India on Saturday reported 8,603 new Covid-19 cases in the past 24 hours, pushing the overall tally of infections to 3,46,24,360 since the pandemic began in January last year. The number of new cases was 6.65% lower than Friday’s count of 9,216 cases.

The countrywide toll increased to 4,70,530 as 415 were recorded in the last 24 hours.

The number of active Covid-19 cases in the country stood at 99,974. As many as 3,40,53,856 people have recovered from the coronavirus till now, according to the health ministry.

India has administered a total of 1,26,53,44,975 coronavirus vaccine doses since the start of the vaccination drive on January 16. Of these, 73,63,706 vaccine doses were administered on Friday.

India updates

  • The Union government has spent Rs 19,675.46 crore on procuring coronavirus vaccines till November 27, Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya told the Lok Sabha on Friday. A total of Rs 35,000 crore has been budgeted for implementing the vaccination drive in the financial year 2021-2022, the minister said.
  • The country has registered 51,775 cases of mucormycosis, commonly known as black fungus, till November 29, Mansukh Mandaviya told the Lok Sabha on Friday. Maharashtra has registered 10,366 mucormycosis cases, the highest in the country, the health ministry’s data showed.
  • People in Tamil Nadu’s Madurai district have been given a week’s time to get at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, after which unvaccinated persons will not be allowed to enter public places like hotels, shopping malls and commercial establishments, District Collector Aneesh Sekhar said, according to ANI.

Global updates

  • The total number of Covid-19 cases in Europe crossed 75 million on Friday, Reuters reported. The United Kingdom has registered the highest number of infections on the continent, followed by Russia, France and Germany.
  • Coronavirus cases in South Africa crossed three million on Friday as the country battles a surge driven by the Omicron variant, AFP reported. In the past 24 hours, the country registered 16,055 new cases.
  • The coronavirus has infected over 26.48 crore people across the world and caused over 52.42 lakh deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins University.