Amid heightened security measures, more than two crore devotees took a dip in the Sangam till 6 pm on Wednesday on the occasion of Maghi Purnima during the ongoing Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj.
'The launch of Nila, our very first satellite was very emotional as well as nerve wracking. We tried to calm ourselves by cracking some poor jokes!'
The Brazilian health regulator's decision comes after the vaccine maker informed the South American country about the termination of its pact with its partners in that country.
The DCGI's nod came after the subject expert committee on COVID-19 of the CSDCO last week recommended granting emergency use authorisation to Covovax for the age group of 7 to 11 years.
Under the conditions, the firms shall submit data of ongoing clinical trials and the vaccines to be supplied for programmatic setting.Adverse event following immunisation will continue to be monitored.
Trump spoke approvingly of his recent telephone conversation with Xi Jinping. This could indicate the possibility of America and China reaching some level of tactical accommodation, which would not be good news for India, points out Ambassador Shyam Saran, a former foreign secretary.
India has covered enough population with vaccine and infection, but protein vaccines should remain available on payment basis for elderly and those with comorbidities.
The World Health Organisation's technical advisory group will meet on October 26 to consider the Emergency Use Listing (EUL) of Covaxin, a vaccine developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech protecting against COVID-19, the global health agency's chief scientist said.
More than 200 million Pfizer doses have been administered in the US, and hundreds of millions more worldwide, since December.
The Serum Institute of India has stockpiled 40 mn-50 mn doses and is adding more every week. Most of these will come to India.
In India, itolizumab, known by the brand name Alzumab, has been priced at Rs 8,000 per vial. Most patients require four vials for Covid-19 treatment, taking the cost of the therapy to Rs 32,000.
'The US is strongly placed to expand its crude supplies to India.'
Bharat Biotech recruited 13,000 participants for the Phase-3 clinical trial of Covaxin. This is one of the largest efficacy trials held in the country.
Once available, Sputnik V will be the third vaccine to be used in India against coronavirus.
Pfizer sought to participate in the Subject Expert Committee consultations towards an emergency use authorisation for its Covid-19 vaccine. However, the company representatives have been unable to participate in the meetings because of extremely short notices of a few hours or less and time-zone limitations.
Russia's Sputnik V vaccine is currently being manufactured in India by Dr Reddy's Laboratories.
Drug firm Zydus Cadila on Thursday said it has applied for emergency use authorisation (EUA) with the Indian drug regulator for its three-dose COVID-19 vaccine ZyCoV-D, and plans to manufacture 10-12 crore doses annually.
The Johnson and Johnson vaccine, which works with one dose instead of two, got approval on Saturday, the third vaccine cleared in the country after emergency use authorisation (EUA) was given to two-dose shots from Pfizer and Moderna in December last year.
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.
The vaccine would be first made available to the vulnerable population and eventually, it would be available in the private market for all.
'Pfizer India has submitted an application on December 4 to the DCGI seeking emergency use authorization for its COVID-19 vaccine in India'
The government has come out with comprehensive guidelines for the management of COVID-19 among children in which Remdesivir has not been recommended and rational use of HRCT imaging has been suggested.
Bangladesh has summoned the Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka over border tensions, accusing India of violating a bilateral agreement by constructing fences at five locations along the Indo-Bangla border. The development comes after Bangladesh officials alleged that India had halted construction of barbed wire fencing due to strong opposition from the Border Guard Bangladesh and local residents.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Saturday said it has detected alleged irregularities after it conducted raids in a money laundering case to probe 'black marketing' of tickets for two 'highly anticipated' music concerts by British rock band Coldplay and actor-singer Diljit Dosanjh.
It has been approved by the European Medicines Agency for conditional marketing authorisation.
The EUA allows for Remdesivir to be distributed in the US and administered intravenously by health care providers, as appropriate, to treat suspected or laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 in adults and children hospitalised with severe condition.
Dr Reddy's, which has tied up with Russian Direct Investment Fund for Sputnik V in India, soft launched the vaccine in India in May 2021, after receiving Emergency Use Authorisation in April 2021.
Biden previously told Jake Tapper of CNN that he would be "happy to" take the COVID-19 vaccine once US infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci said it was safe and he would get the injection in a public setting to prove it.
A statement issued by the WHO on Saturday said the suspension is in response to the outcomes of its post EUL (emergency use authorisation) inspection held between March 14-22, 2022 and the need to conduct process and facility upgrade to address recently identified GMP (good manufacturing practice) deficiencies.
FDA said as of now it has issued an emergency use authorisation to allow hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine products donated to the Strategic National Stockpile to be distributed.
'We expect to get the approval in the next few weeks,' says Deepak Sapra, CEO, API and pharmaceutical services, Dr Reddy's Laboratories (DRL).
India's e-commerce market alone is projected to reach $200 billion by 2026, making it a prime industry for ambitious entrepreneurs, explains rediffGURU Harsh Bharwani.
According to CoWIN data, only 73 vaccination centres are currently active in India, of which 32 are government-run.
The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation has granted restricted emergency use authorisation to two new vaccines and a drug for COVID-19, taking the number of preventives and treatments available in India to 12.
Pfizer can show the FDA approval to the Indian regulator and present a case that based on whatever data submitted, the US regulator has granted a full marketing nod, says Sohini Das.
The previous single-day record was on May 7 at 2,769 deaths.
A longer shelf life is critical, given many makers have started manufacturing vaccines and stockpiling them, so as to make them available in the market immediately after approval, reports Sohini Das.
The first 100 beneficiaries of such foreign vaccines shall be assessed for seven days for safety outcomes before it is rolled out for further immunisation programme within the country, the Union health ministry said.
Nearly 50 million doses of Bharat Biotech's COVID-19 vaccine, Covaxin lying with the firm are set to expire early next year as there are no takers owing to poor demand, company sources said.
In a joint statement, the CDC and the FDA said they were investigating clots in six women in the days after vaccination, in combination with reduced platelet count.
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