India Cases Cross 23,000 Mark, Human Trials Of Vaccine Kick-Off: Corona Developments You Must Know

On the 31st day of an all-India lockdown, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases has reached 23,077. Between Thursday morning and Friday, 37 people have lost their lives because of the deadly virus. Maharashtra, the ground zero of COVID-19 cases in India, has over 6,000 confirmed cases now. 

Find all the latest and important developments related to coronavirus here:

India cases and toll: According to the data provided by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), the total number of COVID-19 cases in India stands at 23,077 on Friday. Of these, 17,610 are active cases while 4,748 people have recovered and 718 have died due to coronavirus.

Maharashtra numbers surge: The western state is witnessing a huge spike in COVID-19 cases, with 778 new cases being reported in the last 24 hours alone. The number of active cases now stands at 6,430 while the death toll has climbed to 283. After Maharashtra, neighbouring state Gujarat has reported maximum cases (2,624) while the numbers in Rajasthan are also showing an upward march (1,964).

Where Delhi stands: The capital has reported 128 new cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, taking the total number to 2,376. Two more people have died due to coronavirus in Delhi—the toll is now 50. In a bid to check the surge, three more areas in the city, Mehrauli, Dwarka and old Delhi, have been added to the list of containment zones.

Global corona update: Globally, 27,25,920 confirmed coronavirus cases have been reported so far, according to worldometer, a website providing real-time data on COVID-19. While 1,91,061 lost their lives to the virus, another 7,45,905 have recovered as well. Along with the US, Spain and Italy continue to report maximum cases at 8,86,709, 2,13,024 and 1,89,973 respectively. Together, they account for a little less than 1 lakh COVID-19 deaths.

Corona vaccine trials begun: The much-awaited human trials of the vaccine developed by a team of researchers at Oxford University have begun in the UK, reported BBC. Two people, including a scientist, were injected on Thursday. The vaccine was developed in under three months by a team lead by Sarah Gilbert, a professor of vaccinology at the Jenner Institute.

Corona claims infants: A four-month-old baby who tested positive for COVID-19 died on Friday morning at Kozhikode Medical College in Kerala. A similar heart-breaking death of a four-month-old baby girl due to coronavirus was reported in New York early this week.

Story of hope: Amid all the doom and gloom that the corona pandemic has inflicted on us, there are stories that give us hope. One such story is of two teenagers in Kochi, Anaanya Mathew and Hafeez Mohammed, who have raised more than Rs 4 lakh for the needy through crowdfunding. Read their story here.