Here are the top updates from Thursday:

  1. Karnataka government extended the ongoing coronavirus lockdown in the state till June 14. Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said the decision was taken as the pandemic situation had worsened in the state. The state reported 18,324 new cases and 514 deaths in the last 24 hours.
  2. India recorded 1,34,154 new coronavirus cases over the past 24 hours, while deaths rose by 2,887. The country’s tally of infections now stands at 2,84,41,986 since the outbreak in January 2020, while the toll has reached 3,37,989, health ministry data showed.
  3. The Maharashtra government announced a five-level plan to lift its coronavirus-induced lockdown in the state. However, the Mumbai civic body Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has said that it will monitor the Covid-19 situation in the city till June 15 before easing curbs. The state reported 15,229 new cases and 307 deaths in the last 24 hours.
  4. The Centre announced that it has finalised a deal with Hyderabad-based pharmaceutical company Biological-E to reserve 30 crore coronavirus vaccine doses. Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said that the foreign ministry is in talks with Covid-19 vaccine makers such as Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson and Moderna about sourcing and possibly manufacturing doses in India.
  5. Vaccine maker Serum Institute of India sought indemnity from liability or legal protection from the government for any severe side effects of its coronavirus vaccine. Reports said this was a key condition put forth by pharmaceutical companies Pfizer and Moderna for supplying doses to India.
  6. Three accused in the Bhima Koregaon case – Mahesh Raut, Sagar Gorkhe and Ramesh Gaichor – tested positive for the coronavirus disease in Mumbai’s Taloja Jail. 
  7. Bharat Biotech said that the company and biopharmaceutical firm Ocugen Inc, its United States partner for Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin, have agreed to expand their agreement to commercialise the jab in Canada, reported the Mint.
  8. National Capital Delhi reported 487 new cases of coronavirus and 45 deaths due to the infection in the last 24 hours. Among other states with higher caseloads, Kerala reported 18,853 cases, while Tamil Nadu logged 24,405 infections.
  9. Unemployment levels lower in the United States as those applying for benefits dropped below four lakh for the first time since the pandemic broke out in the country, reported Reuters.
  10. Covid-19 has now infected over 17.17 crore people and killed over 36.93 lakh in the world since the pandemic broke out in December 2019, according to Johns Hopkins University.