These are the highlights:
INDIA
* Total cases: 36,21,245 with 78,512 new cases in the last 24 hours
Total deaths: 64,469 with 971 deaths in the last 24 hours
Mortality rate: 1.78%
Total recoveries: 27,74,801
Recovery rate: 76.62%
* India’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the first quarter (ended June 30) of the 2020-21 financial year suffered the largest quarterly decline of 23.9%, data released by the government showed Monday. The sharp contraction in GDP figures is mainly due to the closure of business activity during the quarter due to national lockdowns to slow the spread of the deadly coronavirus. read more here.
* According to the ICMR, a total of 4,23,07,914 samples have been tested in India so far and 8,46,278 samples were analyzed on Sunday.
* Covaxin, the indigenous Covid-19 vaccine from India, is entering the second phase of the human clinical trial for which preparations are underway at a hospital in Bhubaneswar. Phase one of the vaccine trial is still ongoing. Here more here.
* The Ministry of Health announced the deployment of core teams in Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Odisha, which are experiencing a sudden increase in Covid-19 cases, to support the local administration in strengthening containment, surveillance and positive case tests. read more here.
* Scheduled international passenger services will remain suspended in India until September 30. However, scheduled flights will be allowed under the travel bubbles that India has started to create with the US, UK, Germany and France and people eligible under government regulations can fly to and from India on them. read more here.
* Union Interior Minister Amit Shah, who was admitted to AIIMS, New Delhi, on Aug. 18 for post-Covid care, was discharged Monday morning, sources said. read more here.
* Rajya Sabha MP Abhay Bhardwaj and his son tested positive for coronavirus on Monday.
* In a peculiar gender dimension of the coronavirus pandemic, trends have shown that men are more likely to contract the virus than women. In UP, for example, the pattern shows that 70% of people infected with the virus are men. Read plus .
* Karnataka Congress President DK Shivakumar, who was undergoing treatment for Covid-19 infection, was discharged after recovering, the hospital treating him said on Monday. read more here.
* For full coverage on the Covid-19 outbreak, visit here.
STATE
* Maharashtra: The state government has extended the shutdown in the state until Sept. 30. Shopping centers, theaters, subways, schools and universities will be closed. International flights, social, political, sports, religious functions will not be allowed.
* Himachal Pradesh: As tourism restarts in the state starting Sept. 1, quarantine rules have been relaxed for tourists. Now, those who come with reservations valid for a duration of no less than 2 nights and have tested negative 96 hours before entering state borders will not have to go into quarantine. read more here.
* West Bengal: The state government has announced the complete shutdown in West Bengal on September 7, 11 and 12. Meanwhile, the shutdown has been extended to all containment zones in the state through Sept. 30. Read more here.
* Karnataka: With the Union government allowing students in class 9 to 12 to clarify their concerns with teachers on campus as of September 21, Bengaluru schools are considering staggered schedules and specific spaces. The department of public instruction said it will soon issue a standard operating procedure for these sessions. read more here.
* Punjab: The state government has issued revised guidelines for international arrivals according to which, before planning the trip, all travelers must submit a self-declaration form on the online portal at least 72 hours before the scheduled trip.
* Tamil Nadu: Some special trains, which the railroads introduced during the shutdown, will remain canceled in the state until Sept. 15. Southern Railway extended the cancellation of special trains as requested by the state government. read more here.
* Odisha: BJD MLA Byomakesh Ray tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday, bringing the number of lawmakers infected with coronavirus in Odisha to 13. On Facebook, Chandbali MLA expressed regret that he was unable to serve people affected by the floods in his constituency.
WORLD
* The pandemic has killed at least 847,071 people worldwide since it appeared in China late last year, according to a count from official sources compiled by AFP at 1100 GMT on Monday. More than 25.2 million cases have been registered.
* The United States has recorded the highest number of deaths with 183,068, followed by Brazil with 120,828, India 64,469, Mexico 64,158 and Great Britain 41,499 deaths.
* Australia reports fewer than 100 new coronavirus cases, the lowest number in two months, as authorities appear to control an outbreak in Melbourne’s second city.
* Schools in New Zealand’s largest city Auckland reopen after the lockdown, and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern expressed confidence that a second wave outbreak is under control.
* German Chancellor Angela Merkel has condemned as “shameful” an attempt by protesters angered by coronavirus restrictions to storm parliament, saying they had abused the right to demonstrate peacefully. Several hundred people tried to enter the Reichstag building during a rally against the coronavirus rules in Berlin on Saturday.
* Hundreds of people demonstrate Sunday in the American city of Boston against a new state rule that requires students to get vaccinated against the flu, a measure aimed at alleviating the impact of the pandemic.
* Italy posted a record 12.8 percent economic contraction in the second quarter after household spending and investment fell during the close, pushing the eurozone’s third-largest economy into a deep recession.
* Russian state-controlled energy giant Gazprom announces that net profit fell 25 times in the first half of 2020 due to the economic crisis caused by the pandemic and low oil and gas prices.
In video: GDP growth contracts 23.9% in the first quarter due to the Covid pandemic
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