Covid LIVE: Lockdown in TN extended till July 12 with further relaxations

Today's coronavirus numbers: Bengaluru (676 cases), Mumbai 661 cases), Chennai (249 cases), Kolkata (127 cases), Delhi (91 cases). Stay tuned for corona-related news

9:28 AM

Coronavirus in India: Summary of MoHFW data

Active cases: 509,637 (Net reduction: 13,620)

Deaths: 400,312 (Net increase: 853)

Cured: 29,548,302 (Net increase: 59,384)

Total cases: 30,458,251 (Net increase: 46,617)

Total vaccination: 340,076,232 (Increase over previous day: 4,264,123)

9:14 AM

Risk of severe Covid-19 in individuals with sickle cell disease: Study

New research found that certain factors, such as a history of severe pain episodes and coexisting organ conditions, increase the risk of severe COVID-19 illness, including hospitalization, in individuals living with sickle cell disease (SCD).

 

The study published in the journal Blood Advances underscores the need for Covid-19 risk reduction strategies and vaccination for this medically vulnerable population.

 

SCD is the most common inherited red blood cell disorder in the United States, affecting an estimated 100,000 people. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, SCD affects one out of every 365 Black or African American births and one out of every 16,300 Hispanic American births. Read on...

9:00 AM

J&J's single-dose Covid vaccine shows promising signs against Delta variant

Johnson & Johnson on Thursday (local time) announced that its single-shot Covid-19 vaccine showed promising signs of protection against the Delta variant rapidly spreading across the US and other countries, in a small laboratory study.

 

According to the company report, the vaccine generated strong, persistent activity against the rapidly spreading Delta variant and other highly prevalent SARS-CoV-2 viral variants. In addition, the data showed that the durability of the immune response lasted through at least eight months, the length of time evaluated to date. The two preprint study summaries have been submitted today to bioRxiv, a non-profit preprint server for the life sciences.

 

The single-dose vaccine, elicited neutralising antibody activity against the Delta variant at an even higher level than what was recently observed for the Beta (B.1.351) variant in South Africa, the report stated. Read on...

8:45 AM

Global coronavirus update: Chinese mainland reports 18 imported Covid cases

The Chinese mainland on Thursday reported 18 imported Covid-19 cases but no new locally transmitted cases, the National Health Commission said in its daily report on Friday.

 

Among the imported cases, eight were reported in Guangdong, five in Fujian, three in Shanghai, one in Liaoning and one in Jiangsu, Xinhua reported.

 

No new deaths related to Covid-19 were reported on Thursday, said the commission. Read on...

8:37 AM

Covax calls for equal recognition of Covid-19 vaccines approved by WHO

COVAX, the global alliance for vaccine distribution, on Thursday urged governments around the world to recognize as fully vaccinated all people who have received COVID-19 vaccines that have been deemed safe and effective by the World Health Organization (WHO).

 

COVAX in a statement said it was built on the principle of equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines to protect the health of people all across the globe and that means protecting their lives and livelihoods, including their ability to travel and conduct trade. Read on...

8:02 AM

How Covid-fueled crowdfunding can revive small businesses

A pandemic-fueled boom in crowdfunding has small businesses flocking to capital-raising platforms that experts say could help many companies get back to normal as long as small-business owners are able to launch effective campaigns.

 

Regulation crowdfunding, in which companies raise capital from investors via government-monitored online platforms, has mushroomed in the last two years, going from approximately $100 million in 2019 to over $200 million in 2020, according to Chris Lustrino, founder and CEO of crowdfunding analytics and ratings firm KingsCrowd. It's already exceeded the $200 million mark year to date in 2021, he adds.

 

COVID has been a massive boon to this market, Lustrino says. Read on...

7:56 AM

Covid-19 pandemic forces real estate developers to rethink house design

Faced with a prolonged pandemic and work-from-home rule, property developers are either providing or looking to add new-age amenities to attract prospective buyers. They are rolling out conveniences from touch-free elevators and motion sensor lighting to co-working spaces in new residential projects as part of the Covid safety measures.

 

For instance, Mumbai-based Sunteck Realty plans to include touchless entries, motion sensor lighting, re-engineered ventilation systems, lounges with glass dividers, multiple lobbies, wider lobby stairs, and separate outlets for deliveries in its upcoming project designs. Read on...

7:45 AM

Covovax denied trials on children; no nod needed for Sputnik Light

The vaccine expert panel denied permission to Serum Institute of India (SII) to conduct clinical trials on children for Novavax, on Thursday. In addition, it felt there was no need to conduct a separate Indian clinical trial of Sputnik Light, as adequate safety and immunogenicity data is already available.

 

The decision comes as a setback to SII, which had sought permission to start a pediatric clinical trial of Covovax. The Subject Expert Committee’s (SEC) decision means DRL does not require separate safety and immunogenicity trials on Indians for getting approval for Sputnik Light. As for SII, the permission was denied as the adult vaccine was not approved in neither US nor India.

 

Sputnik Light is the first dose of the two-dose Sputnik vaccine. This uses two different components based on two different human adenovirus vectors — Ad26 and Ad5 — for its two-dose vaccine. Read on...

7:35 AM

The young lives thrown into uncertainty by the Covid-19 pandemic

In Agra, seven-year-old Pintu keeps asking for his mother. His elder brother, Brijesh, 13, has no answer. Covid claimed both their parents within a span of five days. Their grandmother, a cancer patient, is looking after them, while their septuagenarian grandfather is resigned to the fact that he cannot afford to retire from his job as a security guard. Both worry about the children’s fate. They are not alone.

 

As the brutal second wave of the pandemic recedes across India, the government and child welfare agencies across the country are grappling with a basic question: What can be done to support the children that Covid-19 has orphaned or left vulnerable? The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) informed the Supreme Court that as many as 30,071 children across India have lost one parent or both, or have been abandoned from the time the pandemic started till June 5. Read on...

7:20 AM

UAE bars citizens from travelling to India, Pakistan, other countries

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has banned its citizens from traveling to several countries including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

 

This comes after the UAE last month extended the travel ban on passengers from 14 countries until July 21 in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

The Foreign Ministry and the National Emergency, Crisis and Disaster Management Authority stated that, with the start of the travel season, citizens need to comply with all precautionary and preventive measures related to Covid-19, The Express Tribune reported. Read on...

7:15 AM

Any WHO-approved Covid-19 vaccine should be allowed for travel, says UN

The World Health Organisation said Thursday that any COVID-19 vaccines it has authorised for emergency use should be recognised by countries as they open up their borders to inoculated travellers.

 

The move could challenge Western countries to broaden their acceptance of two apparently less effective Chinese vaccines, which the UN health agency has licensed but most European and North American countries have not.

 

In addition to vaccines by Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna Inc, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson, the WHO has also given the green light to the two Chinese jabs, made by Sinovac and Sinopharm. Read on...

7:11 AM

West Bengal govt's separate portal for Covid-19 vaccination is illegal: Adhikari

The Leader of Opposition in West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday said Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee-led state government launching a separate portal for COVID vaccination 'Benvax' instead of 'Cowin' is illegal.

 

Briefing mediapersons here, Adhikari said, "I have written about the COVID vaccination scam in the West Bengal to Union health Ministry. The Union Health Minister told me that State Government has sent an interim report. A copy will be sent to me. There is only one vaccination portal - Cowin. But, the West Bengal Government has initiated a separate application namely 'Benvax'. It is illegal. I have complained in this regard to the Union Health Minister. He accepted and ordered an inquiry." Read on....