Joint Secretary in the health ministry Lav Agarwal said it is wrong to just look at the total number of cases and state that India has the seventh highest number of cases as the population of countries also should be taken into account. About 14 countries with a cumulative population almost equal to that of India have reported 55.2 times more COVID-19 deaths, he said.
Results of an interim study recently published in The Lancet showed that two doses of Covaxin, also known as BBV152, had 77.8 per cent efficacy against symptomatic disease and present no serious safety concerns.
As cases of 'black fungus' among COVID-19 patients in the country rise to cross 7,000, the Centre on Thursday urged all states and union territories to declare it as a notifiable disease under the Epidemic Diseases Act to ensure mandatory surveillance to tackle the 'new challenge'.
The death toll has increased to 1,51,727 with 198 new fatalities.
There are 2,24,190 active cases in the country which is 2.16 per cent of the total caseload, the data stated. The total coronavirus cases mounted to 1,04,31,639 and the death toll climbed to 1,50,798 with the novel coronavirus virus claiming 228 lives in a span of 24 hours in the country, the data updated at 8 am showed.
Vaccine development is a long process to ensure safety and efficacy through different stages and involves regulatory supervision every step of the way. Ruchika Chitravanshi takes you through this carefully drawn journey of vaccine development.
Covaxin is being developed by Bharat Biotech jointly with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)- National Institute of Virology (NIV). The Phase III human clinical trials of Covaxin began mid-November, targeted to be done in 26,000 volunteers and it is the country's first and only Phase III efficacy study for a COVID-19 vaccine, a press release from the vaccine maker said on Saturday night.
A total of 19,079 people tested positive for the coronavirus infection in a day, while the death toll due to the disease climbed to 1,49,218 in the country with 224 new fatalities, the ministry's data updated at 8 am showed.
According to the ministry's data updated at 8 am on Saturday, 6,53,750 people have recovered from the disease so far.
The Kerala Assembly on Wednesday unanimously passed a resolution demanding that the Centre provide COVID-19 vaccines free of cost to all states, even as the ruling and opposition members clashed over the COVID-19 fatality numbers in the state.
The government on Friday warned about the declining compliance to mask usage in the country amid concerns over the Omicron variant of the coronavirus and urged people to follow COVID-appropriate behaviour and get vaccinated to prevent surge in cases.
To a question whether police cases will be registered, Sudhakar said, "I am compelled to say that I will discuss with the home minister and decide the future course of action."
The approval by the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) was given on the basis of recommendations submitted by a COVID-19 subject expert committee (SEC) of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO).
Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan reviewed the status of passengers coming from the UK to India and found positive in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Goa, Punjab, Gujarat and Kerala and their response measures in a meeting held through video conferencing.
Officials said several witnesses were heard on the impact of the pandemic. They added that this was the longest meeting of the panel without a break so far.
The total active cases in the country are at 3,32,002. With 33,813 new discharges in the last 24 hours, total discharged cases reached 94,56,449.
The coronavirus caseload mounted to 99,06,165 with 22,065 infections being reported in a day, while the death toll rose to 1,43,709 with 354 new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed.
The total coronavirus cases mounted to 98,84,100 with 27,071 infections being reported in a day. The death toll rose to 1,43,355 with 336 new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed.
The COVID-19 caseload zoomed to 5,08,953, while 384 fresh fatalities were recorded in the last 24 hours. The number of active cases stands at 1,97,387, while 2,95,880 people have recovered and one patient has migrated, according to the updated figure at 8 am.
The association's reaction came after Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Sunday said that the country is "in the end game of the COVID-19 pandemic" and Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain said the coronavirus is nearing an "endemic" phase in the national capital.
However, the tender criteria demands that an entity must be eligible to conduct Beyond Visual Line of Sight operations in order to become eligible. Currently, no drone companies are eligible to do BVLOS operations, reports Arindam Majumder.
With a record 1,45,384 fresh cases, India's COVID-19 tally has climbed to 1,32,05,926, the health ministry said.
The total coronavirus cases mounted to 96,08,211 and the death toll climbed to 1,39,700 with the coronavirus claiming 512 lives in a span of 24 hours in the country, the data updated at 8 am showed.
The recoveries have crossed 1.02 crore.
India on Saturday recorded 89,129 new COVID-19 cases in a day, the highest daily rise in around six-and-half-months, taking the nationwide tally of infections to over 1.23 crore, according to the Union Health Ministry data on Saturday.
The total coronavirus cases mounted to 64,73,544 with 79,476 new infections being reported in a day, while the death toll climbed to 1,00,842 with the virus claiming 1,069 lives in a span of 24 hours, data updated at 8 am showed.
As India holds its breath for the Covid vaccination to be begin, Sudhir Bisht provides a quick checklist of what you must know about the vaccines that will be administered to citizens.
'Better to prevent than to wait for evidence. Protection delayed can also mean protection denied'
88,600 fresh infections were reported on Sunday. The total coronavirus cases mounted to 59,92,532, while the death toll climbed to 94,503 with 1,124 people succumbing to the disease in a span of 24 hours, data updated at 8 am showed.
The IPL was postponed till April 15 in the backdrop of COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown.
'We are rolling out a vaccine when we don't even have the phase 2 trial results; forget about phase 3 trial results.' 'Why are we playing with people's lives?'
With 4,20,898 samples tested in the past 24 hours, it added, the Tests Per Million has increased to 11,485 and continue to maintain an upward trend.
SP leader Akhilesh Yadav reacted quickly to the allegation, tweeting that the red caps are a 'red alert' for the Bharatiya Janata Party itself as they will oust that party from power.
The number of active cases remained below 5 lakh for the sixth consecutive day. There are 4,65,478 active cases of coronavirus infection in the country as on date which comprise 5.26 per cent of the total caseload, the data stated.
Vardhan said the ICMR is actively researching on reports of COVID-19 reinfection and although the number of such cases is negligible at this moment, the government is fully seized of the importance of the matter, the health ministry said in a statement.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on Saturday briefed about the new 'Omicron' variant of the coronavirus, and he asked officials to review the plans to ease international travel restrictions in light of the 'emerging new evidence.'
The civic body also informed that those kept in institutional quarantine will be discharged only when they test negative for the virus. Municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal took the decision to allow testing without medical prescription in view of increase in the number of private laboratories and their capacity, it said in a release.
'The more people get tested, the more people will come under isolation. So the spread will get limited with testing.'
The country's COVID-19 caseload mounted to 79,90,322 with 43,893 fresh cases being reported in a day, while the death toll climbed to 1,20,010 with 508 new fatalities, the ministry data updated at 8 am showed.
Zydus Cadila COVID-19 vaccine for children above 12 years is expected to be available by August as its trials are likely to be completed by July-end, said Dr N K Arora, Chairman, National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI).
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