Use local traditions to help vaccination drive: Modi

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Use local traditions to help vaccination drive: Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the local traditions should be used to help the vaccination drive. He was interacting with the healthcare workers and beneficiaries of the Covid vaccination programme in Himachal Pradesh via video conferencing.

Addressing the gathering, Modi said that Himachal Pradesh has emerged as a champion in the fight against the largest epidemic in 100 years.

“Himachal has become the first state in India to have administered at least one dose of corona vaccine to each one of its entire eligible population which underlines the importance of ‘Aatmvishwas’ and ‘Aatmnirbharta’,” said Modi.

While talking to Dr Rahul of Civil Hospital at Shimla, the prime Minister lauded the team effort for minimising the vaccine wastage. Talking to a vaccination beneficiary, Modi inquired about the facilities of vaccination and how they dealt with the rumours regarding vaccination.

The Prime Minister spoke to ASHA worker Nirma Devi from Kullu, and enquired about her experience with the vaccination drive.

The Prime Minister emphasised to use the local traditions in helping the vaccination drive in his virtual address. He praised the model of dialogue and collaboration developed by the team and asked about how the team travelled long distances to administer vaccines.

The PM said that the world’s biggest vaccination programme is continuing due to the efforts of people like Karmo Devi.

Karmo Devi of Una has the distinction of vaccinating 22,500 people. He praised her spirit as she kept on working despite a fracture in her leg.

Lauding the efforts of doctors, ASHA workers, Aanganwadi workers, medical personnel, teachers, and other staff in the vaccination drive against Covid, PM Modi said that the success of vaccination in India is the result of the spirit and hard work of its citizens.

India is vaccinating at the record speed of 1.25 crore vaccines per day. This means that the number of vaccinations in India in one day is more than the population of many countries.

Recalling the mantra ‘Sabka Prayas’ which Modi mentioned during his Independence Day speech, he said that this success is a manifestation of that. He praised the dialogue and collaboration model and expressed happiness that even in a remote district like Lahaul-Spiti, Himachal has been a leader in giving 100 per cent first dose.

“This is the area which used to be cut off from the rest of the country for months before the Atal Tunnel was built,” said PM Modi, while admiring the state’s efforts to not allow any rumour or disinformation to hamper the vaccination efforts.

“Himachal is a proof of how the country’s rural society is empowering the world’s largest and fastest vaccination campaign,” said PM Modi.

Referring to recently notified Drones rules, PM Modi said that these rules will help in the spheres of many sectors like health and agriculture and will open doors for new possibilities.

He inspired the farmers and gardeners of the state to make farming in Himachal complete organic within the next 25 years.

Global Covid-19 caseload tops 220.6 mn

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Global Covid-19 caseload tops 220.6 mn

The global coronavirus caseload has topped 220.6 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 4.56 million and vaccinations soared to over 5.44 billion, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

In its latest update on Monday morning, the University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload, death toll and vaccination tally stood at 220,624,875, 4,566,726 and 5,446,556,336, respectively.

The US continues to be the worst-hit country with the world’s highest number of cases and deaths at 39,941,581 and 648,467, respectively, according to the CSSE.

In terms of infections, India follows in the second place with 32,988,673 cases.

The other worst countries with over 3 million cases are Brazil (20,890,779), France (6,921,275), the UK (7,010,540), Russia (6,912,375), Turkey (6,412,247), Argentina (5,203,802), Iran (5,129,407), Colombia (4,918,649), Spain (4,877,755), Italy (4,571,440), Indonesia (4,129,020), Germany (4,013,808) and Mexico (3,420,880), the CSSE figures showed.

In terms of deaths, Brazil comes second with 583,628 fatalities.

Nations with a death toll of over 100,000 are India (440,533), Mexico (262,868), Peru (198,447), Russia (183,896), Indonesia (135,861), the UK (133,553), Italy (129,515), France (115,401), Colombia (125,278), Argentina (112,511) and Iran (110,674).

B’luru crosses 1 crore-mark in Covid vaccination

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B’luru crosses 1 crore-mark in Covid vaccination

As the supply issue of Covid vaccine is being sorted out, authorities push to inoculate have yielded good results in Karnataka. In Bengaluru, more than one crore doses and in the state 4.5 crore doses have been administered till date.

Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Chief Commissioner Gaurav Gupta on Sunday said the BBMP has administered a total of 1,14,93,814 Covid vaccines doses in Bengaluru till date. “More than 1 crore doses only means that we will continue to vaccinate every eligible adult. We believe Covid-19 can be completely kept at bay when all of us are fully vaccinated,” he explained.

He put out a special post in this regard and wrote, “Towards a stronger Bengaluru.”

A total of 82.7 lakh people have been covered with the first dose while more than 32 lakh people have been fully vaccinated in Bengaluru Urban district.

In BBMP limits 76 per cent of the targeted population have been inoculated with the first dose while 30 per cent have been fully jabbed.

Meanwhile, the Karnataka government administered 4.5 crore doses by Sunday evening since the vaccination drive began. As many as 3.3 crore people have been administered the first dose of Covid vaccine and 1.1 crore people have been administered with both doses.

From August 28 to September 3, the state has administered more than six lakh doses every day and managed to vaccinate 43.4 lakh people plus people. The vaccine administration in the state is seeing a steady increase of 75 percent when compared to mid August statistics.

The state government has organised special drives to vaccinate people in the backdrop of fears of a third Covid wave. The state is trying to reach the target of 5 lakh doses of vaccinations everyday and complete the process of inoculation by the end of this year.

Bengaluru stands next in the second position to New Delhi (1,41,02,635) in terms of vaccination in the country among the metropolitan cities. Mumbai (1,02,67,836), Kolkata (60,11,947) and Chennai (52,24,615) are respectively in 3rd, 4th and 5th positions, according to a health bulletin released by the Karnataka health department.

Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has given instructions to complete inoculation in the villages that fall within 20 kilometers from the Kerala border. However, the experts say, the Ganesh Chaturthi and Moharam celebrations could play the spoil sport in the coming days.

75% of above-30s in SL fully vaccinated against Covid-19

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75% of above-30s in SL fully vaccinated against Covid-19

Sri Lankan authorities said that 75 per cent of those aged above 30 in the country have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 amid a mass inoculation drive.

Army chief and head of the National Operations Centre for Prevention of Covid-19 Outbreak Gen. Shavendra Silva told Xinhua news agency on Friday that thousands of vaccines were being administered in all districts daily and till Thursday 75 per cent of the over 30 age group received both doses.

He said that authorities have begun administering the vaccines to those between 20 to 30 years since Thursday at district levels.

Chairman of State Pharmaceutical Corporation (SPC) Prasanna Gunasena said there were 3.5 million people in the 20-30 age group.

A mass national vaccination program is underway in the island nation aimed at curbing the further spread of Covid-19.

Vaccines being administered in Sri Lanka are Sinopharm, AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna and Sputnik V.

The island country, with a population of over 21 million, has to date detected 447,757 Covid-19 cases and 9,604 deaths.

Fiji reports 505 new Covid cases

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Fiji reports 505 new Covid cases

Fiji has reported 505 new cases of Covid-19 and seven deaths, according to the Ministry of Health on Wednesday.

Fiji’s Permanent Secretary for Health James Fong said that 343 cases are from the Western Division, 105 cases are from the Central Division of Viti Levu and 232 cases are in Kadavu, reports Xinhua news agency.

There have been 810 new recoveries to report since the last update, which means that there are now 19,151 active cases with 8,352 active cases in the Central Division, 10,562 active cases in the Western Division, five active cases in Vanua Levu and 232 active cases in Kadavu.

There have been 46,646 cases during the outbreak that started in April 2021.

Around 5,59,650 adults in Fiji have received their first dose of the vaccine and 2,71,329 have received their second doses, which means that 95.6 per cent of the target population have received at least one dose and 46.7 per cent are now fully vaccinated nationwide.

Kerala sees 30,203 new Covid cases, TPR at 18.86%

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Kerala sees 30,203 new Covid cases, TPR at 18.86%

With Onam festivities ending a week back, it appears the relaxation of lockdown norms then has not caused much damage so far, even though Kerala on Tuesday logged 30,203 new Covid cases from 1,60,152 samples tested in the past 24 hours.

As the daily tally crossed 30,000 after a gap of two days, the day’s test positivity rate stood at 18.86 per cent and the figures continue to show that Kerala leads the rest of the country in most indicators of Covid.

In a statement issued here, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also said that 20,687 people turned negative, taking the total number of active cases to 2,18,892, while 115 more deaths were reported, taking the death toll to 20,788.

Malappurram district accounted for 3,576 new cases, followed by Ernakulam with 3,548.

Reacting to the latest numbers, Health Minister Veena George said that with the figures that are coming out clearly shows they have “some relief”.

“Following the Onam festivities and the relaxation in the lockdown norms, there were fears, but the figures show things are well under control. Hence we all must continue to be very alert,” she said.

New Delta variant mutation confirmed in Japan

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New Delta variant mutation confirmed in Japan

A group of Japanese researchers said a new mutation of the Covid-19 Delta variant had been discovered for the first time in the country, local media reported on Tuesday.

The research team, led by Associate Professor Hiroaki Takeuchi at Tokyo Medical and Dental University Hospital, said that the mutation was found when a patient infected with the Delta variant visited the institute earlier this month, reports Xinhua news agency.

Genetic analysis revealed the N501S mutation, the team said, adding that only eight cases of the mutation have been reported outside Japan.

The N501S mutation is similar to the N501Y variation of the Alpha variant, which was first detected in the UK.

The team said its impact on the virus’s transmissibility is unclear so far, and researchers plan to study further.

Takeuchi said full efforts ought to be made to curb the Covid-19 infections, as the further spread of the virus could lead to the continued emergence of new variants in Japan.

He also called for the use of genetic analyses to enhance the monitoring of the virus.

Covid may be endemic but has not ‘ended’ in India: Experts

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Covid may be endemic but has not ‘ended’ in India: Experts

Covid-19 is endemic in India, but it does not mean “the end” of the deadly infectious disease, say experts emphasising the need to continue with Covid appropriate behaviour and vaccination.

In an interview to a news outlet, Dr Soumya Swaminathan, Chief Scientist at the World Health Organisation said that “India could have reached some sort of stage of endemicity” in terms of the overall Covid-19 situation.

An endemic is a disease outbreak that is consistently present but limited to a particular region. This makes the disease spread and rates predictable.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines an epidemic as an unexpected increase in the number of disease cases in a specific geographical area. On the other hand, a pandemic is when a disease’s growth is exponential, meaning the growth rate is huge, and each day the number of cases keeps on growing, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Given the situation, it surely can be said that Covid is endemic in India, but it is not about the “end” of Covid, rather it means there may be sporadic rise just like H1N1, which still exists but manageable, Dr Animesh Arya, Sr. consultant in Respiratory Medicine, Sri Balaji Action Medical Institute, told IANS.

He also believes that either by vaccination or herd immunity, a bigger section has developed a defense mechanism against Covid’s severity.

Over the period of time we prepare ourselves to fight against such diseases. Immune response plays a key role here, Arya said.

However, not all experts agree that India has reached an endemic state.

“The potential for the Covid-19 virus to become endemic… that is when a virus is constantly maintained at a threshold in a geographic community with occurring outbreaks. At this moment, it is a little premature to say that the virus will become endemic since the currently available data doesn’t suggest that reinfection rates are high,” Dr Ravi Shekhar Jha, Senior Consultant and Head of the Department, Pulmonology, Fortis Escorts Faridabad, told IANS.

According to Jha, there are crucial contributing factors, including the risk for reinfection, vaccine availability, and efficacy, as well as potential seasonality and interactions with other viral infections that may modulate the transmission of the virus.

“We have no data so far to suggest vaccine failure. Till the time we have clarity on these important factors, it is premature to say that the virus will become endemic,” he noted.

So does this mean a third wave is impending?

As far as the third wave or any other waves are concerned, they are unpredictable and it will depend on the variants of the virus and their interaction with the immune and non-immune population, Arya said.

“There is a range of diverse opinions; the country’s 25 to 30 per cent population is below 18 years, which is not vaccinated yet. We have to continue with Covid appropriate behavior and vaccination,” he advised.

India on Thursday reported 46,164 new Covid cases, around 22 per cent jump in the last 24 hours. A total of 607 deaths were also reported in the time span, pushing the total death count in India at 4,36,365, according to the data released by the Union Health Ministry.

The Weekly Positivity Rate remains below 3 per cent for the last 62 days and currently stands at 2.02 per cent. The daily positivity rate continues to remain below 3 per cent for 31 continuous days and currently stands at 2.58 per cent.

However, India has crossed the landmark of 60 crore vaccine doses against coronavirus under mass vaccination drive across the nation so far.

Common antidepressant cut hospitalisations in Covid patients

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Common antidepressant cut hospitalisations in Covid patients

Fluvoxamine — a low-cost and safe drug typically used in forms of depression and related disorders — has the potential to reduce the cytokine storm in Covid-19 patients, finds a study.

The study led by a team of international researchers from Canada, the US, and Brazil examined 1,472 patients who were randomly assigned to receive fluvoxamine or placebo. Patients were older than 50 years of age or had a known risk factor for developing severe Covid -19 disease.

The drug resulted in approximately a 30 per cent reduction in the primary outcome. The proportion of patients observed in an emergency room foA less than 6 hours or admitted to hospital due to Covid was lower for the fluvoxamine group compared to placebo.

The study is one of only a few large Phase 3 platform randomised clinical trials to find evidence for an intervention that can be provided to patients before they become severely ill and prevent the likelihood of patients developing advanced disease.

The findings have the potential to change how Covid-19 is treated around the world as fluvoxamine is cheap, well understood, and widely available in most countries.

“There are currently limited treatment options for the outpatient clinical management of Covid-19. A drug that costs only $4 per treatment of Covid-19 has major implications for care around the globe,” said Professor Edward Mills, from McMaster University in Canada.

Several other studies have also shed light on inexpensive and safe potential treatment against Covid-induced cytokine storm — a potentially fatal amplification of an immune response.

Researchers from University of Virginia in the US found that a low cost heartburn drug famotidine improved the odds of survival for Covid-19 patients, especially when it is combined with aspirin. Famotidine drug also suppressed the cytokine storm in Covid patients.

Further, a team from the University of Technology in Sydney found that seeds of the plant, Nigella sativa, better known as Kalonji, could be utilised in the treatment of Covid-19 infection.

They found an active ingredient of Nigella sativa can also block the ‘cytokine’ storm that affects seriously ill patients who are hospitalised with Covid-19.

Japan suspends use of 1.63mn Moderna doses over contamination

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Japan suspends use of 1.63mn Moderna doses over contamination

Japan’s Health Ministry said on Thursday that foreign materials were confirmed in some portions of the unused doses of Moderna Inc.’s Covid-19 vaccine and the use of around 1.63 million doses manufactured in the same production line has been suspended as precaution.

The Ministry said foreign substances have been confirmed since August 16 at eight vaccination sites in the prefectures of Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Gifu and Aichi, reports Xinhua news agency.

Japanese drugmaker Takeda Pharmaceutical Co., in charge of sales and distribution of the vaccine in the country, said it has yet to see any reports of safety concerns and had reported them to the Ministry on Wednesday.

The size of foreign substances found in 39 vials is believed to be a few millimetres.

“To date, no safety or efficacy issues have been identified,” Moderna said, adding it is “carefully assessing this matter and at this point does not have further comments on root causes”.

The Ministry said the 1.63 million doses of Moderna vaccine were made in the same production line at the same time in Spain, and fall under three lot numbers — 3004667, 3004734 and 3004956, which has already been handed out to 863 vaccination centres across the country.

The Ministry said it believes the risk of safety issues is “not significant”, but will ask each facility that received the doses not to use them.

Over 10 million doses have already been used in the country since the Moderna vaccine accepted approval for emergency use in May, according to the government.

The Japanese government signed a contract with Moderna to receive 50 million doses of the vaccine by the end of September.

Currently people aged 12 and older can get shots of the vaccine.

Meanwhile, the Ministry revealed to public the lot numbers of the contaminated vaccines so that concerned individuals can check whether they received the potentially contaminated shots before the affected vaccine doses were suspended.

On similar abnormalities that may have been found in other countries, Moderna said it monitors and expeditiously assesses questions it received about the products from global markets, and local authorities will make their own decisions about disclosure of information following these assessments.

The problem was exposed to view at a time when Japan is struggling to control a Covid peak, as the government declared a plan on Wednesday to put eight more prefectures under the state of emergency.

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