Coronavirus LIVE Update: India's Cases Rise To 59,92,532; 94,503 Dead

Karnataka Expected To Have 25k Active Cases By 15 Aug: COVID-19 War Room Chief

Karnataka may see 25,000 active COVID-19 cases by 15 August if the state's daily growth rate stays at 4 per cent according to the state's COVID War Room Chief Munish Moudgil. Moudgil also cautioned that making accurate predictions will be difficult as a lot rests on the way citizens react after the lifting of lockdown.

India Reports Close To 15k New COVID-19 Cases

According to the data released by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, a record 14,821 patients tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 24 hours as the total case count in India increased to 4,25,282. 445 patients died due to the disease as the death toll rose to 13,699. The number of patients who have been discharged stands at 2,37,195.

Brazil's COVID-19 Death Toll Crosses 50,000 Mark

The COVID-19 death toll in Brazil has crossed 50,000 as the country struggles to control the spread of the novel coronavirus. Brazil is the worst-hit country after the US having reported 10,70,139 COVID-19 cases so far and 50,058 deaths. President Jair Bolsonaro has routinely downplayed the disease calling it a "little flu" and has been urging businesses to reopen even as regional governors call for strict adherence to physical distancing norms.

Donald Trump Wanted Testing In USA To Be Slowed Down

US president Donald Trump said that he wanted COVID-19 testing to be slowed in the country and called it a "double-edged sword" at his rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Saturday. "Here's the bad part ... when you do testing to that extent, you're going to find more people; you're going to find more cases. So I said to my people, slow the testing down please," Trump said. However, a White House official told CNN that Trump was "obviously kidding".

According to the John's Hopkins University, the USA has a reported 22,55,119 total COVID-19 cases with 1,19,719 deaths.

India's COVID-19 Case Count Cross 4 Lakh Mark

According to data released by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, India reported 15,413 new COVID-19 cases, a record one-day spike, as the total case count rose to 4,10,461. 306 patients succumbed to the disease as the death toll rose to 13,254.

Delhi LG Withdraws Mandatory Institutional Isolation

Delhi Lieutant Governor Anil Baijal withdrew his mandatory five-day institutional isolation order for COVID-19 patients that he had issued on June 19, 2020 after the Delhi Government criticised this move. 

He tweeted that those cases that do not require hospitalisaiton and do not have adequate facilities for home isolation will have to go through the institutional isolation

CM Kejriwal Opposes Institutional Quarantine Order

Delhi Lieutanant Governor Anil Baijal on Friday suggested that every COVID-19 positive patient even if asymptomatic has to follow mandatory institutional quarantine for five days. 

The Delhi Government however is not in compliance with this order. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal believes that stopping home isolation will discourage people from testing and further spread coronavirus as asymptomatic and mild symptom patients will resist testing and will not be quarantined. 

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia also emphasised that currently over 10,000 patients are following home quarantine will the city has around 6,000 beds at quarantine centres. 

AAP MLA Raghav Chadha further added that if institutitonal quarantine becomes mandatory, the city will need around 90,000 beds. 

Satyender Jain Shifted To Private Hospital To Begin Plasma Therapy

Delhi Health Minister Satyender Jain has developed pneumonia and has been reportedly shifted to Max hospital's Saket facility in New Delhi. 

The minister is going to begin plasma therapy as he is experiencing difficulty breathing and is running a high fever. 

Glenmark Launches COVID-19 Medicine

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals has launched FabiFlu, a brand name for anti-viral Favipiravir against COVID-19 after receiving approval from the Drug Controller General of India. 

FabiFlu has demonstrated an encouraging response in mild to moderate Covid-19 patients during clinical trials according to the company. It is also orally administered and this makes it easier to consume in comparison to the other intravenous medicines. 

The drug will be available as a prescription-based medication for Rs 103/tablet, with recommended dose being 1,800 mg twice on day one, followed by 800 mg twice daily up to day 14. Favipiravir can be used for coronavirus patients with co-morbid conditions such as diabetes and heart disease with mild to moderate Covid-19 symptoms. It offers rapid reduction in viral load within four days and provides faster symptomatic and radiological improvement, the drug maker added.

Favipiravir is actively being used in Russia to fight against COVID-19. It was first approved in Japan in 2014 to act against influenza. 

Brazil Crosses 1 Million Cases

Brazil became the second country to cross a million cases of COVID-19 on June 20. 

The country reported over 55,000 new cases and follows the USA to have the highest number of COVID-19 cases.