Total number of Recovered Cases nearly 35.5 lakh

India has been continuously reporting high number of recoveries. A total of 70,880 recoveries have been registered in the last 24 hours in the country. Maharashtra has alone contributed more than 14,000 and Andhra Pradesh has contributed more than 10,000 to the single day recoveries. With this, the total number of recoveries has touched 35, 42,663 taking the Recovery Rate to 77.65%. 60% of the new recovered cases are being reported from five States, viz. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh.96, 551 new cases have been reported in the last 24 hours. Of this, Maharashtra alone has more than 23,000 and Andhra Pradesh has more than 10,000.Nearly 57% of the new cases are reported from only five States. These are the same States that are also contributing 60% of the new recovered cases. The total number of active cases in the country stands at 9, 43,480 as on date. 

States/UTs made responsible to ensure that every hospitalized COVID patient receives oxygen

It has come to the knowledge of the Union Health Ministry that few States are trying to curb the free inter-State movement of oxygen supplies by exercising provisions under various Acts and also mandating the manufacturers/suppliers located in the State to restrict their oxygen supplies to only the hospitals of the State. In view of this, the Health Ministry has reiterated the critical importance of Oxygen in hospitals for management of critical COVID patients. In a letter written to the States/UTs, Union Health Secretary has emphasized that availability of adequate and uninterrupted supply of medical oxygen is an important pre-requisite for managing moderate 

Corona Kavach Policy clocking 15% week-on-week growth: IRDAI official

The Covid-19 pandemic specific ‘Corona Kavach Policy’ launched on 10th July is clocking a good 15 per cent week-on-week growth even now, highlighted a top Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) official in an ASSOCHAM e-Summit today. “Health insurance business in India has grown from 27 per cent to 30 per cent during a very short period which is March 20 to July 20,” said TL Alamelu, Member (Non-Life), IRDAI addressing an ASSOCHAM National e-Summit on Challenges, Opportunities & Way Forward for Health Insurance Under Covid Attack.

Ahead of the Parliament’s monsoon session, Chairman, Rajya Sabha  Venkaiah Naidu undergoes COVID-19 test

Preparing himself to preside over the upcoming Monsoon Session of the Parliament beginning on September 14, 2020, the Chairman, RajyaSabha, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu underwent COVID-19 test today. It is mandatory for each Member to undergo COVID-19 test (RT-PCR) before attending the upcoming Monsoon Session, according to an advisory issued to all RajyaSabha Members. The Members have been asked to get their test done within 72 hours before the commencement of the Session at any hospital/laboratory authorized by the Government or at Parliament House Complex. For the convenience of the Members, three Test Centres are functioning in Parliament House Annexe from today. The members have also been requested to ensure that their test report is sent in advance to the RajyaSabha Secretariat via a designated e-mail so as to avoid any inconvenience at the time of their entry into the Parliament House during the Session. Similarly, RT-PCR test has been made mandatory for the employees of Parliament Secretariats and other agencies deployed in Parliament House Complex who remain in close proximity of the Members during the course of performance of their duties.

One lakh Needy Children to get Nutritious food with ‘Happiness Kit’

In India, school closures have impacted 247 million children enrolled in elementary and secondary education, and 28 million who were attending preschool education in Anganwadi Centres. This is in addition to the more than six million girls and boys who were already out of school prior to the Covid-19 crisis, according to UNICEF. When a nation’s staggering 115 million children are at risk of malnutrition it is time for society to acknowledge that a catastrophic situation is brewing. As the world’s largest school lunch programme run by The Akshaya Patra Foundation was disrupted and families were pushed into poverty by the corona virus pandemic, realization dawned that children from marginalized groups were headed towards triple ills of hunger, malnutrition, and starvation. With the aim to mitigate childhood hunger through the pandemic, The Foundation launched the Happiness Kit to support children from vulnerable communities and their families. This kit contains essential nutrients like Glucose, Iron & Calcium, Iodine, and Protein that help boost the immunity of the child. Each kit has a nutritional value of 717.5 g of protein and 22,175 Cal of energy, while on a per meal basis each child receives 23.9 g of protein and 739 Cal of energy. It is only if basic requirements, such as nutrition-rich food, education, and basic hygiene, are met, can the country’s future generations aspire to health, education, and a brighter future. 

Centre Advisories / Policies / Updates

We must continue working together to find solutions for common problems resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic: Gangwar

Minister of State (I/C) for Labour and Employment Santosh Gangwar has called upon all G-20 members to continue to work together for finding solutions to the common problems resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Gangwar was speaking at Virtual Meeting of G-20 Labour and Employment Ministers last evening through Video Conferencing. He pointed out that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a new normal and changed the way we used to function. Referring to region specific measures to contain the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, he underlined that to mitigate the problems of the workers, India encouraged its employers for payment of wages to their workers. Gangwar added that adequate arrangements were made to provide temporary shelters, food and medical facilities to the migrant labourers. In order to facilitate distribution of food grains to migrant workers, Shri Gangwar also informed that Indian Government has launched one nation, one ration card scheme. COVID-19 and its impact have also been discussed in the G20 and the declaration also lists out the measures to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the labour market.

Government to document data on post-Covid complications

The Union Health Ministry has initiated an exercise to document data on post-Covid-19 complications as part of which the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) is likely to carry out a telephonic survey among recovered patients in the country using existing database. The ministry has drafted a format for gathering the information on post-Covid-19 complications faced by patients from across states and union territories, sources said. The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is concurrently working on developing a registry of post-Covid-19 squeal to capture data on the same.

Serological Testing at CSIR-CDRI, Lucknow for antibodies against Corona 

CSIR-CDRI (Central Drug Research Institute) is carrying out a research study that involves testing of people for antibodies against SARS-CoV-2. The serological testing is conducted from 9th-11th September. For the past 7 months we are in the midst of a pandemic of coronavirus (COVID-19) infection with more than 45 lakh individuals being infected with the virus which has resulted in more than 76,270 deaths in India. Dr. Susanta Kar and Dr. Amit Lahiri, the nodal scientists from CSIR-CDRI, said that the diagnostic tests performed in India have been largely limited to people showing symptoms and those who have come in close contact with these individuals. Most importantly, community testing has not been initiated yet. From the reports available from various countries it can be perceived that there are many more asymptomatic cases who have not been tested. Thus, the burden of the disease could be larger. Dr. Kar and Dr. Lahiri also stated that, a person infected with the disease will generate antibodies which are expected to protect them for further infection. However, since this is a novel virus, the duration of protection from antibodies is not known. 

Global Advisories/Policies/Updates

COVID-19 vaccine trial suspension a 'wake-up call': WHO chief scientist

The World Health Organization (WHO)'s chief scientist has said that the agency is not overly worried about the pause in the clinical trials for a corona virus vaccine developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca. Dr. Soumya Swaminathan called the pause in Oxford's clinical trial a wake-up call to the global community to realize there are ups and downs in research. Swaminathan says early data in human vaccine candidates so far has been quite promising, showing the shots trigger an immune response. But she says trials must be conducted in tens of thousands of people to determine whether a vaccine can safely protect people from infection. It could be that we see some results end of the year, it could be next year, she said. We have to be a little bit patient and wait for the results.

France sees highest daily corona virus infections with nearly 10,000 cases

French heath authorities said almost 10,000 more people have tested positive for Covid-19 in one day, making a record since the epidemic outbreak. In the past 24 hours, 9,843 new cases were confirmed, bringing the country's total number of Covid-19 cases to 353,944, data released by the country's Health Ministry showed on Thursday. As of Thursday, the number of hospitalised Covid-19 patients rose by 352 to 5,096, of whom 615 needed intensive care, up by 54 from Wednesday. The country also registered 19 additional corona virus-related fatalities in a 24-hour period, bringing the death toll to 30,813.

England launches Covid-19 app to boost contact tracing

Britain said it will launch a new Covid-19 app across England and Wales later this month which will allow people to use QR codes when they enter venues, boosting the country's contact tracing to help keep the spread of the virus in check. With cases rising, Health Minister Matt Hancock said the new app would help NHS (National Health Service) Test and Trace, the scheme used in England to contact those who have been in contact with a Covid-infected person, to reach more people. "The launch of the app later this month across England and Wales is a defining moment and will aid our ability to contain the virus at a critical time," he said in a statement on Friday.

State Advisories / Policies / Updates

Andra Pradesh reports 9,999 Covid cases, toll at 4,779

Andhra Pradesh on Friday broke the 10,000 cases streak that been running for the past couple of weeks, showing a fresh addition of 9,999 Covid-19 cases in a day that saw more than 11,000 patients recovering from the infection. The latest bulletin said 77 more Covid-19 patients succumbed in 24 hours ending 9 AM on Friday. For the past few days, more number of Rapid Antigen Tests was being done rather than the RT-PCR tests, but the positives were turning out more or less in equal numbers. The bulletin showed 5, 47,686 total Covid-19 cases reported in the state so far, 4, 46,716 recoveries and 4,779 deaths.

UP's Covid-19 tally nears 300,000 with 7,016 fresh cases

The Covid-19 death toll in Uttar Pradesh rose to 4,282 on Friday with 76 more fatalities, while 7,016 fresh cases pushed the infection tally in the state to over 2.99 lakh, officials said. The total number of Covid-19 cases has risen to 2, 99,045 while 7,016 fresh cases reported in past 24 hours, he told reporters. The highest single day spike so far was registered on Thursday, when the state registered 7,042 cases. The officer said the positivity rate stands at 4.14 per cent which is half of the national average of 8.44 per cent.

Delhi Govt. directs Mohalla clinics to begin Covid-19 tests

Mohalla clinics in the city have been instructed to start COVID-19 testing with immediate effect as part of the Delhi government's strategy to ramp up testing amid a surge in corona virus cases here. According to an order issued on September 10 by Dr. Shalley Kamra, state nodal officer of the Aam Aadmi Mohalla Clinic (AAMC), tests will happen on all working days between 2 pm and 5 pm. There are nearly 450 Mohalla clinics in the national capital.

 Industry Updates

China approves first nasal spray Covid-19 vaccine for trials

China has approved for trials its first nasal spray vaccine to combat the novel corona virus that has claimed over 904,000 lives and infected more than 27 million people globally, official media here reported on Thursday. China's only nasal spray vaccine against the corona virus is expected to start phase I clinical trials in November, and it is recruiting 100 volunteers. It is the only vaccine of its type approved by China's National Medical Products Administration. The vaccine is a collaborative mission between Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland that involves researchers from the University of Hong Kong, Xiamen University, and Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy. 

New Covid-19 drug gets DCGI's nod for human trial

Amid the raging corona virus pandemic, PNB Vesper Life Science Private Limited on Friday received approval from the Drug Controller General of India to conduct the clinical trial of their drug on Covid-19 patients. The Indian Pharma Research Company claimed that if their propriety drug PNB-001 -- Baladol -- works successfully in Covid-19 patients, it would be the "first new chemical entity in the world for treatment of the disease".

Prepared by Impact Health Research Team

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