# Online darshan: Over the last two days, festivities have begun in different States. In Maharashtra, devotees welcomed Lord Ganesh in their homes and public pandals on Friday as the 10-day festival began in Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra. This time also the focus was on online darshan amid the coronavirus pandemic and the looming threat of a third wave.

# TN on alert: In Tamil Nadu, the Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan has urged all District Collectors and the Commissioner of Greater Chennai Corporation to be on alert as the State showed a rising trend in Covid-19 cases – from about 1,500 a day to above 1,600. “What is worrying is that instead of earlier week changes linked to an increase in the number of tests on weekdays, this rise is due to a gradual increase in positivity,” he said in a message to all the Collectors.

# Vax drive: Meanwhile, the State is also gearing up to vaccinate around 20 lakh people above 18 years of age on September 12 as a part of the mega vaccination camps to be held across TN.

# Vax momentum: Staying with vaccinations, Gujarat’s pace of administering Covid vaccinations has picked up with the State fully vaccinating 28 percent of its eligible population as of September 9, the highest for any State in the country. This gives confidence to authorities to provide relaxations during the upcoming festivals, including Ganesh Utsav and Navaratri.

# 72 and rising: The country has surpassed the 72.37 crore mark in its inoculation drive across the country with three States including Sikkim, Dadar & Nagar Haveli, and Himachal Pradesh completing 100 per cent first dose in the country. Also, on Friday, India administered 54.72 lakh vaccine doses till 6:00 PM with 72.91 crore vaccinations done till now.

# Immunity boosters: There has been a surge in demand for Ayurvedic products due to the Covid-19 pandemic, as people realise the importance of traditional immunity boosters. Experts say the demand for Ayurvedic products along with growing discretionary spending can help Ayurveda become a $15 billion industry by 2023.

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