Biggest single-day jump in 30 days

Tribune News Service/PTI

New Delhi, February 28

India's Covid tally climbed to 1,10,96,731 on Sunday with 16,752 new infections, the highest in the past 30 days, according to Union Health Ministry data. The country had recorded 18,855 new infections on January 29. The death toll mounted to 1,57,051 with 113 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed. The active caseload further increased to 1,64,511, constituting 1.48% of the total infections.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 1,07,75,169, which translates to a national Covid recovery rate of 97.10%. The case fatality rate stands at 1.42%.

Meanwhile, the second phase of Covid vaccination will start tomorrow with the registration for eligible beneficiaries opening at 9am. Among those eligible for vaccination are healthcare workers and frontline workers left behind from the ongoing inoculation drive that began on January 16; citizens aged 60 years and those who will turn 60 as on January 1, 2022; citizens aged 45 to 59 years or those who will turn 45 to 59 as on January 1, 2022 and have any of the 20 conditions listed by the government, including heart failure, HIV, disabilities, hypertension and diabetes.

Beneficiaries will be able to register for vaccination at www.cowin.gov.in. They can view the list of vaccination centres and book an appointment anytime, anywhere using the Co-WIN 2.0 portal or through Aarogya Setu. There will be only one appointment for a beneficiary at any point of time for each dose. Appointments for any date for a vaccination centre will be closed at 3 pm on that day for which the slots were opened.

The Health Ministry explained, “For example for March 1, the slots will be open from 9 am to 3 pm and appointments can be booked anytime before that subject to availability. However, on March 1, an appointment can also be booked for any future date for which vaccination slots are available. A slot for the second dose will also be booked at the same Covid Vaccination Centre on the 29th day of the date of appointment of the first dose. If a beneficiary cancels the first dose appointment, then appointment of both doses will be cancelled.” Eligible persons can register through their mobile number. With one mobile number, a person can register four beneficiaries but each beneficiary must have different photo IDs. Either of the following photo IDs are permitted for online registration: Aadhaar card/letter; Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC); passport; driving licence; PAN card; NPR smart card; pension document with photograph.

J&J’s single-dose vax gets US Approval

• The US Food & Drug Administration has approved Johnson and Johnson’s Covid vaccine that works with just one dose instead of two for emergency use
• Now, America has its third jab to fight the pandemic that has claimed over half a million lives in the country.

Central team in Punjab today

• A central team will arrive in Pb on Monday. Dr Rajesh Bhaskar, nodal officer for Covid, said they were informed on the phone about the visit
• The team will determine the reasons behind the spike in cases and help chalk out a strategy to control the situation. Pb has seen a three-fold rise in cases in 3 wks TNS

3 tests later, Punjab Minister tests –ve

A day after the Punjab Health Dept report found Jails Minister SS Randhawa positive, another test at the PGI, Chandigarh, found he was not infected. Earlier, a private lab too had found the minister negative. TNS

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