In addition to it, the gross expenses made by the BJP #39;s Bihar unit during the election period stood at nearly Rs 28 crore, while a total of Rs 16.5 crore was given to the party candidates.
Tag: Rajnath Singh
-
Rajnath Singh, Harsh Vardhan release first batch of DRDO’s anti-COVID drug 2-DG
Express News Service
NEW DELHI: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Monday released the first batch of the DRDO-developed anti-COVID drug 2DG here in the national capital. Singh expressed hope that the medicine would be beneficial in the fight against the pandemic.“I thank all those who are associated in the research and development of this drug, including DRDO. 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) drug would be helpful in containing the virus. This is an example of our country’s scientific prowess,” Singh said after releasing the drug.
From Monday onwards, hospitals will receive the supplies. A total of 10,000 sachets of the drug will be supplied to several hospitals in Delhi.
Delhi: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh handed over the Anti-COVID drug 2DG to Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan (in pic 1). Dr Harsh Vardhan handed over the Anti-COVID drug 2DG to Delhi AIIMS director Dr Randeep Guleria (in pic 2) pic.twitter.com/4Pl6aBxprw
— ANI (@ANI) May 17, 2021The drug comes in a powder form in a sachet, which is taken orally by dissolving it in water. It accumulates in the virus-infected cells and prevents virus growth by stopping viral synthesis and energy production. Its selective accumulation in virally infected cells makes this drug unique.
Not only has the drug been found assisting in oxygen dependency, it also reduces the hospital stay of COVID-19 patients, said the Defence Minister.
“I have been informed that people who have been treated with this drug got well two-and-a-half days earlier. We have got to see that dependency on oxygen is reduced by 40 per cent. The best thing is it is in powder form which people can easily mix with water and use,” Rajnath said.
The drug 2-DG was developed by the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), a lab of DRDO, in collaboration with Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL) in Hyderabad. It was given approval by the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) on May 8 for emergency use in moderate to severe cases of COVID-19. It was put through three phases of trials.
While assuring that the government is doing its best in dealing with the crisis across the country, the Defence Minister said there would be no impact on the borders. “Our soldiers are full of energy and enthusiasm, guarding the borders. We all know how much bigger the challenges are, we will overcome them,” he said.
DRDO Chairman G Sateesh Reddy and AIIMS Director Randeep Guleria were also present on the occasion.
-
First batch of anti-COVID drug 2-DG to be released on Monday
By PTI
NEW DELHI: The first batch of anti-COVID drug 2-DG, developed by the DRDO, will be released on Monday by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, officials said.The Drugs Controller General of India (DGCI) has approved the oral drug for emergency use as an adjunct therapy in moderate to severe coronavirus patients, the defence ministry said earlier this month.
The officials said the first batch of the drug will be released by the two ministers at an event at the headquarters of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) here.
The ministry, on May 8, said the clinical trials of the drug, 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG), showed that it helps in a faster recovery of hospitalised patients and reduces supplemental oxygen dependence.
The approval of the drug has come at a time when India is grappling with a record-breaking wave of the coronavirus pandemic that has stretched the country’s healthcare infrastructure to its limit.
“In the ongoing second COVID-19 wave, a large number of patients are facing severe oxygen dependency and need hospitalisation. The drug is expected to save precious lives due to the mechanism of its operation in the infected cells. This also reduces the hospital stay of COVID-19 patients,” the ministry had said.
The anti-COVID therapeutic application of the drug has been developed by the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), a leading laboratory of the DRDO, in collaboration with Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL) in Hyderabad.
The drug comes in a powder form in a sachet and is taken orally by dissolving it in water, the ministry said.
In efficacy trends, it said, patients treated with 2-DG showed a faster symptomatic cure than the standard of care (SoC) on various endpoints.
-
UP govt showed alertness in handling COVID-19 situation, says Rajnath Singh
By ANI
LUCKNOW: Uttar Pradesh government has shown alertness in handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, said Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday.While visiting the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Covid Hospital set up by Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) in Lucknow with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, he said, “The Uttar Pradesh government has shown alertness in handling the COVID-19 pandemic situation in the state. Only those who work make mistakes but this is not the time to criticise. If someone sees faults and makes suggestions, the government will welcome it.”
During his visit, Singh also inaugurated the 255-bed COVID hospital set up by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and Uttar Pradesh government after converting the Haj House.
He informed that around 25 ventilators and approximately 100 HFNCs (High Flow Nasal Cannula) are in the facility.
According to Rakesh Kumar Mishra, Chief of the project, HAL (Lucknow), the hi-tech hospital was set up in 10-12 days at Haj house.
“Management of the hospital will be done by the Uttar Pradesh government. Today we will transfer this hospital to UP government,” Mishra said.
As per the union health ministry, there are currently 2,25,271 active COVID-19 cases in Uttar Pradesh. A total of 12,83,754 recoveries and 15,742 deaths have been reported so far.
Uttar Pradesh is one of the ten states that account for 72.28 per cent of the new coronavirus cases in the country.
-
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh lauds Mamata for ‘victory’ in assembly polls
By PTI
KOLKATA: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday congratulated Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, as trends suggested her party would register a thumping victory in the West Bengal assembly polls.“Congratulations to the Chief Minister of West Bengal, @MamataOfficial Didi on her partys victory in West Bengal assembly elections. My best wishes to her for her next tenure,” the senior BJP leader tweeted.
Congratulations to the Chief Minister of West Bengal, @MamataOfficial Didi on her party’s victory in West Bengal assembly elections. My best wishes to her for her next tenure.
— Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) May 2, 2021Candidates of the ruling TMC are leading in 208 of the state’s 292 seats that went to poll against BJP’s 80, as per the latest Election Commission trends.
-
Rajnath asks military officials to monitor progress of initiatives taken to help fight pandemic
By PTI
NEW DELHI: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday asked top military and Defence Ministry officials to closely monitor the progress of various initiatives they have embarked upon to support the civilian administration in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.India is struggling with the second wave of coronavirus infection as hospitals in several states are reeling under a shortage of oxygen and beds.
Singh held a meeting with the officials on Saturday through video conferencing to review their efforts in supporting the civilian administration in its combat against the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, a statement by the Defence Ministry noted.
Singh was briefed by the officials that approximately 600 additional doctors are being mobilised through special measures such as calling to duty those who had retired in the last few years, it said.
“The Indian Navy has deployed 200 battlefield nursing assistants to assist in various hospitals. The National Cadet Corps has deployed 300 cadets and staff at various locations in Maharashtra, Uttarakhand and Haryana,” the statement added.
He was briefed that the Indian Army has made available more than 720 beds for civilians in various states.
“The Raksha Mantri (Defence Minister) directed the Army to share the details with local administration at state and district levels. General Bipin Rawat suggested that local military commands have to be actively engaged in assisting the civil administration,” the statement noted.
Rawat, the Chief of Defence Staff, along with Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar, Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh, Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria, Army Chief General M M Naravane, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Chairman G Satheesh Reddy and other officials attended the meeting through video conferencing.
Singh was informed at Saturday’s meeting that the 500-bed hospital being set up by the Defence Research Defence Organisation in Lucknow will start functioning in the next two to three days, the statement noted.
“Another hospital is also being set up in Varanasi which is scheduled to be completed by May 5,” it said.
The DRDO chairman said the first four of 380 oxygen pressure swing adsorption (PSA) plants, which are being manufactured with the assistance of the PM CARES fund, will be deployed in hospitals in Delhi by the next week, it noted.
Singh reiterated that the armed forces should provide all necessary assistance to the civilian administration and asked the top military officials as well as the officials of the Defence Ministry “to closely monitor the progress of various initiatives”.
India’s daily coronavirus tally crossed the grim milestone of four lakh, while the death toll rose to 2,11,853 with 3,523 fresh fatalities, according to data updated by the Union Health Ministry on Saturday.
The infection tally rose to 1,91,64,969 with 4,01,993 new cases, while the active cases crossed the 32-lakh mark.
-
COVID-19: Rajnath Singh grants emergency financial powers to armed forces to set up health facilities
Express News Service
NEW DELHI: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh invoked special provisions and granted Emergency Financial Powers to the Armed Forces on Friday to empower them to meet requirements of the current COVID-19 situation in the country, on April 30, 2021. In addition, the Armed forces have augmented their support.Bharat Bhushan Babu, Spokesperson, Ministry of Defence stated, “Under these powers, Vice Chiefs of Armed Forces including Chief of Integrated Defence Staff To The Chairman Chiefs Of Staff Committee (CISC) and General Officer Commanding-in-Chiefs (GOC-in-Cs) and equivalents of all three services have been given full powers, whereas Corps Commanders/Area Commanders have been delegated powers up to Rs 50 lakh per case and Division Commanders/Sub Area Commanders and equivalents have been delegated powers up to Rs 20 lakh per case.”
“These powers will help Formation Commanders to establish and operate quarantine facilities/hospitals and undertake procurement/repair of equipment/items/material/stores, besides provisioning of various services and works required to support the ongoing effort against the pandemic,” said Babu.
Initially, these special powers are applicable for a period of three months from 1st May to 31st July 2021.
These are in addition to the emergency powers delegated to the Medical Officers of the Armed Forces last week. As per the delegated financial powers Director General Medical Services (Army/Navy/Air Force) – Rs 5 crore, Major General and equivalent – Rs 3 crore, Brigadier & equivalent – Rs 2 Crore.
The emergency powers were sanctioned to the Armed Forces last year too when the COVID-19 pandemic first broke out.
Fulfilling the COVID Care infrastructure 39 Cantonment Boards (CB) are maintaining 40 general hospitals with 1,240 beds with the CB hospitals at Pune, Kirkee, and Deolali with 304 beds have been designated as dedicated COVID hospitals. Cantonment General Hospitals (CGHs) of Kirkee, Deolali, Dehuroad, Jhansi and Ahmednagar have been designated as COVID care centers with 418 beds. More are being readied.
Cantonment boards are the civic body under the Ministry of Defence across the country. As part of the Armed Forces contribution to civil administration in combating the current COVID crisis, a 57-member naval medical team consisting of four doctors, seven nurses, 26 paramedics, and 20 supporting staff has been deputed to Ahmedabad on 29 Apr 21. The team will be deployed at the ‘PM Cares COVID Hospital’, a special hospital set up to manage the COVID crisis.
The major thrust is being given to meet the massive demand for Oxygen.
Indian Navy launched Operation Samudra Setu-II on Friday to augment the efforts for meeting the Oxygen requirements (Oxygen Express).
Indian Navy Spokesperson said, “Two ships INS Kolkata and INS Talwar have entered the port of Manama, Bahrain for embarking and transporting 40 MT of liquid oxygen to Mumbai.”
INS Jalashwa is en route to Bangkok and INS Airavat to Singapore for similar missions added the spokesperson.
DRDO arranged 115 big-sized O² cylinders, each can store 10,000 Litres of oxygen, to fulfill the requirements of hospitals. Seventy-five such cylinders were given to the Department of Health & Family Welfare, Govt. of NCT of Delhi on Thursday. On Friday, 40 cylinders were handed over for utilization at Sardar Patel Covid Care Centre at Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB), Chhatarpur, New Delhi.
-
Avail services of ex-servicemen in dealing with coronavirus crisis: Rajnath to Governors
By PTI
NEW DELHI: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday spoke to almost all governors and conveyed to them to take services of the ex-servicemen in their respective states in dealing with the coronavirus crisis, people familiar with the development said.In his conversation, Singh enquired from the governors about various aspects of the coronavirus pandemic in their states and urged them to take the state administrations into confidence in the fight against the pandemic, they said.
The defence minister also spoke to Lt Governors of a number of union territories and took stock of the coronavirus situation.
Singh has been monitoring assistance by the three armed forces to the civil administrations across the country to fight the pandemic.
Chhattisgarh governor Anusuiya Uikey’s office tweeted that the defence minister enquired about the status of coronavirus infection and vaccination in the state.
“He said that in view of the coronavirus situation in the state, services of ex-servicemen, nurses, lab technicians and ex-servicemen of the army residing in the state can be taken to deal with this crisis,” it said in a tweet.
The three services as well as other wings of the defence ministry have been extending support to various state governments and union territories in dealing with massive spike in coronavirus cases.
Since Friday, the Indian Air Force airlifted empty oxygen tankers and containers to various filling stations across the country to speed up the distribution of the much-needed medical oxygen in treating COVID-19 patients.
The IAF has also been transporting essential medicines as well as equipment required by the designated COVID-19 hospitals in various parts of the country.
On Tuesday, the defence minister approved hiring of additional contractual staff in 51 medical facilities being run under the ex-servicemen contributory health scheme (ECHS) across the country.
Last week, Singh said that the armed forces and the defence ministry will leave no stone unturned in providing all possible assistance to the civil administrations in dealing with the pandemic.
India has been reeling under a devastating wave of coronavirus infections and hospitals across the country are facing acute shortage of beds, medical oxygen and other supplies due to rising COVID-19 cases.
The US, Germany, France, Britain, Australia, Singapore, Israel and several other countries as well as the World Health Organisation and the European Union have already announced urgent medical assistance to India to help it deal with the situation.
The Indian Army said on Tuesday it is committed to give care and treatment for COVID-19 to its veterans and would like them to approach the nearest Army facility for any kind of assistance.
“The Indian Army is taking multiple steps to enhance its medical capacities on account of rise in COVID-19 cases amongst the veterans and their dependents,” its statement noted.
The base hospital at Delhi and service hospitals at all military stations are working tirelessly to accommodate maximum veterans, it said.
These hospitals are continuously ramping up their capacities to ensure that beds are available, the statement added.
Veterans affected by COVID-19 are being guided and assisted in getting medical advice and admission in various hospitals, it noted.
With 3,23,144 people testing positive for the coronavirus infection in a day, India’s total tally of COVID-19 cases has climbed to 1,76,36,307, while the national recovery rate has further dropped to 82.54 per cent, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Tuesday.
The death toll increased to 1,97,894 with 2,771 daily new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed.
-
Rajnath Singh reviews COVID-19 situation, Ministry of Defence increases its efforts to handle crisis
Express News Service
NEW DELHI: Keeping the accentuated state of the COVID-19 pandemic, defence minister Rajnath Singh reviewed the efforts of Ministry of Defence (MoD) and the three Services to fight the COVID-19 crisis through video conferencing today.The Armed Forces and the other departments of the MoD have augmented their support to deal with the soaring COVID cases which is leading to scarcity of beds and oxygen. The defence minister directed the Armed Forces and various other establishments of MoD to extend all possible assistance to the civilian administration to tide over the present situation.
He also reviewed and expressed satisfaction on the assistance being provided by the Indian Air Force (IAF) in moving oxygen tankers and plants from abroad as well as within the country. During the review, the Air Force informed of placing heavy lift aircraft at various locations to pick and transfer the required material.
“One C-17 IAF transport plane left for Singapore in the morning of April 24 and returned in the evening with four containers of cryogenic oxygen tanks. One C-17 transported two empty container trucks for liquid oxygen from Pune to Jamnagar and another transported two empty oxygen containers from Jodhpur to Jamnagar,” MoD spokesperson Bharat Bhushan Babu said.
“One Chinook airlifted medical equipment for testing COVID from Jammu to Leh. Indian Navy ships have also been put on standby for any assistance in moving oxygen tankers and the Raksha Mantri was informed of the same, ” he added.
In addition, the Indian Air Force has positioned one empty cryogenic oxygen container from Indore to Jamnagar and another from Bhopal to Ranchi. Positioning of another empty container from Bhopal to Ranchi and two empty containers from Hindan to Ranchi was in progress late evening.
DRDO chairman Dr G Sathish Reddy briefed that another 250 beds would become functional at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel COVID hospital in New Delhi by the evening of April 24, taking the total number of beds to 500. In Gujarat, DRDO has completed setting up of a 1,000-bed hospital.
Dr Reddy added that work was in full swing to establish a COVID facility in Lucknow that would become operational in the next 5-6 days. These hospitals would be run by the Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS) in coordination and with assistance of respective state governments.
Senior officials of the Ministry are in constant touch with the officials of state governments for necessary coordination in this regard.
As AFMS has its resources stretched to the limit, services of local doctors and health professionals might be enlisted for the 750-bed hospital that is coming up at Varanasi. To augment the work force of health professionals, Rajnath approved a suggestion to deploy those who have recently retired from AFMS.
He was briefed that all health facilities of Defence PSUs and Ordnance Factory Board have been allowed to provide health services to local COVID-19 affected civilian population.
This was the second meeting chaired by Raksha Mantri to review the preparedness of MoD and the Armed Forces to deal with the current surge in COVID-19 cases. The first meeting was held through video conferencing on Tuesday.
Apart from Reddy, the meeting was attended by Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, three Service Chiefs, defence secretary Ajay Kumar, AFMS DG Surgeon Vice-Admiral Rajat Datta and other senior officials.
The AFMS has deployed additional doctors, including specialists, super specialists and paramedics, at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (SVP) COVID hospital in Delhi to cater to the current surge in COVID-19 cases.
As against 294 doctors and health workers in 2020, 378 have been mobilised in 2021. These include 164 doctors in 2021 as against 132 doctors in 2020. Last year, only 18 specialists were mobilised, as against 43 specialists and 17 super specialists this year.
Keeping the requirements Indian Navy has moved one ship to Lakashwadeep and Minicoy islands with Oxygen cylinders, medical supply and medical support team. Also, one ship sent to Visakhapatnam as a standby with Oxygen onboard. Indian Navy Medical Teams have also been deployed as part of the AFMS staff and Naval Commands told to identify the spare capacity to assist civil administration.
-
Covid-19: Defence ministry grants emergency financial powers to military medical officials
By Express News Service
NEW DELHI: In a crucial decision, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh approved delegation of emergency financial powers to Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS) to fight the coronavirus pandemic.An emergency financial power of Rs 5 crore has been delegated to Director Generals Medical Service of Army, Navy and Air Force, Rs 3 crore financial power to Major General and its equivalent rank and Rs 2 crore to Brigadier and its equivalent rank.
As per the order, delegated DGsMS (Army/Navy/Air Force) will have financial powers up to Rs 5 crore. The delegated financial power to Major General and equivalent will be Rs 3 crore and Brigadier and equivalent will be able to decide on matters up to Rs 2 crore.
Emergency powers have been delegated to the said officials up to September 30, 2021, with a provision for revision to expedite procurement of medical items/materials/stores and provisioning of various services for treatment/management/tackling of Covid cases. This will empower in providing medical services to the personnel of the Armed Forces as well as aid the civil administration, said MoD.
ALSO READ | India set to import portable oxygen generation plants from Germany
“Amid reports of shortage of oxygen in the hospitals during the second wave of Covid across the country, the AFMS (Armed Forces Medical Services) has decided to import oxygen generation plants and containers from Germany to cater to the shortage,” Babu said.
“Each plant has a capacity to produce 40 litres of oxygen per minute and 2,400 litres an hour. At this rate, it can cater to 20-25 patients round the clock. The advantage of these plants is that they are easily portable. A total of 23 such plants are being imported as of now.”
These oxygen-generating plants are expected to reach India within a week. They will be deployed in AFMS hospitals to provide adequate oxygen to the needy Covid patients.
A large number of oxygen concentrators are also under procurement, added a source.
Keeping the rising number of cases among the dependents of the services personnel, veterans and the serving personnel in mind, the decision was taken by the Armed Forces to convert the Base Hospital at Delhi Cantt into a 1,000-bed Covid hospital. “The hospital will be activated in a week.” said the source.
Contributing to the Covid relief efforts, the Indian Air Force airlifted Covid testing set up to Leh in Ladakh. In addition, two C-17 transport aircraft airlifted two empty Linde cryogenic oxygen containers and one IL 76 airlifted one empty Inox container to Panagarh in West Bengal.