Kaunain Sheriff M

Of the 835 samples taken from migrant workers who returned from Delhi, as many as 218 were Covid positive. This works out to a positivity rate of over 26%, while the rate in the national capital is about 7%.

Of the destination stations, most fall in states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal. As many as 295 are in Green Zones, 223 are in hotspots while 482 are in Orange zones.

The high positivity rate among migrant workers is raising concerns in Bihar which is a primary destination state for migrant labour. And when the testing of migrants returning through six inter-state borders, through which about 10,000 are entering each day, is yet to begin.

Despite initial suggestions that seasonality would strongly control Covid-19, the researchers said weather only explains 17% of the variation in Covid-19 growth rates.

In an e-Adda hosted by The Indian Express, Dr Randeep Guleria, Director, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), who is part of the core team monitoring the pandemic in India, spoke on what the lockdown has achieved, how we cannot lower our guard and learning to live with the virus

The move comes after ICMR, on April 13, issued a tender asking central PSUs to act as procurement agencies for essential supplies related to COVID-19 testing.

Other districts in Odisha have also reported cases of labourers returning from Surat testing positive — Bhadrak (3), Kendrapora (5), Balasore (2), Mayubhanj (4) and Jagatsinghpur (4).

The treatment options that have been selected are: Remdesivir; Lopinavir/ Ritonavir; Lopinavir/ Ritonavir with Interferon beta-1a; and Chloroquine or Hydroxychloroquine.

The government has issued general guidelines on the use of air-conditioners. These are limited to temperature and relative humidity in the context of the virus.

As of March 24, the National Institute of Virology in Pune had cleared Mylab and German Altona Diagnostics to make test kits.

Justice AK Tripathi (retired) was one of the four judicial members of the Lokpal. He passed away due to the novel coronavirus.

Incidentally, West Bengal also has the fastest doubling time among large states in India, as pointed out in a graphical analysis by The Indian Express on Wednesday. Doubling time refers to the time taken for the number of cases to double.

A new research paper by ICMR says the idea is to ramp up public testing to 1,00,000 tests daily by the end of May.

While several doctors at AIIMS have been assigned COVID-19 duties, many senior faculty members from across departments are offering teleconsultation to ensure that the premier health facility remains available to patients who come to it from across the country.

The official was referring to the court modifying its order and clarifying that free tests are only for Ayushman Bharat beneficiaries and economically weaker sections. The court ruled that the Centre’s price cap of Rs 4,500 per test would continue for others.

The Additional Chief Secretary said that while Indore’s first case was identified on March 24, the numbers since then — close to 900 now — show that it is probable that there were cases that went undetected earlier.

Pharma giants Cipla, Dr Reddy’s, Torrent and Zydus Cadila are among the majors that have been permitted to induct workers from “nearby areas, inside and outside the state” to ramp up production.

Nationally, when it comes to recovered patients, more than half (55.55 per cent) come from these three districts in a state; also, an average 63.9 per cent of deaths, too, are from here.

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Rajasthan has cleared hydroxychloroquine for some police personnel, Mumbai police are being given the drug, and residents of two Mumbai slums are set to follow. What is the ICMR protocol, and the concerns?