The number of active cases remained below 5 lakh for the ninth consecutive day.
'Forcing the development of an indigenous vaccine as a cure for COVID-19, bypassing all health & safety norms, to be announced by PM Modi on Independence Day is fraught with horrendous human costs'
COVAXIN, developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech in collaboration with Indian Council of Medical Research and National Institute of Virology, has got the nod for human clinical trials from the Drug Controller General of India
'The ICMR and Biological E Limited, Hyderabad, have developed highly purified antisera (raised in animals) for prophylaxis and treatment of COVID-19,' the apex health research body said on Thursday. The 'antisera' is yet to undergo human clinical trials to establish its safety and efficacy and Drugs Controller General of India would be approached soon in this regard, Dr Samiran Panda, the head of epidemiology and communicable diseases at the ICMR said.
Three COVID-19 vaccine candidates, including two indigenous ones, are in different phases of development in India.
All COVID vaccines do not prevent infection and are primarily disease-modifying, said Dr Balram Bhargava, director general, Indian Council of Medical Research on Thursday.
The number of people who have recuperated from the disease has gone up to 4,24,85,534.
The tally of active cases now comprises 0.05 per cent of the total infections.
Covaxin is being developed by Bharat Biotech jointly with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)- National Institute of Virology (NIV). The Phase III human clinical trials of Covaxin began mid-November, targeted to be done in 26,000 volunteers and it is the country's first and only Phase III efficacy study for a COVID-19 vaccine, a press release from the vaccine maker said on Saturday night.
The test kit has the advantage of testing 90 samples together in a single run of 2.5 hours, so that healthcare professionals can proceed quickly with necessary next steps.
"We are very worried about the rise in cases in Maharashtra. Don't take this virus for granted. It can come up unexpectedly. If we have to remain free of this virus, COVID-appropriate behaviour, containment strategy as well as vaccination has to be brought in," Paul said.
India logged 34,973 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 3,31,74,954, while the active cases declined to 3,90,646, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Friday.
Over 20,400 foreign nationals have been evacuated from India amid the coronavirus crisis and any decision on bringing Indians from abroad will be taken at a later stage after reviewing the situation, the government said on Friday.
According to sources, so far only one traveller from Canada having symptoms of monkeypox infection had been isolated.
We need to give a booster shot to all our frontline workers first as if they fall victim to Omicron, the health system will collapse, points out Ramesh Menon.
Findings of the Indian Council of Medical Research's fourth national Covid sero survey show there is a ray of hope, but there is no room for complacency and Covid-appropriate behaviour has to be followed, the government said.
The number of people who have recovered from the disease has risen to 3,02,69,796, while the case fatality rate has increased to 1.33 per cent, the data stated.
The active cases comprise 1.03 per cent of the total infections while the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 97.63 per cent, the ministry said.
The health ministry stressed that more than 70 per cent of the deaths occurred due to comorbidities.
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.
India logged 36,571 new coronavirus infections, taking the total tally of Covid-19 cases to 3,23,58,829, while the national recovery rate improved to 97.54 per cent, the highest since March 2020, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Friday.
September witnessed 24,33,319 people recuperating from coronavirus infection contributing to around 46.15 per cent of the total 52,73,201 recoveries registered so far in the country.
India logged 44,877 infections, while the death toll climbed to 5,08,665 with 684 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.
'This government wants to keep control of everything in its hands.' 'If they have their stooges sitting on the National Medical Commission, they will do only the government's bidding.' 'Imagine a scary situation where people who have no knowledge about medicine sit on a commission that will take decisions on matters related to medical education, doctors and medical ethics.'
India saw a single-day rise of 38,667 coronavirus infections, taking the total tally of cases to 3,21,56,493, while the death toll rose to 4,30,732 with 478 fresh fatalities, according to the Union health ministry data updated Saturday.
The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 3,10, 99,771, while the case fatality rate stands at 1.34 per cent.
The active cases comprise 3.42 per cent of the total infections.
Indian Council of Medical Research had also recommended the use of hydroxychloroquine for treating healthcare workers handling suspected or confirmed coronavirus cases and also the asymptomatic household contacts of the lab-confirmed cases.
The recoveries surged to 15,35,743 with a record 54,859 more people recuperating in the past 24 hours, taking the recovery rate to 69.33 per cent. The case fatality rate has dropped to about 2 per cent, the govt said.
'SII has started stockpiling the vaccine and now has roughly 40 million doses ready. It is using some of the capacities it had for under development products for the COVID-19 vaccine and by January we will have a capacity to make 100 million doses per month and a stockpile of 200 million doses.'
The total COVID-19 tally includes 9,287 cases of the Omicron variant.
The active cases have declined to 4,24,025 and comprise 1.36 per cent of the total infections.
An increase of 80,287 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.
Safety and Efficacy results from the final analysis will be available in June, and the final report will be submitted to a peer-reviewed publication.
India registered 2,68,833 new Covid infections in a day taking the tally to 3,68,50,962, which includes 6,041 Omicron variant cases, according to the Union health ministry data on Saturday.
The active cases increased to 9,55,319, the highest in 211 days, while the death toll climbed to 4,84,655 with 442 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.
The active cases rose to 8,21,446, the highest in 208 days, while the death toll climbed to 4,84,213 with 277 fresh fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.
The active cases have further declined to 4,59,920 and comprise 1.50 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate has improved to 97.18 per cent, the data updated at 8 am showed.
A decrease of 3,856 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.
The death toll climbed to 4,46,918 with 260 daily fatalities, according to the data updated at 8 am.
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