COVID UPDATE of 18th November: India continued to record more Daily Recoveries than Daily cases for 46th day

India has continued the unbroken trend of the daily new recoveries outpacing the daily new additions for more than 1.5 months. The country also reported less than 50,000 new daily cases for the eleventh continuous day.44,739 COVID-19 patients recovered in the last 24 hours against just 38,617 newly detected cases. This translates to a net reduction of 6,122 in the Active Caseload which now stands at 4,46,805. The active caseload as on date comprises merely 5.01% of all COVID19 cases.The Recovery Rate has improved to 93.52% today. The total recovered cases stand at 83,35,109.74.98% of the new recovered cases are contributed by ten States/UTs.With 6,620 persons recovering from COVID, Kerala saw the most number of recoveries. Maharashtra registered 5,123 daily recoveries while Delhi reported 4,421 new recoveries.Ten States/UTs have contributed 76.15% of the new cases.Delhi reported 6,396 cases in the last 24 hours. Kerala recorded 5,792 new cases while West Bengal reported 3,654 new cases yesterday.78.9% of the 474 case fatalities that have been reported in the past 24 hours are from Ten States/UTs.20.89% of new fatalities reported are from Delhi which reported 99 deaths. Maharashtra and West Bengal follow with 68 and 52 new deaths, respectively.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a telephone conversation yesterday with His Excellency Joseph R. Biden, President-elect of the United States of America. Prime Minister Modi warmly congratulated President-elect Biden on his election, describing it as a testament to the strength and resilience of democratic traditions in the United States. The Prime Minister also extended his heartiest congratulations and best wishes to Vice President-elect Senator Kamala Harris. The leaders agreed to work closely to further advance the India-U.S. Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership, built on shared values and common interests. The leaders also discussed their priorities, including containing the Covid-19 pandemic, promoting access to affordable vaccines, tackling climate change, and cooperation in the Indo-Pacific Region.

The Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi invited the investors to invest in the Indian urbanization. Speaking at the 3rd Annual Bloomberg New Economy Forum yesterday via video conferencing, the Prime Minister said “If you are looking to invest in urbanisation, India has exciting opportunities for you. Shri Modi said that post COVID-19 world will need a restart, however the restart will not be possible without a reset. A reset of mindset. A reset of processes and a reset of practices. The pandemic has given us an opportunity to develop new protocols in every field. “This opportunity should be grabbed by the world if we want to develop resilient systems for the future. We should think about post COVID requirements of the world. A good starting point would be the rejuvenation of our urban centers”, The Prime Minister added.Dwelling on the theme of rejuvenation of the urban centres the Prime Minister emphasized the centrality of the people in the recovery process. Terming people as the biggest resources and the communities as the biggest building block, the Prime Minister said “the pandemic has re-emphasised that our biggest resource, as societies and as businesses, is our people. The post-Covid world has to be built by nurturing this key and fundamental resource.”

Virtual Summit will be held between Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Luxembourg H.E. Mr Xavier Bettel on 19 November 2020.This will be the first stand-alone Summit meeting between India and Luxembourg in the past two decades. The leaders will discuss the entire spectrum of bilateral relationship, including strengthening of India-Luxembourg cooperation in the post-COVID world. They will also exchange views on international and global issues of mutual interest.

Students coming from all parts of India and from all strata of society study in Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in an atmosphere of equal opportunity for excellence. Students aspiring for very different career paths come together at JNU. The University represents blending of inclusion, diversity and excellence, said the President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind while addressing the 4th annual convocation of JNU today (November 18, 2020) through a video message. The President said that excellent faculty of JNU have been encouraging free debate and respect for difference in opinion. Students are treated as partners in learning which is how it should be in higher education. The University is known for vibrant discussions which also take place outside the classrooms, in the cafeterias and dhabas at all hours. Speaking about the Covid-19 pandemic, the President said that today the world is in a state of crisis because of this pandemic. In the prevailing scenario of epidemics and pandemics, the National Education Policy 2020 states that it is critical for Higher Education Institutions to take the lead in undertaking research in areas of infectious diseases, epidemiology, virology, diagnostics, instrumentation, vaccinology and other relevant areas. The related social issues also need to be studied, preferably with multi-disciplinary approach.

Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare digitally addressed the Ministerial meeting of the Global Prevention Coalition (GPC) for HIV Prevention today. Dr. Harsh Vardhan elaborated how India protected the gains made in HIV prevention during the COVID-19 pandemic. “The Government of India took swift and timely action by involving communities, civil society, development partners to reach out to the last mile with a robust implementation plan for ARV dispensation. The Government also linked key populations and PLHIV to various social welfare schemes. Advisories and guidance notes were issued by NACO from time to time aligned with global guidelines in the context”, he stated.

Union Minister of Science &Technology, Earth Sciences and Health & Family Welfare Dr. Harsh Vardhan yesterday inaugurated the curtain raiser of IISF-2020 for kick-starting different events of the 6th edition of IISF, in New Delhi. Dr Harsh Vardhan along with Shri Om Prakash Sakhlecha, Minister of Science &Technology, Gov. of Madhya Pradesh, also released an e-brochure of this mega-event, on the occasion. IISF is an annual event organized jointly among others by DST, DBT, MoEF, MoHWF and CSIR from the Government of India and VijnanaBharati (VIBHA) as well as with support of a large number of other organisations.The website of IISF-2020 was also launched during the event.

Union Minister of Science & Technology, Earth Sciences and Health & Family Welfare, Dr. Harsh Vardhan yesterday inaugurated the Platinum Jubilee Foundation Day celebrations of CSIR-Central Institute of Mining and Fuel Research, Dhanbad, one of the prestigious R&D laboratories of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), through video-conferencing in New Delhi.

IFFI has commenced the delegate registration of the 51st IFFI scheduled in January, 2021 from 17th November, 2020 for physical format of the festival for the following paid categories: Delegate cine enthusiast – Rs. 1000/- + taxes as applicable and Delegate professionals – Rs. 1000/- +  taxes as applicable. The registration can be done at the following URL: https://iffigoa.org/ . Registration will be on first come first basis to the limited delegates due to COVID19 pandemic.

More than 25 lakh applications have been received under the PM SVANidhi-Pradhan Mantri Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi- A Special Micro-Credit Facility Scheme, out of which more than 12 lakh have been sanctioned and about 5.35 lakh loans disbursed. In the state of Uttar Pradesh, more than 6.5 lakh applications have been received, out of which about 3.27 lakh have been sanctioned and 1.87 lakh loans have been disbursed. The stamp duty has been exempted for the loan agreement of SVANidhi Yojana in UP. Vendors who had left for their native places due to Covid-19 lock down are eligible for the loan on their return. The provision of loans has become hassle-free as one can upload the application online on their own at any common service centre or Municipal office or by going to a bank. Banks are reaching the doorsteps of people to provide loans for helping them start their ventures.

 

• Maharashtra: With an aim to prevent the spread of coronavirus infection, Mumbai’s civic body has said that it will not allow Chhath Puja at beaches and river banks. The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai said the city police will have to ensure that people do not crowd at riversides on 20th evening for sunset rituals and on 21st for the sunrise ritual. It said concerned officials will permit limited public gatherings at artificial ponds so that people can offer prayers to the Sun God and necessary medical teams equipped with PPE and testing kits will be placed at various locations where artificial ponds have been set up. The recovery rate in Maharashtra stands at 92.49%, while the case fatality rate is 2.63%.
• Gujarat: Recovery rate has further improved to 91.4%. The total number of cases of COVID-19 detected so far in Gujarat has crossed the 1 lakh 90 thousand mark.
• Rajasthan: The number of active cases of COVID-19 has once again crossed the 19,000 mark after 26 days. Maximum cases on Wednesday were found in Jaipur district (484 new cases), followed by Jodhpur district (317 new cases) and then Alwar (247 new cases). More than 450 people are being tested positive every day in the capital Jaipur. The number of active patients is more than 6,500 here. 400 people have died due to the infection so far. A large number of new infections are being reported from Bikaner, Alwar, Ajmer and Kota. More than 40 lakh samples have been tested in the state so far.
• Madhya Pradesh: Maximum cases on Wednesday were found in Bhopal district (207 new cases), followed by Indore district (178 new cases) and then Gwalior (55 cases). Total number of people tested has now become 33,54,884.
• Chhattisgarh: The number of deaths due to COVID-19 has risen during the past two weeks. Coronavirus claimed more than 200 lives in the state during the last 15 days. Chief Secretary has expressed concern over the increasing number of deaths due to COVID-19 in the state and directed the authorities to pay special attention to the Rapid Covid test. He has also asked all district collectors to ensure availability of sufficient number of beds with oxygen facility in district hospitals. He further directed to conduct an intensive awareness campaign to motivate the people to adopt Covid Appropriate behavior and to get Covid test done within 24 hours after having any symptoms.
• Goa: Recovery rate in the state has reached up to 95.56%. Phase III clinical trials of Bharat Biotech’s COVID-19 vaccine candidate Covaxin are going to start at Goa’s Redkar Hospital.
• Assam: Assam Health Minister tweeted that from next week COVID-19  test for incoming flight passengers will be done in Guwahati Airport itself instead of Sarusajai. Air passengers travelling within Assam and those travelling between North East States will no longer require mandatory COVID-19 testing.
• Nagaland: With 163 new cases, Nagaland’s COVID-19 total reaches 10,188. Active cases rises to 1,134.
• Kerala: The State Election Commission has asked the state government to give Covid-19 patients and those under quarantine to give an opportunity to apply for postal ballots till 3pm on the eve of polling day. The Health Department with the assistance of Collectors will make arrangements for Covid patients who are in hospitals and those in quarantine to cast their votes. Covid patients who are at their homes should come directly to the booth and cast their votes at the end. Meanwhile, former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader A.K. Antony was diagnosed with Covid-19 today. 5,792 new Covid-19 cases were confirmed in Kerala yesterday while 6,620 patients recovered. The test positivity rate is 10.31% and Covid related death toll in the State stands at 1,915.
• Tamil Nadu: Convalescent plasma therapy for Covid-19 patients, which was earlier done as a trial along with the ICMR, has now become part of clinical treatment in Tamil Nadu. Pulmonologists warn that Covid-19 patients who have COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) are at a higher risk of hospitalisation. Mortality rate is also higher in COPD patients.  A recent sero survey conducted by health officials reveals that 20.5 per cent of Salem’s population was exposed to Covid-19 and has also developed antibodies to the virus. Coimbatore health officials said that they would be able to ascertain the extent of virus spread during Deepavali in the district only after an incubation period of 14 days.
• Karnataka:  Karnataka govt revises order reserving 50% beds in private hospitals for Covid-19 patients; this comes after a reduction in the number of patients seeking Covid-19 treatment in private and government hospitals. By December 12, Karnataka is likely to have 9.25 lakh Covid cases, according to projections by the Public Health Foundation of India and Jeevan Raksha. Bengaluru’s Covid-19 case fatality rate (1.1%) is the lowest among all major cities in India. The number of active Covid cases in Dharwad district is at a four-month low.
• Andhra Pradesh: Local body polls to be held in February, says Andhra Election Commissioner. Situation not conducive for panchayat elections due to pandemic, says Andhra government. Class 9 students of a government residential school Srikakulam have created light-weight digital ID cards with sensors to ensure physical distancing is practised among the students at the school in view of the Covid-19 outbreak.
• Telangana:   States Covid-19 tally rose to 2,58,828 with 952 cases reported on Tuesday. With 1,602 patients being discharged on the day, the active cases fell to 13,732 and total recoveries rose to 2,43,686. E-clinic franchise set to open centres in rural Telangana; during this pandemic when visiting doctors physically is not feasible, these clinics facilitate doctor consultations, diagnostic tests and more.