Coronavirus live updates: Karnataka govt to not impose night curfew

Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh will be administered the first shot of the Covid-19 vaccine in the state, once it is cleared by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). He made the announcement at the virtual cabinet meeting to discuss the Covid situation and preparedness for the vaccine rollout.

As Britain becomes the first Western country to approve a Covid-19 vaccine for general use, here is a look at what leading non-Western nations are doing in the race to get a vaccine approved. China has four coronavirus vaccines in phase 3 trials -- typically the last step before regulatory approval -- but has not released much of its data.

More than 100,000 people in Russia have already been inoculated against the coronavirus, said Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko on Wednesday, while presenting the Sputnik V vaccine to the United Nations over a video link.

Puducherry posted 42 fresh cases of Covid-19 on Thursday pushing the overall tally to 37,119 while one related fatality took the toll to 613.The new cases were identified after examination of 2,820 samples in the last 24 hours.

US President-elect Joe Biden has urged Americans not to travel during the Christmas and New Year holidays so as to prevent the spread of the deadly coronavirus pandemic. The novel coronavirus has so far infected 13,921,374 people and claimed 273,799 lives in the US -- both the numbers highest in the world.

They can move to front of the line for a Covid-19 vaccine if they want, but some US health care workers are skeptical about taking a vaccine that was developed in record time -- even as the pandemic rages on. Some want more time, despite assurances from experts that they trust the vaccine vetting process carried out by the US Food and Drug Administration.

Mexico's health ministry on Wednesday reported 11,251 new cases of Covid-19 and 800 additional deaths, bringing the national caseload to 1,133,613 and death toll to 107,565.