India Coronavirus Dispatch: Co-Win app integrated into Aarogya Setu

Nationwide R-value stays steady, the second dose to be administered from today, shots for people aged above 50 from March, and more-news relevant to India's fight against Covid-19

IN NUMBERS: Daily cases top 12,000

India reported 12,143 fresh coronavirus infections on Saturday, taking the cumulative caseload to 1,08,92,746, according to a report in the Deccan Herald. 103 deaths were reported, taking the total death toll to 1,55,550, according to central health ministry data. The total recoveries have surged to 1,06,00,625. The national recovery rate has climbed to 97.32 per cent. The active caseload is at 1,36,571, which makes up 1.25 per cent of the total caseload. Read more here

Second dose to be administered from today

People who took the Covid vaccine on January 16, the day the vaccination programme was rolled out in India, will receive their second dose today, a report in NDTV said. The second dose, called a booster shot, is given 28 days after the first. AIIMS chief Dr Randeep Guleria and NITI Aayog's VK Paul were among the first to take the vaccine. As of Friday, 7.7 million healthcare and frontline workers have received the first dose of the vaccine. India has set a target of inoculating 300 million people against by July. Read more here

Shots for people aged above 50 from March: ICMR chief

All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Director Randeep Guleria said the second phase of the Covid-19 vaccination programme would begin in March, a report in The Hindu. People above the age of 50 and those below 50 but with co-morbidities will be covered in this phase. Guleria also expressed uncertainty on the length of protection offered by the vaccines. He said, “a good amount of antibodies will develop in about 14 days after the second vaccine shot. Though the exact time length about the protection offered is not clear, we believe that the cover will last for at least eight months, or maybe longer.” Read more here

Co-Win integrated into Aarogya Setu

India's flagship digital platform to monitor and manage the Covid-19 vaccination programme Co-Win has been integrated into the government's coronavirus contact tracing app Aarogya Setu, a report in The Indian Express said. The integration will allow users to download their vaccine certificates and other useful information from right from Aarogya Setu. A tweet from Aarogya Setu’s Twitter handle said, “Co-WIN details are live on Aarogya Setu. Access Vaccination Information, view Co-WIN Dashboard and download your Vaccination Certificates if you have received at least one dose of COVID-19 Vaccination." Read more here

India’s R-value stays steady at 0.92

India’s effective reproduction value (R) for Covid-19 remained the same as last week, at 0.92, according to a report in ThePrint. The R-value is a key measure of how quickly the virus is spreading. In simple terms, it is the average number of people who become infected by an infected individual. If the R-value is above 1, the virus will spread quickly. If it is below 1, the virus will slow. Kerala, the state which currently has the biggest active caseload, has had its R-value below 1 consistently from January 24. However, the R-value for Delhi has risen for the second week in a row. The value has increased to 0.87 this week from 0.75 last wee. The week before that, the value was 0.74. Read more here