With 60,753 new Covid cases being reported in a day, India's total tally rose to 2,98,23,546, while the number of active cases stand at 7,60,019, the lowest in 74 days, according to Union health ministry data updated.
'Our study shows a greater risk reduction for people who received an mRNA vaccine after having received a first dose of a vector-based, as compared to people having received the vector-based vaccine for both doses,' Nordstrom said.
Amid reports of the ongoing coal shortage in the country, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stressed that there is no shortage and termed these as "absolutely baseless", saying India is a power surplus country. Sitharaman said that Power Minister R K Singh went on record just two days ago when he said absolutely baseless information is floating around that there is probably shortage of coal, shortage of other inventories which will lead to a sudden gap in the supply demand situation in the energy consumption. "Absolute baseless! There is no shortage of anything. In fact, if I recall the minister's statement, every power producing installation has the next four days' stock absolutely available within their own premises and the supply chain has not broken at all," Sitharaman said at Harvard Kennedy School on Tuesday.
The death toll due to the disease has climbed to 4,43,928 with 431 daily fatalities being recorded, according to data updated by the ministry at 8 am.
Railway employees including station masters, engine drivers, ticket checkers, etc too have been selected for vaccination and their list is being compiled for the exercise.
"The phase-III trial of 'Covishield' vaccine will begin at Sassoon hospital from next week. It is likely to start on Monday. Some volunteers have already come forward for the trial. "Around 150 to 200 volunteers will be administered the vaccine candidate dose," Dean of the state-run Sassoon General Hospital Dr Muralidhar Tambe said.
The daily positivity rate was recorded at 2.04 per cent. It has been below 3 per cent for the last 19 days. The weekly positivity rate was recorded at 2.13 per cent, according to the health ministry.
In their first summit, the leaders of Quad countries on Friday decided to launch a mega vaccine initiative under which coronavirus vaccines will be produced in India for the Indo-Pacific region with financial assistance from the United States and Japan while Australia will contribute in logistical aspects.
The Indian Council of Medical Research will start national-level sero surveys to assess the spread of Covid-19 and all states/Union territories should also be encouraged to conduct them so that information from all geographies can be collected, the Union health ministry said on Friday.
"India expands its vaccine basket! Johnson and Johnson's single-dose COVID-19 vaccine is given approval for Emergency Use in India. Now India has 5 EUA vaccines. This will further boost our nation's collective fight against COVID-19," tweeted the minister.
India is struggling with a second wave of the pandemic with more than 3,00,000 daily new coronavirus cases being reported in the past few days, and hospitals in several states are reeling under a shortage of medical oxygen and beds.
According to health ministry officials, over 92 per cent of the adult population have received at least one dose while over 68 per cent have been fully vaccinated.
The Indian Olympic Association secretary general Rajeev Mehta on Monday requested the Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan to expedite the process for the vaccination of the country's Tokyo Olympic-bound athletes and officials against COVID-19.
Covaxin was found to have 78 per cent efficacy against COVID-19 of any severity, 14 or more days after the second dose, and is extremely suitable for low- and middle-income countries due to easy storage requirements, said the global health body.
The Centre is looking to procure around 1 billion syringes between September and December to support the COVID-19 vaccination drive.
According to the health ministry, advance appointments for vaccination can be booked through http://cowin.gov.in, or one can visit their nearest vaccination center after 3 pm and get on-site registration done.
The health ministry stressed that more than 70 per cent of the deaths occurred due to comorbidities.
The institute expects to complete both, phase-2 and 3 trials in India by the end of this year.
Hyderabad-based vaccine manufacturer Bharat Biotech, which is carrying out its phase 3 trial will publish the data in July following that the company will be applying for the full licensure of Covaxin.
At $37 per dose, the Pfizer vaccine is much more expensive compared to $3 per dose for the Covishield.
Poonawalla noted that reducing the timeframe would give "real relief" to the people who want to travel abroad.
The prime minister was happy that the assurance given by the Serum Institute that it will make India self-sufficient in vaccines at the lowest possible price in the world was fulfilled.
As India prepares to launch its vaccine drive on January 16, here is a look at the options:
This follows a widespread criticism of its pricing policy as it sold Covaxin to the central government at Rs 150 per dose.
The number of active cases comprises 1.50 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate stands at 97.18 per cent, data updated by the ministry at 8 am showed.
When a person gets an infection even after being vaccinated against it, it is called a breakthrough case.
Two male volunteers were administered the vaccine at Bharti Vidyapeeth's Medical College and Hospital, a senior office-bearer of the hospital said.
The total number of beneficiaries who have been vaccinated on Thursday till 6 pm include 15,507 in Andhra Pradesh, 15,798 in Bihar, 10,266 in Kerala, 16,103 in Karnataka, 7,117 in Madhya Pradesh, 6,497 in Tamil Nadu, 5,128 in Delhi, 12,212 in Gujarat and 7,187 in West Bengal, according to the provisional report.
The US Food and Drug Administration had in February approved Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine that works with just one dose for emergency use.
India achieved this coverage in 130 days as against the USA's feat in 124 days.
The Maharashtra government on Saturday evening announced suspension of the COVID-19 vaccination drive in the state till Monday owing to problems in the Co-Win app.
Thanking all, including doctors, nurses, healthcare staff, security personnel and journalists, who have been at the frontline in the fight against the pandemic, the minister said they ensured India reaches the stage when vaccine gets delivered to the people.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had on Thursday said the city government will declare black fungus an epidemic if need arises.
The further distribution of vaccine to the districts will be done as per the registered beneficiaries, for which a separate communication will be done shortly, the letter stated.
TCS was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising around 2 per cent, followed by ONGC, SBI, L&T, Infosys, HCL Tech, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank. The broader NSE Nifty surged hit a record high of 14,109.40.
We are entering 2022, facing another infectious variant, with much the same baseless confidence, notes Mihir S Sharma.
The United Kingdom will move India from 'red' to 'amber' list on August 8, according to the information available on the UK government website.
The patient is currently admitted to the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) Hospital and has mild symptoms, hospital officials said.
Ahmedabad-based Zydus Cadila, Bharat Biotech's intra-nasal candidate are among the candidates who got approval from the expert panel to conduct clinical trials, Sohini Das reports.
Biden expressed the support of the US to India in a telephonic conversation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during which the two leaders discussed the pandemic situation in their countries, including India's ongoing efforts to contain a second wave of COVID-19 through expedited vaccination efforts, and ensuring supply of critical medicines, therapeutics and medical equipment.
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