1. United States’ top infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci on Sunday warned that things are going to get worse as the Delta variant of the coronavirus has been found in more than 130 countries since it was first detected in India. In an interview to ABC News, Fauci ruled out lockdowns, despite number of hospitalised patients in many states surging.
  2. World Health Organization Emergencies Director Michael Ryan also raised alarm about the Delta variant, AFP reported. “Delta is a warning,” he said at a press conference. “It’s a warning that the virus is evolving but it is also a call to action that we need to move now before more dangerous variants emerge.”
  3. India on Sunday morning recorded 41,831 new coronavirus cases, taking the country’s tally of cases to 3,16,55,824 since the pandemic broke out in January last year. With 541 deaths, the toll rose to 4,24,351.
  4. The reproduction rate, or R value, of Covid-19 in India has inched up from 0.96 to 1 over the past few days and it is a matter of concern, said All India Institute of Medical Sciences chief Randeep Guleria. The R value measures how many people are being infected by one Covid-positive person on an average. For instance, a value between 0.7 and 0.9 means that every 10 Covid-positive people will pass on the infection to seven to nine others.
  5. Kerala recorded more than 20,000 new infections for the sixth consecutive day. With 20,728 cases, the state’s total count jumped to 34,11,489. The toll increased by 56 to 16,837. The state’s test positivity rate, which is the percentage of people who test positive for the virus out of those who have been tested overall, stood at 12.14%.
  6. Tamil Nadu made it mandatory for travelers from Kerala to carry a negative RT-PCR test from August 5, The News Minute reported.
  7. The Kolkata Municipal Corporation will soon visit old and ailing residents of the city to vaccinate them against Covid-19, PTI reported. “We have spoken to the state health secretary and arranged for the same,” civic body chief Firhad Hakim said.
  8. Delhi reported 85 new Covid-19 cases and one death on Sunday. The Capital’s tally of cases since the outbreak of the pandemic in January last year rose to 14,36,350, while the toll reached 25,054.
  9. Thousands in France staged protests against the introduction of a health pass for entry to public places, Reuters reported. Three police officers were injured in Paris. The French government has introduced the new rule in view of the fourth wave of infections.
  10. Globally, Covid-19 has infected 19.77 crore people and caused 42.16 lakh deaths since the pandemic broke out in December 2019, according to Johns Hopkins University.