A 39-year-old man tested positive for the Nipah virus, which was transmitted to him through direct contact with an infected person who died on August 30, State Health Minister Veena George said in Kozhikode on Friday.
The H3N2, which has been in wide circulation for the past two-three months, causes more hospitalisations than other subtypes, said ICMR scientists who keep a close watch on ailments caused by respiratory viruses through the Virus Research and Diagnostic Laboratories network.
Earlier this week, the top doctors' body in the country, the Indian Medical Association, said the third wave is "inevitable and imminent", pointing out that "in many parts of the country both the government and public are complacent and engaged in mass gatherings without following Covid protocols".
Given the recurring outbreaks in the last five years, the government is considering domestic manufacturing of monoclonal antibodies for treating Nipah virus infections and is in talks with Serum Institute of India, report Shine Jacob and Sohini Das.
One of those infected with the virus was a nine-year-old boy.
In response to a question on whether younger population were getting more affected, Indian Council of Medical Research Director General Dr Balram Bhargava said the comparison of data during the first and the second wave of COVID-19 has shown that there is not much age difference.
Shailaja, who had won accolades for containing the Nipah infection effectively in 2018, said the southern state has a protocol and standard operating procedure (SOP) to effectively fight the infection and prevent its spread.
The health sector has been allocated Rs 89,155 crore in the Union Budget 2023-24, a hike of around 13 per cent over Rs 79,145 crore allocated in 2022-23, with the government also announcing a mission to eliminate sickle cell anaemia by 2047.
The ICMR-National Institute of Virology has been regularly undertaking studies to understand the protective efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines against emerging variants.
The National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune under the ICMR has isolated the monkeypox virus from the clinical specimen of a patient, which can pave the way for development of diagnostic kits and vaccines against the disease, officials said on Wednesday.
A plea has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the rules issued by the Union health ministry which prohibit donor gametes to couples desirous of having children through surrogacy on the ground that it frustrates the provisions of the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021, which gives the right of parenthood to infertile couples.
The Union health ministry has also directed airport and port health officers to be vigilant, they said.
Tasnim Mir, who earlier this month became the first Indian to claim world number one status in the U-19 category, beat Keyura Mopati 13-21, 21-14, 21-19 to set up a second round clash against Malvika Bansod.
Phase-I clinical trials have revealed "excellent safety" of the two candidate vaccines indigenously developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with Indian Council of Medical Research and Cadila Healthcare Ltd and their immunogenicity testing is now in progress, minister of state for health Ashwini Choubey informed the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
Till date eight cases of the disease have been detected in India, out of which five have foreign travel history, the minister of health and family welfare said.
From January 2 to March 5, 451 cases of H3N2 have been reported in the country, according to data shared by the health ministry.
In a letter to states and UTs on Monday, Additional Secretary in the Union Health Ministry Arti Ahuja advised them to pay attention to this aspect immediately and increase the testing in a strategic manner keeping in view the trend of case positivity in specific areas.
The National Clinical Registry for COVID-19 will collect systematic data on clinical signs and symptoms, laboratory investigations, management protocols, the clinical course of COVID-19, disease spectrum and outcomes of patients.
Justice Najmi Waziri issued the direction to three private companies which had entered into an agreement to import 10 lakh test kits from China and distribute them here at a cost of Rs 600 each, the rate approved by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
The 'antisera' has been developed by the ICMR in collaboration with a Hyderabad-based bio-pharmaceutical firm. "With Biological E Limited we have developed an horse 'antisera' and we have just got clearance for conducting clinical trials for that," ICMR Director General Dr Balram Bhargava said at press briefing.
In a first of its kind, the Indian Council of Medical Research, ICMR, delivered COVID-19 vaccines via drone from the Bishnupur District Hospital to Karang island in Loktak lake in Manipur, a distance of 26 kilometres.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said nobody could imagine one would profiteer from the immeasurable suffering of millions, saying the 'scam was an insult to every Indian'.
The article claimed that the "ICMR tailored its findings to fit Prime Minister Narendra Modi's optimistic narrative despite a looming crisis".
The health minister said the Centre has taken timely measures ahead of the summer season to address heatwave-related illnesses.
The Centre on Sunday held a high-level review meeting after a 34-year-old man from the national capital with no history of foreign travel tested positive for the monkeypox virus, making it the fourth case of the disease reported in India.
The minister will review the COVID-19 situation at 11:30 am on Wednesday 'considering the international scenario', they said.
The interim findings of the trial in which the four drugs were tested in 405 hospitals across 30 countries, covering 11,266 adults, were released on 'medRxiv', a preprint server, on Thursday. The findings are under review for publication in a medical journal.
Responding to another question, Choubey said that the phase-I of clinical trials have revealed excellent safety of the two candidate vaccines indigenously developed by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with Indian Council of Medical Research and Cadila Healthcare Ltd, and now their immunogenicity testing is in progress. Their phase II clinical trials are ongoing.
Bharat Biotech's Covaxin has demonstrated 77.8 per cent effectiveness against symptomatic COVID-19 and 65.2 per cent protection against the new Delta variant.
The minister said he was not supposed to say anything officially as he was still in touch with the union health ministry and the ICMR officials.
According to respective company sources, Biological E is holding 200 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine Corbevax while Bharat Biotech is sitting on a stockpile of 50 million doses of Covaxin.
'Serial testing is much more valuable than a single test which reflects just a point in time.'
The Indian Council of Medical Research's national task force for COVID-19 has decided against including antiviral drug Molnupiravir in the clinical management protocol for COVID-19 as of now, official sources said on Tuesday.
While Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh warned the yoga guru that the state government won't allow the sale of 'spurious' medicines, Rajasthan Health Minister Raghu Sharma also said that the state government will not allow the sale of Patanjali's Ayurvedic formulation.
Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope said the lowering of rates for the tests would provide a relief to the people.
The move may trigger a confrontation between the AAP dispensation and the LG office.
India procured around 5 lakh rapid antibody test kits from the two Chinese firms, Guongzhou Wondfo Biotech and Livzon Diagnostics, and they were distributed to several states reporting rising cases of the coronavirus infection.
The central drug regulator has issued show cause notices to these two importers and asked to stop the import of rapid test kits based on the observation by the apex health research body Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
Lack of sleep, unhealthy eating habits, physical inactivity and a stressful daily schedule stemming from demanding career paths to juggling multiple hats on the personal front are some factors that increase health challenges, especially in young Indians, notes dietician Sheryl Salis.
This may include Rs 1,500 as a screening test for suspect cases and an additional Rs 3,000 for confirmation test, the guidelines said.
