India Records Single Day Rise Of 2,151 Fresh Covid-19 Cases, Highest In Five Months

NEW DELHI: Breaking the record of new case numbers of the last five months, India recorded a single-day rise of 2,151 new coronavirus cases, while the active cases increased to 11,903, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Covid-19 death toll has increased to 5,30,848 with seven latest fatalities — three reported by Maharashtra, one by Karnataka and three reconciled by Kerala.

On Tuesday, recommendations for Covid-19 vaccines were changed by World Health Organization, with the suggestion that high-risk populations should receive an additional dose 12 months after their last booster. High-risk populations were defined by the health agency as older adults, as well as younger people with other significant risk factors.

With Covid-19 cases on the rise, the Centre has asked states to be on alert and ensure preparedness for management of the viral disease. At a high-level meeting, the Union Health Secretary also asked states to ramp up testing with a higher proportion of RT-PCR tests and whole genome sequencing of the positive samples. According to the data provided by the Health Ministry, the number of Covid cases reported each day on average has increased to 966 during the week ending March 23, from just 313 during the week ending March 3.

In a related development, the discovery of a small molecule that makes the COVID-19 causing virus SARS-CoV-2 ineffective, is expected to provide a new basis for medication to shorten the course of the virus after exposure to it, a new study has revealed.

Researchers from the University of Houston (UH) in the US, said that the molecule could provide immediate protection against viral infection for high-risk and immune-compromised individuals who typically do not generate sufficient antibodies after vaccination and thus, may be suitable for people across age groups.

The discovery is described in the journal Biomedicines

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