1. India on Monday registered 3,68,147 new coronavirus cases, taking the tally in the country to 1,99,25,604 since the pandemic broke out in January 2020. This is the second consecutive day when the daily infection count dropped after crossing the 4-lakh mark. The toll climbed by 3,417 to 2,18,959.
  2. The Allahabad High Court has announced the release of convicts, undertrials and those who are still in jail for failing to pay fines amid a surge of Covid-19 infections. Judicial officers have been directed to release them for a period of 60 days on parole or final bail. The court also granted a 60-day extension to prisoners already on parole.
  3. The Indian government refuted reports that claimed that it has not placed any new order for coronavirus vaccines despite the devastating second wave of the pandemic. It called such reports “incorrect and not based on facts”.
  4. The Delhi High Court asked the Centre to provide details of oxygen concentrators that were stuck at the customs department for clearance. In the evening, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs issued a clarification that there were no consignment of 3,000 oxygen concentrators with the customs authorities. Later, the agency tweeted about 300 oxygen concentrators from Hong Kong, stuck from April 30, being cleared by customs in Delhi.
  5. Union Minister Piyush Goyal claimed there was no shortage of oxygen in India and asked all hospitals to use supplies judiciously as per Union health ministry guidelines. He also cautioned against “black marketing or hoarding of oxygen cylinders”.
  6. The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test Postgraduate (NEET PG) 2021 was postponed for four months. NEET PG 2021 will not be held before August 31. Meanwhile, it was also decided to allow deployment of medical interns in Covid management duties under the supervision of their faculty.
  7. Pfizer’s Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla said that the pharmaceutical company was in talks with the Indian government for an “expedited approval pathway” for use of its Covid-19 vaccine.
  8. Twenty four patients died on Sunday in Chamarajanagar district hospital in Karnataka allegedly due to lack of oxygen supply. This came as hospitals across India are battling a devastating second wave of the coronavirus, with families scrambling for medicines and oxygen.
  9. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison defended his government’s decision to impose a jail term and a penalty for its citizens trying to return from India, saying it was in the country’s “best interests”.
  10. The coronavirus has now infected 15.24 crore people across the world and killed over 31.98 lakh since the pandemic broke out in December 2019, according to Johns Hopkins University. Over 8.92 crore people have recovered from the infection.