NEWS

Delhi on Monday reported 370 coronavirus cases and four fatalities, according to data shared by the health department.

The Covid-19 positivity rate dropped below one per cent for the first time since December 29 last year. The positivity has been recorded at 0.94% lowest since December 29, 2021, when the positivity rate was 1.2 per cent.

The state health department said, of the 370, around 86 cases of infection are from earlier weeks, which was added on the ICMR portal on Sunday. The national capital's total case tally now stands at 18,56,5117, and the death toll is at 26,105, it stated.

Voting for single-phase Punjab Assembly election for 117 seats was held on Sunday (February 20). In Punjab's multi-cornered fight, Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), SAD-BSP alliance, BJP-PLC-SAD (Sanyukt) are the main players in the fray. 

If we go by some reports, it seems Punjab voters are keen to give Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) a chance this time. Sources say that many Punjab voters feel that they have given a chance to both Congress and Shiromani Akali Dal, however, their problems have remained unresolved. So why not AAP for once, they ask. From Chowk crossroad to the polling booth, the wave seemed in favour of the AAP, as per sources.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Monday accused the Yogi government of doing nothing in the past five years except dividing people, and claimed that it had meted out “step-motherly” treatment to her constituency Rae Bareli.

In her maiden speech for the UP elections, the Congress interim chief also accused PM Narendra Modi and CM Yogi Adityanath of mismanagement during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“It’s going to be an important election because for the past five years you have seen a government which did nothing except divide people,” Gandhi said during a virtual address on the last day of campaign for the fourth phase.

After a modest, almost-generalised dip in January owing to the third Covid wave, economic activities on an aggregate basis seem to have recovered smartly in early February itself, as the pandemic’s effect quickly abated and turned out to be less severe than in the previous two waves.

However, for the advance estimate of a real gross domestic product (GDP) expansion of 8.8% for 2021-22 to come true, a quick and strong consumption rebound in February-March is imperative. Also required is robust public capital expenditure in the final months of the year: The central and state governments will have to stick to the capex estimates in their Budgets; CPSEs ought to pitch in too.