Covid updates: India adds 2,075 cases and 71 deaths in 24 hours

COLOMBO (News 1st); The Sinhala and Tamil New Year, traditionally a joyous period of celebration and festivities, dawned this year amidst many challenges faced by Sri Lankans. The shortage of fuel, gas, essential medicine and food all accumulated to formulate the Economic Crisis which Sri Lanka is currently undergoing, which had left the population reeling, the Cabinet Ministers in charge of critical subjects resigning, and nobody to take accountability for the crisis as the Parliament, which convened for several days, also concluding their sessions without any resolutions with regard to the people’s problems. This had led to masses engaging in protests in front of the Presidential Secretariat for the sixth day in a row today (14), as the farmers mark the New Year, traditionally celebrated in line with bountiful harvests, this time, without fertilizer, rice being purchased at low prices, and paddy fields abandoned with weeds. However, amid crises, Sri Lankans still managed to welcome the New Year by wishing prosperity to the country and all of Sri Lanka’s children. The ritual of ‘boiling milk’ was held at the Independence square and Galle Face both amid protests, while the protestors also engaged in the New Year ritual of ‘visiting relatives’ by walking from Independence Square to Galle Face, and proceeded to greet the Police who were guarding the Presidential Secretariat with betel leaves. Moreover, many avurudu celebrations such as avurudu games were held with a twist at Galle Face, which were creatively designed to convey the thoughts and complaints of the protesting public at the venue. One such youth, speaking to News 1st, stated that “They have decided to ruin our Avurudu, therefore we are ruining them for Avurudu”

COVID-19, the province recorded 26 new deaths and 94-patient rise Thursday.Pandemic-related hospitalizations stood at 2,154. Officials say 282 patients were admitted in the last day, while 188 were discharged.Intensive care units cases linked to the disease rose by 13 for a total of 96.The province also logged 3,190 new infections, though this daily count only paints a partial portrait of the situation since PCR testing is limited to a few high-risk groups.

WHO warned that with winter approaching for Southern Hemisphere countries, “there is a high risk of another wave of new COVID infections." The coronavirus spreads more easily in cooler temperatures when people are more likely to gather in larger numbers indoors.

Al Pacino is confirmed to be dating Noor Alfallah, who is 53 years his junior, and the romance is said to have begun during the pandemic.The 81-year-old Hollywood legend was recently seen cozying up to his 28-year-old girlfriend during a dinner party with Jason Momoa after visiting Julian Schnabel's latest Pace gallery in the Mid City area of LA.'Pacino and Noor started seeing each other during the pandemic,' sources told PageSix.'She mostly dates very rich older men, she was withMick Jagger for a while, and then she dated Nicholas Berggruen.' Lovers in LA: Al Pacino was spotted out earlier this week with girlfriend, Noor Alfallah, who is 53 years his junior, and sources told Page Six that the couple has been dating since the pandemicThe insider added: 'She has been with Al for some time and they get on very well. The age gap doesn't seem to be a problem, even though he is older than her father.Noor is vice president of Lynda Obst Productions at Sony, and is also reportedly developing two feature films with Obst.

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COVID on Thursday, with 177 in intensive care.This is up by 60 for hospitalizations but a decrease of five for ICUs since the previous day.Last Thursday, there were 1,126 hospitalizations with 159 in ICU. This is a 24 per cent and 11 per cent increase, respectively, to the figures this week.According to latest breakdown for hospitalizations, 55 per cent were admitted for other reasons but tested positive for COVID-19.

in Canadian real estate, where the average selling price of a home has surged more than 50 per cent in the last two years, according to Reuters. Upwards of 41% of housing in some provinces held by multiple-property owners But the headlines have led some Canadians to question whether they can — or should — take the plunge from renting a home to owning one.Here’s what you need to know.In many ways, buying a home is seen as a marker of adulthood.Canadians have a “deeply ingrained view” of housing as a “good, stable investment” and as something that everyone is “striving to buy,” said Paul Kershaw, founder of Generation Squeeze.That view doesn’t come from thin air.

The Department of Health has been notified of 4,195 new cases of Covid-19, including 1,936 PCR-confirmed cases of the virus and 2,259 positive antigen tests registered through the HSE portal.

Kaley Cuoco’s life and career are still just taking off.

Delhi government on Thursday issued an advisory to all private schools in the national capital amid a spike in Covid-19 cases.

A new survey, done by LocalCircles, claimed that eight out of 10 families in India didn't get infected by Covid-19. Maintaining social distancing and wearing masks diligently prevented those families from getting infected, the survey claimed.

Time is running out for China to switch to a more sustainable strategy for containing the virus

Toronto Mayor John Tory tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday, according to a statement released by his office.In the statement, his office said the mayor “feels fine” and is isolating at home. The mayor will continue to do his job and take part in meetings virtually during his isolation and recovery, the statement continued.His office said Tory has been taking daily rapid tests out of an abundance of caution due to several daily events he attends.The mayor tested positive Thursday morning, but did test negative on Wednesday morning.

Billionaire Elon Musk has offered to buy Twitter for about US$41 billion in cash, saying the social media company he has often criticized needs to go private to see effective changes.

coronavirus travel restrictions will be dropped across Greece in May.The Greek government is preparing the country for the summer season and ministers approved of the scrapping of entry rules.This includes the need to get tested, present a vaccination or recovery certificate.

Despite COVID cases and related fatalities showing a sign of decline, the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Thursday officially affirmed that coronavirus remains a major public health danger. Meanwhile, cases are on the rise in several Indian states including Delhi-NCR and Gujarat. Though experts have pointed out that there are no reasons to panic at the moment, it is still not the time to let the guard down. Under such circumstances, it is best to remain cautious and remain alert to the following symptoms: 

Testing patience

Pop Idol is set to return to out screens for its 20th anniversary and to mark the occasion, Scottish Pop Idol star Darius Danesh is rumoured to be making a return appearance.

NEW YORK - Frank R. James, 62, the sole suspect in the shooting of 10 people aboard an N train in Sunset Park will be arraigned Thursday in federal court in downtown Brooklyn. James faces federal terrorism-related charges and could spend the rest of his life in prison if found guilty of throwing smoke grenades and opening fire on a crowded train during the morning rush earlier in the week.After a 30-hour manhunt, James was arrested without incident after a tipster — thought by police to be James himself — said he could be found near a McDonald’s on the Lower East Side.

Delhi Disaster Management Authority's meeting is scheduled to be held on Wednesday next week under the chairmanship of the Lt Governor. It will discuss the prevailing Covid situation, including the recent rise in the number of cases," a senior Delhi government official said.

Conor Hildebrandt found a vintage Louis Vuitton suitcase from the 1890s in his grandmother’s basement. As Ahmar Khan reports, one appraiser says the suitcase could be worth around $10,000.

FILE IMAGE - A health worker prepares a COVID-19 vaccine for children. (Photo by Teera Noisakran/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images) Pfizer said Thursday it wants to expand its COVID-19 booster shots to healthy elementary-age kids.U.S.

Frank James, the man suspected in Tuesday’s Brooklyn subway shooting, appears to have uploaded videos to social media that show him ranting about violence, criticizing New York Mayor Eric Adams and sharing bigoted views.James, 62, was identified as a suspect Wednesday in the morning rush-hour attack that left 10 people with gunshot wounds and at least a dozen others injured.Frank Robert James is WANTED in connection with firing numerous gunshots inside of a subway car causing serious injuries to 10 victims. There's a reward up to $50,000 for info leading to the arrest & indictment of this person.

HARRISBURG, Pa. - Drop boxes for depositing mail-in and absentee ballots would be banned and donations to run elections would no longer be permitted from groups outside government under bills approved Wednesday by the Pennsylvania Senate.Senators voted 37-12, a potentially veto-proof margin, to prohibit the types of grants issued during the 2020 election. The vote against drop boxes was on party lines, 29-20.

PHILADELPHIA - Authorities are investigating a serious crash that occurred in Philadelphia’s Somerton neighborhood early Thursday morning. The crash occurred before 6 a.m. near the Bustleton Avenue and Byberry Road intersection.The collision caused a vehicle to split in half after it appeared to have struck a pole near a gas station.

The Bank of Canada has raised its key rate to 1%, raising concerns about the effect it will have on heavily-indebted Canadian families. John Hua reports.

PHILADELPHIA - Wawa is celebrating its 58th Anniversary Thursday, April 14, by offering free coffee of any size at all locations. The convenience store chain says they expect to give away about 2 million free cups of coffee at its more than 960 stores. Customers can simply head into their local store and grab there favorite hot beverage from the self-serve bar. There is a limit of one per customer and includes sizes up to 24 ounces. Wawa locations will also be honoring one customer as their store’s official ‘Day Brightener’ acknowledging the positivity they spread throughout their community.

Elon Musk is offering to buy Twitter, just days after the Tesla CEO said he would no longer be joining the social media company’s board of directors.Twitter Inc. said in a regulatory filing on Thursday that Musk, who currently owns slightly more than 9% of its stock and is the company's biggest shareholder, provided a letter to the company on Wednesday that contained a proposal to buy the remaining shares of Twitter that he doesn't already own. Musk offered $54.20 per share of Twitter's stock.He called that price his best and final offer."I invested in Twitter as I believe in its potential to be the platform for free speech around the globe, and I believe free speech is a societal imperative for a functioning democracy," Musk says in the filing. "However, since making my investment I now realize the company will neither thrive nor serve this societal imperative in its current form.

PHILADELPHIA - The stretch of warm weather that has graced the Delaware Valley will continue Thursday as it brings a chance of severe storms in the afternoon. Expect highs in the 80s as temperatures start out in the 60s and 70s. We should reach the 80s by about lunchtime.By the afternoon, a cold front will approach the area, bringing the possibility of scattered and severe thunderstorms. Those storms are most likely to roll through between 2 p.m.

NEW YORK - Frank James posted dozens of videos ranting about race, violence and his struggles with mental illness. One stands out for its relative calm: A silent shot of a packed New York City subway car in which he raises his finger to point out passengers, one by one.Even as police arrested James on Wednesday in the Brooklyn subway shooting that wounded 10 people, they were still searching for a motive from a flood of details about the 62-year-old Black man’s life.An erratic work history.

Dominican Republic after more than 200 packages of presumed cocaine were seized on an aircraft at Punta Cana International Airport, officials say.In a press release dated April 6, the country’s National Directorate for Drug Control (DNCD) said the aircraft was set to fly from Punta Cana to Toronto.The DNCD said authorities began a “rigorous check” and allegedly found “eight black packages” in the aircraft.“Each containing 25 packages, for a total of 200,” the release reads. Flair Airlines could be grounded in Canada over foreign control concerns According to the release, nine Canadians, one person from India and another from the Dominican Republic are “being questioned to determine their possible involvement.”“An extensive investigation process has been initiated around this case, the Public Ministry, assisted by DNCD agents, are working hard to clearly establish who is directly linked to the seizure of the substance,” the press release reads.The DNCD said the crew, passengers and “others investigated,” as well as the aircraft are now “under the control of the Public Minister” while the investigation continues.

Grand Rapids, Mich., city manager Mark Washington and police chief Eric Winstrom spoke Wednesday after video was released that day of an April 4 shooting, showing a Michigan police officer fatally shooting a Black man while kneeling on his back after a struggle. Washington said the video was “painful to watch,” but asked the community for patience as an independent investigation was not complete.

Anyone visiting a hospital, care home or GP practice across Forth Valley will still be required to wear a face covering.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal also stated earlier in the day that his government is keeping an eye on the Covid-19 situation in the city, and will bring in a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for schools if a need arises

With agency inputs

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said during a news conference Thursday.

On April 13, 2022, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) issued a notice in public interest warning against buying health insurance policies from an unauthorised, unregistered website, even.in. The name of the entity is “Even Healthcare Pvt Ltd".

The Azov Battalion started as a far-right militia, and its members were linked to hate crimes. Now it’s a formidable force fighting for Ukraine. Eric Sorensen looks at the group’s history and evolution over the past several years.

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Covid-19 tally of cases went up to 4,30,01,477. Total of 60 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours and death toll to 5,16,132, the Health Ministry data further revealed. The daily positivity rate stood at 0.35%.

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Covid-19 cases are spiking in some Asian and European countries again. 

Covid vaccination for all in the age group of 12-14 years is available from today onward at all Government COVID Vaccination Centers free of cost. The vaccination for the 12-14 years cohort will begin from 9 am today. The vaccine to be administered for this age group would be Biological E-led Corbevax.

Covovax in the national vaccination programme, reported PTI.

Covid-19 vaccination for adolescents in the age group of 12-14 years is scheduled to begin Wednesday.

declining trend in Covid-19 cases, India on Tuesday reported 2,568 fresh Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, according to the updated Health Ministry data. The total Covid-19 cases in the country reached 43 million, according to Health Ministry data. Additionally, Covid-19 deaths reported in the country continued to be below 100, logging 97 deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the total death toll to 515,974, the Health Ministry data further revealed.

12 to 14 age group will be able to get vaccinated against Covid-19 from 16 March. In addition to this, the co-morbidity clause for administering precaution doses to citizens above the age of 60 has also been removed.