India on Thursday morning recorded 43,509 coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, pushing the infection tally to 3,15,28,114 since the pandemic broke out in January last year. The number of new infections is marginally lower than Wednesday’s count of 43,654.

However, the number of active cases climbed by 4,404 to 4,03,840. With 640 new deaths, the toll mounted to 4,22,662. There are 3,07,01,612 patients who have recovered from the coronavirus infection.

Source: Ministry of Family Health and Welfare

So far, India has administered 45,07,06,257 Covid-19 doses. As many as 43,92,697 shots were given on Wednesday alone.

On Wednesday, the Centre extended the implementation of guidelines for the management of the coronavirus disease till August 31 and directed states to take “strictest possible measures” in districts that have a high positivity rate, India Today reported.

Here are some top updates from today:

  1. The Centre announced that it was sending a six-member team to Kerala to help with Covid-19 management amid a surge in cases. The state will be under a complete lockdown on July 31 and August 1. Kerala reported 22,056 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, taking the tally to 33,27,301 since the pandemic broke out in January 2020. The state’s positivity rate was at 11.2%. Kerala’s toll rose to 16,457 with 131 more deaths.
  2. The West Bengal government extended Covid-19 restrictions till August 15 but has eased certain curbs, ANI reported. Government programmes will be allowed at indoor venues with 50% seating capacity. Night curfew will last from 9 pm to 5 am
  3. The fourth countrywide serological survey conducted by the Indian Council of Medical Research showed that Madhya Pradesh has the highest Covid-19 seroprevalence among the states at 79%, while Kerala has the lowest (44.4%). Serological surveys reveal how many people have antibodies against an infection.
  4. Brazil has temporarily suspended import authorisation for Bharat Biotech’s Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin, Reuters reported on Thursday. Bharat Biotech had last week cancelled its vaccine deal with Brazilian intermediary Precisa Medicamentos amid an investigation into the allegations of corruption in the agreement.
  5. The delta variant of Covid-19 is spreading in China’s Nanjing city, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday. New infections are giving rise to clusters of cases in China despite strict quarantine measures and mass testing.
  6. The United States on Wednesday announced an aid of $25 million (Rs 186.32 crore) to assist India’s Covid-19 vaccination programme. The United States Agency International Development said that it has allocated more than $226 million (about Rs 1,670 crore) as Covid-19 relief to India since March 2020.
  7. Globally, Covid-19 has infected 19.59 crore people and caused 41.86 lakh deaths since the pandemic broke out in December 2019, according to Johns Hopkins University.