(Contains Press releases concerning Covid-19, issued in last 24 hours, inputs from PIB Field Offices and Fact checks undertaken by PIB)

India continues to scale new heights in COVID-19 tests, Over 11.5 lakh tests conducted in the last 24 hour

On the day when India has registered the highest single day recoveries of nearly 75,000, it continues to set a record in testing too. More than 11.5 lakh COVID samples have been tested in the last 24 hours. India is one of the few countries that have reported very high numbers of daily testing. The daily testing capacity has already crossed 11 lakh. With 11,54,549 tests conducted in the last 24 hours, India has further strengthened the national diagnostic capacity. With this achievement, the cumulative tests have crossed 5.18 crore (5,18,04,677).Timely diagnosis through higher levels of country-wide testing has facilitated lower mortality rates (1.69% today) and speedy recovery. The Tests Per Million have seen a sharp increase to 37,539. It continues to maintain the constant upward trend. From one testing lab in Pune in January 2020, today the country stands strengthened with 1678 labs including 1040 labs in the government sector and 638 private labs.

For details:

India sees an unprecedented surge in Recoveries, Nearly 75,000 recoveries in last 24 hours,Total number of Recovered Cases nearly 34 lakh

In the last 24 hours, India has scaled a new high of recoveries. The total number of recovered patients in a single day has surged to a record 74,894. With this, the total number of recoveries has touched 33,98,844 taking the Recovery Rate to 77.77%. The total number of recoveries on a weekly basis has increased from 1,53,118 during the third week of July to 4,84,068 in the first week of September 2020.  A total of 89,706 new cases have been reported in the last 24 hours, of which Maharashtra has alone contributed more than 20,000 and Andhra Pradesh has contributed more than 10,000. 60% of the new cases are reported from only 5 States. The total number of active cases in the country stands at 8,97,394 as on date. Maharashtra is leading this tally with more than 2,40,000 whereas Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh follow with more than 96,000 each. Five States of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu contribute 61% of the total active cases. A total of 1,115 deaths have been registered in the past 24 hours. Maharashtra has reported 380 deaths followed by Karnataka with 146 deaths, whereas Tamil Nadu has logged 87 deaths.

For details:

Dr. Harsh Vardhan attends 73^rd session of WHO South East Asia Region through Video Conferencing

Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare digitally attended the73rd session of WHO South East Asia Region today. This is the first time the two-day event is being held entirely through virtual platforms owing to the COVID pandemic. Representing India in the meet, Dr. Harsh Vardhan highlighted the giant strides the country had made under the guidance of Prime Minister Sh. Narendra Modi to protect the lives and livelihood of its citizens from the pandemic and “left no stones unturned to contain and mitigate the virus.”Speaking on the multi-faceted and multi-sectoral nature of health governance that demands linkages to solutions, resources and interventions to deliver tangible benefits, he said, “The Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan, Housing for All by 2022, Nutrition Mission, Skill Development, Smart Cities, Eat Right India, Fit India and many such multi-sectoral initiatives have been launched which are bringing us dividends in terms of elevating the quality of life of our people thereby elevating their health condition.”

For details:

PM holds 'Svanidhi Samvaad' with street vendors from Madhya Pradesh

The Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi held 'Svanidhi Samvaad' with street vendors from Madhya Pradesh. The Government of India had launched PM Svanidhi scheme on 1st June, 2020 to help poor street vendors, impacted by COVID-19, resume livelihood activities. 4.5 lakh street vendors were registered in Madhya Pradesh, out of which acceptance has been granted to around 1.4 lakh street vendors of amount worth Rs 140 crore.Speaking on the occasion, Prime Minister praised the efforts of the Street Vendors to bounce back and appreciated their self - confidence, perseverance and hard work. The Prime Minister said any calamity first affects the poor impacting their jobs, food and savings.He referred to the tough times when most of the poor migrants had to return to the villages.The Prime Minister asked the Street Vendors to maintain cleanliness and follow all the measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. This he said would help them increase their business.

For details:

Text of Prime Minister's interaction with street vendors from Madhya Pradesh

For details:

PM to launch Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana on 10th September

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will digitally launch the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) on 10th September. Prime Minister will also launch e-Gopala App, a comprehensive breed improvement marketplace and information portal for direct use of farmers. Several other initiatives in the fisheries and animal husbandry sectors in Bihar will also be launched by the Prime Minister on the occasion. PMMSY is a flagship scheme for focused and sustainable development of fisheries sector in the country with an estimated investment of Rs. 20,050 crores for its implementation during a period of 5 years from FY 2020-21 to FY 2024-25 in all States/Union Territories, as a part of AatmaNirbhar Bharat Package. The investment of Rs. 20,050 crores under PMMSY is the highest ever in the fisheries sector. Out of this, an investment of about Rs 12340 crores is proposed for beneficiary-oriented activities in Marine, Inland fisheries and Aquaculture and about Rs 7710 crores investment for Fisheries Infrastructure.

For details:

Webinar on Scientific & Technological Interventions by CSIR-CMERI combating COVID-19 under Jigyasa programme

CSIR-CMERI Durgapur in association with Samagra Siksha, Department of School Education, Jammu & Kashmir organized a webinar yesterday on Scientific & Technological Interventions by CSIR-CMERI combating COVID-19 as a part of the ‘Jigyasa’ programme.

For details:

Khadi’s E-Market Portal Goes Viral; Indians Go Vocal for Local

Khadi and Village Industry Commission’s (KVIC) venture into the online marketing segment has quickly established a pan-India reach enabling the artisans sell their products to the remotest parts of India through the KVIC E-Portal - www.kviconline.gov.in/khadimask/. The online sale that was launched with just Khadi Face Masks on July 7 this year has evolved into a full-fledged E-market platform with 180 products as on today and many more in the pipeline. KVIC is adding at least 10 new products to its online inventory on a daily basis and it has set a target of adding at least 1000 products by October 2 this year. In less than two months’ time, KVIC has served nearly 4000 customers.

For details:

INPUTS FROM PIB FIELD OFFICES

• Punjab: With a view to strengthen screening of the population for timely detection of corona virus positive patients to contain the spread of pandemic, Punjab Government has decided to allow private hospitals/clinics/labs to conduct Rapid Antigen Testing (RAT) for COVID-19 after empanelment with District Health Authorities.
• Maharashtra: For the first time in more than three months, the novel Coronavirus numbers in Maharashtra have now started to grow at a faster rate than the country as a whole. The daily growth rate (seven-day compounded rate) in Maharashtra has gone up to 2.21 per cent, while at the national level this has remained at 2.14 per cent.  From a level of about 10,000 to 12,000 cases per day, Maharashtra has beginning to report more than 20,000 cases now.  Maharashtra itself seems to be driven by Pune, which has been reporting more than 4,000 cases for the last few days, the highest in the country. The number of active cases in Maharashtra is 2,43,809. According to data given by the Municipal authorities, 7,099 buildings have been sealed in the city, while the number of containment zones is 568. Meanwhile, Maharashtra Government has directed all Oxygen manufacturing units in the state to allocate 80% of their production for medical purposes. It has stationed teams of government officials drawn from the Food & Drug Administration Department, Excise Department and Police at oxygen manufacturing units, in the wake of instances of black marketing being reported.
• Gujarat: A fire broke out at the Vadodara Municipal Corporation-run SSG hospital on Tuesday night where 272 Covid-19 positive patients were undergoing treatment. The fire broke out in one of the ICU wards on the first floor of the Covid-19 isolation building, caused by a short circuit in the wiring of one of the ventilators in the ICU.  Though no one was injured, all 39 patients from the ICU ward have been evacuated.
• Rajasthan: The Rajasthan Chief Minister Shri Ashok Gehlot has cancelled all meetings for a month on the advice of doctors.  During this period, he will only hold video conferences for governance. The announcement comes in the wake of more than 40 employees of CM residence and office testing positive for Covid. These include policemen and Rajasthan Armed Constabulary jawans posted as CM’s security.
• Madhya Pradesh: The Madhya Pradesh government has announced free of cost Covid-19 test for all in the state. The decision was taken in a state cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who has also decided to increase the number of fever clinics in the state. It has also been decided in the meeting that number of oxygen beds will be increased with additional 3,700 beds, after which, the number of oxygen beds will reach to 11,700.
• Chhattisgarh: The Covid-19 tally in Chhattisgarh has crossed the 50,000-mark and reached 50,114 with 2,545 fresh cases. The toll from the pandemic has gone up to 407 in the state, which now has 26,915 active cases. Around 40% of cases reported are from rural areas.
• Arunachal Pradesh:  In Arunachal Pradesh, 221 more people tested positive for COVID-19 and  one death in the state. Active cases 1670 and recovery rate 69.42 %. A total of 9 people have lost their lives due to COVID-19 so far.
• Assam: In Assam, 2579 more people tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday and discharged 2166 people. Total cases 1,30,823, active 29,203 and total discharged 101239.
• Manipur: In Manipur, 96 more people tested positive for  COVID-19 and 126 recoveries with 76 percent recovery rate. There are 1679 active cases.
• Mizoram: In Mizoram, 69 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed yesterday. Total cases 1192, active cases 447 and 745 patients recovered so far.
• Nagaland: In Nagaland, Dimapur DC issues safety guidelines for goods & passenger vehicles. All drivers/helpers of goods carriers to be screened at entry and passenger vehicles to maintain log book for travellers.    Break up of the state's 4245 positive cases: armed forces account for 1823 cases, returnees 1312, frontline workers 309 & traced contacts 801.
• Kerala: The State Health Department has decided to increase Covid-19 testing in the districts of Malappuram, Kasargod, Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam. A report of the health department points out that Covid-19 death rates are higher in Kannur, Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode. The death rate in these districts during the month of August is higher than the State’s average. The interval after which cases double in the State has increased to 27.9 days. Meanwhile, 108 inmates of a destitute home in the capital tested positive today. Kerala’s Covid cases crossed 3000 mark for second time yesterday, with 3,026 new ones taking the total number of active cases in the state to 23,217. As many as 1.98 lakh people are under observation across the State. The official death toll has risen to 372.
• Tamil Nadu: Chennai Metro extends operations till 9 pm from Thursday considering several requests from the public; Phase-1 extension of the metro to be ready by December which was earlier to be inaugurated by June after the work was hit due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Four divisions in Alandur are Chennai’s new hotspots; in Chennai Alandur has the highest number of active cases, 13 per cent as on Monday. 5684 new cases, 6599 discharges & 87 deaths reported yesterday. Total cases reported in TN : 4,74,940; Active cases: 50,213; Deaths: 8012;  Discharges: 4,16,715; Active cases in Chennai: 11,029.
• Karnataka:Deputy Chief Minister Dr.C.N.Ashwatha Narayana, who is also the Minister for the Department of Electronics & IT, today launched 22 products which would help to mitigate the Covid-19 pandemic. Among these, 6 products were supervised by the Bengaluru Bio-Innovation Center (BBC) under the aegis of Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society (KITS), and 16 products were supervised by others. Speaker Vishwsha Hegde Kageri said that Covid test must for those who attending legislative session starting from September 21.
• Andhra Pradesh:To quicken the process of Covid-19 treatment, Andhra Pradesh has launched a plasma donation drive, as part of which a database of all the eligible recovered patients is being maintained. Each donor will be rewarded with Rs 5,000 to encourage others. At present, the State has 37,000 potential plasma donors and the process of taking their consent is going on. The state is currently conducting 65,000 to 70,000 Covid-19 tests every day and spending Rs 15 crore per day (approx.) for all Covid-related arrangements including food, lodging, medicines and tests.
• Telangana: 2479 new cases, 2485 recoveries & 10 deaths reported in the last 24 hours; out of 2479 cases, 322 cases reported from GHMC. Total cases: 1,47,642; Active cases: 31,654; Deaths: 916; Discharges:1,15,072. Osmania General Hospital's junior doctors have boycotted OPD, elective surgeries and ward duties indefinitely until their demands of having basic amenities such as monitors in post operative wards to see vitals & oxygen supply are met. CM KCR announces task force to regulate Covid treatment in Corporate Sector. In view of the hurdles created by the Covid pandemic, the Registrar of Companies for Telangana under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs on Tuesday granted a three-month extension to companies from the State to hold their AGM for the last financial year.

*******

YB