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Wednesday, October 21, 2020, 22:50
India's COVID-19 recovery rate rises to 88.81%
By Agencies
Wednesday, October 21, 2020, 22:50 By Agencies

Motorcyclists ride on their motobikes during a "Fight COVID-19 Awareness Building Motorcycle Rally" to raise awareness about the use of wearing face masks and social distancing norms against the spread of the COVID-19, in Amritsar on Oct 20, 2020. (PHOTO / AFP)

TOKYO / DUBAI / ANKARA / AMMAN / SEOUL / BANGKOK - The recovery rate of COVID-19 patients has risen to 88.81 percent in India, the federal health ministry said Wednesday.

"Till now, 6,795,103 patients have been cured and 740,090 patients are under active medical supervision," the ministry said. "The recovery rate is now 88.81 percent."`

During the last 24 hours, 54,044 fresh positive cases and 717 deaths were reported in the country.

The health ministry said the active cases were below the 750,000 mark for the second successive day.

"Successful implementation of test, track and treat strategy along with timely and appropriate treatment has led to the consistent slide in the fatality rate. The national Case Fatality Rate (CFR) has fallen to 1.51 percent today," it said.

"The centre (federal government) has advised states to aim at bringing down the CFR to below 1 percent. Presently 14 states are reporting Case Fatality Rate less than 1 percent," the ministry added.

Health officials said India has progressively maintained a low CFR compared to the global average.

Globally India is the second worst-hit country by the COVID-19 pandemic. The health ministry reported Wednesday that the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country rose to 7,651,107 with 115,914 deaths. 

Thailand 

Thailand will extend a state of emergency through November to prevent a resurgence in coronavirus outbreak as it rolls out a special visa program for foreign visitors to revive its ailing tourism industry.

The national COVID-19 task force chaired by Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha on Wednesday approved the extension of nationwide emergency rules through Nov. 30, according to Teerapat Prayoonsit, permanent secretary of the Prime Minister’s Office.

The one-month extension, when approved by the cabinet next week, would be the seventh since the initial order in March. The emergency rules allow the government to enforce mandatory quarantines and streamline disease-control plans without multiple approvals from various agencies. The measures were set to end on Oct. 31.

READ MORE: S'pore quells virus 'fire,' sees last phase of pandemic curbs

Australia

Authorities in the Australian State of Victoria suspect they have recorded a rare case of COVID-19 reinfection, after a man tested positive on Tuesday having initially contracted the disease in July.

Victorian State Premier Daniel Andrews confirmed on Wednesday that the case was being treated as a reinfection.

"The person from yesterday who tested positive twice, the first time back in July, he is currently regarded as a reinfection of coronavirus, so he will be recorded as a positive case," Andrews said.

Officials previously thought that the second positive test may have been the result of shedding, whereby remnants of the virus can sometimes linger in a patient even after that person is no longer infectious or symptomatic. 

Fiji

Fiji reported one imported COVID-19 case on Wednesday.

Fijian Health Minister Ifereimi Waqainabete said on Wednesday that the patient arrived in the island nation through a repatriation flight from India earlier this month.

Waqainabete also said that the new case doesn't pose any threat to Fijians.

The last quarantined COVID-19 patient was released last week after multiple test results came out negative, he added.

India

India's COVID-19 tally reached 7,651,107 as 54,044 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours, according to the data released by the federal health ministry on Wednesday.

The total death toll rose to 115,914, as 717 deaths were logged across the country since Tuesday morning.

Still there are 740,090 active COVID-19 cases in the country, and 6,795,103 people have been successfully cured and discharged from hospitals.

Wednesday is the fourth consecutive day when the number of active COVID-19 cases has fallen below the 800,000-mark.

Indonesia 

The COVID-19 cases in Indonesia rose by 4,267 within one day to 373,109, with the death toll adding by 123 to 12,857, the Health Ministry said on Wednesday.

According to the ministry, 3,856 more people were discharged from hospitals, bringing the total number of recovered patients to 297,509.

Iraq

The Iraqi Health Ministry reported 3,920 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the nationwide infections to 434,598.

It also confirmed 49 more deaths and 2,602 new recoveries, raising the death toll from the infectious virus to 10,366 and the tally of recoveries to 366,134.

Iraqi Health Minister Hassan al-Tamimi said in a press release that Iraq would be one of the countries that will receive COVID-19 vaccines for 20 percent of its population, if approved by international organizations.

A woman looks at her mobile phone as she visits the observation deck of Tokyo’s Haneda airport on Oct 2, 2020. (PHILIP FONG / AFP)

Japan

Japan’s box office has just had a record hit as more than 3.4 million people -- or almost 3% of Japan’s entire population -- put the risk of virus infection aside to turn up for the opening weekend of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba the Movie: Infinite Train, an animated film based on a hugely popular comic-book property.

The film took in a box office of 4.62 billion yen (US$44 million) in the three days, the movie’s distributor announced. That blew past estimates and more than doubled the previous record held by Frozen 2.

Cinemas were shut during the country’s state of emergency earlier this year, and audiences have only slowly returned as Japan still sees several hundred new coronavirus cases a day.

Telling the story of a young boy who becomes a demon fighter in Japan of the early 1900s, the comic book has sold over 100 million copies during its publication from 2016 to 2020. An animated TV series premiered in 2019.

Jordan

Jordan announced that it will impose a comprehensive curfew on Fridays until the end of 2020 and tighten restrictions on the public and business.

At a press conference in capital Amman on Tuesday, Prime Minister Bisher Khasawneh said business sectors would be allowed to open until 10:00 pm local time, and the public can move freely until 11:00 pm, after which all movement will be banned until 6:00 am in a bid to curb the surge of coronavirus cases.

The decision will start on Oct 24, it said.

"We studied imposing lockdown for a long period, but the economic consequences will be very tough and will result in shutting many businesses. Thus we resorted to these simpler and efficient measures," the prime minister said.

This picture taken on Oct 9, 2020 shows a view of an empty road during a COVID-19 coronavirus lockdown in Jordan's capital Amman. (KHALIL MAZRAAWI / AFP)

Kuwait

Kuwait reported 886 new COVID-19 cases and four more deaths, raising the tally of infections to 117,718 and the death toll to 714 in the country.

The Kuwaiti health ministry also announced the recovery of 592 more patients, raising the total recoveries in the country to 109,198.

Laos

The Lao Ministry of Health reported one new COVID-19 case on Wednesday for the first time after 39 days, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 24.

Lao Deputy Minister of Health Phouthone Meaungpak told a press conference in Lao capital Vientiane on Wednesday that the patient is 23-year-old student who returned from Russia.

Lebanon

French Ambassador to Lebanon Anne Grillo, as well as 15 employees at the embassy, were infected with COVID-19, local media reported on Tuesday.

The French embassy said in a statement quoted by local media that Grillo, who only arrived in Lebanon earlier the month, was in "good health," adding that the doctors thought she has recovered from the disease and will continue to be isolated and work at her residence.

Lebanon's total number of COVID-19 cases  on Tuesday climbed by 1,392 to 64,336, including 531 deaths and 29,498 recoveries.

Abdul Rahman Bizri, member of the Lebanese National Infectious Diseases Committee, urged on Tuesday the Lebanese government to act fast in adopting tougher measures amid rapid rise in COVID-19 cases.

Malaysia 

Malaysia will exempt as much as 10% of management and supervisory-level workers in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Sabah, Labuan and Putrajaya from its work-from-home order, Trade Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali said in a statement Wednesday.

The exemption covers those whose job scope involve accounting, finance, administration, law, planning and ICT and these workers may only stay in their office from 10am to 2pm, three days a week. 

Employers must issue travel exemption letters for staff which fall under these categories. 

Nepal

Kathmandu-based hospitals have been facing shortages of medical facilities and workers, as confirmed COVID-19 cases are surging in Nepal.

Kathmandu-based Sukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital which was converted as the first COVID-19 hospital in Nepal, has 50 beds including 20 intensive care unit (ICU) beds.

The hospital has accommodated 54 COVID-19 patients with most hospitals of Kathmandu are running out of beds amid the growing number of coronavirus cases in the Kathmandu Valley.

Women wearing face masks walk past a homeless man in Kuala Lumpur on October 18, 2020, as the country announced new restrictions around the capital and worst-hit Sabah state. (MOHD RASFAN / AFP)

New Zealand

New Zealand reported 25 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, 23 of which are imported cases caught at the border, and two are cases linked to the port worker reported on Sunday, who are workplace contacts.

Among the reported imported cases, 18 cases are in managed isolation at the Sudima Hotel in Christchurch. They arrived from Moscow via Singapore on a chartered flight on Oct. 16, Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield told a news briefing.

In order to help manage any risks, the 235 people who arrived on this flight were all taken to the same facility, and the majority of them were sharing a room with another person. Positive cases have been moved into the dedicated quarantine wing at the facility and all occupants of the hotel will be retested on day 6 of their stay, Bloomfield said.

Mongolia 

The number of COVID-19 infections has risen to 327 in Mongolia after one more Mongolian citizen tested positive for the virus, the country's National Center for Communicable Diseases (NCCD) said Wednesday.

The latest confirmed case is a Mongolian citizen who recently returned home on a chartered flight from Seattle, a US western coastal city, to Ulan Bator, the NCCD said in a statement.

Palestine

Palestinian Health Minister Mai al-Kaila on Tuesday warned that a new "dangerous" phase of COVID-19 would hit the Palestinian territories in autumn and winter seasons.

The Palestinian health ministry recorded 513 new coronavirus cases and eight more deaths, bringing the total infections in the Palestinian territories to 59,595 and the death toll to 492.

Qatar

Qatar confirmed 273 new COVID-19 infections and 216 recoveries, raising the total confirmed cases in the Gulf state to 129,944 and the tally of recoveries to 126,866. The death toll in Qatar remained unchanged at 224 for the third day running.

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia reported 385 new COVID-19 infections and 16 more fatalities, raising the tally of coronavirus cases to 342,968 and the death toll to 5,217.

The total number of recoveries in the kingdom rose by 375 to 329,270, while there are 8,481 active cases including 840 in critical condition, the Saudi Health Ministry said.

South Korea

South Korea reported 91 more cases of COVID-19 as of 0:00 a.m. Wednesday local time compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 25,424.

The daily caseload stayed below 100 for the sixth consecutive day, but the double-digit expansion continued owing to small cluster infections in Seoul and its surrounding Gyeonggi province as well as imported cases.

Of the new cases, 13 were Seoul residents and 21 were people residing in Gyeonggi province.

Thirty-four were imported, lifting the combined figure to 3,584.

The Philippines

The Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) on Wednesday reported 1,509 new confirmed COVID-19 cases, bringing the country's total tally to 362,243.

Wednesday's daily increase in new cases is the lowest since Sept. 8.

The DOH said that 911 more patients have recovered, raising the total number of recoveries to 311,506. The death toll rose to 6,747 including 60 deaths newly recorded.

The UAE

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) reported 1,077 new COVID-19 cases and four more deaths, raising the tally of infections to 117,594 and the death count to 470. The total recoveries rose by 1,502 to 110,313.

ALSO READ: India's COVID-19 tally nears 7.5m with 61,871 new cases

Turkey

Turkey reported 1,894 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, raising the tally of infections in the country to 351,413. The death toll from the virus rose by 74 to 9,445, while the tally of recoveries went up by 1,512 to 306,939.

Turkey started to take drastic actions against violations of the anti-cronavirus rules amid the rising number of daily cases.

More than 400 teams of some 1,000 personnel have taken to the streets in the country's most populous city Istanbul, which has recently become the epicenter of the pandemic once again.

During the rest of the week, the controls are expected to focus on beauty salons, coiffeur's, and barbershops as well as the conditions of those in COVID-19 isolation.

Iran

Iran's Health Ministry reported 5,616 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, raising the total confirmed number in the country to 545,286.

The pandemic has so far claimed 31,346 lives in Iran, up by 312 in the past 24 hours, said Sima Sadat Lari, spokeswoman for the Iranian Ministry of Health and Medical Education, during her daily briefing.

A total of 438,709 people have recovered from the disease and been discharged from hospitals, while 4,861 remain in intensive care units, she added.

According to the spokeswoman, 4,599,554 tests for the virus have been carried out in Iran as of Wednesday.

Currently, the risk of infection is high in 27 Iranian provinces, Lari noted, asking people to avoid unnecessary outings.

Following the COVID-19 resurgence in Iran over the past weeks, the health authorities have reintroduced strict protective measures and compulsory use of face masks in the capital Tehran and major cities of the country.

Myanmar 

Myanmar is strengthening efforts to contain the COVID-19 outbreak in Yangon region which has recently seen increasing number of infections, an official from the Health and Sports Ministry told Xinhua on Wednesday.

"Efforts have been put into the disease response in order to decrease the infections in the region while the positive rate is on the gradual decline in the region," said Dr. Than Naing Soe, director of Health Literacy Promotion Unit of Public Health Department.

The number of COVID-19 cases resurged in Myanmar since Aug. 16 amid the second wave of the disease, and the densely populated Yangon region has witnessed rocketing numbers of infection cases since the early period of the second wave.

As part of containment measures of the disease, the ministry imposed a stay-at-home order in all townships excluding Cocokyun township of the Yangon region on Sept. 21.

During the stay-at-home period, the number of daily infections exceeded 1,000 in Yangon region since early October and the region saw a highest single-day surge with 1,906 on Oct 10, the figures showed.


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