A massive explosion and fire at a pharmaceutical factory in Telangana, India, has killed at least 36 people.

Opal Suchata Chuangsri of Thailand has been crowned Miss World at a glittering contest that was held in India.

Shyam Benegal, a renowned Indian filmmaker known for pioneering a cinema movement that tackled social issues in the 1970s, has died after chronic kidney disease.

The European climate agency says Earth was record hot for the 10th consecutive month in March.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has urged more than a thousand Indian computer code developers to use the company’s artificial intelligence tools being deployed across its products.

India’s newest airline says it will buy 150 Boeing 737 Max aircraft, in the first major announced sale for the manufacturer since a panel blew out of another Max model in midflight earlier this month.

India has begun randomly testing international passengers arriving at its airports for COVID-19 after an increase in cases in neighboring China.

Pakistan has launched a special hotline for transgender people in an effort to protect their rights and save them from discrimination and harassment.

Pakistani officials say almost 3 million children in flood-hit areas may miss at least one semester because of damage the disaster has inflicted on schools.

India and China have cleared two needle-free options for COVID-19 vaccinations.

The Indian government says the country's economy grew by 13.5% in the April-June quarter from a year earlier, pushed up by a boost in agriculture and manufacturing as pandemic curbs eased.

Officials say that recent heavy rains have wreaked havoc across Pakistan since mid-June, with 903 dead and about 50,000 people homeless.

India banned some single-use or disposable plastic products Friday as a part of a federal plan to phase out the ubiquitous material in the nation of nearly 1.4 billion people.

Misinformation about the coronavirus is surging in India as the death toll from COVID-19 rises.

A panel of independent experts who reviewed the World Health Organization’s response to the coronavirus pandemic has published its final report, listing an array of recommendations about how the world can better prepare for another.

A potentially worrisome variant of the coronavirus detected in India may spread more easily.

India has set another global record in new virus cases, as millions of people in one state cast votes despite rising infections.

Indian villagers carry their belongings on their heads and walk towards their village on the outskirts of Hyderabad, India, Friday, Feb. 19, 2021. Daniele Franco told a virtual news conference after the meeting of finance ministers and central bank chiefs of the G-20 economies that a core priority for the group is “to grant equitable access” to safe vaccines. “We will not get back to our normal lives until the virus is eradicated in all countries,” Franco said. Economy and finance ministers will check in on progress on issues in July in Venice, and a global summit is planned for October. Climate change and tax policy are on the agenda for July.

NEW DELHI – India’s homegrown coronavirus vaccine developer Bharat Biotech on Tuesday warned people with weak immunity and other medical conditions including allergies, fever or a bleeding disorder to consult a doctor before getting the shot — and if possible avoid the vaccine. The vaccine developed by Bharat Biotech ran into controversy after the Indian government allowed its use without concrete data showing its effectiveness in preventing COVID-19. Bharat Biotech has still not published data on its vaccine’s effectiveness but said it is complying with clinical trial guidelines. But turnout, particularly in those hospitals using the Bharat Biotech vaccine, has been relatively low, health officials said. Hospitals in New Delhi that have been administering the Bharat Biotech vaccine have seen many doctors hesitate to get the shot.

(AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)HONOLULU — Hawaii’s leaders say limited supply is the main thing constraining distribution of the coronavirus vaccine in the state. He said the sites have set the vaccine doses aside and will receive replacement doses on Tuesday and Wednesday. ___TORONTO — Canadian officials say the country won’t be getting any Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine next week and 50% less than expected over the next month. U.S. pharmaceutical company Pfizer confirmed last week it would temporarily reduce deliveries to Europe and Canada of its COVID-19 vaccine while it upgrades production capacity. ___JERUSALEM — Israel’s Cabinet on Tuesday extended an existing nationwide lockdown through the end of January as the country contends with a runaway surge in coronavirus cases.

India authorized two COVID-19 vaccines on Sunday, paving the way for a huge inoculation program to stem the coronavirus pandemic in the worlds second most populous country. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)NEW DELHI – India authorized two COVID-19 vaccines on Sunday, paving the way for a huge inoculation program to stem the coronavirus pandemic in the world’s second-most populous country. The country's drugs regulator gave emergency authorization for the vaccine developed by Oxford University and U.K.-based drugmaker AstraZeneca, and another developed by the Indian company Bharat Biotech. AstraZeneca has contracted Serum Institute of India, the world's largest vaccine manufacturer, to make 1 billion doses of its vaccine for developing nations, including India. But questions have been raised by health experts over the vaccine developed by Bharat Biotech.

Health workers participate in a COVID-19 vaccine delivery system trial in Hyderabad, India, Saturday, Jan. 2, 2021. India tested its COVID-19 vaccine delivery system with a nationwide trial on Saturday as it prepares to roll-out an inoculation program to stem the coronavirus pandemic. Saturday's exercise included necessary data entry into an online platform for monitoring vaccine delivery, along with testing of cold storage and transportation arrangements for the vaccine, the health ministry had said. NEW DELHI – India tested its COVID-19 vaccine delivery system with a nationwide trial on Saturday, as it prepares to roll out an inoculation program to stem the coronavirus pandemic. The trial included data entry into an online platform for monitoring vaccine delivery, along with testing of cold storage and transportation arrangements for the vaccine, the health ministry said in a statement.

TOKYO – The number of new coronavirus infections in Japan’s capital topped 600 in a day for the first time Thursday, while experts warned of the increased burden on hospitals. Sri Lanka has reported 30,075 coronavirus cases, including 144 deaths. The health ministry later the same day retested the man’s original sample as well as a new sample and found them negative. — India is reporting 31,521 newly coronavirus infections in the past 24 hours, dropping to just over a third of the peak seen in mid-September. — South Korea has reported 682 new cases of the coronavirus, as officials work to expand testing to slow infections.

About 490,000 high school seniors and graduates across the country are expected to take the College Scholastic Ability Test. Vice Education Minister Park Baeg-beom says the 490,000 applicants include 35 virus carriers who will take the exams Thursday at hospitals or treatment shelters. A recent spike in coronavirus infections has made this year’s exams more complicated and there are concerns that they could accelerate the spread of the virus. In other developments in the Asia-Pacific region:— Japan’s parliament has approved legislation to aid the distribution and administration of coronavirus vaccines to all citizens. — India has maintained a declining trend in coronavirus infections with 36,604 new cases reported in the past 24 hours.

The nation of 1.3 billion people is expected to become the pandemic's worst-hit country within weeks, surpassing the United States. (AP Photo/Channi Anand)NEW DELHI – India reported more than 83,000 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, showing some decline after reaching a record a week earlier. India is expected to become the world's worst-hit country within weeks, surpassing the United States, where nearly 6.9 million people have been infected by the virus. But the past week has seen some improvement in India, with the numbers dropping after a record 97,894 new cases were reported on Sept. 16. The country has reported 3,315 cases, including 13 deaths.

Hoping to avoid more economic damage, India is gradually relaxing restrictions and has announced that urban metro trains can resume service next Monday. India has been reporting the highest single-day caseload in the world for nearly three weeks. On Tuesday it recorded 69,921 new coronavirus infections. By May and June, cases began to gradually increase, with megacity Mumbai and the capital, New Delhi, faring the worst. On Tuesday, India held competitive college exams despite demands from students that they be postponed because of the pandemic.

SEOUL South Korea has reported 113 newly confirmed cases of COVID-19 over the past 24 hours, its first daily jump over 100 in nearly four months. The KCDC said 86 of the new cases were linked to international arrivals while the other 27 were local transmissions. It said the imported cases included 36 South Korean workers who returned from Iraq and 32 crew members of a Russia-flagged cargo ship docked in the southern port of Busan. South Korean officials consider imported cases as less threatening than local transmissions as they mandate tests and enforce two-week quarantines on all overseas arrivals. He said 89 of the 293 South Korean workers who arrived home Friday aboard two military planes from Iraq were exhibiting symptoms.

NEW DELHI India's prime minister is meeting top opposition leaders Friday as the government tries to lower tensions with China after 20 Indian soldiers were killed in a military clash in a Himalayan border region this week. India and China have accused each other of instigating the clash in the Galwan Valley, part of the disputed Ladakh region along the Himalayan frontier. The Himalayan clash has fanned growing anti-Chinese sentiments due to the coronavirus pandemic, which began in China late last year. Indian news reports said 76 Indian soldiers were hospitalized with injuries, but the military has not confirmed that. Indian officials have denied that any Indian troops were in Chinese custody.

CANBERRA Six million Australians have downloaded a smartphone app that helps health authorities trace coronavirus infections, officials said Sunday. The government has said at least 40% of Australias 26 million people need to use the app for it to be effective. SOUTH KOREA RECORDS 25 NEW INFECTIONS: South Korea reported 25 additional cases of the coronavirus over a 24-hour period, amid a continuation of small-scale outbreaks in the country. Seventeen of the 25 new patients were locally infected, while the other eight came from overseas, health authorities said. Health authorities had confirmed a total of 225 cases linked to Itaewon cubs as of noon Sunday.