Budget 2018-19

  Pfizer studying effects of 3rd vaccine dose against new Covid variants Health authorities say first-generation Covid-19 vaccines still protect against variants that are emerging in different parts of the world Pfizer announced on Thursday that it has begun studying a third dose of its Covid-19 vaccine, part of a strategy to guard against mutated versions of the coronavirus. Health authorities say first-generation Covid-19 vaccines still protect against variants that are emerging in different parts of the world. But manufacturers are starting to prepare now in case a more vaccine-resistant mutation comes along.Pfizer said it will offer a third dose to 144 volunteers, drawing from people who participated in the vaccine’s early-stage US testing last year. It wants to determine if an additional booster shot given six to 12 months after the first two doses would rev up the immune system enough to ward off a mutated virus. Pfizer and its German partner, BioNTech, also are tweaking...

  Long queues of vehicles could be seen in the border areas since morning as Karnataka authorities sealed many roads With the Karnataka government reinstating stricter control of transit passengers from Kerala in view of increasing Covid-19 positive cases, people here bound to Mangaluru and other parts of Dakshina Kannada for various purposes including medical needs and studies are in a fix again. Long queues of vehicles could be seen in the border areas since morning as Karnataka authorities sealed many roads including national highways and restricted entry only for those with Covid-19 negative certificates. The Dakshina Kannada authorities sealed all borders from Monday except four to cross over, sources said. According to Karnataka officials at the borders, those who wish to enter have to produce  Covid-19  negative certificate through an RT-PCR test taken 72 hours prior to their cross over time. Health and police personnel are on duty at the four borders, viz.Talapady...

  Healthcare workers must endorse the inoculation, declining will be matter of sadness: Government officials With more than 630,000 vaccinated within the first four days of the drive in India — the fastest in the world in doing so — the government strongly urged health care workers to shed hesitancy and come forward to take the jab in order to create a Covid-proof health care system and achieve vaccine-induced herd immunity. “The whole world is clamouring for a vaccine. If we still decline, it would be a matter of sadness… I will urge them (health care workers) to endorse the vaccine. We have to start non-Covid services; those who are fortunate to receive the  Covid 19 vaccine  should not refuse it,” said V K Paul, member (health), NITI Aayog. Paul, who has himself taken a shot of Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin, had assured people of safety. He said India has finally got a breather from Covid, and that this is the time to vaccinate as many as possible. So far, says the health m...