Bharat Biotech Nasal vaccine prices revealed | Highlights

Delhi logged 16 fresh Covid cases on Tuesday with a positivity rate of 0.44 per cent, news agency PTI reported, citing city health department. No new fatality due to the viral disease was reported.

Jharkhand health minister Banna Gupta Tuesday said the state government is ready to deal with any spurt in Covid cases. He stressed there was "no need to panic" and urged people to be on alert and get the booster dose.

"We had faced challenges during all waves of the Covid pandemic with our limited resources. Our efforts during the coronavirus crisis were appreciated. Now, we are prepared to deal with any health crisis," he was quoted by news agency PTI.

China is set to publish data on Covid-19 cases only once a month after the disease is downgraded to Category B, or less stringent, virus management, the government announced on Tuesday, a move that’s likely to deepen confusion and distrust among citizens about how quickly the virus is spreading in the country or how many it’s fatally infecting. Read more

Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday held a review meeting on the prevailing Covid situation and decided to write a letter to the Centre seeking to reduce the gap for administering a 'precautionary dose' from the existing nine months to six months, Chief Minister's Office said in a statement.

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya Tuesday reviewed the Covid response mock drill at the Centre-run Safdarjung Hospital here, conducted as part of a nationwide exercise, to check its preparedness to deal with any surge in cases.

The Sikkim government on Tuesday issued an advisory asking people to take precautionary measures to prevent the outbreak of Covid-19 disease again in the state.

Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma Subramanian, who oversaw a mock drill at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital here on Tuesday, said the state had a sufficient stock of medicines, beds, equipment and oxygen to tackle any spike in Covid-19 cases.

To assess Kerala's preparedness to appropriately deal with another outbreak, if any, of Covid-19, a mock drill was held at the Kozhikode Medical College  on Tuesday.

China's sudden Covid-19 outbreaks "demonstrate a lack of effectiveness of its vaccines", prompting global concerns, particularly in nations where Beijing's vaccines have been accepted, ANI reported.

The Congress on Tuesday charged that the Government was using Covid as an excuse to stop the Bharat Jodo Yatra as the long march spearheaded by Rahul Gandhi was gaining momentum every passing day.

“We are very much concerned about the health of the people of this country and the Covid situation as well. This entire drama (of Covid spread) is created to stop the Bharat Jodo Yatra,” AICC general secretary K C Venugopal told reporters. 

Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia visits Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital to review Covid Mock drill.

Bharat Biotech's iNCOVACC will be priced at ₹800 for Private Markets and ₹325 for governments.

Hospitals in West Bengal on Tuesday conducted Covid mock drill to check infrastructure and preparedness to combat in case there is any spike in Coronavirus cases, a senior health department official told PTI.

Following Beijing's announced to end inbound quarantine requirements, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced that travellers coming from mainland China will have to take Covid-19 tests on arrival from Friday. 

China will step up support to small and private businesses in the catering and tourism sectors that were hit hard by the COVID-19 epidemic, reports Reuters.

Mock drill is being conducted at Gauhati Medical College and Hospital in Assam's Guwahati to check Covid preparedness, reports ANI.

About 59 per cent of the eligible people are yet to receive the booster dose of the coronavirus vaccines in Odisha and the state government has urged the Centre to supply the shots to expedite vaccination drive, reports PTI.

China reported one new COVID-19 death in mainland for Dec. 26, compared with no deaths a day earlier, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention said on Tuesday, reports Reuters.

Hospitals across states and Union Territories conducting mock drills to stay prepared for a possible Covid outbreak, if there will be any.

Covid preparedness is being checked in several hospitals across states and Union Territories.

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya visits Safdarjung Hospital to review Covid Mock drill, reports ANI.

Hospitals across Delhi, including LNJP and other private hospitals, will conduct mock drills on Tuesday to assess their preparedness, including availability of beds and manpower, to deal with any increase in the number of COVID-19 cases, reports PTI.

Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Monday said that precautionary and preventive measures will be taken up and implemented in a phased manner to check the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic without affecting the economy. Read more

Two passengers including a foreign national who landed at the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International airport in Kolkata have tested positive for Covid-19 since Sunday, officials said. Read more