Senior Congress leader Anand Sharma on Sunday raised concerns over India's drugs regulator granting permission for restricted use of Bharat Biotech's COVID-19 vaccine and asked the government to explain why mandatory protocols and verification of data has been dispensed with.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Tuesday said one of the major reasons for the surge in cases was people becoming lax towards following COVID-appropriate behaviour and urged them take up mass awareness campaigns to re-instill the importance of such measures among the masses.
Vardhan said the 15-member central team of doctors and para-medics will be replaced by a team with similar strength for further 10 days, ensuring continuity of care of admitted cases.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Friday said the COVID-19 vaccination drive will be extended in the coming days and asserted that there should not be any misconceptions about the two Indian vaccines being administered in the country.
The Union health minister said of the total active COVID-19 cases in the country, 1.5 per cent are on oxygen support and 2.34 per cent are in ICUs.
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, who hails from Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh, on Monday spoke with Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan after scores of people including children were hospitalised with an undiagnosed illness.
The nation in a post-coronavirus future could well look back on the pandemic period as a 'blessing in disguise' if Indians imbibe hand, respiratory and environmental hygiene and practise it in their everyday lives, the minister said.
In a tweet, Patanjali Ayurved said, "Moment of pride!! Efforts of scientists at Patanjali to make corona medicine have been successful today. We are pleased to announce the First evidence based medicine for Covid-19 by Patanjali."
In a bid to break the impasse on government-formation, Delhi Lt Governor Najeeb Jung on Wednesday night spoke to Harsh Vardhan, Bharatiya Janata Party's chief ministerial candidate and leader the largest single party in assembly polls, for discussion on Thursday on the issue and Vardhan is likely to point out that he does not have the numbers.
Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and other ministers took charge of their respective offices on Thursday, a day after taking oath at a ceremony held in the Darbar Hall of the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal has sought the intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in solving the power crisis in the national capital.
'The state government is putting Maharashtrians in danger by letting people escape institutional quarantine mandate for the sake of their personal vasuli'
This will be the second all-party meeting called by the government to discuss the COVID-19 situation since the outbreak of the pandemic.
Dikshit will take on BJP's sitting MP Manoj Tiwari and Aam Aadmi Party's Dilip Pandey.
Vardhan said the ICMR is actively researching on reports of COVID-19 reinfection and although the number of such cases is negligible at this moment, the government is fully seized of the importance of the matter, the health ministry said in a statement.
Making a statement on the situation after cases of coronavirus surfaced, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said the government is taking all necessary measures to prevent the spread of the virus.
No religion or God says that you have to visit pandals and temples and mosques to pray, Vardhan underlined.
However, he also said traditional ayurveda, yoga and naturopathy have also controlled and provided permanent solution to several complex diseases like blood pressure, thyroid, sugar, arthritis, hepatitis and asthma.
Vardhan said in India about 92 percent of the reported cases have mild symptoms, while oxygen therapy was required in 5.8 percent cases and intensive care in 1.7 percent cases.
Three COVID-19 vaccine candidates, including two indigenous ones, are in different phases of development in India.
Filing her nomination papers from East Delhi's Krishna Nagar, Bharatiya Janata Party chief ministerial candidate Kiran Bedi on Wednesday said that her responsibility has increased after being fielded from the party's "traditional" seat.
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.
With West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee seeking a uniform vaccination policy for the country, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Friday assured her that the Modi government was firm in its resolve to help the state fight the COVID-19 pandemic, but also flagged more than 40 per cent positivity rate in some districts of the state.
The AIIMS has not issued any bulletin on Jaitley's health condition since August 10.
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Monday said 28,252 cases of mucormycosis have so far been reported from 28 states/UTs in the country, of which 86 per cent cases have a history of COVID-19 and 62.3 per cent with a history of diabetes.
'The prioritisation of groups for COVID-19 vaccine shall be based on two key considerations -- occupational hazard and risk of exposure to infection, and the risk of developing severe disease and increased mortality'
Vardhan stated the government is taking full precautions in human trials of vaccines and the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 under the chairmanship of Dr V K Paul, member-health, NITI Aayog, is drawing up a detailed strategy on how to immunize the majority of the population.
Vardhan emphasised on how the Indian traditional system of medicine has also contributed substantially in boosting the immunity of general population during COVID-19.
Those joining Prime Minister Narendra Modi's council of ministers for the first time include three former chief ministers -- Shivraj Singh Chouhan (Madhya Pradesh), Manohar Lal Khattar (Haryana) and H D Kumaraswamy (Karnataka).
'I belong to the area of Krishna Nagar, but Bedi was an outsider.'
The fatality rate is down to 3.1 per cent and the recovery rate has improved to 37.5 per cent, he said.
Shah apprised the leaders of four major political parties of Delhi on the steps taken to check the coronavirus pandemic and sought their views on the issue, a home ministry official said. Leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Congress, Aam Aadmi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party have attended the meeting.
Uttam Ghosh compares the two events -- the labour ministry's ignorance and a young intellectual's incarceration -- and is mystified as many Indians are by what occurred.
Politics, bureaucracy, ineptitude, double-standards and an attempt to politicise the fight in pseudo-nationalistic terms have all hampered the fight against this deadly virus, says Vir Sanghvi.
Those demonstrating alleged inadequate services by the hospital and negligence by politicians.
Vardhan had said on Friday, "Doctors at AIIMS are doing the best they can."
Congress leader Ajay Maken on Monday dubbed Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal and Bharatiya Janata Party's chief ministerial candidate Kiran Bedi as "opportunists" who "used" Anna Hazare to meet their own political ambitions.
The prime minister also called for more RT-PCR tests.
Former Union minister Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday sought a speedy inquiry for a "clear and definitive conclusion" as to the cause of death of his wife Sunanda Pushkar in the wake of reported claims by a senior forensic doctor that he was pressurised to manipulate the autopsy report in the case.
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