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Tag: India

  • COVID-19 patient believed to be dead wakes up minutes to be cremated

    COVID-19 patient believed to be dead wakes up minutes to be cremated

    A Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patient who was believed to be dead has woken up minutes to when family members were to cremate her.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the incident happened at Mudhale village in Baramati, India.

    The family of the 76-year-old woman identified as Shakuntala Gaikwad was preparing for her last rites when she suddenly started crying and opened her eyes.

    The woman had tested positive for Covid-19 a few days back, according to local media.

    She was isolated at home but her condition deteriorated due to old age, following which the family decided to move her to a hospital in Baramati.

    On May 10, the elderly woman was taken to Baramati in a private vehicle. The family tried to secure a hospital bed for her in Baramati but were unable to.

    As they waited in the car, the woman fell unconscious and stopped moving. The family assumed that the woman had died. They also informed their relatives about the last rites.

    The family took her back home and started preparing for cremation. As the relatives mourned the loss, the woman was placed on the bier for her final journey.

    Suddenly, the woman started crying and then opened her eyes. Shocked, her family took her to a hospital.

    Policeman Santosh Gaikwad confirmed that the incident had taken place at Mudhale village in Baramati.

    Meanwhile, the woman was admitted to the Silver Jubilee Hospital in Baramati for further treatment, said Dr Sadanand Kale, the founder of Silver Jubilee Hospital.

  • 11 COVID-19 patients die in South India after oxygen supply breakdown

    11 COVID-19 patients die in South India after oxygen supply breakdown

    At least 11 COVID-19 patients who were admitted in the intensive care unit (ICU) died following an oxygen supply breakdown at a government-run hospital in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, officials said Tuesday.

    The deaths took place Monday evening in Tirupati, about 408 km south of Amaravati, the main city of Andhra Pradesh.

    “Last evening, the oxygen supply disrupted in SVR Ruia hospital, following which 11 COVID-19 critical patients admitted in the ICU succumbed,’’ an official said.

    The disturbing chaotic visuals from inside the wards show hospital staff trying to save sinking patients and desperate attendants crying helplessly, using hand fans to keep them alive.

    Victims’ families alleged the oxygen supply was disrupted for about 25-45 minutes.

    However, local government officials said it was the five-minute lag in reloading the oxygen cylinder that caused the pressure to drop, resulting in deaths.

    Local media reports said Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy has condoled the deaths and ordered a probe into the incident.

    The deaths have been reported at a time when India was fighting a deadly second wave of COVID-19, and the shortage of medical oxygen has emerged as a key challenge for the government.

    Since the second wave of the infection, similar incidents have unfolded across the hospitals in India in wake of the shortage of essential medical supplies, especially oxygen.

    India’s COVID-19 tally rose to 22,992,517 on Tuesday after 329,942 new cases were registered in the past 24 hours, and the total death toll rose to 249,992.

  • Fear lingers in India even as new COVID-19 cases decline

    Fear lingers in India even as new COVID-19 cases decline

    India saw a significant drop in daily coronavirus infections on Monday, with 366,161 reported.

    This is coming after logging more than 400,000 cases for four straight days.

    However, this would have likely been due to relatively lower testing at the weekend, experts said.

    COVID-19 claimed 3,754 lives in the past 24 hours, according to the country’s Health Ministry.

    This was also a decline, after 4,000 deaths a day for two consecutive days.

    The overall death toll now stands at 246,116.

    The new infections brought the overall caseload to more than 22.6 million, it said.

    Official data showed that 1,474,606 samples were tested on Sunday, almost 400,000 samples fewer than the 1,865,428 and 1,808,344 samples tested on previous days.

    After sparking a health care crisis in India’s main urban centres of New Delhi and Mumbai, the surge in infections in rural regions and cities like information technology hub Bengaluru posed a fresh challenge for authorities.

    Hospitals reported shortages of beds and medical oxygen as patients flooded the facilities.

    Medical experts said that mass vaccination was the only solution to India’s COVID-19 crisis, but the inoculation drive that began in January has faltered.

    Nearly 180 million doses have been administered so far.

    The pace has slowed down, despite the vaccine drive being extended to all adults above 18 years since May 1.

  • India hits 4,000 Covid deaths in a day

    India hits 4,000 Covid deaths in a day

    India recorded more than 4,000 coronavirus deaths in a day for the first time and more states imposed lockdowns Saturday in a desperate bid to halt the devastating new surge.

    The 4,187 new deaths took India’s overall toll to 238,270 since the pandemic started. It added another 401,078 new cases in 24 hours taking its caseload to nearly 21.9 million — second only to the United States.

    Experts, who have expressed doubts about the official death toll, say the new wave may not hit a peak until the end of May and there have been mounting calls for tough nationwide measures.

    Rahul Gandhi, leader of the opposition Congress party, called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to order a national lockdown or the spread could be “devastating” for India and other countries.

    Britain has already declared a new variant found in India to be of “concern”.

    The government, stung by criticism of its handling of the new crisis, has largely left individual state administrations to handle pandemic clampdowns.

    While major cities such as New Delhi and Mumbai have been boosted by extra supplies of oxygen — much of it from abroad — and new hospital beds opened up, the southern states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala have all ordered lockdowns to counter an explosion in cases.

    Karnataka, which includes the major IT hub of Bangalore, has ordered a statewide two-week lockdown from Monday in a bid to halt the spread of the virus.

    The state added more than 48,000 cases in a day with Bangalore, home to many Indian and global information technology giants, bearing the brunt.

    The city of nine million people, which saw 1,907 coronavirus deaths in April, has recorded more than 950 just in the first seven days of May.

    A lack of oxygen and critical care beds is being blamed for the dramatic rise in the death rate.

    Neighbouring Kerala, which is adding about 40,000 cases a day, started a nine-day lockdown from Saturday. Tamil Nadu, which includes the major city of Chennai, will start a 10-day lockdown from Monday.

    Coronavirus cases and deaths have also shot up in West Bengal state since its election, which was marked by huge rallies organised by Modi and his arch-rival, state chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

    The main city, Kolkata, also has a critical shortage of oxygen and beds.

    The Hindu nationalist government imposed a three month nationwide lockdown last year which helped halt the spread of the first major wave, but also caused huge economic damage.

    There are fears that the new surge could undermine the recovery in Asia’s third-biggest economy.

    The growing death toll has added to pressure for the government to act however.

    Gandhi said in his letter to the prime minister that “your government’s lack of a clear and coherent Covid and vaccination strategy … has placed India in a highly dangerous position.”

    Modi had “to understand India’s responsibility in a globalised and interconnected world” as “home to one out of every six human beings on the planet.”

  • India sets new COVID-19 records in daily cases, deaths

    India sets new COVID-19 records in daily cases, deaths

    India set new COVID-19 grim records on Thursday with daily cases reaching 412,618 and death toll just shy of making 4,000.

    According to figures published by worldometers.info the death toll recorded nationally on Wednesday was 3,982.

    This new deaths have escalated the cumulative toll to 230,151.

    The caseload since last year has also jumped to 21,070,852.

    On May 1, India had recorded what was then the highest daily count of 401,993.

    It has now broken its own record.

    Records for Tuesday, which were released on Wednesday showed that deaths rose to what was then deemed a record 3,780.

    Health ministry data showed that daily infections rose by 382,315.

    India had recorded in excess of 300,000 daily cases for the past two weeks.

    Medical experts say India’s actual figures could be five to 10 times the official tallies.

    The country has added 10 million cases in just over four months, after taking more than 10 months to reach its first 10 million.

    The opposition has urged a nationwide lockdown, but the government is reluctant to impose one for fear of the economic fallout, although several states have adopted social curbs.

    In the latest move the eastern state of West Bengal, where voters dealt Modi’s party a defeat in an election last week, suspended local train services.

    It also limited working hours for banks and jewellery shops, among its steps to limit infections.

    The central bank asked banks on Wednesday to allow more time for some borrowers to repay loans, as the crisis threatens a nascent economic revival.

  • FG imposes fresh COVID-19 measures aimed at flights from Brazil, India, Turkey

    FG imposes fresh COVID-19 measures aimed at flights from Brazil, India, Turkey

    The massive resurgence of COVID-19 cases and deaths in Brazil, Turkey and India has prompted the Nigerian Government to impose fresh measures aimed at preventing further importation of the coronavirus into the country.

    The Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) on COVID-19, chaired by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr Boss Mustapha, said in a statement on Sunday in Abuja that the new measures included a ban on entry of non-Nigerian passengers who had travelled to the three countries in the last 14 days.

    Brazil, Turkey and India recorded a combined 2,670 deaths as of May 1, 2021.

    The data also showed that Brazil recorded 60,013 additional cases and 2,278 new deaths in the last 24 hours.

    Turkey recorded 28,817 new cases and 373 new deaths, while India registered 7,801 new cases and 19 new deaths on the same day.

    Mustapha said Nigerians and other permanent residents who had been to these three countries in the last 14 days, would be allowed entry to the nation, but must undergo a one-week quarantine in a government-approved facility.

    The SGF expressed the Nigerian Government’s empathy to the governments of the three countries, saying: “the country assures them of our commitment, unflinching support and solidarity at this time of need.”

    The PSC chairman said the new travel restrictions are in line with Federal Government’s efforts, “to continue to safeguard the health of the Nigerian population, as well as to minimise the risk of a surge in the number of COVID-19 cases in Nigeria.

    He said the PSC carried out a risk assessment of countries with high incidence of cases, saying: “These precautionary measures are a necessary step to minimise the risk of a surge in COVID-19 cases into Nigeria from other countries, while national response activities continue.

    “Nigerians are strongly advised to avoid any non-essential international travels to any country at this period and specifically to countries that are showing rising number of cases and deaths.

    “The PSC on COVID-19, after due consideration, has therefore approved the implementation of the following measures: Reduction of the validity period of pre-boarding COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test for all Nigeria-bound passengers from 96hrs to 72 hours. Henceforth PCR test results older than 72hours before departure shall not be accepted.

    “Guidelines Specific to Brazil, India and Turkey.

    “Non-Nigerian passport holders and non-residents who visited Brazil, India or Turkey within 14 days preceding travel to Nigeria, shall be denied entry into Nigeria. This regulation, however, do not apply to passengers who transited through these countries.

    “The following measures shall apply to airlines and passengers who fail to comply with I and II(a) above: Airlines shall pay a mandatory penalty of 3,500 dollars for each defaulting passenger.

    “Non-Nigerians will be denied entry and returned to the country of embarkation at cost to the Airline.

    ”Nigerians and those with permanent resident permit who visited Brazil, India or Turkey within 14 days, preceding travel to Nigeria shall be made to undergo seven days of mandatory quarantine in a Government-approved facility at the point-of-entry city and at cost to the passenger. The following condition shall apply to such passengers:

    “Within 24 hours of arrival shall take a COVID-19 PCR test. If positive, the passenger shall be admitted within a government-approved treatment centre, in line with National treatment protocols.

    “If Negative, the Passenger shall continue to remain in quarantine and made to undergo a repeat PCR test on day 7 of their quarantine.

    “Passenger(s) arriving in Nigeria from other destinations Must observe a 7-day self-isolation at their final destination.

    “Carry out a COVID-19 PCR test on day 7 at selected laboratory.

    “Shall be monitored for compliance to isolation protocol by appropriate authorities.

    “False declaration: Passenger(s) who provided false or misleading contact information will be liable to prosecution.

    Person(s) who willfully disregard or refuse to comply with directions of Port-Health staff, security agencies or evade quarantine shall be prosecuted in accordance with the law.

    “State governments are required to ensure that all returning travelers from ALL countries are monitored to ensure adherence to the mandatory seven-day self-isolation period and the repeat COVID-19 PCR test on the seventh day after arrival.”

    The SGF stated that the travel advisory,” shall come into effect from May 4, while adding that the guidelines provided in this document shall be subject to review after an initial period of four weeks.”

    The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on Saturday recorded 43 new COVID-19 infections in seven states across the country.

    The new figures raised the total number of infections in the country to 165,153, an update published by NCDC on Saturday night indicated.

    Lagos had the highest figure on Saturday with 28 new cases followed by the FCT and Rivers with four new cases each.

    According to the update, no new death was recorded from the virus which has already claimed 2,063 lives in the country, making it the third consecutive day that nobody has died from the disease.

    The number of deaths recorded from the virus has declined recently with only two deaths recorded in the last 18 days.

  • New record of 379,000 daily coronavirus cases in India

    New record of 379,000 daily coronavirus cases in India

    India had a new record in daily Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) infections with more than 379,000 cases recorded in the past 24 hours, figures from India’s Health Ministry showed on Thursday.

    In addition, 3,645 people as a result of the disease, the ministry said.

    From May, all adults in India are to be able to get vaccinated.

    When people were able to register online from Wednesday, the rush was so great that the servers of the registration website were overloaded at times, Indian media and many Twitter users reported.

    Initially, vaccinations are to be available only after online registration.

    But vaccines in India are in short supply given the large population of more than 1.3 billion even though India produces vaccines en masse and is known as the pharmacy of the world.

    So far, less than 10 per cent of people have received at least one vaccine dose.

    The fierce second wave has seen huge religious festivals and election campaign events in recent weeks, as well as a virus variant that is slightly more infectious and resilient to immunity, German virologist Christian Drosten stated.

    The total number of infections has risen to more than 18 million in the populous South Asian nation.

    In addition, a total of more than 200,000 people have died in connection with COVID-19 since the pandemic began.

    According to the World Health Organisation, 38 per cent of the COVID-19 cases reported worldwide earlier were from India

  • FG cautions Nigerians against travelling to India, South Africa, Turkey, Brazil

    FG cautions Nigerians against travelling to India, South Africa, Turkey, Brazil

    The Federal Government has warned Nigerians against travelling to nations that are recording a third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially India where they largely go to for medical tourism.

    It also itemized South Africa, Turkey and Brazil in the travel advisory.

    The Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19, formerly Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, also has cautioned Nigerians against shunning safety protocols against the virus, saying the pandemic was not over.

     

    The National Incident Manager, PSC, Dr Mukhtar Muhammad, spoke at the media briefing by the committee on Monday.

    Muhammad said, “While we continue to reopen the economy, we must also be aware of the happenings around the globe. Mr Chairman (Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha) and the Honourable Minister of Health (Prof. Osagie Ehanire) have made reference to specific incidents in India, Turkey, Brazil and South Africa.

    “We sympathise with the people of these countries because it is really a very trying time particularly for India that is recording over 300,000 cases a day, and recording over 2,000 deaths.

    “India is a prime destination for medical tourism for Nigeria. We know that many Nigerians like to travel – to go to India but now… we urge Nigerians to limit all travels to only essential travels, particularly to these affected countries.”

    Muhammad noted that the safety guidelines regarding public spaces and mask wearing still applied to public places such as supermarkets, malls, event centers, adding that “enforcement will continue to be observed and we will continue to monitor these places for violations.”

    The Federal Government has expressed disappointed over what it called vaccine hesitancy among Nigerians.

    The Secretary to the Government of the Federation and Chairman of the PSC, Boss Mustapha, lamented what it called vaccine hesitancy among Nigerians.

    He said, “​The vaccination programme is still progressing but we still have reasons to intensify our campaign against hesitancy.

    “The records show that we have vaccinated 1,173,869 representing 58.3 per cent of the eligible persons targeted in the current phase have received the first dose of Astra Zeneca vaccine. This is low in our estimation.”

    Mustapha told Nigerians that while the nation mark the holy month of Ramadan, citizens must not forget that the virus was still contagious and raging in some other countries.

     

  • India records 352,000 new daily COVID-19 cases, 2,812 deaths

    India records 352,000 new daily COVID-19 cases, 2,812 deaths

    India on Monday saw a new global record of 352,991 daily new COVID-19 infections as a second wave of the pandemic overwhelmed the health systems.

    This prompted countries like the U.S., Britain, France and Germany to offer support.

    The South Asian country had registered 2,812 COVID-19 deaths in the past 24 hours, the deadliest since the pandemic began, data from India’s federal Health Ministry showed.

    India has been logging global daily records of over 300,000 cases for the last five days in the world’s worst-ever COVID-19 outbreak.

    Altogether, 195,123 people have died while 17.3 million people have been infected with the virus in India.

    Hospitals, helpless patients, their families and friends in major cities have been sending distress messages for medical oxygen, hospital beds and medicines.

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the COVID-19 “storm has shaken the country’’ and India’s top priority was to fight the pandemic.

    U.S. President Joe Biden has said his country was “determined to help India in its time of need.’’

    The U.S. confirmed that it will make available sources of raw materials required to increase production of the Covishield vaccine.

    Britain said it would send life-saving medical equipment including hundreds of oxygen concentrates and ventilators to support India’s fight against the virus.

    The European Union, Germany and Israel have also offered help.

    India, the worst-affected country worldwide after the U.S., is in the grip of a second deadly wave that began mid-February.

    Experts attribute the rapid spread of cases to presence of more infectious variants of the virus, people’s failure to observe safety measures as well as a lack of preparedness by the government.

  • COVID-19: India’s super wealthy flee to UK in 8 private jets ahead of travel ban

    COVID-19: India’s super wealthy flee to UK in 8 private jets ahead of travel ban

    Eight private jets carrying some super wealthy Indians have landed in London ahead of the travel ban placed on India by the United Kingdom (UK).

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the travel ban placed on India by the UK started 4 a.m. local time on Friday.

    The private jets carrying the super wealthy Indians left Dubai on Thursday to collect passengers in Mumbai.

    The luxury airliners, VistaJet Bombardier Global 6000, landed at 3:15 a.m., just 44 minutes before the restrictions took place.

    As of Friday, any Britons returning from India must quarantine for 10 days in a government-approved hotel.

    All non-British or non-Irish citizens will be banned entirely from entering the country if they have been in India in the previous 10 days.

    British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had to cancel his own state visit to India scheduled for next week as a “precautionary measure”.

    The private jet passengers, who were not named, were fleeing unimaginable horror back home.

    At least 14 COVID-19 patients perished in a devastating fire that ripped through an ICU ward in one of India’s overcrowded hospitals about 70 miles outside Mumbai.

    The fire that broke out around 3 a.m. Friday morning was contained and extinguished, but not before 14 patients—many who were intubated and hard to evacuate—had died.

    “Around 90 patients were admitted to the hospital at the time of the incident,” Dilip Shah, the head of the Vijay Vallabh Hospital where it happened, said in a statement on Friday.

    Earlier in the week, an oxygen leak in Maharashtra state, near where the fire broke out, resulted in the death of 24 COVID-19 patients who were on ventilators.

    To make terrible matters even worse, India reported its highest one-day number of cases, recording 332,730 new infections in a 24-hour period. In the same period, 2,263 people died with COVID-19.

    India has been overwhelmed by new cases coupled with a critical shortage of oxygen, hospital beds, and now ventilators. Many desperate families have been forced to turn to black-market price gougers who have been able to buy hospital space from corrupt administrators.

    The spike in cases comes as political rallies are still being held and after a month-long religious ceremony continues to bring millions of people to the Ganges River.

    India Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been criticized for not calling a national lockdown to try to mitigate the spread and for hosting rallies ahead of elections in May.

    Government officials have said the previous lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic was economically devastating to many manual laborers who then traveled by foot from home cities to their villages, carrying the virus with them.

    The development forced the UK government to place the travel ban on India, leaving the super rich fleeing the country.