Thiruvananthapuram: The state government will buy one crore dose covid vaccine. The Cabinet will approve the purchase of the Covid vaccine directly from the manufacturers. 70 lakh doses of Coveshield and 30 lakh doses of covaxin will be purchased. It was decided at the meeting that only the local level restrictions currently required for lockdowns would suffice. Assessment that lockdown will affect people’s lives.
Panaji: The government has announced a lockdown in Goa from Thursday amid rising Covid cases. Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has announced that a complete lockdown will be imposed in Goa from the evening of April 29 to the morning of May 3. The CM said only essential services and industrial activities would be allowed to operate during the lockdown.
‘The lockdown has been announced in the state from April 29 to May 3. Essential services and industrial activities are permitted. Public transport will be closed, ”he said. He said casinos, hotels, and pubs would be closed during the lockdown and borders would be open for essential service traffic.
The lockdown comes after 2,110 new Covid cases and 31 deaths were reported in Goa. There are currently 81,908 covid cases in the state. The death toll was 16,591. So far 6,32,131 covid tests have been conducted in Goa.
Meanwhile, 3,293 people have died of Covid infection in the last 24 hours in the country. The number of daily covid patients also increased yesterday. A total of 3,60,960 people were infected yesterday.
Covid deaths in India cross two lakh For the first time since the outbreak of the Covid epidemic in India, the daily death toll has crossed 3,000. The total death toll stood at 2,01,187. Covid has so far affected 1,79,97,267 people. The number of active cases is 29,78,709. So far, 14,78,27,367 people have been vaccinated. For the past seven days, the number of Covid victims in India has been over three lakh per day. In Delhi alone, 381 people died due to Covid infection on Tuesday.
Maharashtra had the highest number of Covid patients reported so far yesterday. 66,358. The positive rate in Delhi is 32.72 percent. For the sixth day in a row, the death toll in Delhi has risen to over 300.
In Kerala, Covid-19 was confirmed for 32,819 people yesterday. Outbreaks were reported in Kozhikode 5015, Ernakulam 4270, Malappuram 3251, Thrissur 3097, Kottayam 2970, Thiruvananthapuram 2892, Palakkad 2071, Kannur 1996, Alappuzha 1770, Kollam 1591, Pathanamthitta 1163, Wayanad 968, Kasaragod 906 and Idukki 859.
Kochi: Sandeep Nair and Sarith have been granted bail in a case registered by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with gold smuggling. Bail was granted by the Ernakulam Principal Sessions Court. Both have been in jail for eight months in a case registered by the ED. But the defendants could not get out because Kofeposa was charged. Sandeep Nair was granted bail in a customs case and an NIA case.
Guwahati: A strong earthquake shook Assam. An earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale shook Sonitpur. This was reported by the National Center for Seismology.
The quake struck at 7.51 am. Several houses were damaged. Health Minister Himant Bishwa Sharma confirmed that there were no reports of injuries following the quake. Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said people should be vigilant.
Thane: A fire broke out at a hospital in Thane, Maharashtra. Four patients admitted to the ICU died in the blaze. The fire broke out at Prime Criticare Hospital around 3.40 this morning.
The Thane Municipal Corporation said the death occurred while trying to transfer patients to another hospital. The patients who were rescued from the scene were shifted to other hospitals. Currently, two fire engines and a rescue vehicle have reached the spot. Rescue efforts are underway to contain the blaze.
New Delhi: The Central Election Commission (CEC) has banned the celebration of election results. The commission issued an order banning demonstrations on and after the counting day. The order also allows a maximum of two candidates to accompany the candidates when they arrive to receive the certificate.
The Central Election Commission had convened an emergency meeting this morning. Yesterday, the Madras High Court had sharply criticized the Election Commission. The court’s criticism was based on a flaw in Covid’s control during the election.
The court had pointed out that not a single order of the Election Commission had been complied with. Covid said the second wave was due only to the Election Commission. The Commission could not control political parties. The court also ruled that a murder case should be filed against the Election Commission. The court directed the Election Commission to prepare an accurate plan for the counting day. The court had warned that otherwise the counting of votes would be stopped.
Kochi: The high court has rejected the demand for a lockdown on the counting day. The division bench of the high court directed that the orders issued by the Election Commission and the state government should be strictly followed.
A division bench of Justices Ashok Menon and CS Dias said the government could decide what action to take against the people violates covid protocol.
New Delhi: The Center has said the Delhi High Court not to allow states to buy oxygen on their own. Solicitor General Thushar Mehta told the court that despite the oxygen shortage in the country, states are not allowed to buy or store oxygen and the central government should supply oxygen. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had written to businessman Sanjay Jindal asking for oxygen tankers. Following this, the Center took a stand in the High Court.
Meanwhile, the court expressed dissatisfaction with the central and state governments for exacerbating the oxygen shortage. The court asked the Solicitor General how 21 deaths could have occurred at the Jaipur Golden Hospital if the center had supplied oxygen properly. Solicitor General Thushar Mehta said the deaths at the Golden Hospital were not due to non-delivery by the Center and that the Union Home Minister had told them that oxygen tankers should be treated as ambulances.
Melbourne: Australia has banned flights from India until May 15. The move comes as the spread of Covid in the country continues unabated. The announcement was made by Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
At the same time, it is not clear what action will be taken against Australian citizens stranded in India. No decision has been taken to arrange a special flight for them.
Thiruvananthapuram: The Kozhikode Magistrate’s Court has found Saritha S Nair guilty in the second case of solar fraud. The verdict was passed by the Kozhikode Judicial First Class Magistrate Court. The third defendant acquitted Manimon. Saritha and Biju Radhakrishnan allegedly bought Rs 42,70,000 from Abdul Majeed, a native of Kozhikode, to set up a solar panel. The sentence will be handed down in the afternoon.
This is one of the first cases registered in the state in connection with solar fraud. The case was registered by Kozhikode Kasaba police in 2012. The Judicial First Class Magistrate’s Court found Saritha guilty of cheating, fraud, conspiracy, and impersonation. Saritha faces up to three years in prison. The court acquitted the third accused, Mani Mone. The first accused Biju Radhakrishnan did not appear in court.
Saritha allegedly extorted money from Abdul Majeed by saying that he could install solar panels in his home and office. There was also a promise to provide franchises in the Malabar districts.
