakh vials of the antiviral drug to the states/UTs for the period between April 21 and May 16, the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers said in a statement on Saturday.

"The companies have been instructed to ensure timely supplies to all states/ UTs strictly as per the supply plan," it added.

In continuation to the allocation of remdesivir to states/UTs done on Friday, the company-wise supply plan of the drug for the period April 21 to May 16 has been issued to states/UTs. The plan has been prepared in consultation with the marketing companies, the ministry said.

To ensure smooth supply of remdesivir, the allocation of the drug to the states and Union Territories has been made up to May 16, Union Chemicals and Fertilisers Minister Sadananda Gowda said on Friday.

As per the supply plan, while Zydus Cadila is to supply a total of 982,100 vials of remdesivir for the April 21-May 16 period to the states/ UTs, Hetero will supply 1,717,050 vials for the duration, the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers said.

For the period, Mylan will supply 7,28,000 vials and Cipla is to supply 7,32,300 vials of the drug to the states/UTs, it added.

While Jubilant will supply 4,45,700 vials of remdesivir for the period, Syngene/Sun is to supply 3,73,000 vials and Dr Reddy's will supply 3,21,850 vials of the critical drug between April 21 to May 16, the statement said.

Demand for remdesivir has gone up manifold in the country amid a massive spike in COVID-19 infections.

The government has already waived customs duty on remdesivir, its raw materials and other components used to make the antiviral drug in order to help augment domestic availability and reduce the cost of the injection.

On April 11, in view of increased demand for remdesivir, the Centre banned the export of the injection and its active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) till the situation improves. -- PTI

14:47 PM dials 4 CMs to discuss Covid situation

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday spoke to chief ministers of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Tamil Nadu on the COVID-19 situation in their states, government sources said.

Modi has been interacting with various chief ministers over telephone for the last couple of days to take stock of the pandemic situation in their states.

In tweets, the office of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said Modi expressed satisfaction over the declining infection rate in the state and assured Chouhan of all possible help from the Centre.

Chouhan informed the prime minister about various efforts being undertaken by the state to fight the pandemic and thanked him for the Centre's support.

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur also tweeted about his interaction with Modi.

According to the latest update, Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh reported 11,708 and 4,177 COVID-19 cases respectively in a day.

Maharashtra, which recorded 54,022 new cases of COVID-19 in a day, has been the worst-affected state during the second wave of the infections.

Though some of its cities, including Mumbai, have seen consistent improvement, the situation in many parts of the state remains of concern.

Tamil Nadu has reported 26,465 new cases in the latest update.

Its chief minister M K Stalin took office on Friday and has now announced complete lockdown across the state to curb the rising cases. -- PTI

14:26 Arup Sengupta, Covid Warrior, passes away

Mr Arup Sengupta, the 70-year-old Covid Warrior whose services to humanity in these dark and dire times we wrote about in May 2020, passed away on Saturday, May 8, after a valiant battle with COVID-19.

We mourn his passing and extend our heartfelt condolences to his son and to his family of dedicated volunteers.

In Grief.

Taking note of an "unprecedented surge" in COVID-19 cases in the country, the Supreme Court on Saturday passed directions for decongestion of prisons and ordered forthwith release of all those prisoners who were granted bail or parole last year in view of the pandemic.

A bench comprising Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justices L Nageswara Rao and Surya Kant said that all those prisoners who were allowed to go out on bail in March last year by the high-powered committees of states and Union Territories, set up following the apex court's order, be granted the same relief without reconsideration by HPCs to avoid delay.

"Further we direct that, those inmates who were granted parole, pursuant to our earlier orders, should be again granted parole for a period of 90 days in order to tide over the pandemic," the bench said in its order uploaded on the apex court's website on Saturday.

Referring to a judgement, the top court asked authorities not to arrest mechanically in cases where the maximum sentence is up to seven years of jail term.

It also directed the high-powered committees to consider release of fresh prisoners by adopting the guidelines of the National Legal Services Authority on the issue. -- PTI

A scene in Meerut, May 7, 2021

12:59 Is Meerut under-reporting Covid deaths?

'If the Adityanath government is to be believed, between April 19 and April 30, no more than 36 people died of Covid in Meerut, one of Uttar Pradesh's most populous districts. However, the register maintained by Surajkund crematorium, Meerut's largest, recorded 264 cremations of those who had succumbed to Covid in the same period,' report Ayush Tiwari and Basant Kumar in Newslaundry.

'The register, accessed by Newslaundry, shows that on April 23, the day the district's chief medical officer reported zero Covid deaths, the crematorium recorded 29 Covid cremations out of 52 cremations in total,' they add, here.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today said that his government can vaccinate the entire national capital in three months if he gets nearly 85 lakh doses a month.

Kejriwal said the city needs 3 core doses but got 40 lakh till now.

"Urge Centre to give us adequate vaccine doses. Need 3 crore doses, got 40 lakh till now," he said.

Kejriwal also said that the vaccination needed to safeguard against third wave.

The Shiv Sena on Saturday said that while smaller countries in the neighbourhood are offering help to India to tackle COVID-19, the Modi government is not even ready to stop the work of the multi-crore Central Vista project.

The party also said that the system created in the past 70 years by previous prime ministers, including Pandit Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Manmohan Singh, has helped the country live through the tough times that it is facing today.

"The UNICEF has expressed fear that there is a threat to the world from India due to the pace at which coronavirus is spreading in the country. It has also made an appeal that maximum number of countries should help India in the fight against COVID-19. Bangladesh has sent 10,000 Remdesivir vials, while Bhutan has sent medical oxygen. Nepal, Myanmar and Sri Lanka have also offered help to 'aatmanirbhar' India," the Sena said in an editorial in its mouthpiece 'Saamana'.

"In clear terms, India is surviving on the system created by Nehru-Gandhi. Many poor countries are offering help to India. Earlier, countries like Pakistan, Rwanda and Congo used to get help from others. But due to the wrong policies of today's rulers, India is going through that situation now," it said.

But while poor countries are helping India in their own way, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not ready to stop the ambitious project of Central Vista worth Rs 20,000 crore, the Sena added.

The party expressed surprise that nobody feels regret that on the one hand, India accepts aid from countries like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Bhutan, while on the other, Modi is not ready to stop work on the multi-crore Central Vista project for construction of a new Parliament building and the house of the prime minister.

The redevelopment project of the Central Vista -- the power corridor of the country -- envisages a new triangular Parliament building, a common Central Secretariat and the revamping of the three-km-long Rajpath from the Rashtrapati Bhavan to India Gate and new residences for the prime minister and the vice president.

The Sena said that even as the world is battling a second wave of COVID-19, experts have predicted that the third wave will be more severe. But the ruling BJP is doing all it can to corner Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal even today.

"A sensitive and a nationalist government would not have thought about the political pros and cons and set up a national panel of all main political parties to discuss ways to defeat the pandemic," the Uddhav Thackeray-led party said. -- PTI

Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut on Saturday informed her fans via a social media post that she has tested positive for COVID-19 and is currently under home quarantine.

The Queen actor confirmed the news through her Instagram handle.

'I was feeling tired and weak with slight burning sensation in my eyes for past few days, was hoping to go to Himachal so got my test done yesterday and today the result came I am covid positive,' she wrote.

Informing her fans that she has quarantined herself, Kangana further said that she is certain, she will demolish the virus soon.

'I had no idea this virus is having a party in my body, now that I know I will demolish it, people please don't give anything any power over you, if you are scared it will scare you more, come let's destroy this Covid -19 it is nothing but a small-time flu which got too much press and now psyching few people. Har Har Mahadev,' Kangana wrote.

The 34-year old star has been making headlines because of her controversial comments on the recently held West Bengal elections won by Mamta Banerjee.

In order to protect their terms and policies, Twitter permanently suspended her account on May 4.

After being suspended on the micro-blogging site, Kangana shifted to post the same content on her Instagram.

Following this, a new first information report was filed against her by an activist and spokesperson Riju Dutta for allegedly spreading hate propaganda and inciting communal violence in West Bengal. -- ANI

Sarbananda Sonowal

10:51 Decision on Assam CM likely today

Almost a week after winning the Assam Assembly polls, Bharatiya Janata Party is likely to decide on the name of its Chief Ministerial nominee today in a crucial meeting called by the central leadership of the party.

Party sources stated that incumbent Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Assam strongman and minister in his cabinet Himanta Biswa Sarma have been summoned to the national capital to decide the leadership issue in the state and will meet party national president Jagat Prakash Nadda before noon.

The BJP has stormed back to power in the crucial Northeastern state retaining its hold on the government.

However, it is understood that the party has been facing issues over selection of chief minister.

Sonowal is considered a leader with clean image and belongs to Assam's indigenous tribal community.

However, a section of the party feels that Himanta would be a better choice considering his strong organisational skills and appeal with the masses.

Sources stated that the party is expected to make an announcement on the new CM of the state soon after customary meeting of the party's parliamentary board.

BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) secured a comfortable majority in Assam winning 75 seats of the total 126 constituencies. While BJP secured 60 seats, about 33 its allies Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and United People's Party, Liberal (UPPL) bagged nine and six seats respectively.

In recently concluded assembly elections, the BJP secured 60 seats, while allies Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and United People's Party, Liberal (UPPL) bagged nine and six seats respectively. -- ANI

10:00 India sees record 4,187 Covid deaths in 24 hrs

India saw a record 4,187 fatalities due to COVID-19 in a single day, taking the country's death toll to 2,38,270, while 4,01,078 new infections were reported in a day, pushing the tally to 2,18,92,676, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Saturday.

Registering a steady increase, the active cases have increased to 37,23,446, comprising 17.01 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has dropped to 81.90 per cent, the data updated at 8 am showed.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 1,79,30, 960, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.09 per cent, the data stated.

India's COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.

India crossed the grim milestone of 2 crore on May 4.

According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), 30,04,10,043 samples have been tested up to May 7 with 18,08,344 samples being tested on Friday. -- PTI

Tamil Nadu government announces complete lockdown for two weeks starting May 10 to control the spread of COVID-19.

More details awaited.

IMAGE: Ambulances parked outside a Chennai hospital. Photograph: R Senthil Kumar/PTI Photo

Image only for representation

08:30 Fire on board INS Vikramaditya, all personnel safe: Navy

There was a minor fire on board India's aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya on Saturday morning, a Navy spokesperson said.

The fire was doused and all personnel on board are safe, the spokesperson said in a statement in Mumbai.

'The duty staff observed smoke emanating from the part of the warship having accommodation for sailors.

'The ship's duty personnel acted promptly to fight the fire. All personnel on board have been accounted for and no major damage has been reported,' the statement said.

An inquiry into the incident is being ordered, he said, adding the aircraft carrier is in the harbour. -- PTI

08:12 Covid: Rs 2 lakh cap on cash payments removed

The Income Tax Department on Friday issued a notification allowing hospitals and nursing homes to accept cash payments of Rs 2 lakh and more for the treatment of coronavirus infected patients.

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), that frames policy for the department, issued the notification.

It said hospitals, dispensaries, nursing homes, COVID care centres or similar other medical facilities providing COVID-19 treatment to patients are being 'specified for the purpose of section 269ST of the Income Tax Act'.

This section restricts any person from receiving an amount of Rs 2 lakh or more in cash, from a person in a day, in respect of a single transaction or in respect of transactions relating to one event or occasion from a person.

It was introduced by the Union government in 2017 as a measure to curb black money.

The notification said the latest provision is being made for a period between April 1-May 31 'on obtaining the PAN or Aadhaar of the patient and the payee and the relationship between the patient and the payee' by such hospitals or COVID care centres.

Officials said the move was aimed to remove the hardship being faced by relatives and caregivers of coronavirus infected patients who visit the hospitals for treatment.

The country is grappling with the onslaught of a massive COVID-19 wave with a record over 4.14 lakh new infections and 3,915 deaths being reported in a span of 24 hours, as per the Union health ministry data updated on Friday. -- PTI

00:21 CWC to meet on May 10 to discuss poll debacle

The Congress Working Committee would meet on Monday to assess the party's losses in the just-concluded assembly polls, amid demands from leaders for serious introspection over its poor performance at the hustings, sources said.

Polls were held in West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

The Congress has lost most elections since the last Lok Sabha polls and though it has managed to win in Tamil Nadu, it was with the support of its bigger ally and regional player Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.

The Congress lost in elections in Arunachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Haryana in 2019 and in Delhi and Bihar in 2020.

It only won in Jharkhand along with its ally Jharkhand Mukti Morcha.

In the just-concluded assembly polls, Congress fared poorly and failed to wrest back power in Kerala and Assam and drew a blank in West Bengal. It also lost out in Puducherry.

The deliberations would help the Congress prepare ahead for the next round of assembly elections in crucial Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi while chairing a meeting of the Congress Parliamentary Party said the party's performance in the just-concluded assembly elections was very disappointing and party MPs must draw appropriate lessons from this setback in the spirit of humility and honesty.

"Most unfortunately, our own performance in all the states was very disappointing and if I may say, unexpectedly so," she said while concluding her speech at the meeting.

"The CWC is meeting shortly to review the results but it goes without saying that we as a party collective must draw appropriate lessons from this setback in a spirit of humility and honesty," Gandhi said. -- PTI

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