Tag: covid infection

  • India records 2,927 fresh Covid cases, 32 deaths in a day

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: India recorded 2,927 fresh infections in a day which pushed the case tally to 4,30,65,496 while the active caseload increased to 16,279, according to Union Health Ministry data on Wednesday.

    The death toll has climbed to 5,23,654 with 32 more fatalities, the data updated at 8 AM stated.

    While active cases increased by 643 in a day and comprised 0.04 per cent of the total infections, the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 98.75 per cent, the ministry said.

    The daily positivity rate was recorded at 0.58 per cent and the weekly positivity rate was 0.59 per cent, the government said.

    While 4,25,25,563 people have recuperated from the disease so far, the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.22 per cent.

    The country’s COVID-19 case tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

    It went past 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.

    India crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 last year and three crore on June 23.

    India has so far administered over 188.19 crore doses of Covid vaccines.

    The 32 fatalities reported in a day include 26 from Kerala, four from Maharashtra and one each from Delhi and Mizoram.

    A total of 5,23,654 deaths have been reported so far in the country, including 1,47,838 from Maharashtra, 68,916 from Kerala, 40,057 from Karnataka, 38,025 from Tamil Nadu, 26,169 from Delhi, 23,505 from Uttar Pradesh and 21,201 from West Bengal.

    The health ministry stressed that over 70 per cent of the deaths occurred due to comorbidities.

    “Our figures are being reconciled with the Indian Council of Medical Research,” the ministry said on its website, adding that state-wise distribution of figures is subject to further verification and reconciliation.

  • Centre writes to five states, asks them to monitor spread of COVID infection amid surge in cases

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: The central government has written to Delhi, Haryana, Mizoram, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh as COVID cases in these states show a rising trend and has asked them to test-track-treat-vaccinate and adhere to COVID appropriate behaviour with special emphasis on wearing of masks in crowded areas.

    In a letter to these states, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said a few states are reporting a higher contribution to India’s cases and higher positivity. He asked the states to “continue monitoring the spread of infection and undertake required steps for prompt and effective management of COVID-19”.

    Bhushan said that the states should monitor clusters of new COVID-19 cases and take containment efforts to cure the spread of infection. Apart from testing, they should also monitor influenza-like illnesses in all health facilities regularly to detect early warning signals of the spread of infection.

    “They should undertake genomic sequencing for prescribed samples of international passengers, collection of samples from sentinel sites (identified health facilities and sewage samples) and local clusters of cases,” it said.

    The ministry also asked the states to “maintain a strict watch and take pre-emptive action to control any emerging spread of infection”. The Centre had written to these five states on April 8 as well when COVID cases had started showing an upward surge.

    In the letter to Delhi’s principal secretary, Manisha Saxena, the union health secretary said it has reported an increase in weekly new cases from 998 new cases in the week ending April 12 to 2,671 new cases in the last week ending April 19. The positivity rate also increased from 1.42 per cent to 3.49 per cent in the previous week in Delhi.

    Haryana reported an increase in weekly new cases from 521 to 1,299. The state also saw a rise in positivity rate from 1.22 per cent to 2.86 per cent.

  • Covid virus expected to continue to transmit for a very long time: WHO official Poonam Khetrapal Singh

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Stressing that the Covid virus may continue to transmit for a “very long time”, senior WHO official Poonam Khetrapal Singh says the level of immunity in a community, through vaccination and previous infection, will determine whether it will become endemic in the long run.

    WHO’s South-East Asia region regional director added that there is a need to get to a situation where “we are fully in control of the virus, and not the virus in control of us”.

    The endemic stage is when a population learns to live with a virus, very different from the epidemic stage when the virus overwhelms a population.

    Populations where more people were previously infected and where vaccination coverage is high are expected to be less impacted by the virus in the future than other populations, Singh told PTI in an interview.

    “The COVID-19 virus is expected to continue to transmit for a very long time. A multitude of factors will decide whether the virus will become endemic in the long run, chief among them is the level of immunity in a community, both through vaccination and previous infection,” she said.

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    On the granting of emergency use authorisation (EUA) for the indigenously developed Covaxin, she said Bharat Biotech’s dossier seeking WHO’s Emergency Use Listing (EUL) is being reviewed by technical experts and “we can expect a decision when the process is complete”.

    Discussing the role of booster doses to tackle waning immunity, Singh pointed out that cases and deaths in all countries are predominantly being driven by unvaccinated people.

    Using vaccines for booster doses constricts supply to countries where millions are still waiting for their first dose, she said.

    “Hence, WHO has called for a time-limited moratorium on COVID-19 booster doses until the end of 2021. This is to allow for at least 40 per cent of the population of each country – including those most at risk and health workers – to be vaccinated. We must remember that no one is safe till everyone is safe.”

    She said there is currently no conclusive evidence that COVID-19 vaccine efficacy against severe disease and death wanes significantly over time.

    The vaccines, the expert emphasised, have remained effective in preventing severe disease and death.

    “However, WHO has not ruled out that boosters for some population groups may be warranted in future. WHO’s recommendations on boosters will be guided by the scientific evidence, which is still evolving,” she said.

    “To make a recommendation on the use of booster doses for the general population, more data is needed on optimal timing, safety and dosage of booster doses, which may differ between vaccine products. More extensive research is needed to study the effect of booster doses in the body.”

    According to Singh, eradication is unlikely but what we can do is to prevent or minimise deaths, hospitalisations, tragedy and social, economic and health loss due to this pandemic.

    Current evidence, she said, shows that protection levels around the world remain low and most people continue to be susceptible to the virus.

    “WHO continues to recommend a strong public health response based on risk assessment, and for people to continue to protect themselves by getting vaccinated, maintaining physical distance, wearing a mask, avoiding poorly ventilated spaces, cleaning hands and following respiratory hygiene.”

    Referring to the probability of a third Covid wave, Singh said another surge and how intense it will be will depend on all of us.

    “If we together continue to adhere to public health and social measures and continue to vaccinate people as fast as possible, it will be hard for the virus to infect enough people to cause another wave,” she said.

    “From experience globally, there is enough evidence that the public health and social measures work, even against the Variants of Concern that are spreading more rapidly, and these measures are critical to limiting transmission of COVID-19 and reducing deaths. For the public health and social measures to be effective, they must be implemented well and timely and must be tailored to local settings and conditions.”

    On India’s decision to restart exporting COVID-19 vaccines, Singh said there is need for equity of vaccination administration globally to ensure that the most vulnerable such as frontline workers and the elderly are fully vaccinated.

    “At the moment, several low and lower-middle-income countries are lagging behind in vaccinating their vulnerable populations. An equitable vaccine distribution will also help check the emergence of variants by halting the spread of the virus.”

    Singh also noted that the pandemic has given “once-in-a-century opportunity” to strengthen the health system to build back better.

    “We must invest in strengthening health system resilience to ensure health security and achieve universal health coverage. It means allocation of more resources for health and its efficient governance,” she said.

    Now is also the time for countries to take lessons from the pandemic to strengthen health systems in her view.

    “Strong health systems that are primary healthcare-oriented, and which leave no one behind, create populations that are healthier, more productive and financially secure. Resilient health systems are the bedrock of emergency preparedness and response, and ensure that when acute events occur, essential health services can be maintained,” Singh said.

  • Easing of lockdown, non-adherence to COVID norms behind surge in infections: Centre

    MoS Health Bharati Pravin Pawar said that although health is a state subject, the Union government has provided the required technical support and also provided logistic and financial support.

  • Every COVID infection may not necessarily lead to complications in case of diabetes: Jitendra Singh

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Every COVID-19 infection may not necessarily lead to complications in case of a diabetic person, Union minister and renowned diabetologist Jitendra Singh said on Friday.

    Delivering the inaugural address as the chief guest at the Diabetes India World Congress-2021, he said even after the COVID pandemic is over, the discipline of social distancing and avoiding droplet infection will act as safeguard against many other infections, particularly for those who have underlying diabetes.

    “There is need for more public awareness about the correlation between Diabetes and COVID, as there are certain misgivings about the cause and effect relationship between the two,” said Singh, the Minister of State for Personnel, also a diabetologist.

    He said that over the last two decades, India has seen a surge in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, which has now acquired pan-Indian proportions, a statement issued by the Personnel Ministry said.

    Type 2 Diabetes, which was till two decades ago prevalent mostly in South India, is today equally rampant in North India and at the same time,it has also moved from metros, cities and urban areas to rural hinterland, the minister said.

    Singh said diabetic patients are immuno-compromised, and hence more vulnerable to infections like coronavirus as well as consequent complications.

    This, he said, may lead to vulnerable situation when a patient suffering from diabetes also has kidney involvement or diabetic-nephropathy, chronic kidney disease etc, it said.

    However, Singh hastened to add that there is no room for panic, because the basic rules of strict glycemic control of blood sugar levels and safeguards against target organ damage, which are otherwise also practised in diabetes, are equally applicable even during the pandemic, the statement said.

    He emphasised, what is important to understand is that while every diabetic need not necessarily get COVID, at the same time every COVID infection may not necessarily lead to complications in case of a diabetic.

    In his address, Dr Akhtar Hussain, President-elect, International Diabetes Federation said that India is the second most affected country after China so far diabetes is concerned and the number of patients is witnessing a continuous surge in the past few years.

    He also warned that in the post-COVID era, complications are going to grow.