Covid-19: India surpasses 200,000 deaths and one vaccine dose 'halves transmission'

Here are five things you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic this Wednesday morning. We'll have another update for you this evening.

India's death toll due to Covid has now passed the 200,000 mark and it has seen more cases in the past seven days than any other country in the world. People have died waiting for beds, oxygen supplies are running low and hospitals are under immense strain from new patients. Follow the BBC's special day of coverage which includes a man whose wife and unborn child died on the same day.

Just one dose of a coronavirus vaccine can reduce household transmission of the virus by up to half, a study shows. It's "encouraging", says Dr Mary Ramsay, head of immunisation at Public Health England, which carried out the research, as households are high-risk settings for transmission. The study found people given a first dose of either the Pfizer or AstraZeneca vaccines - and who became infected three weeks later - were between 38% and 49% less likely to pass the virus on than unvaccinated people. Read more here.

A leading charity has criticised the government's plan to reduce funding for overseas water and sanitation projects during the pandemic. Funding for water, sanitation and hygiene bilateral projects will be cut by more than 80%, a leaked memo said. Covid "forced us to take tough" decisions, the Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office said. WaterAid's Tim Wainwright has criticised the timing of "savage cuts".

A sore arm, or tenderness at the injection site as it is officially described, is the most common side effect of the Covid-19 vaccines, a UK study has suggested. Roughly one in four people had wider effects like fever, headache, nausea and fatigue. But these only lasted on average for one day. Researchers involved in the ZOE Covid Symptom Study app saw fewer reactions than were seen in clinical trials.

Dancing on Ice pro Hamish Gaman, 38, and his fiancée Amelia Humfress, 31, have swapped their blades for roller skates to keep up with training during lockdown. Meet them here.

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As a ferocious second Covid wave hits India, we have looked into why the country's vaccine manufacturers need US help.

Find further information, advice and guides on our coronavirus page.

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