News Analysis India

Tag: children

  • Children taken ill after eating meal in Budaun school 

    By PTI

    BUDAUN: Twenty-eight students of an all-girls government residential school in the district were taken ill after consuming dinner on Saturday, officials said.

    The affected students — who were in the 10-14 age group– of the Sarvodya School in Samrer block of Budaun district were admitted to a hospital where their condition is stated to be stable.

    Budaun’s Chief Development Officer Rishi Raj told PTI on Sunday,”The dinner was tasted by a committee of three people as per protocol. Those who tasted the food reported uneasiness after which the distribution of prepared food was stopped. However, 28 students had already started their meal by that time.”

    The students started vomiting and complained of stomach ache and dizziness. The school administration took the students to a nearby government hospital. “The students were kept under observation of medical experts and their condition is said to be stable. Officials of the departments concerned have been asked to probe the matter,” said the officer.

    Over 300 students are enrolled in the school run by the social welfare department.

  • Rajasthan to administer polio vaccine to children on Sunday

    By PTI

    JAIPUR: Children up to five years of age will be administered polio vaccine in the state on Sunday as part of a campaign to eradicate the disease, officials said.

    Health Minister Parsadi Lal Meena had appealed for the drive to be held on February 27, saying polio can be eradicated only by administering its vaccine to the children. In a statement, Meena said 54,627 polio booths have been set up across the state to make the campaign a success.

    Apart from this, 2,215 transit teams and 3,381 mobile teams have been formed. He said that on the first day of the campaign, the medicine would be given at the booths Those left out will be administered the medicine in a door-to-door drive by health workers for the next two days.

    The minister said the last case of polio in the state came to light in November 2009. Since then, not a single case has been reported. He said no new case of polio has been found in our country after January 2011.

    Significantly, India was declared polio-free by the World Health Organization on 27th March 2014, Meena added. He said that the second phase of Mission Indradhanush 4.0 will be organised from March 7. In this, related vaccines will be given to children up to two years of age and pregnant women.

    He informed that the first phase of this year was organised from February 7 and the third phase will start from April 4. This is the 27th year of the Pulse Polio programme, which was launched in 1995.

  • Vaccination for 12-14 age group likely from March, says top government expert

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: India may begin inoculating children in the 12-14 age group against COVID-19 in March as the 15-18 population is likely to get fully vaccinated by then, Dr N K Arora, chairman of the COVID-19 working group of NTAGI, said on Monday.

    Of the estimated 7.4 crore (7,40,57,000) population in the 15-18 age bracket, over 3.45 crore have received the first dose of Covaxin so far and their second dose is due in 28 days, he said.

    “Adolescents in this age group have been actively participating in the inoculation process, and going by this pace of vaccination, the rest of the beneficiaries in the 15-18 age group are likely to be covered with the first dose by January-end and subsequently their second dose is expected to be done by February-end,” said the Chairman of the Covid working group of the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI).

    Once the 15-18 age group is covered, he said, the government is likely to take a policy decision for initiating the vaccination drive for the 12-14 age group in March, he said.

    According to him, there is an estimated 7.5 crore population in the 12-14 age group.

    Provisional vaccination reports till 7 am on Monday showed that with more than 39 lakh doses being administered in a span of 24 hours, the cumulative number has exceeded 157.20 crore doses.

    According to government data, over 3.45 crore first doses have been given to children in the 15-18 years age group so far.

    The countrywide vaccination drive was rolled out on January 16 last year with healthcare workers (HCWs) getting inoculated in the first phase. The vaccination of frontline workers (FLWs) started from February 2, 2021.

    The next phase of COVID-19 vaccination commenced from March 1 last year for people over 60 years of age and those aged 45 and above with specified co-morbid conditions.

    The country launched vaccination for all people aged more than 45 years from April 1, 2021.

    The government then decided to expand its vaccination drive by allowing everyone above 18 to be vaccinated from May 1.

    The next phase of COVID-19 vaccination has commenced from January 3 this year for adolescents in the age group of 15-18 years.

    India began administering the ‘precaution dose’ — a third jab of COVID-19 vaccine — to healthcare, frontline workers including personnel deployed for election duty and those aged 60 and above with comorbidities from January 10 amid the country witnessing a spike in coronavirus infections, driven mainly by the Omicron variant of the virus.

  • Registration starts for Covid vaccination for teens aged 15-18

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: From stocking up doses to keeping paediatricians on standby, inoculation centres in Delhi are gearing up ahead of the starting of Covid vaccination for teens in the age group of 15-18 from January 3.

    According to official documents shared by sources, the cohort size for vaccination in this category is 10 lakh as per the Registrar General of India’s figures.

    Authorities at LNJP Hospital and other facilities in Delhi, which are among the largest state-run vaccination centres since the start of the exercise on January 16, said infrastructure set up is ready to administer Covid vaccine shots to children, after having catered to the adult population, including healthcare workers and frontline staff, who were given priority to be the first in line to receive jabs.

    A large number of schools and other educational are also been used as Covid vaccination centres, and arrangements were being made there as well.

    Teens aged between 15 and 18 years would be able to register on the CoWIN portal from January 1 and the vaccine option for them would only be Covaxin, officials said on Monday as preparations are underway to start inoculating children against COVID-19 from January 3.

    The vaccine option for those in the 15-18 age group has been stated under the “Guidelines for Covid-19 vaccination of children between 15-18 years and precaution dose to HCWs, FLWs and 60+ population with comorbidities”, which was issued by the Union health ministry on Monday.

    According to the guidelines, which will come into effect from January 3, those aged 15 and above will be able to register on CoWIN.

    In other words, “all those whose birth year is 2007” or before, shall be eligible.

    Balance vaccine shots at disposal of the Delhi government as on December 29 morning, stood at 21.53 lakh doses, according to the official documents.

    ALSO READ | ‘Third wave may see 80 lakh cases, 80,000 deaths’: Maharashtra warns of huge Covid surge, fatalities 

    Private hospitals too have geared up for this phase of the exercise, which will take place amid a massive spike in cases of Covid and an Omicron scare.

    Delhi on Thursday recorded 1,313 fresh Covid cases, the highest single-day spike since May 26, with a mounting positivity rate of 1.73 per cent, as Health Minister Satyendar Jain cautioned that the latest variant of the coronavirus is gradually spreading in the community.

    Doctors urged parents to bring their children for vaccination as soon as possible, to lend them protection amid fear of a third wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

    “The Omicron variant of the virus is infecting people and it’s spreading, but those who are vaccinated are largely asymptomatic, and essentially the unvaccinated ones are needing hospitalisation more. So, would appeal to people to wear masks, and get vaccinated at the earliest, if eligible,” said Dr Bishnu Panigrahi, Group Head, Medical Strategy & Operations, Fortis Healthcare group.

    Asked about the preparation for the vaccination exercise for children starting January 3, he said, “we are all set”.

    Fortis units at Vasant Kunj, Shalimar Bagh and Okhla, will be the vaccination centres of the healthcare group, he said. “Depending on the footfall, we can step up the logistics. Also, a team of paediatricians will be on standby in case there are any adverse events reported in a beneficiary,” he said.

    “We had formed a core expert group last year to tackle the pandemic, and around mid-2021 we made a sub-group, paediatric core expert group to assess the situation and suggest ways to handle a crisis,” the doctor said.

    A spokesperson of Max healthcare group said Max hospital, Saket and a few other units will be part of the vaccination exercise for the children group.

    “Paediatricians will be on standby when the vaccination begins for this group,” she said.

    According to CoWIN portal, 2.63 crore doses have been administered in Delhi to date, including 1.52 crore first doses, and 1.11 crore second doses.

    For precaution doses (third dose), there are about three lakh people who are eligible as per the January 10, 2022 reference point, according to theofficial documents.

  • Punjab BJP leader urges Modi to change ‘Children’s Day’ date

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH: Punjab BJP leader Jeevan Gupta has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to change the date of ‘Children’s Day’, which is celebrated on November 14 in the country.

    In a letter, Punjab BJP general secretary Gupta said Children’s Day should be observed on the martyrdom day of the two sons of Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th Sikh Guru.

    It will be a befitting tribute to the two sons, Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh, who were bricked alive during Mughal king Aurangzeb’s rule at Fatehgarh Sahib in Punjab, he said.

    A three-day Shaheedi Jor Mela is organised every year starting from December 25 at Fatehgarh Sahib to mark the martyrdom of the two sons of Guru Gobind Singh, Gupta said.

    At present, Children’s Day is celebrated on November 14 in memory of India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

    Since 1964, Children’s Day has been celebrated on November 14 whereas before that, November 20 was the date fixed for it, the BJP leader said.

    “This day was forcibly changed by the then Congress government after the death of former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru,” he alleged.

    “If Children’s Day is observed on the martyrdom day of Zorawar Singh and Fateh Singh instead of November 14, then it will be very good,” Gupta said in a statement.

    This will be a true tribute to Guru Gobind Singh and his sons, he added.

  • Ayush Ministry to launch immunity boosting kit for children

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Amidst threat of a possible third wave of COVID-19, the All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA) has developed an immunity boosting ‘Bal Raksha Kit’ for children up to the age of 16.

    The AIIA is under the Ministry of Ayush.

    The kit, said the ministry officials, will help boost the immunity of children to help them fight SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) infection and keep them healthy.

    The kit comprises a syrup made up of basil, giloy, cinnamon, liquorice and dry grapes, which have amazing medicinal qualities, apart from Annu oil, Sitopaladi and Chyawanprash whose regular consumption increase the immunity level of children, officials said.

    This kit, said officials, has been made under the strict guidelines of the Ministry of Ayush.

    It has been manufactured by Indian Medicines Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited (IMPCL), a Government of India enterprise, at its Uttarakhand-based plant.

    The AIIA will distribute 10,000 free kits on National Ayurveda Day on November 2.

    Since there is no Covid vaccine available for children in India yet, the Bal Suraksha Kit is a significant development keeping in mind the health of children, they said.

    AIIA Director Dr Tanuja Nesari noted that children often face difficulty in taking decoctions and pills.

    “Since the decoctions (kadha) are bitter and children find it difficult to take them, a decoction syrup has been prepared in which some other medicines have also been mixed to prevent cold and cough,” Dr Nesari said.

    “Along with the kit, Suvarnaprashan (Swarna Prashan) will be given to 5,000 children on that day. We have already contacted the schools of Delhi for the purpose,” she added.

    Swarna Prashana helps in improving the overall health of children, she said.

    The AIIA has prepared ‘Swasthya Raksha Kit’, ‘Arogya Raksha Kit’ and ‘Ayu Raksha Kit’, which are quite popular among people.

  • Preparedness level of Indians to deal with COVID-19 at homes remain abysmally low

    Express News Service
    RAIPUR: A year and a half into the pandemic, the preparedness levels of India’s urban poor and rural population remain abysmally low when dealing with Covid-19 infections at the household level with many lacking the basic medical equipment to gauge vital health parameters.

    A survey in ten states of the country by the research organisation Sambodhi Panels, conducted in July 2021, gives new insights into the preparedness of India’s vulnerable sections of society particularly after the raging second wave even as the nation apparently gears-up to meet a distinctly possible third wave.The 7,116 households survey found just around 20 per cent had thermometers and about 50 per cent had over the counter drugs available to treat symptoms like fever, headaches. However, only 9 per cent of the households had Oximeters while a dismal 3 per cent had access to oxygen cylinders.

    Also, only 40 per cent of respondents were aware of medical suppliers/shops nearby to access in case they had the symptoms of coronavirus.

    ALSO READ: Third Covid wave may occur either due to mutations in virus or pool of susceptible population, says CentreThe surveys empanelled over 14,000 households with verified respondent details from different states including Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Gujarat and Rajasthan. The research panels found that the people are largely uninformed about newer variants of Covid-19 virus and the associated symptoms such as diarrhoea, skin rashes, conjunctivitis among others.“Given how dynamic the course of this pandemic is, we need rapid generation of data insights to meet urgent response needs in crisis situations. Further, we need data collection across time periods to be able to study trends and forecast so as to plan for the future,” said Swapnil Shekhar, co-founder, Sambodhi.The survey did show that awareness about home-care for Covid-19 patients were high among respondents, with 88 per cent of the people able to identify at least one practice such as isolation in a room, wearing a mask, and using separate utensils, towels, bedding for the patients among the measures to be adopted.The respondents, however, lacked proper understanding on when to hospitalise a Covid positive person. This of course has implications for the already stretched healthcare system.Following the extensive surveys, the Sambodhi Panels felt the need to increase information dissemination among vulnerable sections of society on newer Covid variants, associated symptoms and recommended treatment protocols.

  • Covid precautions to medical equipment: Masses remain poorly equipped ahead of third wave, finds Survey

    Express News Service
    RAIPUR: A year and a half into the pandemic, the preparedness levels of India’s urban poor and rural population remain abysmally low when dealing with Covid-19 infections at the household level with many lacking the basic medical equipment to gauge vital health parameters.

    A survey in ten states of the country by the research organisation Sambodhi Panels, conducted in July 2021, gives new insights into the preparedness of India’s vulnerable sections of society particularly after the raging second wave even as the nation apparently gears-up to meet a distinctly possible third wave.The 7,116 households survey found just around 20 per cent had thermometers and about 50 per cent had over the counter drugs available to treat symptoms like fever, headaches. However, only 9 per cent of the households had Oximeters while a dismal 3 per cent had access to oxygen cylinders.

    Also, only 40 per cent of respondents were aware of medical suppliers/shops nearby to access in case they had the symptoms of coronavirus.

    ALSO READ: Third Covid wave may occur either due to mutations in virus or pool of susceptible population, says CentreThe surveys empanelled over 14,000 households with verified respondent details from different states including Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Gujarat and Rajasthan. The research panels found that the people are largely uninformed about newer variants of Covid-19 virus and the associated symptoms such as diarrhoea, skin rashes, conjunctivitis among others.“Given how dynamic the course of this pandemic is, we need rapid generation of data insights to meet urgent response needs in crisis situations. Further, we need data collection across time periods to be able to study trends and forecast so as to plan for the future,” said Swapnil Shekhar, co-founder, Sambodhi.The survey did show that awareness about home-care for Covid-19 patients were high among respondents, with 88 per cent of the people able to identify at least one practice such as isolation in a room, wearing a mask, and using separate utensils, towels, bedding for the patients among the measures to be adopted.The respondents, however, lacked proper understanding on when to hospitalise a Covid positive person. This of course has implications for the already stretched healthcare system.Following the extensive surveys, the Sambodhi Panels felt the need to increase information dissemination among vulnerable sections of society on newer Covid variants, associated symptoms and recommended treatment protocols.

  • Taking care of vulnerable kids first step to stave off third Covid wave

    Express News Service
    BENGALURU: In preparation for the predicted third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, experts have pointed out that the government should identify the vulnerable among children, and make arrangements for their protection on priority, including vaccinating them. 

    The third wave is predicted to hit in September-October, and children are said to be largely affected as a majority of the adult population will be vaccinated by then. However, the vaccine for children — the Zydus Covid vaccine — is yet to get approval for use. Hence, experts say that vulnerable children need to be identified at the earliest, so they are vaccinated on priority when the vaccine is approved. 

    Dr Srikanta J T, Consultant – Paediatric Pulmonology and Sleep Medicine, Aster CMI Hospital and member of the Covid-19 task force, said, “Vulnerable paediatric population includes children who are overweight or obese, children with underlying medical conditions like diabetes, renal diseases, chronic lung issues, hematological conditions like sickle cell disease and neurological conditions.”

    Non-government organisations work with these kids and maintain a database of the vulnerable group. If the government can access this data and vaccinate them on priority basis, it will mitigate the risk of these children contracting the dreaded disease. He said vulnerable children can also be given already available vaccines like the influenza shot, which is similar.

    Dr Sayed Mujahid Husain, Consultant Paediatrician & Neonatologist, Good Will Children’s Clinic, Bengaluru, said the most susceptible group is kids who have underlying comorbidities like asthma, allergic rhinitis, rheumatoid arthritis, chronic kidney-related issues and other immunodeficiency disorders. 

    “Parents must make sure that such vulnerable children are taken care of with utmost precautions, like ensuring they are on regular medication as prescribed, healthy nutrition, hygiene and regular health check-ups.” he said. 

    Dr Srikanta stated that if there is a tailor-made vaccine for children aged up to 18, with good immunogenicity, efficacy and safety profile, then vaccinating them in a very short span of time will not only reduce their exposure to risk in the third wave, but also probably end the pandemic (if at least 70 per cent of adults are vaccinated).

    Meanwhile, Dr Rakshay Shetty, Head, Paediatric Intensive Care Services, Rainbow Children’s Hospital, Marathahalli, said children less than one year and more than 12 years old, tend to be affected with severe forms of Covid.

    “However, post-Covid complications, like Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) appears to affect healthy children, mostly above 5 years of age. It affects 1 in 50,000 children, and 2/3rd of them need ICU admission. If recognised early, they have good outcomes if treated correctly. The best way to keep children safe is to ensure that adults take vaccine shots. That will decrease circulation of the virus in the community. Everyone, including vaccinated adults, should continue wearing masks and follow physical distancing whenever possible, he said.

  • 11 kids test positive for COVID-19 at children’s home in Assam’s Tezpur

    By PTI
    TEZPUR: Eleven kids at a childrens home in Assam’s Sonitpur district have tested positive for COVID- 19, an official said on Monday.

    Six staff members have also tested positive for the infection at the Tezpur facility.

    All the 17 people have been shifted to Tezpur Medical College Hospital (TMCH) where their condition is stable, the official said.

    The home, belonging to the Missionaries of Charity, has been declared as a containment zone, he said.

    Earlier, three children of the same facility had tested positive for COVID-19, the district’s Joint Director of Health J Ahmed said.

    As many 259 children of Sonitpur district have been infected with COVID-19, one of whom succumbed to the disease, during the second wave of the pandemic, Ahmed said.

    Meanwhile, Assam State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (ASCPCR) member Rupa Hazarika visited TMCH and enquired about the condition of the 11 children, who had tested positive for the viral infection on Saturday.

    She also held a meeting with the Sonitpur Deputy Commissioner, additional deputy commissioners, District Children Protection Officer (DCPO), chairperson, and members of Child Welfare Committee (CWC) and Juvenile Justice Board, to ascertain the measures being taken for the care of the affected children.

    She emphasised the need for the availability of necessary infrastructure in hospitals to tackle the further spread of coronavirus among children.

    The district authorities assured the ASCPCR member that all possible measures have been taken for the treatment of the children.

    There are media reports that some more children have been infected with COVID-19 in other districts, including Nagaon, Jorhat, and Dibrugarh, Hazarika said.