Coronavirus India Updates: Active Cases Continue To Drop, CDSCO Seeks More Vaccine Data

Active Covid-19 cases in India remained below the 4-lakh-mark for the fourth straight day even as the infection continued to spread in the country, albeit at a slower pace.

Key Figures

• Total number of confirmed cases: 97,67,371
• Active cases: 3,72,293
• Cured/discharged/migrated: 92,53,306
• Deaths: 1,41,772
• Number of fresh cases in 24 hours: 31,521
• One-day recoveries: 37,725
• One-day deaths: 412

An expert committee of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation on Wednesday sought additional safety and efficacy data for Covid-19 vaccine candidates of Serum Institute of India Ltd. and Bharat Biotech International Ltd., after deliberating upon their applications seeking emergency use authorisation for the shots, official sources told PTI.

The application by the Indian arm of U.S. pharmaceutical firm Pfizer Inc. was not taken up for deliberation on Wednesday as the firm sought more time for making a presentation before the committee, they said.

Global Virus Update

The Covid-19 cases exceeded 68 million globally, with more than 1.56 million dead from the infection.

Deaths in the U.S. rose above 3,000 a day for the first time, according to Johns Hopkins University data. California’s average rate of positive tests over 14 days reached 8.8%, the highest since the spring as cases surged to another record.

The U.K.’s vaccination campaign hit a stumbling block after two people with allergies experienced reactions to the Pfizer shot.

Passengers disembarked a cruise ship in Singapore after a Covid-19 scare on board.