Covid News Wrap: India reports 1,007 new cases, active infections rise; Shanghai cases hit record

India on Thursday recorded 1,007 new coronavirus infections, taking the total tally of Covid-19 cases to 4,30,39,023, while the active cases rose to 11,058. According to the Union Health Ministry data, the death toll climbed to 5,21,737 with one fatality reported from Maharashtra. An increase of 188 cases has been recorded in the active Covid-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.

The numbers came on a day when forty-four people, including 15 children, in Uttar Pradesh’s Noida tested positive for Covid-19. The number of active cases in the district has crossed the 100-mark to reach 121 now. At least three schools in Noida and Ghaziabad have suspended physical classes temporarily after cases were detected. Delhi’s schools have been operating in full swing from April 1 at full capacity.

Shanghai cases hit record, over 27,000 infections in a day

In Shanghai, China’s financial hub, over 27,000 coronavirus cases have been reported on Thursday, a new high, a day after President Xi Jinping said that the country must continue with its strict “dynamic COVID clearance” policy.

Shanghai is battling China’s worst Covid-19 outbreak since the virus first emerged in Wuhan in late 2019, with its 25 million residents remaining largely under lockdown, though restrictions were partially eased in some areas this week. Mainland China reported 3,020 new confirmed coronavirus cases on April 13, the country’s national health authority said, compared with 1,513 a day earlier.

UK approves Valneva Covid-19 vaccine

The UK’s medicines regulator on Thursday approved Valneva as a new vaccine to protect against Covid-19, the first whole-virus inactivated COVID vaccine to gain regulatory approval in the country.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said it is the first in the world to approve the Valneva vaccine, which becomes the sixth Covid-19 vaccine to be granted an MHRA authorisation. With this type of vaccine, the virus is grown in a lab and then made completely inactive so that it cannot infect cells or replicate in the body but can still trigger an immune response to the Covid-19 virus.

Boris Johnson refuses to resign after being fined for breaking lockdown rules

Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson refused to resign after being fined for breaking his government’s pandemic lockdown rules, saying he would instead redouble his efforts to strengthen the economy and combat Russian aggression in Ukraine.

London police has fined Johnson and other people for attending a birthday party thrown for the prime minister at his Downing Street offices on June 19, 2020. The penalty made Johnson the first British prime minister ever found to have broken the law while in office.

US extends transit mask mandate through May 3 amid COVID uptick

In the US, the President Joe Biden’s administration has extended the nationwide mask requirement for airplanes and public transit for 15 days as it monitors an uptick in Covid-19 cases.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it was extending the order, which was set to expire on April 18, until May 3 to allow more time to study the BA.2 omicron subvariant that is now responsible for the vast majority of cases in the US.

Hong Kong to ease social distancing measures as Covid cases fall

Hong Kong, on the other hand, is set to ease some social distancing measures later this month, allowing people to dine in at restaurants in the evening and lifting restrictions on private gatherings, as the number of Covid-19 infections declined in recent weeks. From April 21, restaurants will be able to operate until 10 pm with a maximum of four people per table, officials said.

Other businesses that were ordered to temporarily close due to Hong Kong’s fifth wave of infections, such as beauty parlors, gyms, theme parks and cinemas, will also be allowed to re-open, although capacity will be limited to 50%. Bars and pubs will remain closed. Restrictions that currently only allow two households to gather will also be lifted.

With inputs from agencies

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