DELHI – In a twin bid to get ahead of a surging COVID-19 epidemic, the Indian government said that it will make “advance payments” totally some US$ 550 million to domestic COVID-19 vaccine makers – as well as opening up the market to private sector import and sales of other approved COVID-19 vaccines.  Under the […] Continue reading ->
India has greenlighted Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine for emergency use following a severe shortage of vaccines against the coronavirus and a massive spike in cases, and is now poised to become one of the world’s largest manufacturing hubs for the vaccine with 50 million doses produced by July.  India’s aproval of a third COVID vaccine […] Continue reading ->
NEW DELHI – Scientists have sequenced a new “double variant” of the coronavirus first identified  in India – along with a handful of other variants of concern that are appearing during the second biggest wave of the virus since the pandemic began. The new double variant, bearing two significant mutations in the coronavirus spike protein, […] Continue reading ->
NEW DELHI – Reversing decades of negative messages, the World Health Organisation is once again endorsing the use of X-rays as a TB screening tool  in lower-income countries – this time in conjunction with the use of new artificial intelligence programmes that can read digital x-rays and identify suspected TB cases more accurately.  For community-level […] Continue reading ->
After donating over 6 million Covid vaccines to more than 13 countries, the Indian government suggested the creation of a regional pandemic platform for preparedness and medical emergencies with its 10 neighbouring countries. At a meeting with health officials, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed creating “a special visa scheme” for doctors and nurses to […] Continue reading ->
DELHI, INDIA – In the last week of December 2020, Chanda Devi heard a truck roll into her neighborhood in North Bhopal, Central India. Residents were called outside by a voice, booming through loudspeakers. They were eligible to collect Rs 750 (about US$10) to receive a “corona vaccine”. The people said that they were recruiters, […] Continue reading ->
As COVID-cases rose rapidly in Delhi this November, the strong correlation to increasingly dangerous levels of air pollution in the state has brought more attention to the political pressure to address the health emergency. Delhi saw its highest number of COVID-19 cases in November, totalling more than 175,000. The city administration also recorded more than […] Continue reading ->
The vaccine zero hour is approaching. As Norway’s Minister of International Development Dag Ulstein and South Africa’s Minister of Health Zweili Mkhize made yet another urgent plea Monday for some US$4.3 billion right now and another $US23.9 billion in 2021 to massively roll out new COVID19 vaccines, drugs and tests that are now coming on […] Continue reading ->