Here are the day’s top updates:

10.50 pm: Mumbai’s Covid-19 count climbs to 2,48,804 with 1,470 new cases in 24 hours. The toll rises to 9,966.

10.35 pm: Delhi reports 4,086 new cases in 24 hours. The tally has now risen to 3,48,404, including 3,16,214 recoveries and 6,189 deaths. There are 26,001 active cases.

10.30 pm: Maharashtra reports 7,347 new cases in 24 hours. With this, the state’s total cases rises to 16,32,544, with 43,015 deaths and 14,45,103 recoveries. There are 1,43,922 active cases.

8.43 pm: Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das says the risk of a second wave of the coronavirus could hamper the nascent recovery, according to PTI. His deputy MD Patra says that it might take years to regain the output lost on account of the pandemic.

8.40 pm: The England cricket team agrees to take a 15% pay cut in view of a shortfall in the England and Wales Cricket Board’s revenue “as a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic”, reports PTI.

8.37 pm: Norway Prime Minister Erna Solberg says new measures will be announced next week to curb the spread of the coronavirus amid an increase in the number of cases, according to Reuters. “The measures will be directed towards the areas where the infection is now spreading,” she says.

8.33 pm: Chandigarh reports 72 new Covid-19 infections, taking the total number of cases to 13,920, according to ANI.

8.31 pm: The number of coronavirus cases in Madhya Pradesh rises to 1,65,294 with the state reporting 953 new infections, reports ANI. The toll goes up by 13 to 1,325.

8.24 pm: Tamil Nadu reports 3,057 new Covid-19 cases, taking the tally in the state to 7,03,250, reports ANI. The toll is 10,858 and the active cases tally stands at 32,960.

7.05 pm: Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan says the next three months will be decisive in determining the Covid-19 situation in the country as he urges people to follow coronavirus-related guidelines in the coming festival season and winter months, reports PTI.

6.59 pm: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister CN Ashwath Narayan hints that the government might give the coronavirus vaccine for free to the citizens of the state once it is ready, reports PTI. However, Narayan says Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa will take a call on it.

6.57 pm: Karnataka reports 5,356 new coronavirus cases, taking the tally in the state to 7,93,907, according to ANI. The tally includes 89,483 active cases, 6,93,584 discharges and 10,821 deaths.

6.54 pm: Puducherry announces that all private offices, shops, restaurants and hotels will be allowed to remain open till 10 pm.

6.45 pm: Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Rane says the government will continue with plasma therapy on Covid-19 patients as it has given goods results in the state so far, reports The Hindu.

6.28 pm: The number of coronavirus cases in Andhra Pradesh rises by 3,765 to cross the 8-lakh mark, according to ANI. The toll is 6,544 with 20 new reported deaths.

6.24 pm: Puducherry reports 158 new Covid-19 cases, pushing the tally in the Union Territory to 33,986, reports ANI. The Union Territory has 3,975 active cases and its toll stands at 584.

4.12 pm: The number of coronavirus cases in the Maharashtra police rise to 26,057 as 69 more personnel test positive in the last 24 hours. The police force’s death toll stands at 274.

3.23 pm: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison says the government will slightly raise the limit on the number of citizens and permanent residents permitted to return from abroad each week, reports Reuters. The decision comes as local coronavirus cases have come down to single digits.

3.15 pm: Tripura reports 145 fresh Covid-19 cases, taking the tally to 30,070 in the state, reports PTI, citing health officials. The toll stands at 336 with five new fatalities.

3.12 pm: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami writes to Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, urging him to resume suburban train services in Chennai, reports PTI. The chief minister says it will benefit the public and help in the economic revival.

1.41 pm: “Students can register online, those students wanting to attend classes by coming to colleges should have consent from their parents,” Ashwath adds. “Depending on the strength- how the classes have to be held, in how many batches- everything will be decided along with all the necessary safety SOP.”

1.18 pm: The Karnataka government decides to open colleges from November 17, PTI reports, quoting Deputy Chief Minister CN Ashwath.

1.11 pm: Puducherry’s reports 158 new cases on Friday, which take its tally to 33,986, according to PTI. The Union territory’s toll rises by two to 584.

1.09 pm: Odisha’s coronavirus count rises to 2,77,887 on Friday, as it reports 1,793 new cases. The state’s toll rises by 18 to 1,214.

1.07 pm: India’s active cases fall below 7 lakh after two months, the government says.

11.56 am: Olivier De Schutte, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, says 150 million (15 crore) to 175 million (17.5 crore) more people across the world will plunge into extreme poverty due to the coronavirus crisis, PTI reports.

11.52 am: Delhi’s 3,882 new infections on Thursday were its highest daily count since September 19, Hindustan Times reports.

11.51 am: India’s coronavirus tests cross 10 crore.

11.47 am: Germany is preparing to start coronavirus vaccinations before the end of the year, Reuters reports. It is planning to create 60 special vaccination storage centres.

11.40 am: A project in the United Kingdom shows that traces of the coronavirus can be detected in sewage, which can help health officials identify the warning signs of local outbreaks, Reuters reports.

11.36 am: Peru rejects a coronavirus vaccine purchase deal with AstraZeneca, citing insufficient data from studies and minimal amount of inoculation, Reuters reports.

9.56 am: Credit Suisse Group AG’s 2020 Global Wealth Report released on Thursday reveals that household wealth largely held up and even increased in China and India amid the coronavirus crisis, reports Bloomberg.

“Given the damage inflicted by Covid-19 on the global economy, it seems remarkable that household wealth has emerged relatively unscathed,” says economist Anthony Shorrocks, one of the report’s authors.

9.52 am: France Prime Minister Jean Castex has announced that an overnight curfew will be extended to dozens more areas to slow the spread of coronavirus, reports BBC. “The coming weeks will be hard and the number of deaths will continue to rise,” Castex told a press conference on Thursday. “If we fail to stop the pandemic, we will be facing a dire situation and we will have to mull much tougher measures.”

9.50 am: Russia’s Sputnik-V coronavirus vaccine will be tested in India on 100 volunteers, says the Drugs Controller General of India, according to ANI.

Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Russian Direct Investment Fund or RDIF, and Dr Reddy’s had agreed to collaborate on the clinical trials and distribution of the Sputnik V vaccine in India in September. Under the partnership, Dr Reddy’s will conduct the clinical trials, and subject to regulatory approval, distribute the finished vaccine in India. RDIF, which is marketing the Sputnik V, will supply 100 million doses to Dr Reddy’s.

9.47 am: Congress leader P Chidambaram says the Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das, the Securities and Exchange Board of India chief and Department of Economic Affairs secretary have tried to “talk up” the economy. Das had said India is “at the doorstep of the revival process” from the coronavirus pandemic.

Chidambaram takes a swipe at them, saying he wishes the economy was a “circus lion” that would respond to the stick of the ringmaster. “The three distinguished men should tell the FM, in unison, that the vast majority of the people do not have the money or the inclination to buy goods and services,” he adds.

9.45 am: Dr Randeep Guleria, Director of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, says air pollution added with coronavirus infection and lung complications can possibly lead to serious consequences, reports ANI.

“Swine flu also shows a spike during winter months and it is likely that Covid-19 would also do the same,” Guleria adds. “Coming to air pollution, there is data that shows air pollution may also lead to a higher prevalence of Covid-19. This is based on the study being done in the last few months in Italy and China.”

9.26 am: India records 54,366 new coronavirus cases on Friday, taking its tally to 77,61,312. The toll from the pandemic stands at 1,17,306 with 7690 deaths. There are 6,95,509 active cases, 69,48,497 recoveries, and the recovery rate stood at 89.20%.

9.22 am: Covaxin, the coronavirus vaccine being developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research, has been cleared for the third phase of clinical trials, NDTV reports. The Hyderabad-based vaccine maker had applied for permission to the Drugs Controller General of India on October 2.

9.20 am: United States President Donald Trump claimed his government will release a vaccine against the coronavirus “within weeks”.

“We have a vaccine that’s coming, it’s ready, it’s going to be announced within weeks,” Trump said at last presidential debate in Nashville, which was moderated by NBC’s Kristen Welker. “It will be distributed very quickly.”

Also read:

Coronavirus vaccine expected ‘within weeks’, claims Donald Trump in final US presidential debate

9.18 am: The United States Food and Drug Administration on Thursday granted full approval to the antiviral drug remdesivir as a treatment for patients hospitalised with Covid-19, AFP reports. The drug was given conditional authorisation in May. Gilead said the drug, sold under the brand name Veklury, was the only specific treatment for Covid-19 approved so far under a more rigorous process.

9.15 am: Here are the top updates from Thursday.

  1. India recorded 55,839 new coronavirus cases, taking its tally to 77,06,946. The toll from the pandemic stood at 1,16,616 with 702 deaths.
  2. The Centre restored all existing visas with immediate effect except tourist visas, electronic visas and medical visas, eight months after their suspension following a nationwide lockdown to check the spread of the coronavirus.
  3. The Serum Institute of India has entered into an agreement with German pharmaceutical company Merck and New York-based non-profit health research organisation IAVI to develop a treatment for people who are infected with the coronavirus. The aim is to develop SARS-CoV-2 neutralising monoclonal antibodies that could help keep people healthy after they have been infected.
  4. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister E Palaniswami and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced that coronavirus vaccines in the state will be free of cost. These announcements came amid a row over the Bharatiya Janata Party promising free vaccines in Bihar ahead of the Assembly elections.
  5. Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi said he has tested positive for the coronavirus. His announcement came days before the state Assembly elections are scheduled to begin, while hectic campaigning continues.
  6. A day after Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro cancelled plans to buy a potential Covid-19 coronavirus vaccine from China, Beijing’s foreign ministry defended its research and development facilities.Addressing a media briefing, China’s Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian claimed that research and development of the country’s vaccines are spoken of highly by various countries. He said four Chinese vaccines are currently in the phase three clinical trial stage.