Coronavirus News Highlights: Karnataka reports 46,426 new Covid-19 cases, 32 deaths

India logged 3,06,064 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 3,95,43,328, while the active cases climbed to 22,49,335, the highest in 241 days, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Monday. Stay tuned for updates

Sinovac regimen gets strong boost from Pfizer, AstraZeneca or J&J Covid shots: Study

A third booster dose of a Covid-19 vaccine made by AstraZeneca, Pfizer-BioNTech or Johnson & Johnson increases antibody levels significantly in those who have previously received two doses of Sinovac's CoronaVac shot, a study has found.

The study found that CoronaVac received the strongest boost from a viral vector or RNA shot, including against the Delta and Omicron coronavirus variants, researchers from Brazil and Oxford University saidon Monday.

China-based Sinovac's vaccine uses an inactivated version of a coronavirus strain that was isolated from a patient in China. It is currently approved in more than 50 countries including Brazil, China, Argentina, South Africa, Oman, Malaysia, Indonesia and Turkey.

Bengal registers 4,546 fresh Covid-19 cases, 37 fatalities

Gujarat sees 13,805 new Covid-19 cases, 25 fatalities

Gujarat continued to report a decline in the number of dailyCovid-19 cases with the state seeing 13,805 fresh infections on Monday but coronavirus-related fatalities rose to 25, the highest in the recent past, the health department said.

The day before, Gujarat had reported 16,617Covid-19 cases, the lowest in the five days before Sunday, and 19 fatalities. With the latest additions, Gujarat's overall caseload rose to 10,76,360.

The overall death toll has gone up to 10,274, it said. A total of 13,469 patients were discharged on Monday, taking the number of recoveries so far in Gujarat to 9,30,938, the department said in a release.

Kerala reports 26,514 new Covid cases, 30,710 recoveries and 13 deaths in the last 24 hours

Digvijaya Singh tests Covid positive

Karnataka reports 46,426 new Covid-19 cases, 41,703 recoveries and 32 deaths in the last 24 hours

Prakash Badal tests positive for Omicron variant; stable

Former Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal tested positive for the Omicron variant of Covid-19 on Monday, said a senior doctor of the hospital where he was admitted.

The doctor said the five-time chief minister was stable.

Dr Rajesh Mahajan, incharge of the team of doctors attending to Badal, said the samples of the 94-year-old Shiromani Akali Dal patriarch was sent to the Patiala lab for testing and he tested positive for the Omicron variant.

Badal is having sore throat, slight cough and mild fever but he is stable, Mahajan added.

Telangana reports 3980 new Covid cases, 2398 recoveries and 3 deaths in the last 24 hours

90% people lost lost some degree of vision due to pandemic: Experts

About 9 in 10 people have lost some degree of vision during the last two years ofCovidpandemic, health experts said on Monday.

It is because most of them skipped their regular eye check-ups and follow-ups due to pandemic-induced lockdowns, fear among others.

Retinal diseases such as diabetic retinopathy or age-related macular degeneration have few or minor symptoms at first and are only detected by eye examination or a screening.

These conditions have the tendency to create severe damage to the eyes if not timely intervened with.

"Unfortunately, 90 per cent of patients lost some degree of vision due poor follow ups, during the first and the second wave ofCovid, especially the ones suffering from wet AMD (Age Related Macular Degeneration). These patients mostly missed taking their Intravitreal injection, owing to which the diseases progressed rapidly," Dr Ajay Dudani, CEO Vitreoretinal Surgeon, Mumbai Retina Centre, told IANS.

5,394 new cases - 2045 from Jammu & 3,349 from Kashmir and 8 deaths reported today

Daily Covid cases in Delhi drop to 5,760

England to drop Covid travel test demand, says PM Johnson

People arriving in England from abroad will no longer have to takeCovid-19 tests if they have been vaccinated, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday, ahead of an expected announcement.

Johnson told reporters the rule change was designed to show that the country was open for business and travellers.

He did not say when the requirement would change but further details are expected to be given later on Monday.

Mandviya to interact with health ministers of J&K, Himachal, Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Ladakh, UP, Chandigarh on Jan 25 over Covid-19

Chandigarh reports 568 new Covid-19 cases

The positivity rate stands at 14.49%, while the active case tally stands 7,768.

Karnataka: Covid cases explode in Ballari, Mandya colleges

As many as 37Covidcases have been reported from Krishnadevaraya University in Nandihalli Post Graduation Center in Sandur taluk of Karnataka's Ballari district on Monday. According to University sources, the test results of many more students are yet to come.

The authorities have sealed a PG hotel in the campus following theCovidoutbreak. Meanwhile, 40Covidpositive cases were reported from the Government Junior College in Srirangapatna town of Mandya district.

Sharad Pawar tests Covid positive

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar announced that he has testedCovid-19 positive on Monday, and has started the necessary treatment.

"I have testedCovidpositive, but there is no cause for concern. I am following the treatment as suggested by my doctor," said the 81-year-old leader.

He called upon all who had been in contact with him in the past few days to get themselves tested, and take all necessary precautions.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called up Pawar to enquire about his health.

MP: Indore lab detects 21 COVID-19 cases caused by Omicron sub-lineage BA.2

It is dangerous to assume that Omicron will be the last variant, or that we're in the endgame: WHO

Dangerous to assumeOmicron will be the last variant, or that we're in the endgame, saysWHO

China lifts Xi'an lockdown as Beijing virus fight ramps up

One of China's longest coronavirus lockdowns ended Monday with authorities announcing the lifting of most restrictions in the northern city of Xi'an.

The historic city's 13 million residents had been confined to their homes since December 22 after the discovery of aCovid-19 cluster that grew to more than 2,100 cases -- China's largest outbreak in months.

With the Winter Olympics beginning next week, Chinese authorities have been scrambling to eradicate flare-ups in several major cities, most recently Beijing, where more than 40 cases have been recorded since mid-January.

While China's coronavirus caseload pales in comparison to global numbers, the country's strict "zero-Covid" strategy means even the slightest hint of the virus is met with contact tracing, targeted lockdowns and long quarantines.

In view of Covid, Raj Bhavan Tamil Nadu decides to postpone the 'At Home Reception' on Republic Day

WHO chief says world at 'critical juncture' in Covid pandemic

50% of Covid infected may have lasting loss of smell: Study

About 50 per cent of people infected with Covid-19 during the first wave of infections in 2020 may have long-term and even permanent changes to their sense of smell, according to preliminary research from Sweden.

From the early pandemic days, sudden loss of smell, or an impaired or distorted perception of odours, emerged as an unusual symptom of Covid.

While some people recovered, for some the sense of smell never quite returned to normal.

To explore, scientists at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm ran comprehensive tests on 100 individuals who caught Covid in the first wave of infections in 2020, the Guardian reported.

Olympics-Beijing 2022 says 6 new positive cases detected among Games-related personnel on Jan. 23

The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Organising Committee on Monday said it confirmed six new positive cases of Covid-19 during testing the previous day.

Of the new cases, four were among new arrivals and the other two were stakeholders already in the closed loop who had taken confirmatory tests.

Of the four positive cases found among 529 Olympic-related arrivals at the airport on Sunday Jan. 23, one was an athlete or team official, showed a statement on the official Beijing 2022 website.

US firms cite Covid-19, worker shortages as main risks: survey

American companies ended the year on a strong note but are worried about resurging Covid-19 infections, although supply issues are expected to ease, according to a survey released Monday.

Just over one third of company economists cited spiking Covid-19 cases as the biggest downside risk to the outlook, ahead of rising prices, the National Association for Business Economics (NABE) said in its quarterly Business Conditions Survey.

Inflation has become a growing concern for US consumers and businesses throughout 2021, fueled in part by global shortages and transportation snags.

India logged 3,06,064 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 3,95,43,328, while the active cases climbed to 22,49,335, the highest in 241 days, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Monday.

The death toll has climbed to 4,89,848 with 439 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The active cases comprise 5.69 per cent of the total infections, while the national Covid-19 recovery rate decreased to 93.07 per cent, the ministry said.

Hong Kong says civil servants to work from home as much as possible as COVID spreads

Hong Kong's government said that special work arrangements would be put in place from Tuesday to reduce the number of civil servants working in the office amid a growing spate of local COVID-19 cases.

The government said some employees would take turns not to return to the office and "work from home as much as possible". As a result individual departments may temporarily reduce some public services, it said in a statement on Monday.

Over 21,900 families who lost member to Covid given Rs 50,000 ex-gratia: Delhi govt

A total of 21,914 families who have lost their loved ones to Covid-19 in Delhi have received a one-time ex-gratia of Rs 50,000 from the Delhi Disaster Response Fund (DDRF), officials said on Sunday. (PTI)

New Zealand reports 24 new community cases amid Omicron alerts

New Zealand recorded 24 new community cases of Covid-19, said the Ministry of Health in a statement.

Among the 24 new community infections on Sunday, 16 are in the largest city Auckland, five in the Lakes region, two in Northland and one in Waikato. (IANS)

Europe could be headed for pandemic 'endgame': WHO

The Omicron variant has moved the Covid-19 pandemic into a new phase and could bring it to an end in Europe, the WHO Europe director said Sunday.

"It's plausible that the region is moving towards a kind of pandemic endgame," Hans Kluge told AFP in an interview, adding that Omicron could infect 60 percent of Europeans by March. (AFP)