India reported 3,11,170 new cases in the last 24 hours, taking the overall tally to 2.46 crore. As many as 4,077 deaths were reported across the country. The toll now stands at 2,70,284, while active cases stand at 26.18 lakh.
Top 10 Developments:
1. The top five states which have registered maximum cases are Karnataka with 41,664 cases, followed by Maharashtra with 34,848 cases, Tamil Nadu with 33658 cases, Kerala with 32,680 cases and Andhra Pradesh with 22,517 cases.
2. Congress Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Satav who had contracted Covid-19 died on Sunday. Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala announced the news on Twitter and expressed his grief.
निशब्द !
आज एक ऐसा साथी खो दिया जिसने सार्वजनिक जीवन का पहला कदम युवा कांग्रेस में मेरे साथ रखा और आज तक साथ चले पर आज…
राजीव सातव की सादगी, बेबाक़ मुस्कराहट, ज़मीनी जुड़ाव, नेत्रत्व और पार्टी से निष्ठा और दोस्ती सदा याद आयेंगी।
अलविदा मेरे दोस्त !
जहाँ रहो, चमकते रहो !!! pic.twitter.com/5N94NggcHu
— Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) May 16, 2021
3. The first Kerala-bound Oxygen Express train, carrying six 20 ft Cryogenic containers with 118 MT liquid medical oxygen arrived at the Vallarpadam terminal of Kochi port from the Tata Steel plant in Odisha.
4. Concerned over the Cyclone Tauktae which is likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm, Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai will shift over 500 Covid-19 patients to other safe places.
5. Megastar Amitabh Bachchan received the second and final dose of the novel coronavirus vaccine today. The 78-year-old star, who had taken the first jab in April, took to Instagram to give an update to fans and followers.
6. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting to take stock of the country’s Covid-19 situation on Saturday. Following reports of ventilators lying unutilized, Modi called for an immediate audit of those provided to the states by the Central government.
7. The first batch of 10,000 doses of 2DG medicine for treating Covid-19 patients would be launched early next week, informed Defence Research and Development Organisation officials on Friday.
8. N Kudashev, Russian Ambassador to India says, “Efficacy of Sputnik V is well-known in the world. In Russia, it’s being successfully used to vaccinate citizens starting since 2nd half of 2020. Russian specialists declared it’s also effective against new Covid-19 strains.
9. As the Covid-19 situation remained under control in Pakistan during the Eid al-Fitr holidays with daily new cases showing a declining trend, the country has decided to ease a number of restrictions on transportation and commercial activities.
10. Eighteen states in the US and some major-label businesses have announced plans to end Covid-19 mask mandates either immediately or in the weeks to come, but others such as California, New York and New Jersey are moving forward with caution.