Frame SOPs for post-COVID-19 complications in patients, Delhi HC tells AAP govt

The directions were issued by a bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Subramonium Prasad while hearing a PIL by advocate Rakesh Malhotra seeking increase in the COVID-19 testing numbers in the national capital and getting speedy results.

PTI

December 23, 2020 / 01:01 PM IST

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday directed the AAP government to frame standard operating procedures (SOPs) to deal with post COVID-19 complications and to ensure that facilities are available to test and quarantine travellers from the UK where a new strain of coronavirus has been discovered.

The directions were issued by a bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Subramonium Prasad while hearing a PIL by advocate Rakesh Malhotra seeking increase in the COVID-19 testing numbers in the national capital and getting speedy results.

Malhotra, during the hearing, told the court that there should be some SOPs for managing post COVID-19 complications in those who have recovered from the infection.

Subsequently, the bench asked the Delhi government, represented by additional standing counsel Satyakam, to frame the SOPs.

The court also took note of the district-wise data of COVID-19 infections in the national capital and the submission by Delhi government that it was "enhancing contact tracings and creating more containment zones" in areas where the positive rate is more.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.

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