Daily new coronavirus infections in India remained below 30,000 for the 19th consecutive day on Friday, bringing the total number of cases to 1,02,86,709
The Subject Matter Expert Committee (SEC) on COVID-19
of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) has recommended granting emergency use authorization for Oxford COVID-19 the ‘Covishield’ vaccine, which is being manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, reports said.
According to a report by CNBC-TV18, the recommendation comes with certain conditions, but did not elaborate.
A report in India today He said that India’s Comptroller General of Drugs will take one last call on whether or not to approve the vaccine for emergency use authorization.
The Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII), the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer, has partnered with AstraZeneca to manufacture the Covishield vaccine, which was developed by scientists at the University of Oxford. The SEC’s recommendation came days after the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approved the Oxford vaccine produced by AstraZeneca in the UK for human use.
Meanwhile, the new diary coronavirus Infections in India remained below 30,000 for the 19th consecutive day, bringing the total number of cases to 1.02,86,709.
Additionally, the national recovery rate increased to 96.08 percent with the number of patients recovering from the disease at 98.83 lakh, according to data from the Union Ministry of Health updated on Friday.
A vaccine distribution trial is scheduled to begin in four districts of Maharashtra on Saturday. State Health Minister Rajesh Tope said Thursday that four districts in the state have been selected for a test of the coronavirus vaccine.
Pune, Nagpur, Jalna and Nandurbar have been selected for the trial, it said in a statement. Three health centers will be established in each district.
There will be no actual vaccination, but arrangements will be made according to guidelines. There will be a waiting room, vaccination room and
surveillance room, a health center, as required by guidelines.
The center views the vaccination effort as a comprehensive public health response
Sharing details about India’s vaccination plan, Dr. VK Paul, Director of National COVID-19 Task Force had said CNBCTV18 He said the immediate phase will begin with a nationwide vaccination of healthcare workers.
“There will be 31 vaccination centers that will supply vaccines to all states. These 31 centers will supply vaccines to 29,000 vaccination points in last-mile delivery,” he said.
Dr. Paul also clarified that the government has stated that financial resources are not a limitation for vaccinating people.
“India is currently considering a priority group of 300 million and not the entire population. We view the vaccination effort as a comprehensive public health response. We want to minimize deaths related to COVID-19 therefore, he chose higher risk groups. As we move forward, the storage capacity will also increase. We want to make sure that the entire nation has herd immunity. The ultimate goal is to stop the spread of transmission for which more extensive vaccination is required, “he added.
“We are on the same page with the industry. Acquisitions and formal agreements will be made soon,” he added.
Although there has not yet been official confirmation on the SEC’s recommendation to authorize Covishield for emergency use, Dr. Paul said the SEC was near a decision point on Covishield’s approval.
“We are definitely at a tipping point regarding the approval of Covishield. The SEC will look at data from the Indian trials and those from other countries. We are close to a decision point on the approval of Covishield,” he said. CNBCTV18.
In addition to Covishield, the SEC is also reviewing the US application from Pfizer (filed December 4) and Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech, which had applied for the go-ahead for its locally developed Covaxin on December 7.
The SEC in COVID-19 The CDSCO, which had previously sought additional safety and immunogenicity data from IBS, deliberated on its Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) request for the injections on Wednesday and met again on Friday to review the matter.
The SII had requested the DCGI USA for Oxford COVID-19 vaccinated on December 6.
Schools partially reopen in Kerala and Karnataka
Lectures for classes 10 and 12 started in Kerala schools on Friday with limited hours and a restricted number of students.
It was after a lapse of nine months that schools were opened in the southern state, in compliance with strict COVID-19 Protocols. Since the closure was imposed in March, students have been attending classes online through Kerala Infrastructure and Technology for Education (KITE) -Victers channel.
They were received with digital thermometers at the entrance of the schools to measure their body temperature, which is mandatory according to the guidelines issued by the authorities. They were admitted to the school campus only after collecting the parental consent letters.
At a recent high-level meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, it was decided to reopen educational institutions, including schools and colleges, in accordance with COVID-19 guidelines.
In its guidelines, the Department of General Education mandated that only 50 percent of students be allowed to enter schools at a time and that classes be organized as one student per bank for the first week.
Guidelines issued by the Director of Public Instructions (DPI) said 25 percent of students will be allowed at a time in schools where their strength exceeds 300 in classes 10 and 12.
In detailed instructions, authorities have asked school administrations to ensure masks, disinfectant, digital thermometer and soaps in their institutions.
Meanwhile, in Karnataka, schools and pre-university colleges reopened for students on Friday with strict COVID-19 safety rules.
While regular classes began on Friday for sophomore Class 10 and PUC (Class 12) students, who will face board examinations, students in grades 6-9 came to campuses to the Vidyagama program.
PTI reported that while there was opposition from certain sections on the opening of schools and colleges amid the prevailing pandemic situation, others, including Karnataka’s Education Minister Suresh Kumar, opined that the opening of schools and colleges along with measures Preventive measures were necessary for students, especially in rural areas, where online education is not available.
Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa said that the school and universities are restarting in the interest of students’ educational progress.
75 UK returnees will be located in Karnataka, says government
Efforts are underway to track 75 people who have traveled to Karnataka from the UK with authorities in hopes of locating them soon, State Health Minister K Sudhakar said on Friday.
The number of returnees from the United Kingdom who tested positive for the new strain of coronavirus prevalent in the European nation remained at seven and the results of genomic sequencing were expected for another 31, he told reporters.
“We have yet to track 75 people who traveled from the UK … some foreign nationals are also there who might not have local contact numbers, their details have been collected from the immigration department,” Sudhakar said.
He said the Department of the Interior has ensured that everything will be traced soon so they can be evaluated.
Sudhakar said that 70 of the 75 people were from Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), the municipal corporation.
So far, 33 people, who have traveled from the UK, along with five of their contacts, have tested positive for COVID, bringing the number to 38, he said.
All of their samples underwent genomic sequencing at NIMHANS, of which seven have been confirmed to be infected with the UK variant, the minister said.
According to the latest official information, a total of 5,068 people have arrived in Karnataka from the UK since November 25, of which 4,238 have come since December 9 and 810 were transit passengers traveling to other states.
“Information on 810 passengers has been shared with the respective states,” he said.
Observing that since Saturday COVID-19 The vaccine test will be carried out in five districts of the state, Sudhakar said, it will be a mock test before the official vaccination to verify our readiness.
State details
There are 2,54,254 assets COVID-19 cases in the country that comprise 2.47 percent of total cases, according to the data.
From india COVID-19 the bill had crossed the 20 lakh mark on August 7, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5, and 50 lakh on September 16. It went from 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20, and surpassed the one crore mark on December 19.
According to the ICMR, 17,31,11,694 samples have been analyzed as of December 31 and 10,62,420 samples have been analyzed on Thursday.
The 256 new deaths include 58 from Maharashtra, 30 from Kerala, 29 from West Bengal and 21 from Chhattisgarh.
A total of 1,48,994 deaths have been reported in the country so far, including 49,521 from Maharashtra, followed by 12,122 from Tamil Nadu, 12,090 from Karnataka, 10,536 from Delhi, 9,712 from West Bengal, 8,364 from Uttar Pradesh, 7,108 from Andhra Pradesh. and 5,341 from Punjab.
With PTI inputs
