The Captain Amarinder Singh-led Punjab government on Thursday decided to join the COVAX alliance for the global sourcing and procurement of Covid vaccines at the best price to address the problem of vaccine shortage in the state.

Reviewing the vaccination status and availability in the state, the cabinet decided to make an attempt to join COVAX for procuring vaccines from international markets at best prices. The suggestion to join the Covid-19 Vaccines Global Access, or COVAX, was given to the cabinet by Dr Gagandeep Kang, who heads the Punjab Expert Group on Vaccination.

The decision was taken during a cabinet meeting, which also approved the purchase of Covaxin for industrial workers, for whose vaccination the industry has expressed willingness to pay. The state government has so far ordered only Covishield for the 18-44 age group, but with this decision, the decks have been cleared to place orders for Covaxin too.

In a brief presentation, Health Secretary Hussan Lal informed the cabinet that of the 30 lakh Covishield doses ordered by the state government, the Serum Institute of India had so far confirmed 4.29 lakh, of which 1 lakh doses had been received. He further disclosed that some Central government institutions and industrial establishments were requesting early vaccination for their work force. Given the shortage of vaccines, he pointed out that certain states were floating global tenders to import the same.

The Health Secretary further apprised the cabinet that for the 45+ age group, the last tranche of Covishield (1,63,710 doses) was received on May 9, taking the total to 42,48, 560. As many as 3,45,000 doses were given to the armed forces, while the total vaccination utilization stood at 39,03,560. For Covaxin in the 45+ category, the last tranche received was of 75,000 doses (6 May 2021), taking the total received to 4,09,080, of which utilization till date is 3,52,080, leaving only 57,000 available now.

In view of the circumstances arising in the state due to Covid-19, the Chhattisgarh government has halted the construction work of all major projects with immediate effect and also decided to take more stringent measures for practising austerity amid the pandemic.

The state government instructed all departments on 26 April that, like the previous year, austerity should be exercised in the financial year 2021-22. Now, on the instructions of Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, major construction works in Nava Raipur have been stopped with immediate effect.

In this regard, extending the measures already being taken, the construction of the new Raj Bhavan, Assembly House, CM House, Ministers and Senior Officers and New Circuit House in Nava Raipur has now been stopped with immediate effect. The Chief Engineer of Public Works Department has issued orders to the concerned contractors to stop the construction work of these structures. The bhoomi pujan of these works had been done on 25 November 2019.

Along with this, previously issued tenders for the construction of the new Assembly building in Sector-19 have been cancelled with immediate effect.

Police and security forces in the Kashmir valley were seen enforcing curfew strictly on Thursday in order to stop people from mingling on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr.

Most people, except for those connected with essential services like the health department and media, were not allowed to move by the police or sent home.

Eid prayers were held in local mosques with complete social distancing, although the majority of people preferred to pray at home. No big gatherings were held in any of the main masjids like the Jamia Masjid Srinagar or the Hazratbal shrine as all such places of worship were closed for Eid prayers.

Jammu and Kashmir is currently reeling under Covid-19 with over 50,000 active cases, most of them in the twin capitals of Srinagar and Jammu.

In order to flatten the curve and stop the spread of the infection, authorities in Jammu and Kashmir have already extended the curfew up to May 17, which has resulted in very few public activities on the streets and in the markets of Kashmir.

The Government of Andhra Pradesh has taken the initiative to set up 32 child care institutions (CCI) designated for children whose parents or guardians have either contracted the coronavirus and need medical assistance or have lost their lives to Covid-19.

Andhra Pradesh is the first state to set up institutions of this nature, even though the number of children facing this plight in the state currently is significantly low. However, assessing that this issue might come up in the future, as a lot of parents are testing positive for Covid-19, the state government has decided to take proactive steps to ensure that no child is abandoned in the future and receives proper care and attention.

The CCIs will provide food, shelter and education to the children. For assistance, two helpline numbers, 181 and 1098, have been set up.

Krithika Batra, Director of Women Development, Child Welfare and Zonal Development, stated, “Any child or guardian in need of this assistance can contact these helpline numbers, post which the district-level teams will be sent to the residence of the child and transport the child to the nearest child care institution. Based on the preference of the child, they will be handed over to the kinship care of a suitable guardian, or the child will be moved to the adoption framework. 32 child care institutions with all facilities and a dedicated team are ready to ensure that these children in need of care and protection are given support by the government.”

Recently, three siblings were rescued by a district team, after their parents tested positive for Covid-19. While their father is receiving treatment at a government hospital in Anantapur, their mother is currently taking medication for her symptoms. Their mother had hoped to send her children to their relatives in Hindupur, but had failed as the relatives were reluctant to take them. The district team placed the three children at a CCI, where they were checked upon by the DCPO, Childline District Coordinator, personally.

TDP national general secretary and MLC Nara Lokesh has written a letter to Chief Minister Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy, urging his government to cancel the class 10 examinations altogether, considering the continuing rise in Covid-19 cases.

Lokesh has told the CM that the class 10 examinations were fast approaching and they were scheduled to start all over the state in just three weeks from now. On the other hand, the deadly infections were rising unabated due to the second Covid-19 wave. The students and their parents were now under extreme stress because of the threat of coronavirus, on the one hand, and the examinations, on the other.

Nara Lokesh urged the AP government to follow their example and give pass certificates to all class 10 students without conducting the examinations. Over 12 states, including neighbouring Telangana, have cancelled the class 10 examinations at the beginning of the second wave of infections itself. Students and parents have brought to the notice of the TDP in online meetings about the pressing need for cancellation of the examinations.

Lokesh pointed out that there was still uncertainty when exactly these raging epidemic infections would come down to give some relief to the people. This kind of a protracted calamity was not known to the people of the country since the days of independence. Lokesh said. Future generations might have to see very peculiar situations, he said. The class 10 examinations were cancelled when there were just 5,000 Covid active cases in the state last year. Now, the active cases have risen to 2 lakh, but the government was not taking this into consideration.

Union Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda on Thursday asked whether people in the government should hang themselves if the production of Covid-19 vaccines is insufficient.

Replying to queries regarding the Covid vaccination drive, Gowda said, “We started the vaccination drive with good intentions. If courts order mass vaccination and we have not manufactured enough vaccines, should we hang ourselves?”

Gowda further accepted that there was a delay in vaccine manufacture due to the non-availability of the raw material of the vaccine. “Earlier, the Karnataka High court had asked the government for mass vaccination but vaccine production is not happening at an expected level. Yes there is a delay in production,” he added.