Mr. Sameer Bhati, Director of Star Imaging & Path Lab, also congratulated the country saying, “It is indeed a milestone that we have achieved breaking all the barriers. Amid all the doubts and difficulties, this largest Vaccination Drive was initiated and finally, the History has been created. Gratitude to all the Healthcare workers, Media Persons, Staff of Vaccination Centres, Volunteers and Every Indian for being the Part of this Amazing Victory of Largest Vaccination Drive. Let’s pledge to take it to the next level and achieve Complete Vaccination in the Country.”
covid-19
Vaccine for children will be open by first quarter of next year: NTAGI chief
Children are our most valuable assets, they will be given vaccine with the same gusto and same enthusiasm as adults are given, claims NTAGI chief NK Arora.
“Currently, there are 4 vaccines in various stages of trial for children. The first one you have already heard of is the world’s first DNA vaccine. The second is Covaxin, which has been cleared by the subject expert but some steps are still to be taken. There are two more vaccines, one is Corbovax, which is from Biological-E, and the third one is Covavax, so we have plenty of vaccines for children. Meanwhile, we are working on a priority list for children with comorbidities who have a 3-7 times more severe risk of diseases and death, so we will start immunising children,” he said.
He further added, “There are scientific studies going on for the same and a WHO consultation happened last week, but our priority is to give both the dozes to every adult, booster dozes are very contextual. In India many have got natural infection, and on top of that if we have vaccines it is like double barrel protection. So, usual adult in India does not require booster dose but it is being monitored if someone needs It. There is another dimension to this, one is additional dose and the other is booster dose. The booster obviously nothing even those health workers who took vaccine in early stages and many of us are being exposed repeatedly. So not in the moment but additional dose we are looking if it can be given to elderly or very old people who have immunocompromised or immunodeficiency stage. Otherwise, our vaccine system is doing very well.”
Will be able to vaccinate almost all adults with 2 doses, says NTAGI chief on
While India achieved a milestone by administering 100 crore doses with at least 80% of adults having received the 1st dose of Covid-19 vaccine up until 10:30 AM on Thursday, the Government of India claimed that this is the fastest vaccination drive ever.
On this occasion, NTAGI chief NK Arora told Medically Speaking that, “There are two parts of the country, one is for adults, who are given priority because adults are more likely to have this severe disease and die as a result. Our adult population is about 90-94 million, while our child population is around 44-45 million. In several states, we have found that 100% of adults are vaccinated with the first dosage, indicating that they will also come for the second shot. We need to maintain communicating via several channels to ensure that the whole population receives two doses, but we believe that by the end of the year, virtually all adults will have had one or two doses.”
He said, “When the vaccination started on 16th Jan, nobody believed and everybody thought it would take several years for India to get immunized, but there was complete confidence. We had meticulous planning based on availability of vaccine, beneficiary prioritization, and the infrastructure gradual expansion and participation of private sectors, so we knew at what time to expand the vaccination program. If you remember, on 16th Jan there were only 3000 vaccination centres in India, today there are about 64-65 thousand and on 17th Sep there were 1lakh 10 thousand immunization centers. So the whole program has so much calibrated to the ground reality.”
“Infrastructure has been created where vaccine studies can be done. Even community sites have been prepared, and IT has been used extensively. If you see, Cowin is considered one of the world’s best platforms which manages both beneficiaries. It monitors and follows up on recipients of the vaccine, as well as the vaccine distribution. Then two very important steps were taken right in June of last year, namely preparing the road map for rollout and surveillance of vaccine safety,” he mentioned.
Speaking on vaccine hesitancy, NK Arora said, “The journey has not at all been smooth. There were issues with distribution, state and centre people were trying to get vaccine from outside, not even a single dose was available. If we don’t follow the philosophy of vaccine Atmnirbharta, we will be begging and not getting any vaccine. That is why we have not imported even a single dose till today.”
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Ajay Swaroop, Hony. Secy. Cum Treasurer (Board of Management) & Member Trustee, Sir Ganga Ram Trust Society, said, “It is a matter of proud that our country has entered 100 crore vaccine club to fight Covid. We have created history and I am proud of Sir Ganga Ram Hospital being a part of it. As far as our hospital is concerned Sir Ganga Ram Hospital since January 2021 has vaccinated 55,000 people out of which 4877 health care workers, have taken First Dose and 3130 have take Second Dose. We have used 1432 Covaxin Vials and 3968 Covishield with no adverse events.”
Covid case update: India logs 18,454 new cases with over 17,000 recoveries
In the last 24 hours, India has registered 18,454 new instances of the novel coronavirus, as well as 160 fatalities from the infection. According to statistics released on Thursday by the Union Health Ministry, the country had a total of 17,561 discharges in the past 24 hours, bringing the overall recovery rate to about 98.15 percent, the highest since March 2020, and total recoveries data to 3,34,95,808.
The total active cases of COVID-19 in India slightly dipped to 1,78,831, the ministry data showed. The total death toll in the country is now at 4,52,811.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, the total number of COVID-19 vaccine doses delivered in the country exceeded the 100-crore mark. Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya congratulated the country on its achievement in a tweet, saying it was due to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s competent leadership.
According to official sources, around 75 per cent of India’s all eligible adult population has been administered at least the first dose and around 31 per cent has received both the doses of the vaccine. India took 85 days to touch the 10-crore vaccination mark, 45 more days to cross the 20-crore mark and 29 more days to reach the 30-crore mark, according to the Union Health Ministry data.
According to Indian virologist Dr T Jacob John, children can be potential Sars-CoV-2 reservoirs, making vaccination a public health imperative. The senior medical expert emphasised the importance of prioritising the Covid-19 vaccine for children aged 12 to 18 years old in order to reduce virus transmission and the risk of the emergence of new variants due to mutations.
“We have underestimated the epidemic among children as they are not falling sick so much, but we must think of children as a reservoir of the virus,” said John. He was speaking at an online session organised by the Indian Academy of Paediatrics on Tuesday evening.
He cited a study by researchers at the Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) that confirmed that children are capable of carrying and replicating the Sar-CoV-2. The study published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases included 110 Covid-19 patients aged two weeks to 21 years. While the researchers did not find a correlation between viral load and severity of the disease in kids, they said that it was a misconception that children, who are mostly asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic, are less infectious.
John suggested that the government should prioritise children in the age group of 12 to 18 as a pilot and then open the vaccination for much younger children.
India’s epidemic stage is over
“India has reached the end of the epidemic phase of Covid-19, and is in an endemic phase which will be a long haul,” said John. “Paediatric vaccination will play a crucial role in keeping the Covid-19 numbers in the endemic stage,” he said.
Navi Mumbai-based Paediatrician Dr Vijay Yewale, who is a former president of the Indian Academy of Paediatrics, said that the Covid-19 trend among children has been that of mild disease. “We see Covid-related complications very rarely among children,” he said, adding that it is likely that the government will open paediatric vaccination only for children with comorbidities at first.
John cited his observations of the past 16 weeks during which the number of cases in India has been steady without any upswings. In addition, the latest serological survey by the Indian Council of Medical Research has shown 70% sensitivity. “At least 95% of the population has antibodies, considering all the factors,” he said, adding that barring some states like Kerala, Mizoram, Meghalaya and Sikkim, India is in an endemic phase.
John predicts that a third wave is unlikely in the current circumstances, but if it hits, the timing will be sometime mid- 2022 or the last quarter of 2022. “India’s endemic phase is likely to be influenced by re-infections. But we can forget about the third wave for the time being. If at all the third wave hits, it will be because of a new variant which does not acknowledge our existing immunity,” he said.
Covid case update: India reports 14,623 new cases, vaccination crosses 99 cr mark
India recorded 14,623 new Covid-19 cases and 197 fatalities in a single day, according to the Union Ministry of Health. In addition, the number of people who have recovered in the previous 24 hours has increased to 19,446, according to the report.
Overall, India’s Covid-19 caseload has increased to 3,41,08,996. And the death toll due to coronavirus infection has climbed to 4,52,651.
The active cases account for less than 1% of total cases and it is lowest since March 2020 which is currently at 0.52%.
Meanwhile, India has administered 99.12 crore of coronavirus vaccines so far. India will soon create history by achieving the target of vaccinating over 100 crore people against Covid-19.
Yesterday, Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya informed that World Health Organisation’s Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus lauded India’s Covid-19 vaccination programme.
“Had a detailed interaction with DG WHO @DrTedros, accompanied by other senior officials of @WHO, on various issues related to health, including pandemic management and WHO reforms. DG WHO lauded the mammoth efforts undertaken by the Indian government for #COVID19 vaccination,” Mandaviya said in a tweet.
School student develops ‘COVID Warriors’ App, initiates free sanitisation of Government offices as per WHO guidelines
Aryan Singh Saluja, Class 12, Delhi Public School Nacharam, Hyderabad; has developed a novel App called, ‘Covid Warriors’ to extend succour to the Government staff, by thoroughly sanitising and disinfecting Government offices and workspaces in the state capital, as per WHO Guidelines, free of cost. This small but thoughtful gesture will aid the hapless staff including the frontline warriors, who have to weather difficult work conditions in the call of duty. Covid Warriors App has tied up with B-SAFE sanitisers to render this service professionally.
To avail the services, Government offices and workspaces in the state capital have to download the App and place a request on it. Trained personnel will sanitise and disinfect the spaces as per WHO guidelines, free of cost on receiving the request.
Speaking about the initiative Aryan Singh Saluja said, Developing COVID WARRIORS App is my way of giving back to the society. He exhorted employees working in public services to download the COVID Warriors App from Playstore on Android Mobiles and place a request for sanitization and disinfection of the concerned government office, duly mentioning name and location details. A COVID warrior will be assigned to fulfil the request in 24 to 48 hours.
This service was launched recently and three departments besides a NGO have availed the service already. A one-week gap is required for the concerned government office or building to place a request for disinfection of the premises once again.
COVID Warriors has entered into a tie-up with B-Safe Brand of Water Tech Engineers to implement this initiative. B-SAFE uses 100 percent Quality Products that are certified by Drug Control Authority, ISI marked and certified by many international organisations.
Mix-and-match vaccines highly effective against COVID-19: Lancet study
According to a countrywide trial in Sweden, people who got a first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccination followed by an mRNA vaccine injection had a reduced risk of infection than those who received both doses of the AstraZeneca preventative.
Since the use of AstraZeneca’s vector-based COVID-19 vaccine for persons under the age of 65 was discontinued owing to safety concerns, all people in Sweden who had previously got their first dose of this vaccination were advised to have an mRNA vaccine as a second dose.
“Having received any of the approved vaccines is better compared to no vaccine, and two doses are better than one,” said Peter Nordstrom, a professor at Umea University, Sweden.
“However, our study shows a greater risk reduction for people who received an mRNA vaccine after having received a first dose of a vector-based, as compared to people having received the vector-based vaccine for both doses,” Nordstrom said.
According to the latest Covid-19 bulletin issued by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) on Monday, India recorded 13,596 new coronavirus infections in the past 24 hours, the lowest in 230 days.
It was 3.9 percent lower than the previous day’s figure in the country. In India, the total number of cases is currently 3,40,81,315.
At least 166 deaths were reported in the last 24 hours taking the total death count to 4,52,290.
India’s recovery rate stands at 98.12%, the highest since March 2020, as a total of 19,582 patients recovered in the last 24 hours bringing the total recoveries to 3,34,39,331.
In the last 24 hours, active cases have declined by 6,152 and India’s active caseload stands at 1,89,694, the lowest in 221 days. The weekly positivity rate has been recorded at 1.37%, less than 3% for the last 115 days.
A total of 12,05,162 doses have been administered in the last 24 hours, which brings the total tally to 97,79,47,783.
The United States will allow travellers who received Covid vaccines in mixed doses to enter the country
Key Highlights
- While the CDC in the United States does not allow mixed vaccines in primary series, it is fairly common in other countries.
- The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention previously stated that it would accept any vaccines approved by the US regulator or the World Health Organization.
- Beginning November 8, the United States will relax Covid-19 travel restrictions for international passengers.
International visitors who have been immunised with a combination of Covid vaccines will now be permitted to enter the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the United States confirmed on Friday that they will accept mixed-dose vaccines from international travellers.
“While the CDC does not recommend mixing vaccine types in a primary series, we recognise that this is becoming more common in other countries and should be accepted for the interpretation of vaccine records,” a CDC spokeswoman said.
The CDC earlier said that it would accept any vaccines approved by the US regulator or the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The US will ease Covid-19 travel restrictions for international passengers from November 8.
Additionally, the US also endorsed the booster dose of Johnson & Covid-19 Johnson’s vaccine, admitting that Americans who got the single-dose vaccine are not as protected as those who got other double-dose vaccines.
J&J told US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) that a booster dose provides additional protection as early as two months after the initial vaccine but will work better for those who get it after 6 months. The FDA’s advisory panel voted that booster shot should be taken at least 2 months after the initial vaccination.
Initial results from ongoing research suggest that J&J recipients may have a stronger response if the booster dose is from another brand. The preliminary results from a new study catering to effects of taking competing vaccine brands showed that booster shot from a competing vaccine jacked up virus-fighting antibodies — at least for a few weeks and it was most effective from taking a Pfizer or a Moderna booster shot after a J&J vaccine.