Health

India records lowest single day rise in Covid-19 infections in two months

India records lowest single day rise in Covid-19 infections in two months

91,702 new cases of Covid-19 reported in India, the lowest single-day rise in infections in around two months. This is the fourth day in a row when daily infections in India are below one lakh. The total infection tally stands at 2,92,74,823, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Friday morning. The death toll from Covid-19 climbed to 3,63,079 with 3,403 new fatalities. States like Tamil Nadu with 16,813 cases, Kerala with 14,424 cases, Maharashtra with 12,207 cases, Karnataka with 11,042 cases and Andhra Pradesh with 8,110 registered maximum cases. As per updated data, 68.25 per cent of…
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What does India’s new vaccine policy actually mean? Read here

What does India’s new vaccine policy actually mean? Read here

PM Modi announced: "From 21 June, all adults over the age of 18 will be vaccinated [for] free,". "Whether it is the poor, the lower middle class, the middle class, or the upper middle class, under the central government programme, everyone will get free vaccines," He said. How has the policy changed? Prime Minister Modi's addressed the nation on TV, in which he talked about the history and logistics of vaccine programmes in India. This is where he made the announcement. Prime Minister Modi made a national TV address on the vaccination programme Under the earlier Covid vaccine policy, half…
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Many states start unlocking as Covid-19 cases start to decrease in India

Many states start unlocking as Covid-19 cases start to decrease in India

National capital Delhi and financial hub, Mumbai, are among the cities that are opening partially. The crushing second wave saw hospital beds, medicines and even oxygen run short as cases spiked and deaths rose. But experts continue to advice precaution amid a lagging vaccine drive and the threat posed by new variants. Less than four percent of India's 1.4 billion people have been fully vaccinated. Vaccine hesitancy too remains a challenge, especially in rural areas. India reported about 101,000 new infections on Monday and more than 2,400 deaths - far lower than the nearly 400,000 daily cases it was recording…
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Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announces some relaxations to restrictions in West Bengal

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announces some relaxations to restrictions in West Bengal

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, announced some relaxations to the current restrictions in the state, while addressing a meeting at Nabanna today. Retail stores can now be kept open from 12 noon-4 pm, informed the CM. Hotels and restaurants can be kept open with a 50% workforce from 5 pm to 8 pm only if the workers are vaccinated and all safety measures must be followed. She annoumced free vaccines for the workers of rice mills and flour mills like ration shop workers. The CM further said that partial exemptions are also being considered in the case of shopping malls. There…
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Bihar launches ‘Vaccine Express’

Bihar launches ‘Vaccine Express’

After the launch of "Vaccine Express" in the rural areas, the Bihar government rolled out similar vaccination vans for the urban areas with an aim to vaccinate maximum number of people at their doorsteps. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar took the initiative for  'Vaccine Express' in the presence of Deputy Chief ministers-Tarkishore Prasad and Renu Devi- along with the  Health Minister Mangal Pandey . He admired  the health department for this idea of plying vaccine vans in the cities to speed up inoculation of larger section of the population. Similar vans were run for the rural areas of the state in…
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2 deaths reported due to black fungus reported at NBMCH

2 deaths reported due to black fungus reported at NBMCH

Two people lost their lives on Tuesday night due to black fungus infection at North Bengal Medical College and Hospital. One of the deceased was a resident of Gajoldoba and the other was a resident of the Kulipara area. The woman from Kulipara underwent surgery at NBMCH a few days ago. Since then she was under the supervision of doctors. Both the two deceased women had earlier contracted the novel coronavirus and later tested negative. However, they then were infected with black fungus. Meanwhile, the woman from Gajoldoba was again shifted to the Covid ward due to shortness of breath.…
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41-year-old Chinese man reported as the first human case of infection with rare bird flu strain

41-year-old Chinese man reported as the first human case of infection with rare bird flu strain

First human case of a rare H10N3 bird flu detected in a 41-year-old Chinese man. The strain is thought to not easily spread from humans to humans. There are many bird flu strains and it is not unheard of that people working with poultry occasionally get infected. Beijing's National Health Commission (NHC) said on Tuesday the resident of the city of Zhenjiang was hospitalized on 28 April and diagnosed with H10N3 one month later. "No human cases of H10N3 have been reported in the world. This case is an occasional poultry-to-human cross-species transmission, and the risk of a large-scale spread…
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COVID-19 Patients can recover within three days with the new Antibody Cocktail– says Dr. D Nageshwar Reddy, Chairman, AIG Hospitals

COVID-19 Patients can recover within three days with the new Antibody Cocktail– says Dr. D Nageshwar Reddy, Chairman, AIG Hospitals

Monoclonal antibodies-based treatment is seen as the latest armament in the fight against COVID-19. The drug cocktail has gained enough traction from global media ever since it got administered on ex-US President Donald Trump but is it really a wonder drug? As AIG Hospitals started giving this treatment to its patients, Dr. D Nageshwar Reddy, Chairman, through a select media briefing demystified some of the most asked questions regarding this therapy. Dr. Reddy said that the real-world evidence of these monoclonal antibodies is yet to be established but the clinical studies published in peer-reviewed journals including the New England Journal…
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University of Oxford finds lung damages of COVID-19 patients more than three months after leaving hospital

University of Oxford finds lung damages of COVID-19 patients more than three months after leaving hospital

Researchers in the UK have identified persistent damage to lungs in COVID-19 patients at least three months after they were discharged from hospital, and in some cases the duration is even longer. The study, conducted by Sheffield and Oxford researchers using a cutting-edge method of imaging, said the damage was not detected by routine CT scans and clinical tests, and the patients would consequently normally be told their lungs are normal. Early research by the team has shown that patients who have not been hospitalised with COVID-19 but who are experiencing long-term breathlessness may have similar damage in their lungs,…
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Countries to approach tourism post-pandemic: Here are the Countries that are set to reopen

Countries to approach tourism post-pandemic: Here are the Countries that are set to reopen

The rollout of vaccines against COVID-19 is giving government officials in many countries new confidence to welcome visitors. The World Travel & Tourism Council estimates that the sector lost nearly $4.5 trillion and 62 million jobs last year. Airlines alone lost $126 billion last year and are on track to lose another $48 billion this year, according to their largest trade group. “Summer is a strong season for most markets, particularly Europe and the U.K. We really hope to see restrictions ease,” said Virginia Messina, interim leader of the World Travel & Tourism Council. The patchwork of rules around the…
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