Express Photo: Amit MehraIndia Covid-19 Highlights: In a press briefing on the COVID-19 situation in the country, the government on Tuesday said of the total people vaccinated against COVID-19 so far, 0.18 per cent were adverse events following immunisation, while 0.002 per cent had to be hospitalised which is fairly low. Addressing a press conference, NITI Aayog member (Health) V K Paul said concerns about adverse effects and serious problems post immunisation as of now seem to be unfounded, negligible, insignificant and stressed that both the vaccines are safe. Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said India recorded the highest number of first day vaccinations for COVID-19 immunisation.
Till now 4,54,049 people have been vaccinated in India, the Health Ministry reported on Tuesday. The country reported 580 severe events and 2 persons — a 52-year-old in Moradabad & a 42-year-old in Karnataka — have reportedly died due to cardiopulmonary disease after getting their shots. The deaths have not been linked to the vaccines till now.
Centre on Monday flagged Kerala and Tamil Nadu over their poor performance, in vaccinating at less than 25 per cent of the priority groups and highlighted the “vaccine hesitancy” found in the frontline workers. Similarly, Punjab and Chhattisgarh were also pulled over their “poor coverage.”
India reported 10,064 new covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, the lowest single day spike since second week of June. Out of the total cases, active cases further dropped to 2 lakh while recoveries went up to over 1.02 crore. With 137 deaths reported on Monday, the lowest since the May, the toll now stands at over 1.52 lakh. Kerala reported 3,346 new cases, while Maharashtra found 1,924 new infections.
Nine adverse cases recorded following immunisation drive on Tuesday.
UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock began a period of self-isolation on Tuesday after he revealed he had been pinged an alert by the National Health Service (NHS) COVID-19 app overnight. The minister, who also spent time in self-isolation after testing positive for coronavirus at the peak of the pandemic last year, said he learned from the NHS Test and Trace app on Monday night that he had been in close contact with somebody who has tested positive and self-isolating was "how we break the chains of transmission".
"So you must follow these rules like I'm going to. I've got to work from home for the next six days, and together, by doing this, by following this, and all the other panoply of rules that we've had to put in place, we can get through this and beat this virus," Hancock said in a video message on Twitter.
UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock began a period of self-isolation on Tuesday after he revealed he had been pinged an alert by the National Health Service (NHS) COVID-19 app overnight.
In a press briefing on the COVID-19 situation in the country, the Health Ministry Tuesday said that the number of active cases stands at around 2 lakhs, after seven long months. The number of active cases is also steadily declining. Moreover, India is also recording less than 140 coronavirus deaths daily, the lowest in eight months. There are currently only two states in India — Maharashtra and Kerala — which still have more than 50,000 active cases. Elsewhere, the number has declined, the Health Ministry informed. Meanwhile, the case percentage of adverse events following immunisation stands at a mere 0.18% and 0.002% of people were hospitalised after receiving a vaccine shot.
India's COVID-19 case per million is 7,668, death per million is 110 and test per million is 136,089, said the government on Tuesday.
"One of 2 vaccines is given emergency use authorization under clinical trial mode. In a document for this vaccine, it's mentioned that if there's causal relation b/w immunization & adverse event, severe or serious, hospitalization cost would be borne by authorities," said Health Ministry.
"0.18% adverse events happened following immunization and 0.002% of people were hospitalized following immunization. These are fairly low and the lowest so far in the world in the first three days," the Health Ministry said on Tuesday.
While addressing a press briefing, the Health Ministry on Tuesday said that 4,54,049 people have been vaccinated till now. Active cases around 2 lakhs after seven months and the number is declining. The daily number of deaths is less than 140 after eight months, it added.
With a low turnout of healthcare workers on the first two days of the COVID-19 vaccination drive, Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Tuesday said the exercise is voluntary and a matter of 'personal decision' for people whether to get a shot or not, but all efforts are being made to boost their confidence.
Nearly 3,600 healthcare workers were inoculated in Delhi on Monday, a further dip in the figures compared to that on the opening day of the immunisation drive, with sources saying just eight medical staff got the jabs at AIIMS. 'The target of the day in Delhi was 8,136, and 3,598 got vaccinated, which is 44 per cent of the targeted figure,' he told reporters.
Jain reiterated that this is a voluntary exercise and people are making their own decisions, as it's the initial phase. Asked if statements made by a few political leaders raising doubts over its efficacy and safety, could be a factor, he said, 'No. Going for vaccination is a personal decision, and has nothing to do with what political statements have been made about it.' (PTI)
Masks off the minute you step inside. Bars packed and pulsing like it’s 2019. Social media stars waving bottles of champagne. DJs spinning party tunes through multi-hour brunches.
Since becoming one of the world’s first destinations to open up for tourism, Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, has promoted itself as the ideal pandemic vacation spot. It cannot afford otherwise, analysts say, as the virus shakes the foundations of the city-state’s economy.
With its cavernous malls, frenetic construction and legions of foreign workers, Dubai was built on the promise of globalization, drawing largely from the aviation, hospitality and retail sectors — all hard hit by the virus.
Bharat Biotech has secured a fresh Letter of Comfort from the Centre for another 45 lakh doses of its COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin, sources said on Tuesday.
Out of those 45 lakh doses, the city-based vaccine maker will be supplying over eight lakh doses of Covaxin to some of
the friendly countries such as Mauritius, Philippines and Myanmar, free of cost as good will gesture. They also said the company will be dispatching 20 lakh doses of the earlier order in a couple of days, from here.
“The company was given a fresh letter of comfort recently for supplying another 45 lakh doses of Covaxin. The doses will be dispatched as when the Ministry places orders with the company,” sources told PTI.
An app developed by the Centre to ensure a smooth vaccination process started malfunctioning on Friday, officials said on Saturday, hampering immunisation centres’ efforts to inform beneficiaries about the time they were to receive the vaccine shots.
Sources said that not all the 20,700 people scheduled to receive the vaccine on the first day got their shots because of the glitches in CoWIN.
Instead of getting automated messages, the beneficiaries received phone calls from the centres, informing them about the date, vaccination site and timing. As the data of those eligible to receive the shots was not uploaded to the app on time, many of the beneficiaries did not receive the messages, and by the time they were called they had left for other work.
While India plans to send 20 lakh doses of Covid-19 vaccines to Bangladesh, another neighbour, Pakistan, is exploring options to get made-in-India vaccines, either through a global alliance for vaccines or through the bilateral route, The Indian Express has learnt.
On Monday, authorities in Bangladesh confirmed that on Wednesday, January 20, a specially equipped plane will carry 20 lakh doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine — manufactured in India by the Serum Institute of India under the name Covishield — to Dhaka. The consignment will be handed over to the Bangladesh government by the Indian High Commission in Dhaka. Bangladesh has had more than 5 lakh cases of Covid, with about 7,900 deaths so far.
Pakistan’s move to source Indian vaccines comes after the country’s drug regulator, the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), over the weekend approved Oxford-AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use. Pakistan has reported more than 5 lakh Covid cases and almost 11,000 deaths. (Read Shubhajit Roy's report here)
The School Education department Monday issued a notification to allow schools across the state to reopen for Classes V to VIII from January 27, days after Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad expressed her intention to do so.
The notification said the state Health department has agreed to reopen the schools. “The instructions of Central and state government regarding Covid-19 should be followed,” it stated, adding that all previous notifications of the school education department should be strictly followed. “However, the concerned zilla parishads, municipal councils and corporations should take precautions to ensure that schools and classes are reopened safely,” it said.
Schools in Maharashtra, which were shut since March last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, had reopened in November across various districts of Maharashtra for classes IX-XII. Schools in Mumbai, its suburbs, Thane, Pune and Nashik had however not opened due to a spike in cases.(With ENS)
India reported 10,064 new covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours. Out of the total cases, active cases further dropped to 2 lakh while recoveries went up to over 1.02 crore. With 137 deaths reported on Monday the toll stands at over 1.52 lakh.
The first Covid-19 case was reported in the Lakshadweep Islands on Monday, nearly an year after the outbreak of the pandemic in the country.
The man, belonging to the India Reserve Batallion, had left for Kavaratti by ship from Kochi on January 3 and tested positive on Monday, official sources said. He is not a resident of the islands, they said.
The case was reported two weeks after the Lakshadweep administration revised Standard Operating Procedures by doing away with mandatory quarantine guidelines for those arriving from Kochi. (Read more here)
A total of 2,881 people received the coronavirus vaccine in Gurgaon at the 45 sites set up for the purpose across the district on Monday – the second day of vaccination in the district. Officials revealed that a total of 21 Adverse Events Following Immunisation (AEFI) were recorded among the beneficiaries.
According to officials, although the target was to vaccinate 4,836 people by the end of the day – 4,400 doses of Covishield and 436 of Covaxine – the number finally achieved was 59.5 per cent of the target — 2,727 doses of Covishield and 154 doses of Covaxine. All the AEFI, officials said, were recorded among people who had been given the Covishield vaccine.
“The reason for fewer number of beneficiaries compared to the target we had set was issues in the portal. Several people had not received the messages regarding their vaccination being scheduled for today,” said Civil Surgeon Dr Virender Yadav. Commenting on the AEFI recorded, he added, “The effects recorded were minor — nausea and anxiety.”
According to officials, while Covaxin was administered at four of the 45 sites on Monday, the rest saw Covishield being used. Sakshi Dayal
China on Monday vented out its anger against outgoing US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo calling him "Mr. Liar" and dismissed as "conspiracies and lies" the allegations by the State Department that the COVID-19 may have emerged from Wuhan's bio-lab and had links to the Chinese military.
China, which faced global criticism after the virus became a pandemic claiming over two million lives, has been vehemently asserting that the coronavirus has emerged in several places in the world, while it only reported it first. But Beijing is more resentful of outgoing US President Donald Trump and Pompeo for alleging that the virus may have emerged from the premier Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), which researches Zoonotic diseases.
A latest document issued by the US State department reinforcing its previous allegation that the virus may have emerged from the WIV, coinciding with the visit of a WHO inquiry team of scientists to Wuhan has further riled Beijing.
Sri Lanka has curtailed this week's Parliament sessions to just two days from the scheduled four days after nine people tested positive for coronavirus in the Parliament complex, an official said on Monday. Parliament's Director of Communications Shan Wijetunga said a total of 943 tests were conducted in Parliament, out of which 32 were on MPs, while the rest were done on Parliament staff and security personnel.
While all the 32 MPs tested negative, 9 people tested positive for COVID-19, including 4 staff members and as many security personnel, he said. The Committee on Parliamentary Business has decided that Parliament will meet on Tuesday and Wednesday only, following the COVID-19 cases reported last week, the official said. (PTI)
The Rajasthan government on Monday decided to withdraw the night curfew in view of a decline in COVID-19 cases.
The government also decided to further slash the rate of RT-PCR test, a confirmatory test for COVID-19, at private labs from Rs. 800 to Rs. 500. Also, the number of reserved COVID beds in private hospitals with a capacity of above 100 beds will be reduced to a minimum 10.
The decisions were taken at a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot at his residence. "In the COVID-19 review meeting, it has been decided to end the night curfew in the state and to give some relaxations in a phased manner. But it will be necessary to follow health protocols, otherwise the number of infected patients may increase," Gehlot tweeted. The state government had, on November 21, decided to impose the night curfew in eight districts from 8 PM to 6 AM following a spurt in coronavirus cases.
As many as 36,033 beneficiaries were inoculated with the Covid-19 vaccine across Karnataka on Monday. According to the Department of Health and Family Welfare Services, the state has reported an overall coverage of 44 per cent till 4.45 pm on Monday.
While the same was 58.4 and 63 per cent during the Covid-19 vaccination drive on Sunday and Saturday respectively, a cumulative 49 per cent of the total target group has been inoculated in the state so far. (With inputs from Ralph Alex Arakal)
Uttar Pradesh on Monday recorded four COVID-19 fatalities, the lowest in over six months, which took the death toll to 8,580 while 379 fresh infections pushed the caseload to 5,96,904, officials said. The number of active cases in the state stands at 8,631, they said. Four deaths, the lowest in the past six-seven months, were reported in the state the previous day and 622 people were discharged, Additional Chief Secretary, Health, Amit Mohan Prasad told PTI.
"There are 8,631 active cases in the state and the total number of recoveries has risen to 5,79,693. Of the active cases, 2,948 are in home isolation, 823 are undergoing treatment in private hospitals and the rest are in government hospitals," he added.
A Chinese province grappling with a spike in coronavirus cases is reinstating tight restrictions on weddings, funerals and other family gatherings, threatening violators with criminal charges. The notice from the high court in Hebei province did not give specifics, but said all types of social gatherings were now being regulated to prevent further spread of the virus.
Hebei has had one of China's most serious outbreaks in months and it comes amid measures to curb the further spread during February's Lunar New Year holiday. Authorities have called on citizens not to travel, ordered schools closed a week early and conducted testing on a massive scale.
India's total COVID-19 recoveries have surpassed the active caseload by more than one crore, the Union Health Ministry said on Monday, terming it as a landmark achievement. The total number of recoveries has touched 1,02,11,342, while the active cases in the country stand at 2,08,012 today.
"The gap between the two has progressively grown to touch 1,00,03,330. The total recovered cases are nearly 50 times the active cases in the country," the ministry underlined.
With this, India's COVID-19 recovery rate has touched 96.59 per cent. A total of 14,457 recoveries have been registered in a span of 24 hours in the country while the number of new confirmed cases during the same period is 13,788. "As India's daily positive cases see a continuous slide, the daily fatalities due to COVID-19 in the country have also seen a steady decline. The country has recorded less than 150 fatalities (145) in the last 24 hours after approximately 8 months (7months 23 days)," the ministry underlined.
A controversy erupted following the death of a 46-year-old government hospital employee in Moradabad on Sunday, around 24 hours after receiving the first dose of Covid-19 vaccine.
While the family of the deceased, Mahipal Singh, alleged that his health deteriorated following the dose, Moradabad Chief Medical Officer (CMO) MC Garg claimed that the death is not linked to vaccination. Singh was given the vaccine shot on Saturday afternoon, and he died the next day after complaining of congestion and pain in the chest. He was working as a ward boy at the Moradabad District Hospital.
The postmortem report found cardiogenic or septicemic shock due to cardiopulmonary disease as the immediate cause of death. The postmortem report added that both his lungs showed pus pockets, while the heart has fatty degeneration of myocardium with hypertrophy of the right ventricle. There also were large amounts of clotted blood in aorta and heart chambers. Both the lungs, heart and blood samples of the deceased have been preserved for histopathological examination. (Read more here)
Delhi health minister Satyendar Jain said that some people did not turn up on the first day of the Covid-19 vaccination drive “at the last minute” and that the government could not force people to take the shot.
The city witnessed a turnout of 53.3% per cent on the first day of the drive, despite top experts and officials requesting people to, and assuring them that the vaccines were safe. The city had laid out a plan to vaccinate 8,100 people on the first day, but only 4,319 turned up. “Some decided not to turn up at the last moment. The vaccination is completely voluntary. We cannot ask anyone to compulsorily take the shot even if the person has registered for it. A similar trend was observed across the country,” he said.
One “severe” and 51 “minor” cases of AEFI (adverse events following immunisation) were reported among health workers who were administered the coronavirus vaccine in Delhi Saturday.
As most nations around the world struggle with new lockdowns and layoffs in the face of the surging pandemic, just one major economy has bounced back after bringing the coronavirus mostly under control: China.
The Chinese economy rose 2.3% last year, the country’s National Bureau of Statistics announced Monday in Beijing. By contrast, the United States, Japan and Europe are expected to have suffered steep falls in economic output.
China’s strength seemed improbable a year ago, when the virus emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. As travel and business ground to nearly a halt, the economy shrank 6.8% in the January-March period compared with 2019.
India reported 13,788 new covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours. This is the first time this number has dropped below 15,000 mid-June last year. Out of the total cases, active cases further dropped to 2.08 lakh while recoveries went up to 1,02 crore. With 145 deaths reported on Sunday, the toll stands at over 1.52 lakh. Kerala recorded 5,005 new cases, more than 36 per cent of all. Maharashtra reported 3,081 cases.
The second day of the immunisation drive against COVID-19 saw the Health Secretary being administered the vaccine as the total number to get the shots in Tamil Nadu crossed the 6,000 mark on Sunday, with no adverse reaction reported, the government said.
According to updated figures for vaccination on the opening day, 3,027 people were administered Covishield and 99 Covaxin. On Sunday, 2,847 beneficiaries received Covishield and 183 Covaxin and in total, 6,156 persons, including doctors have got the jabs and no adverse reaction was seen, the Tamil Nadu Health department said in an official release. (PTI)
The Maharashtra government is set to restart the Covid-19 vaccination drive in the state from Tuesday.
The state had decided to keep the drive, which began on Saturday, in abeyance for a couple of days following widespread complaints about the Co-WIN (Covid Vaccine Intelligence Network) app, a software designed for real-time registration of data of people who are vaccinated.
However, with the Union government directing all states that the entire process needs to resume and can continue without Co-WIN software in regions where there are technical glitches, the Maharashtra government said that it will resume the drive from Tuesday. (Read Tabassum Barnagarwala's report here)