India Coronavirus Dispatch: Assam saw elevated deaths amid first wave

Two shots of Covishield have 65% efficacy against Delta strain, Covovax vaccine samples cleared by national drug lab for phase 3 trials, and more-news relevant to India's fight against the pandemic

Over 67,000 fresh cases reported

 

India reported 67,208 fresh coronavirus infections on Thursday, taking the cumulative caseload to 29.7 million, according to central health ministry data. The fresh cases are 8 per cent higher than Wednesday's count. The country saw 2,330 deaths due to the pandemic, taking the death toll to 381,903. The active caseload is at 826,740, while the total recoveries have surged to 28.4 million. As many as 265.5 million vaccine shots have been administered since the nationwide inoculation programme kicked off on January 16. Of these, 3.4 million were given on Wednesday. Read more

 

 

Assam saw elevated deaths in four months of last year

 

Assam registered 55% more deaths than the usual figure, in four months of last year that coincided with the first Covid wave in the state, a report in the Scroll said that cited government data. The mortality rate was 30 times the official Covid-19 death toll in these months. In 2018 and 2019, an average of 50,080 people had died between August and November. In the same months in 2020, this number rose to 77,845 deaths, which means 27,765 excess deaths compared to the average for the same period in the previous two years, the report said. Read more

 

 

Two shots of Covishield have 65% efficacy against Delta strain: Covid Working Group chief

 

Covid Working Group chief Dr N K Arora told NDTV that a single shot of Covishield had up to 61 per cent effectiveness against the Delta strain, based on research in India. Arora also said data from a study carried out at Vellore's Christian Medical College showed that the's vaccine effectiveness improved to 65% with two shots. The study examined 8,991, or nearly 85% of staff members who were administered Covishield, while the rest were given Covaxin, the report said. Read more

 

 

Covovax vaccine samples cleared by national drug lab for phase 3 trials

 

Shots of Covovax vaccine—the Indian version of the vaccine originally developed by the US-based biotech firm Novavax Inc—have been released by the Central Drugs Laboratory (CDL) in Kasauli for the upcoming phase 3 trials, a report in ThePrint said citing sources familiar with the matter. Covovax is the second Covid vaccine being manufactured by Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII), apart from the Indian version of the AstraZeneca-Oxford University’s vaccine, Covishield. “The laboratory had earlier released the batches of Covovax in February, this year, after which the company started phase 2 trials in March. Received in May, CDL has now released the latest batch which will be used in the phase 3 trials,” a government official privy to the development told ThePrint. Read more

 

 

Karnataka: Scientists study gene variations in Covid-hit children

 

Researchers in Karnataka are examining genome sequences of the novel coronavirus among children who contracted the virus in the second wave of the pandemic to understand if infections are being driven by the existing variants or newer ones, a report in The Indian Express said. This move is part of efforts to be ready for the next wave of infections. Read more