Pedestrians wearing protective masks walk past porters outside Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CST) railway station during the morning rush hour in Mumbai. (Photographer: Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg)
6 years ago
Aug 03, 2020
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The total number of tests for detection of Covid-19 has crossed the two-crore mark in India, according to the Indian Council of Medical Research data.
A cumulative total of 2,02,02,858 samples have been tested up to August 2 with 3,81,027 samples being tested on Sunday, the ICMR said.
The total number of tests for detection of Covid-19 had crossed the one-crore mark in India on July 6. There are now 1,348 testing labs in the country comprising 914 in the public sector and 434 private labs.
Having started with one single laboratory at the National Institute of Virology in Pune and then expanding to 100 laboratories around the beginning of the lockdown, the ICMR on June 23 validated the 1000th testing lab.
The Drugs Controller General of India has given nod to the Serum Institute of India for conducting phase 2 and 3 human clinical trials of a Covid-19 vaccine candidate, developed by the University of Oxford, in the country.
Government officials told PTI that the approval for conducting phase 2 and 3 clinical trials by the SII was granted by DCGI Dr. VG Somani late Sunday night after a thorough evaluation based on the recommendations of the Subject Expert Committee on Covid-19.
As a rapid regulatory response, the expert panel at the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation on Friday, after a detailed deliberation and considering the data generated on the vaccine candidate in phase 1 and 2 of the Oxford University trial, had recommended granting permission for phase 2 and 3 clinical trials of the potential vaccine, 'Covishield', on healthy adults in India, the officials said.
Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa has been admitted to the hospital for observation. He is doing well, is clinically stable and will be monitored closely by our team: Manipal Hospital
Union Home Minister Amit Shah took to the social media to inform he has tested positive for coronavirus and is getting hospitalised on the advice of doctors. "I have undergone a coronavirus test after showing initial symptoms and have tested positive. My health is fine but I am getting admitted to a hospital on the advice of doctors," the 55-year-old tweeted in Hindi.
A registry of hospitalised Covid-19 patients across the country is being mooted to collect real time data which will help improve treatment outcomes, analyse trends in the progression of the pandemic and calibrate response. The ICMR in collaboration with the Health Ministry and the AIIMS is planning to set up the National Clinical Registry which will help researchers and policy makers understand effectiveness of investigational therapies, adverse effects taking place and generate evidence for improving the treatment of Covid-19 patients.
Recoveries among Covid-19 patients in India crossed the 11 lakh-mark on Sunday with over 51,000 patients recuperating in a 24-hour span, the highest recorded so far, pushing the recovery rate to 65.44%, the Union Health Ministry said on Sunday.
The new sero-prevalence survey in the national capital will exclude those who were part of the previous exercise and 25% of the fresh samples in all districts will be taken from persons aged 50 and above, according to a standard operating procedure prescribed for it.
Global coronavirus cases surpassed 18 million as the pandemic is now adding a million infections every four days, prompting more lockdowns.
Australia’s Victoria state tightened restrictions and declared a state of disaster, while the Philippines reimposed a lockdown in Manila. Boris Johnson is considering sealing off Greater London, according to news reports.
White House coronavirus task force head Deborah Birx said the pandemic is in a “new phase” as it spreads across U.S. rural and urban areas. The World Health Organization said it expects the Covid-19 pandemic to be of “lengthy duration.”
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