A total of 40,845 cases of black fungus or mucormycosis have been reported in the country so far, of which 31,344 are rhinocerebral in nature, and the death toll from the infections stands at 3,129, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said.
As the possibility of a COVID-19 third wave escalates by the day, Indians continue their relentless battle against the virus.
"The Indian Medical Association has requested all its 3.5 lakh members in 1,800 local branches to voluntarily come out to get vaccinated first to show the world that these vaccines are safe and efficacious," it said.
Strict screening protocols are to be implemented for passengers arriving from central African countries affected by the outbreak.
At present, no Omicron variant has been reported in India, Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said.
Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan has written to these states to draw their attention 'to the low and declining testing rates in the states, stating that any laxity at this crucial junction may squander the results of our collective actions in containing the transmission', according to a health ministry statement.
During a virtual meeting with health ministers and senior officials of states in view of the recent surge in coronavirus cases in some parts of the world, he said, "The Centre and states need to work in tandem and in a collaborative spirit as was done during the previous surges for Covid prevention and management."
The city's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) has put in place all necessary measures to implement the health ministry's latest COVID-19 guidelines on international passengers arriving in India, the private airport operator said on Wednesday.
'I'm not vaccinated and I'm not planning to get vaccinated so the only good news I can have is them removing the mandated green vaccine card'
Of the 46,164 fresh coronavirus cases recorded in the country in a 24-hour span, 31,445 were in Kerala. Maharashtra has reported 5,031 new cases and 216 fresh fatalities on Wednesday.
Maggie is among the first set of people contacted in advance by the NHS for the jab based on a pre-determined health risk criteria and will include 87-year-old British Indian grandfather of nine Hari Shukla, who will get his first dose at a hospital in Newcastle.
'When there is so much anxiety, the Government of India should assure people on the vaccine issue and help the states demanding more supply that they will be provided the required quantities.' 'Any Centre-state conflict at this point of time is counter-productive and enhances people's anxieties that should be avoided.'
The active cases have reduced to 36,18,458 comprising 14.66 per cent of the total infections.
An Allahabad high court bench of Justice Shekhar Yadav had on Thursday last urged the government and the poll panel to consider postponing the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections for a month or two and banning all political rallies amid the fears of an impending third wave of Covid.
Amid an uptick in daily cases of COVID-19 in Delhi and the positivity rate going beyond two per cent, there has been a rise of nearly 48 per cent in the number of home isolation cases in the last one week, according to official data.
The reduced severity of the Omicron variant is good news for now, but it is the result of an 'evolutionary mistake' and does not indicate that the virus which causes COVID-19 is becoming less virulent, a leading Indian-origin scientist from the University of Cambridge warned on Thursday.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Tuesday said one of the major reasons for the surge in cases was people becoming lax towards following COVID-appropriate behaviour and urged them take up mass awareness campaigns to re-instill the importance of such measures among the masses.
During this period, all government and private offices, shopping complexes, malls, bars, sports complexes, pubs and beauty parlours will remain closed.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday expressed concern over vaccine hesitancy in some communities and urged people to spread awareness about the benefits of inoculation to win the battle against coronavirus.
Raising an alarm that a "big tragedy" may happen due to oxygen shortage in hospitals during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said the Centre should take over all oxygen plants through the Army.
Ahmedabad was the first stop in the PM's three city tour today, to personally review the vaccine development and manufacturing process in the country.
The active cases have reduced to 16,35,993 comprising 5.73 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has improved to 93.08 per cent.
At 8 million a month, times two doses, it will take us 17 years to administer the vaccine to our 800 million adults. The rollout must speed up twenty times, asserts Naushad Forbes.
The raging controversy over the fake COVID-19 vaccination camps in parts of Kolkata snowballed into a political storm ensnaring into it several TMC leaders, prompting the opposition BJP to demand a CBI probe into a 'larger conspiracy' in the case.
'It is absolutely important for us to continue to message to people that they must wear masks, keep physical distancing, as much as is practically possible, at work or at home.'
A dipstick survey covering 30 villages in Rajasthan threw up some worrisome numbers. About 250 children missed their regular vaccination schedule in March alone. These numbers are alarming, since India has around 600,000 villages according to the 2011 census. Sohini Das reports.
When several opposition MPs expressed their desire to ask questions about the Centre's vaccination policy such as increasing the gap between two doses, the BJP MPs strongly opposed it and few of them even demanded postponement of the meeting and walked out, the sources said.
The cumulative number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in India has crossed 1.8 crore, the Union health ministry said on Friday.
'Wherever the Delta variant is spreading, and the population is not vaccinated, there is death and devastation.'
The NTAGI has also stated that those having laboratory test proven SARS-CoV-2 illness should defer COVID-19 vaccination for six months after recovery, the sources said.
As on day 80 of the vaccination drive (April 5), a total 43,00,966 vaccine doses have been given out of which 39,00,505 beneficiaries were vaccinated across 48,095 sessions for 1st dose while 4,00,461 beneficiaries received the 2nd dose, according to the data updated at 7 am.
India is struggling with the second wave of coronavirus infection and hospitals in several states are reeling under a shortage of medical oxygen and beds in view of a rising number of COVID-19 cases.
The third phase trial of Bharat Biotech's Covaxin began in the state on Friday and the 67-year old senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader was administered the trial dose at the Civil Hospital at Ambala Cantt.
The Kerala high court has directed the Centre to allow scheduling, on CoWIN portal, of second Covishield dose after four weeks from the first for those who want to take it earlier than the present suggested gap of 84 days.
Symptoms such as common cold, mild body ache and fatigue have emerged among patients and people tend to postpone their visit to a doctor when they notice these signs
Daily COVID-19 caseload in India that is currently around 7,500 infections is expected to increase once the Omicron starts displacing Delta as the dominant variant, informed members of the national COVID-19 supermodel committee and predicted the third wave in India early year.
Covaxin, a whole-virion inactivated SARS-CoV-2 vaccine used for mass immunization in the country, showed a 65.2 per cent protection against the Delta variant in a double-blind, randomized, multicentre, phase 3 clinical trial.
Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla said that vaccination against COVID-19, in the present scenario, is critical to break the chain of transmission.
Each state will plan it in two districts and preferably in five different session-type settings -- district hospital, community health centre or primary health care centre, urban site, private health facility and rural outreach.
An intranasal vaccine as a booster dose would be easier to administer in mass vaccination campaigns and has the potential to prevent transmission.
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