Here are the top updates from Saturday:

  1. The Centre asked 11 states and Union Territories to immediately increase the rate of administering the first shot of the Covid-19 vaccine among beneficiaries over 18, and focus on vaccinating the above 60 age group. The states are Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura and Uttarakhand.
  2. India on Saturday morning recorded 42,618 new Covid-19 cases in the past 24 hours, pushing the infection tally in the country to 3,29,45,907 since the pandemic broke out in January last year. The toll rose to 4,40,225 after 330 deaths were reported in a span of 24 hours. The active caseload increased for the fourth consecutive day, and is presently at 4,05,681 cases.
  3. Kerala has recorded 29,682 new infections, 142 deaths, and 25,910 recoveries. The state’s active cases are 2,50,065, and the toll is 21,422, reported ANI. The Covid-19 test positivity rate is 17.54%. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that after reviewing the state’s Covid situation, it had been decided that the night curfew and Sunday lockdown would be continued.
  4. Delhi has not reported any death due to Covid-19 for the fourth consecutive day, according to data by the health department, reported NDTV. The toll in the city remained at 25,082, and the positivity rate was at 0.08%. The overall case count was 14,37,929.
  5. The KEM Hospital and Research Centre at the Vadhu Bukruk village in Pune district will begin enrolling children for phase 2 and 3 clinical trials of coronavirus vaccine Covovax on Monday. Covovax has been developed by American biotechnology company Novavax. Serum Institute of India, which is producing the vaccine, will conduct the trials in India.
  6. In Tamil Nadu, where educational institutes resumed classes partially or completely last week, Covid-19 protocol appears to have been flouted, reported NDTV. Some students and teachers have tested positive for the disease after colleges, polytechnic institutes and schools opened for Classes 9 to 12 from September 1.
  7. The Philippines will lift the travel restrictions for all passengers from India and nine other countries from September 6, reported IANS, citing presidential spokesperson Harry Roque.
  8. The devastation caused because of Hurricane Ida in the southern US states has given rise to fears of the spread of the coronavirus, reported BBC.
  9. Japan plans to extend a state of Covid-19 emergency for Tokyo till the last week of September in an attempt to control the spread of coronavirus infections, Reuters reported, citing the Mainichi newspaper.
  10. Covid-19 has infected more than 21.99 crore people and led to over 45.57 lakh deaths since the beginning of the pandemic in December 2019, according to John Hopkins University.