Coronavirus pandemic live updates: At 3, Mumbai reports lowest Covid death toll since March

Malayalam poet and lyricist Anil Panachooran passed away after suffering a cardiac arrest while undergoing treatment for COVID-19 at a hospital in Thiruvananthapuram today, reports ANI.

Jagannath temple reopens for all devotees, reports PTI.

At 3, Mumbai reports lowest Covid-19 deaths since March last year, reports PTI.

Mumbai on Sunday reported threeCOVID-19 deaths, which are the lowest in a single day since March last year, city civic commissioner I S Chahal said. In a statement, the city civic chief said the hard work of the Maharashtra government and teams of the BMC is paying off. "I congratulate the eminent citizens of Mumbai for their outstanding cooperation and support. A big salute to all the doctors & supporting frontline workers and the media who created great positive awareness which has made this possible," Chahal stated.

Bharat Biotech has been asked to submit updated safety, efficacy & immunogenicity data from the ongoing Phase I, II & Ill clinical trials till the completion of trials.

Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) gives licensing permission to Bharat Biotech to manufacture Covaxin.

Tracing the spread of Covid-19

Serum Institute says to meet local demand for AstraZeneca vaccine for next two months, before exporting, reports Reuters.

Chief Executive Adar Poonawalla said in an interview after the shot was approved for emergency use in the world's second-most populous country, that exports might be possible after supplying the Indian government with an initial 100 million doses.

We hope potentially Bharat Biotech vaccine will have some advantages over other vaccines on this new strain because it is a whole virus: Dr Balram Bhargava, DG ICMR

NIV scientists have successfully isolated the new virus strain and this will be tested against different vaccines: Dr Balram Bhargava, DG ICMR

MP govt orders closure of Covid centres; Congress questions logic, reports PTI.

The Madhya Pradesh government has ordered closure of all COVID care centres in the state, except those in Bhopal, from January 1 in view of the low occupancy of beds, as per an official order made available on Sunday. This decision evoked a sharp reaction from the opposition Congress, with its state unit president Kamal Nath questioning the rationale behind the order. Defending the decision, CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the pandemic is under control in the state and there is no justification to keep the COVID care centres open "just for the sake of keeping them open".

Badminton world number one Kento Momota tested positive for coronavirus on Sunday, prompting the withdrawal of all Japan's players from this month's Thailand Open, reports AFP.

Momota was looking to make his international comeback in Bangkok after almost a year out following a car crash that left him with serious injuries.

Delhi records 424 new Covid-19 cases, lowest in over seven months; death toll 10,585 with 14 more fatalities, reports PTI.

The company will now be initiating Phase III clinical trial in around 30,000 volunteers, Zydus Cadila said in a statement. ZyCoV-D was found to be safe, well-tolerated and immunogenic in phase I and II clinical trials, it added.

ICMR and Bharat Biotech collaborative a whole Virion Inactivated Corona Virus Vaccine (Covaxin) is being approved for restricted use in an emergency by Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI): ICMR