Budget 2018-19

  A third Chinese vaccine, produced by CanSino Biologics , has submitted clinical trial data, but no WHO review has been scheduled. The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday it has approved a COVID-19 vaccine made by drugmaker Sinovac Biotech for emergency use listing, paving the way for a second Chinese shot to be used in poor countries. A WHO emergency listing is a signal to national regulators on a product’s safety and efficacy. It will also allow the shot to be included in COVAX, the global programme to provide vaccines mainly for poor countries, which faces major supply problems due to an Indian export suspension. The independent panel of experts said in a statement it recommended Sinovac’s vaccine for adults over 18, with a second dose 2-4 weeks later. There was no upper age limit as data suggested it is likely to have a protective effect in older people. The WHO’s technical advisory group, which began meeting on May 5, took the decision after reviewing the latest c...

  Photos of the Tianhe module launch and its fuel burn-off were compared with what appeared to be a mass outdoor cremation in India, and captioned “China lighting a fire versus India lighting a fire” A social media post by China’s top law enforcement body juxtaposing the country’s successful launch of a module into space with grim cremation pyres in India was deleted after it sparked online criticism in China. Photos of the Tianhe module launch and its fuel burn-off were compared with what appeared to be a mass outdoor cremation in India, and captioned “China lighting a fire versus India lighting a fire.” The post on Saturday by the Communist Party’s Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission on its official Sina Weibo account was accompanied by a hashtag noting that new Covid-19 cases in India had surpassed 400,000 a day. Later that day, it could no longer be found. Many Chinese social media users expressed shock and anger at the insensitivity of the post. “We hope everyone gi...

  Banerjee lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi Lashing out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday alleged that the second COVID-19 wave in the country and its management is a “Modi-made disaster”. Addressing an election rally at Balurghat in Dakshin Dinajpur district, the TMC chief asserted that West Bengal will be run only by a “Bengal engine government” and not by “Modi’s double-engine”. “The second COVID wave is more intense. I would say this is a Modi-made disaster. There are no injections or oxygen. Vaccines and medicines are being shipped abroad even as there is a scarcity of these items in the country,” she told the rally. She claimed that this election is a fight to save  West Bengal  and “protect the honour of the Bengali mother”. “Our state will be run by a Bengal engine government and not by Modi’s double-engine government. We will not allow Gujarat to capture our state or run it from Delhi. Bengal will r...

  Covid-19 is spreading at a fast pace with an increase in the intensity of the pandemic and the next four weeks are going to be very critical, the Centre said on Tuesday COVID-19 is spreading at a fast pace with an increase in the intensity of the pandemic and the next four weeks are going to be very critical, the Centre said on Tuesday as it stressed on people’s participation to control the second wave of the contagion. At a press conference, NITI Aayog Member (Health) Dr V K Paul said the pandemic situation in the country worsened with a sharp rise in cases and a large part of the population is still susceptible to the virus. The tools to fight the pandemic remain the same. COVID-appropriate behaviour, containment measures, testing have to be implemented more efficiently, medical infrastructure has to be ramped up and vaccination drive intensified, he said.  COVID  appropriate behaviour like wearing masks, staying away from crowds have to be followed in a campaign mode...

US science officials such as Anthony Fauci have suggested it will take 70 per cent to 85 per cent coverage of the population for things to return to normal When will the pandemic end? It’s the question hanging over just about everything since Covid-19 took over the world last year. The answer can be measured in vaccinations. Bloomberg has built the biggest database of Covid-19 shots given around the world, with more than 119 million doses administered worldwide. US science officials such as Anthony Fauci have suggested it will take 70 per cent to 85 per cent coverage of the population for things to return to normal. Bloomberg’s Vaccine Tracker shows that some countries are making far more rapid progress than others, using 75 per cent coverage with a two-dose vaccine as a target. Israel, the country with the highest vaccination rate in the world, is headed for 75 per cent coverage in just two months. The US will get there just in time to ring in the 2022 New Year (though North Dakota co...

Italy said it has detected a new coronavirus strain with mutations in a person who recently returned from the United Kingdom Italy on Sunday said it has detected a new coronavirus strain with mutations in a person who recently returned from the United Kingdom. On Saturday, the United Kingdom government locked down parts of the country including London after admitting that more than half of all new Covid-19 cases had been caused by a mutated, more infectious coronavirus strain. “The patient and their partner returned from the United Kingdom several days ago, landing in Rome’s Fiumicino airport. They are now isolated and have observed, together with family and close contacts, all procedures proscribed by the health authorities,” Sputnik quoted the ministry’s statement. According to the communication, the genome of the UK coronavirus strain has been established by experts of the Celio military hospital in Rome. The new strain of Covid-19 is “out of control”, said UK Health Secretary Matt ...

  The US is confident that at least 100 million people would have got coronavirus shots by the end of February 2021 and this operation would have covered the entire “at risk” population The chief advisor of the US Covid-19 vaccine development programme is confident that at least 100 million people would have got coronavirus shots by the end of February 2021 and this operation would have covered the entire “at risk” population comprising the elderly, frontline workers and those with comorbidities. Operation Warp Speed chief adviser Moncef Slaoui said he hopes to have emergency use authorization for at least one vaccine by December 10 or 11.Slaoui pointed to “exceptionally good data” from both the vaccines which have applied for emergency use authorization – Pfizer and Moderna. He is hoping for a “breakthrough” from a Johnson and Johnson vaccine that has now recruited more than 28,000 subjects. “Now the breakthrough that we hope with this vaccine is that it’s a one shot vaccine, with...