Health

London, May 7 (PTI) Health authorities in England are believed to be especially concerned about one strain out of three Indian variants they have been tracking since last month.

According to a report based on leaked data by the BBC, Public Health England (PHE) is said to have recommended the B.1.617.2 version of the Indian variant to be classed as Variant of Concern (VOC) as it appears to spread more quickly than two other identified subtypes of the Indian variant.

Jaipur, May 7 (PTI) Three people, including a doctor, were arrested here on Friday for alleged black marketing of Remdesivir injection in Jaipur , police said.

Dr Amit Kumar Sethi, incharge of primary health centre of Agrawal Farm, had allegedly given the injection to a ward boy of the government-run Sawai Man Singh (SMS) Hospital, identified as Abhijeet Sen, they said.

Another accused, Chutulal, was also involved with them in the black marketing, police said.

Sen was trying to sell two Remdesivir injections for Rs 60,000, they said.

Bareilly (UP), May 7 (PTI) A lion at the Etawah Safari Park has tested positive for COVID-19 and another was suspected to have caught the infection, days after eight Asiatic lions in Hyderabad were found infected with the virus.

"Sixteen samples of 14 Asiatic lions at the Etawah Safari Park had been sent to the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) for RT-PCR tests for COVID-19. On Thursday, one lion tested positive for the virus, while another was considered as a suspected case. The remaining 12 lions have tested negative," IVRI Joint Director Dr KP Singh said.

New Delhi, May 7 (PTI) Kuwait has sent 215 tonnes of liquid oxygen to India and it plans to supply up to 1,400 tonnes to help the country deal with an acute shortage of the life-saving gas in view of surging cases of coronavirus infections.

Kuwaiti ambassador Jasem Ibrahem Al Najem said three ships of Indian Navy and a commercial vessel are bringing 215 tonnes of liquid oxygen and large consignments of other medical supplies to India and the first shipment is likely to arrive on Sunday.

New Delhi, May 7 (PTI) At least four private hospitals in Delhi sent SOS calls to authorities over shortage of medical oxygen on Friday.

The healthcare facilities included Kukreja Hospital in Mayur Vihar, Batra Hospital in Tughlakabad Institutional Area, Sir Ganga Ram-Kolmet Hospital, Pusa Road, and Irene Hospital in Kalkaji.

Government officials promptly responded to SOS calls and supplied three D-type cylinders to Irene Hospital and Kukreja Hospital.

Mumbai, May 8 (PTI) Actor Kangana Ranaut on Saturday said she has tested positive for the novel coronavirus and is under home quarantine.

The 34-year-old actor, whose Twitter account was permanently suspended for repeated violations of rules earlier this week, shared her diagnosis on Instagram.

"I was feeling tired and weak with slight burning sensation in my eyes for past few days, was hoping to go to Himachal so got my test done yesterday and today the result came I am covid positive.

Bengaluru, May 7 (PTI) Five people have been arrested so far for allegedly blocking beds in private hospitals in the city for COVID patients, police said on Friday.

"Other than four-five people, we have not arrested anyone else though our investigations are on," a police officer probing the matter told PTI.

New Delhi, May 7 (PTI) Renowned sitar player Prateek Chaudhuri has died due to COVID-related complications, almost a week after his father, music maestro Pandit Devbrata Chaudhuri, succumbed to the virus.

According to music historian Pavaj Jha, Prateek Chaudhuri, 49, was admitted to Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital here and breathed his last on Thursday.

New Delhi, May 7 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Centre to keep supplying 700 MT of liquid medical oxygen (LMO) to Delhi for treating COVID-19 patients on a daily basis till further orders.

A bench headed by Justice D Y Chandrachud took note of the submission of the Delhi government on deficient supply of LMO to the national capital and warned that it will pass orders against officials concerned if 700 MT of LMO is not supplied daily.

Bengaluru, May 7 (PTI) Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Friday said a lockdown to curb the rise in COVID-19 cases could be inevitable if people do not cooperate.

"People are not following the Janata Curfew properly.

They are not abiding by our warnings. Hence, lockdown could be inevitable," he told reporters near Annamma Devi Temple here ahead of a crucial meeting later Friday in view of the alarming rise in coronavirus cases.