Covid-19 – Page 16 – The Purbottar

18 May

Padma Shri awardee Dr KK Aggarwal passes away due to Covid complications

editor0 CommentsHealthCovid-19, Delhi, Dr KK Aggarwal, Health, INDIA

Dr KK Aggarwal passed away after a long battle with Covid at New Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences on Monday. The 62-year-old was admitted to AIIMS for the past several days and was on ventilator support since last week. Dr Aggarwal was a cardiologist and the head of the Heart Care Foundation of India. He received the Dr BC Roy Award in 2005 and the Padma Shree in 2010. He did his schooling in Delhi and completed his MBBS from Nagpur University. Over the past year, he had been posting videos on the Covid pandemic and talking about…

18 May

The United States provides assistance to India, as its “important partner” continues to fight COVID-19

editor0 CommentsHealthCovid-19, Health, INDIA, international, USA

President Joe Biden, who has announced a USD 100 million worth of COVID-19 assistance to India, is deeply engaged with the assistance program, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters at her daily news conference. “The President is, of course, kept abreast of the COVID pandemic – how it’s impacting different regions in the world, including our important partners in India. And he has been deeply engaged as we’ve made determinations about the type of relief and assistance that we can and should provide,” Psaki said. Responding to a question on India’s COVID-19 situation, Psaki said the United States…

17 May

ICMR-National Task Force meeting finds Plasma therapy not effective against Covid-19

editor0 CommentsHealthCovid-19, Health, INDIA, plasma

In a meeting of the ICMR-National Task Force for COVID-19 on Friday, all members were in favour of removing the use of convalescent plasma from the Clinical Guidance for Management of Adult COVID-19 Patients citing its ineffectiveness and inappropriate use in several cases, they said.The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) will issue an advisory on the matter soon, they said. The present guidelines allows “off label” use of plasma therapy at the stage of early moderate disease, that is, within seven days of the onset of symptoms and if there is availability of a high titre donor plasma. The…

17 May

Mahindra’s new initiative – M-Protect Covid plan

editor0 CommentsBusinessCovid-19, M-PROTECT COVID PLAN, mahindra, Mahindra & Mahindra’s Farm Equipment Sector, Mahindra Loan Suraksha

Mahindra & Mahindra’s Farm Equipment Sector, a part of the Mahindra Group has launched a new customer centric initiative committed to support Indian farmers in these testing times - ‘M–Protect Covid Plan’. Under the M–Protect Covid Plan, Mahindra will provide customers – (a) A health cover of Rs 1-lakh through a unique COVID Mediclaim policy, (b) Financial support by providing pre-approved loans to support medical expenses incurred during COVID-19 treatment and (c) Insurance of customers’ loan under ‘Mahindra Loan Suraksha’ in case of loss of life. For over 3 decades, Mahindra has been India’s undisputed No. 1 tractor brand and…

17 May

60,000 doses of Russia’s COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V arrives at Hyderabad

editor0 CommentsHealthCovid-19, INDIA, Russia, Sputnik V, Vaccine

As many as 60,000 doses of the second batch of Russia’s COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V on Sunday landed at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport here, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories said on Sunday. “Pleased to share that the consignment that arrived today in Hyderabad contains 60,000 doses of the second dose component of the #SputnikV vaccine. Samples from the consignment will be sent for release to the Central Drugs Laboratory,” the drug maker tweeted. Dr Reddy’s Laboratories on May 14 soft launched imported COVID-19 vaccine Sputnik V vaccine which is priced at Rs 948, with five per cent GST per dose (retail price). “Given the…

15 May

Tensions rise as Japan doesn’t cancel the Tokyo Olympics 2021

editor0 CommentsHealthCovid-19, Japan, SPORTS, Tokyo Olympics

The situation is not looking great in Japan. A coronavirus state of emergency has been extended in the capital Tokyo and three other major prefectures as cases continue to rise. Yet there's been no word about cancelling the Games, despite both health experts and public opinion being stacked against them. Current polls in Japan show nearly 70% of the population do not want the Olympics to go ahead, but the International Olympic Committee (IOC) remains steadfast that the spectacle will take place. Japan has long insisted there was no question the Olympics, which should have taken place last summer, would…

15 May

West Bengal government announces complete lockdown across the state till May 30

editor0 CommentsHealthCovid-19, Health, Lockdown, west bengal

The West Bengal government on Saturday announced a complete lockdown across the state for a fortnight from 6 am on Sunday, May 16 to 6 pm on May 30. It also imposed a night curfew, which will observed every night from 9 pm to 5 am, beginning Sunday night. “To ensure health of the people and control the Covid-19 situation, we are forced to impose this. There is now an unprecedent situation in the state where the scarcity of oxygen and other medicines is increasing. To control this situation, we are imposing strict conditions on the movement of transport and other sectors…

14 May

Delhi govt seeks help from Serum Institute mentioning the non-availability of vaccines

editor0 CommentsBusiness, HealthCovid-19, Delhi, Health, INDIA, Serum Institute, Vaccine

Delhi government has written to Pune-based Serum Institute of India to "come to its rescue", adding it has a week's stock of Covishield for 18-44 years. The letter further mentioned that vaccination centres will have to be shut down due to the non-availability of vaccines. This letter came after Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech stated it cannot supply more vaccine doses to Delhi. The Serum Institute replied to this and said that they are doing their best to meet countrywide vaccine requirements. "We rely on your support for provision of sufficient quantities of vaccine in a time-bound manner. Delhi has a limited…

13 May

Rise in palm oil prices may be leading to rise in Chocolate prices

editor0 CommentsBusiness, Healthchocolate, Covid-19, food

The meteoric rise in palm oil prices is poised to inflate costs for everyone from restaurants to confectionery and cosmetic manufacturers, and could potentially change consumption patterns. The world’s most consumed edible oil has surged more than 120% in the past year and burst through 4,500 ringgit ($1,091) a ton to a record on Wednesday. The tropical oil, which is found in products as diverse as chocolate, pastries, soaps, lipstick and biofuel, and is widely used in Asian restaurants, has been swept up in the global commodity rally as farm crops soar on weather worries and China’s crop-buying spree. Palm…

13 May

WHO says “resurgence” of COVID-19 in India caused due to “religious and political mass gathering”

editor0 CommentsHealthCovid-19, Health, INDIA, who

The World Health Organisation has said a recent risk assessment of the situation in India found that “resurgence and acceleration” of COVID-19 transmission in the country had several potential contributing factors, including “several religious and political mass gathering events which increased social mixing”. The WHO, in its COVID-19 Weekly Epidemiological Update, published Wednesday, said that viruses in the B.1.617 lineage were first reported in India in October 2020. “The resurgence in COVID-19 cases and deaths in India has raised questions on the potential role of B.1.617 and other variants (e.g., B.1.1.7) in circulation,” the update said. “A recent risk assessment of the…