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

With more than 9 lakh tests in last 24 hour, India tests nearly 3.9 crore; India crosses another milestone- Total Recoveries cross 2.5 million

Keeping the focus on “Test, Track and Treat” strategy, India’s cumulative tests reach nearly 3.9 crore today. In the last 24 hours 9,24,998 tests were conducted across the country. This has spurred the total tests to 3,85,76,510. With more patients recovering and being discharged from hospitals and home isolation (in case of mild and moderate cases), India's total COVID-19 recoveries have surpassed 2.5 million today. Recovery of 25,23,771 patients has been made possible because of effective implementation of the policy of the centre-led policies that have been effectively been implemented by the State/UT governments. 56,013 COVID patients have recovered in the last 24 hours. India's Recovery Rate amongst the COVID-19 patients today stands at 76.24%. India has posted nearly 18 lakh (17,97,780) recoveries than the active cases (7,25,991 which are under active medical care). The sustained high recoveries have ensured that the actual caseload of the country viz. the active cases, comprises 21.93% of the total positive cases. Case Fatality Rate (CFR) has further slumped to stand at 1.83% today. 10 States/UTs are faring better in terms of Recovery Rate than the national average. The total number of labs has risen to 1550 , including 993 labs in the government sector and 557 private labs.

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Cabinet Secretary reviews 10 States/UT with high COVID Case Fatality; States urged to proactively limit COVID transmission and keep mortality below 1%

Cabinet Secretary held a video conference with the Chief Secretaries and Health Secretaries of nine States and one UT today. The States/UT attending  the VC were Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana, Gujarat, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. The VC was convened to review and discuss the COVID management and response strategy in these States/UT. The States/UT were advised to proactively take steps towards reducing case fatality to less than 1% across all districts focusing on effective containment, contact tracing & surveillance.

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India demonstrated itself as the trusted partner to the world, particularly in times of stress: Shri Piyush Goyal

Commerce and Industry Minister Shri Piyush Goyal today said that Cooperation, Collaboration and Commitment will guide the strategic partnership between India and ASEAN countries. Addressing the ASEAN-India Business Council virtual meet, Shri Goyal said the Covid-19 pandemic period provided a unique opportunity to India to demonstrate itself as the trusted partner to the world, particularly in times of stress. He said that during the early days of pandemic, India went out to the world for its requirements to fight Covid-19, but didn’t get much traction, as everyone was holding on for their own requirements. But, India, on the other hand, with the ability to provide medicines, acted as the Pharmacy for the world. We supplied medicines to over 150 countries of the world, to every part of the world, particularly to the less developed nations. Restrictions were imposed initially but that was with the noble intent of ensuring that the poor nations are not deprived of the medicines. All this showed that India is a resilient country, a trusted partner and a friend indeed.

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Shri Rajnath Singh launches mobile App for NCC Training

Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh launched the Directorate General National Cadet Corps (DGNCC) Mobile Training App here today. The App will assist in conducting countrywide online training of NCC cadets. In his address to the NCC Cadets, Raksha Mantri said the app will be useful to them in digital learning and overcoming the difficulties posed by COVID-19 due to restrictions on direct physical interactions. But if one moves ahead with determination and self-confidence, he or she would be able to clear all hurdles and achieve success, he added. Shri Rajnath Singh praised the contribution of more than one lakh NCC Cadets who supported the frontline Corona warriors by executing various tasks in the fight against the pandemic. The DGNCC Mobile Training App aims at providing NCC cadets entire training material (syllabus, précis, training videos and frequently asked questions) on one platform. The App has been made interactive by including a query option. By using this option, a cadet can post his question related to the training syllabus and the same will be answered by a panel of qualified instructors.

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Principal Bench of Armed Forces Tribunal initiates hearings of matters pertaining to Regional Benches through video conferencing

Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) Chairperson Justice Rajendra Menon inaugurated hearings by video conferencing for all ten Regional Benches of the Armed Forces Tribunal here yesterday. The Principal Bench of Armed Forces Tribunal is the only court that has been conducting physical hearings since June 8, 2020. Physical hearings are being conducted at Principal Bench taking into account hardships and limitations faced by Armed Forces personnel, retired as well as serving, primarily due to their far flung locations and various security related issues. With this provision of hearing by video conferencing, an immense relief has been brought to the Armed Forces personnel, whose applications are awaiting justice at various Regional Benches. Member Judicial Justice Mohammad Tahir and Members Administration Vice Admiral P Murugesan (Retd) & Lt Gen CA Krishnan (Retd) shall hear applications of the Regional Benches through video conferencing.

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Vice President calls for the nurturing of entrepreneurial talent among the youth

The Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu has called for the nurturing of entrepreneurial talent among the youth of the nation to make India ‘Atmanirbhar’ in the time to come. He said that we must tap into theentrepreneurial talent and technological skill of every citizen of the nation and harness our local resources to attain self-reliance and to serve the humanity at large. addressing a Webinar on Acharya Vinoba Bhave’s contribution to the dissemination of Gandhi Ji’s philosophy for social uplift and Bhoodan Movement, he called for the creation of a Sashakt Bharat, Swabhimani Bharat, and Atmanirbhar Bharat. Referring to the COVID-19 health emergency the Vice President said that in these testing times, we have to come together, pool our efforts, not only to contain the spread of virus but also to offer succour and solace, in a Gandhian way, to those who have been adversely affected by the lockdown.

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INPUTS FROM PIB FIELD OFFICES

• Chandigarh: The Administrator, UT Chandigarh, advised Director, PGIMER that if there are mild and stable cases in Nehru Hospital Extension, they could be shifted to other places, so that the beds remain reserved for critical patients only. He also directed Commissioner, MC to conduct regular sanitization in different areas of the city to contain the spread of Covid infection and other monsoon related diseases. 
  • Punjab: Citing the huge revenue losses suffered by the state government on account of the COVID pandemic and the resultant lockdown, Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh-led Punjab Cabinet has sought adequate compensation from the Government of India to support the state in these difficult times.
• Kerala:  State government has issued special instructions in the wake of Onam festival season to avoid crowding in public places. The order strictly prohibits celebrations at public places and crowded ‘Onam feast’ events. It also bans exhibition cum shopping festivals which are usually held during Onam. The order has also specifically asked people to avoid floral decorations in public places and not buy flowers from outside the state. Meanwhile, four Covid deaths were reported in the state till today afternoon, taking the toll to 301. Kerala shattered its single-day record for new Covid-19 infections yesterday with 2,476 cases. There are 22,344 active cases and as many as 1,89,781 people are under observation in the State.
• Tamil Nadu: Puducherry reports 511 Covid-19 cases and 10 deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the total cases to 12,434, active cases to 4,483, and deaths to 190 on Thursday. As many as 2,356 covid-19 positive people are in home isolation while 2,127 are admitted to hospitals. The health officials in Madurai are worried that the easing of the e-pass rules might lead to a possible spike in the number of Covid-19 cases in the district; on average 9,000 applications are being sanctioned a day through the automatic approval system. Reaffirming the State government’s stand, School Education Minister KA Sengottaiyan on Wednesday said they have been taking various measures to exempt students of Tamil Nadu from NEET.
• Karnataka: Medical Education Minister said Karnataka has opened up more economic activities even as we fight the virus and that Bengaluru is the most open city in India amidst pandemic. The private hospitals and nursing homes association said its members will be unable to pay salaries to their staff as state government has not reimbursed the bills of Covid-19 patients referred to private hospitals. High Court asked state government to give reasons for not increasing relief to non-health front line workers. Karnataka has so far conducted 25,80,621 tests across 108 labs in the state. 8,580 cases & 7,249 recoveries were reported yesterday of which 3,284 new cases were in Bengaluru. State's recovery rate stands at 70.47%.
• Andhra Pradesh:  State government has taken a crucial decision slashing Covid-19 test prices in the state. Orders have been issued to this effect by the Health Department. Samples sent by government hospitals to testing labs so far has been charged at Rs.2400 will now be priced at Rs.1600, while the samples sent by private hospitals charging Rs.2900 for test shall be charged Rs.1900 from now on. The government revealed that the price of test kits has come down due to their large scale production, compared to the times the virus has surfaced in the past. The coronavirus infection positivity rate in the state mounted to 11.19 per cent as against the national average of 8.59 per cent, according to the latest government bulletin.
• Telangana: 2795 new cases, 872 recoveries &  08 deaths reported in the last 24 hours; out of 2795 cases, 449 cases reported from GHMC. Total cases: 1,14,483; Active cases: 27,600; Deaths: 788; Discharges: 86,095. Telangana is projected to have around 50,000 Covid-19 cases in August alone. The Union Agricultural Ministry has lauded several initiatives of the State in the field of agriculture particularly the “Rytu Bandhu” scheme and the farmers coordination committees.
• Arunachal Pradesh: In Arunachal Pradesh, 143 more people tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, active 987 and recovery rate is 72%.
• Assam: In Assam, 2179 more people tested positive for COVID-19 on recovered  2148 people on Wednesday, total cases rise to 96771, active 19532, total recovered 76962 and 274 death.
• Manipur: In Manipur, 141 more people tested positive for COVID-19 and 17 recoveries, active 1731 and 68% recovery rate.
• Mizoram: Polling for over 500 village councils and over 70 local councils held in Mizoram today. COVID-19 tally rises to 974 in Mizoram. Total active cases stand at 499.
• Nagaland: In Nagaland, seven more locations sealed in Kohima following detection of new COVID-19 positive cases. SBI donated 3 ventilators each to H&FW Dept and Nagaland Police Dept on Wednesday. Earlier SBI had donated 500 PPE kits to state govt.
• Sikkim: In Sikkim, 56 more people tested positive for COVID-19, active 388 and discharged 1151.
• Maharashtra: The state on Wednesday reported a record high of 14,888 new Covid infections taking its tally past 7.18 lakh cases. The number of active cases in the state has climbed up to 1.72 lakh. State Capital Mumbai reported a high 1,854 cases, after a gap of several days.  Meanwhile, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackerey has said that the state government will replicate the ‘Chase the Virus’ strategy, implemented successfully in Mumbai, in other parts as well. The strategy involves health team reaching out to the people rather the waiting for patients to turn up to the doctors.
• Gujarat:  1197 new cases of COVID-19 were recorded during the last 24 hours, takings the state tally of Covid infections past 90 thousand.  The maximum 168 new cases were reported from Surat. Ahmedabad city recorded 144 cases, while Vadodara city recorded 90 cases.  Gujarat has a recovery rate of 80.22 per cent. The number of active cases is 14,884.
• Rajasthan:  Places of worship in Rajasthan will be reopen for public from the 7th September.  A decision to this effect was taken at a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot yesterday. Social distancing norms will have to be followed and all religious places will be sanitized from time to time. The state has 14,646 active Covid cases.
• Chhattisgarh:  The Chhattisgarh Government today resumed inter-state public transport along with vehicles covered under the All India Tourist Permit. The Transport Department has issued detailed guidelines which stipulate that buses will only stop at designated places. No e-pass is required for the journey, but contact details of every passenger needs to be maintained, so that it can be presented to the district authorities for contact tracing, if a need arises.
• Goa:  The total number of Covid cases reported in Goa crossed the 15 thousand mark on Wednesday evening, making Goa the first state in India, where 1 per cent of the total population is confirmed to have contracted the dreaded infection. The 15,027 cases of Goa have been reported between June – August, post lockdown, as the state was Covid free during April and May.

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