"We are very worried about the rise in cases in Maharashtra. Don't take this virus for granted. It can come up unexpectedly. If we have to remain free of this virus, COVID-appropriate behaviour, containment strategy as well as vaccination has to be brought in," Paul said.
Temperatures in 17 locations breached 48 degrees Celsius on Monday, with the relentless heat affecting health and livelihoods across large parts of northwestern and central India.
Amid the ongoing tussle between Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole and party veteran Balasaheb Thorat in the wake of recent legislative council elections, both the leaders came face to face at the party's state executive committee meeting in Mumbai on Wednesday, with both of them later claiming that everything was fine between them.
'The lack of opportunities here remains the biggest worry.' 'We have seen investment summits, but if you look around, much of it is only on paper and not on the ground.'
Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma Subramanian on Wednesday attributed the mushrooming of COVID-19 clusters in the state and spike in cases in the city to students coming from other states, particularly North.
Larger hospitals are not worried about a spike in cases, as they are now accustomed to converting ICUs and general wards into negative pressure zones or isolation rooms. For smaller hospitals, the task is tedious.
Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan reviewed the status of passengers coming from the UK to India and found positive in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Goa, Punjab, Gujarat and Kerala and their response measures in a meeting held through video conferencing.
The day before, the state government banned assembly of more than five persons in public places between 9 pm to 6 am and restricted the number of people allowed at public functions in view of a spurt in coronavirus cases.
Wearing white and lighter colours will prevent heat retention, thus reducing the risk of heat exhaustion, suggests Dr Karthiyayini Mahadevan.
Lockdown in Amravati city in Maharashtra was extended for a week on Saturday in view of the coronavirus situation, while restrictions were also imposed for the weekend in Nagpur, Buldhana and Yavatmal.
Some India states are likely to record a significantly higher number of heatwave days, according to the national weather body.
COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 has spread to 15 states and Union territories with a total of 923 cases of the infection reported so far, according to the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG).
A total of 1,226 cases of COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 have been reported in the country so far with Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh recording the highest number of cases till now, according to the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) on Thursday.
The minister said the state government is keeping a close tab on the present situation and it will take the "right decision at the right time" based on the prevailing scenario.
Till late Sunday night, the 84-year-old Jesuit priest was on ventilator support, the senior counsel told PTI. Swamy has been undergoing treatment at the Holy Family Hospital in Mumbai, following a court order on May 28.
Maharashtra is in the beginning of a second COVID-19 wave, a central team report has said, highlighting that there is very limited active effort to track, test, isolate cases and quarantine contacts, and there is no adherence to COVID appropriate behaviour among people in rural and urban areas in the state.
The Met office has issued a "red" warning for Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and west Rajasthan, stressing the need for "extreme care for vulnerable people".
The daily requirement of medical oxygen in the state has witnessed a rise, it said, adding that the present demand is 400 metric tonnes.
The quota and other issues of the Maratha community were discussed in the state cabinet meeting after which it was decided to hold a special session, the CMO statement said.
Nine cases have been detected from Maharashtra, eight from Karnataka, six from Kerala, four from Tamil Nadu and two from Telangana, they added.
Maharashtra's recovery rate of COVID-19 patients is 70.4 per cent and fatality rate is 2.83 per cent.
India is set to experience extreme heat during the April to June period, with the central and western peninsular parts expected to face the worst impact, the IMD said on Monday as the country prepares for seven-phase general elections from April 19.
The CMO gave information about the one-day mourning and public holiday in a statement issued on Sunday.
India has logged 123 new cases of Covid, while the number of active cases of the infection stood at 876, according to the Union Health Ministry's data updated on Tuesday.
Out of this, Maharashtra topped the list with 167 cases followed by Delhi with 165 cases, Kerala with 57 cases and Telangana has confirmed 55 cases.
Ten states and Union Territories have so far detected the presence of the JN.1 sub-variant of the virus.
From the Sensex basket, Power Grid, Asian Paints, Tata Motors, Tata Steel, NTPC, Sun Pharma, Mahindra & Mahindra, HDFC Bank, Tata Consultancy Services and JSW Steel were among the major gainers. Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bharti Airtel, Axis Bank, Wipro, ICICI Bank and IndusInd Bank were among the laggards.
For the first time in Maharashtra, four patients of B.A.4 sub-lineage and three cases of B.A.5 sub-lineage of the Omicron variant of coronavirus have been found, the state health department said on Saturday.
However, experts in the fields of genome sequencing and cell science have observed that such a small sample size cannot be considered as an indication of the spread of the mutated virus.
Maharashtra, Punjab, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh and Gujarat are reporting a surge in daily COVID-19 cases and the five states together account for 77.44 per cent of the new infections, the Union health ministry said on Wednesday.
"Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray could make an official announcement about more stringent measures tomorrow," Tope added.
Nadda enjoys warm relations with Modi, who was for a long time in charge of the party's affairs in Himachal Pradesh.
A bench of Justices B V Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan said the reasons cited by the convicts have no merits.
The top court on January 8 had quashed the Gujarat government's decision to grant remission to 11 convicts in the case, saying the orders were 'stereotyped' and passed without application of mind.
'If such a practice were feasible, every state would seek additional funds, posing a significant risk to the overall health of the economy.'
COVID-19 cases in India climbed to 169 on Thursday after 18 fresh cases were reported from various parts of the country, according to the Union health ministry.
The government of Maharashtra on Thursday revised its guidelines for passengers arriving in the state.
'The lack of a majority isn't the issue. He has enough in 240, especially as none of his allies can pull down his coalition.' 'That's why he's started as if this were just another, normal term. That pretence is vital for him.' 'The change for Modi 3.0 comes not from numbers, but from the new environment of contestation,' points out Shekhar Gupta.
Though the extended tenure of incumbent president JP Nadda ends on June 30, a recent amendment in the BJP's constitution has empowered its apex body, the Parliamentary Board, to take a call related to a president, including his term, in "emergency" situations.
A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in Mumbai on Monday issued a bailable warrant against Bharatiya Janata Party MP Pragya Singh Thakur, an accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, for failing to appear before it despite repeated warnings.
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