"Some areas of Maharashtra will witness strict lockdown measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus infection. The government is going to hold a special meeting with officials before coming out with the lockdown measures," Thackeray said.
The Centre has accorded a security cover of armed Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) commandos for the Hyderabad premises of Bharat Biotech, one of the major COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers in the country, official sources said on Tuesday.
Speaking at a virtual conference organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry, Suchitra Ella, joint Managing Director of the city-based vaccine maker, said the company's facilities in four cities -- Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Pune and Ankaleshwar -- are currently producing Covaxin.
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With the US education system operating independently from the government, universities are adopting varying strategies when it comes to Covid vaccination.
Delhi, which has been one of the worst affected states, accounted for less than two per cent of total vaccinations in the 18-44 age-group.
Kejriwal urged people not to queue up outside the vaccination centres, saying walk-ins are not allowed yet.
Sources close to the development said the company had no further supply commitments to the WHO, and therefore, there was no suspension of any upcoming orders, reports Sohini Das.
There was speculation that a one-time special Covid-19 cess would be imposed and that it would raise an estimated Rs 18,000 crore.
The vaccination festival from April 11-14 saw intense vaccination activity with 29,33,418 doses being given on April 11, and another 40,04,521 jabs administered the next day, the ministry said.
A technical advisory group of the World Health Organisation was on Tuesday reviewing data on Covaxin for the emergency use listing of India's indigenously-made vaccine and it could pronounce its decision within the next 24 hours or so, a spokesperson said.
In a letter to all states and Union territories, the ministry highlighted that under the emergency use authorisation, coronavirus vaccination is indicated only for 18 years and above. If required, COVID-19 vaccine and other vaccines should be separated by an interval of at least 14 days.
'We are not dependent only on the two vaccines as the country is working on seven more indigenous vaccines'
'I would go for Bharat Biotech's Covaxin and not Covishield, and that is my personal judgment since at least 11,500 have got at least one dose by now and it has proven to be safe.'
A total of 3,006 session sites across all states and union territories will be virtually connected during the launch at 10.30 am by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and around 100 beneficiaries will be vaccinated at each session site.
The decline in the effectiveness of Covaxin, India's indigenous COVID-19 vaccine, from 77.8 per cent to 50 per cent during a Delta-driven case surge in April and May this year is neither bad nor surprising, say scientists.
The seasoned PR Sreejesh led the way as the Olympic-bound Indian hockey teams on Thursday received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccines in Bengaluru.
Once available, Sputnik V will be the third vaccine to be used in India against coronavirus.
The Hyderabad-based AIG Hospitals recently published a study conducted on 260 healthcare workers, who got vaccinated between January 16 and February 5, in the International Journal of Infectious Diseases (a peer-reviewed journal).
The hospital, located in Parel area, on Tuesday got the approval of the Maharashtra ethics committee for conducting the vaccine trials.
But no extra risk after second dose, shows study led and funded by drug maker, reports Sohini Das.
Efforts are being ramped up for massive production of vaccines and make them available in the shortest possible time, a top government official said on Wednesday, stressing that India currently has a promising pipeline of four-five Covid-19 vaccine candidates, while three have already been approved for emergency use.
During the meeting, scheduled to be held through video conference at 6 pm on Tuesday, the Department of Biotechnology will make a presentation and also coordinate with all the participants, sources added.
SII is the first indigenous company that has sought emergency approval for the vaccine developed along with global pharma giant AstraZeneca and Oxford University.
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A senior citizen in West Bengal's Dhupguri area died allegedly after being administered the Covishield vaccine, prompting his family members to lodge a police complaint, an official said on Tuesday.
This was stated by Minister of State for Health Ashwini Kumar Choubey in the House in response to a question on the number of healthcare staff, including doctors, nurses and ASHA workers who have been affected died due to COVID-19.
With 13,052 new coronavirus infections being reported in a day, India's COVID-19 tally has gone up to 1,07,46,183, while the number of people who have recuperated from the disease has surged to 1,04,23,125, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Sunday.
A technical advisory group of the UN health agency which met on Tuesday has sought "additional clarifications" from Bharat Biotech for Covaxin to conduct a final "risk-benefit assessment" for Emergency Use Listing of the vaccine.
Addressing a press briefing, Niti Aayog member (health) VK Paul said that though there has been an overall decline in case burden but the positivity rate is still over 10 per cent in 382 districts.
The daily rise in new coronavirus infections has been recorded below 15,000 for the last 49 days now.
In India, Opposition parties along with healthcare professionals have urged the government, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and top leaders, to take either of the Covishield or Covaxin doses, which could help in drastically reducing trust and fear issues amongst citizens., reports Sohini Das.
'Since we have to stop the pandemic, we have to use the vaccines now and that is why the emergency-use approval is justifiable.'
It is the second death due to this variant in Maharashtra as it had claimed the life of an 80-year-old woman from Ratnagiri district on June 13.
'The roadmap ahead seems very difficult especially in the rural areas where there is very poor infrastructure, vaccine reach and hesitancy.' 'These are a deadly cocktail for the next wave.'
The company had in December said that the CDSCO had approved a 12-month shelf life for Covaxin, which was nine months earlier, Sohini Das reports.
State Health Minister Rajesh Tope ordered a probe.
It asked users to be alert against all attempts of phishing through fake domains, emails and text messages that promise registration for a jab against the pandemic.
"We have started the phase-III trials of the vaccine (candidate Covishield). We will administer dose to 150 to 200 volunteers," said Dr Muralidhar Tambe, Dean, Sassoon General Hospital.
India expects 2.16 billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines between August and December, including the jabs that are currently in clinical trials, reports Sohini Das
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