Coronavirus LIVE Updates: Bharat Biotech Submits Phase-II & III Trial Data of Covaxin For Children to DCGI; India Reported 18,833 New Cases in the Last 24 Hrs

Redness and inflammation in the hands and feet, referred to as COVID toe condition, may be one of the side effects of COVID-19, a new study published in the British Journal of Dermatology’ has noted.

For the first time after July 14, Mumbai on Wednesday logged more than 600 new COVID-19 cases a day ahead of the scheduled reopening of temples and other religious places in Maharashtra on the first day of the Navratri festival.

The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF, Russia’s sovereign wealth fund) today announced the Russian single-component Sputnik Light vaccine against coronavirus has been approved by the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MOHAP) of UAE. Sputnik Light vaccine is based on human adenovirus serotype 26 which is the first component of the Sputnik V vaccine. The single-dose vaccine has also been approved in UAE as a booster shot.

Only 7 per cent Indian adults are currently hesitant to getting inoculated against COVID-19, the lowest vaccine hesitancy level in the country so far, according to a new survey. The study conducted by the online community platform LocalCircles received 12,810 responses from citizens — 67 per cent men and 33 per cent women — across 301 districts.

Andhra Pradesh reports 800 fresh Covid cases, 1,178 recoveries, and 09 deaths in the past 24 hours. Active cases: 8,754 Total recoveries: 20,31,681 Death toll: 14,228. 

The World Health Organization says the number of newly reported coronavirus cases fell in the last week, continuing a declining global trend that first began in August. In its latest assessment of the pandemic, the U.N. health agency reported Tuesday that there were 3.1 million new COVID-19 cases, a 9% fall, and about 54,000 deaths in the last week, roughly similar to the week before. WHO said there were declines in case numbers in all world regions except for Europe, where the number was about the same as the previous week.

Russia’s daily toll of coronavirus deaths surpassed 900 for the first time of the pandemic Wednesday, a record that comes amid the country’s low vaccination rate and the government’s reluctance to impose tough restrictions to control new cases.

Maharashtra recorded 2401 new Covid-19 cases and 39 deaths in the last 24 hours. And of the 39 deaths, 10 were recorded in Ahmed Nagar alone, pushing  the Maharashtra government to be on its toes once again. The state has taken control of the situation as the cases fell drastically in the past few weeks. But tensions are once again high as Ahmednagar recorded somewhere between 400-500 infections in the last 24 hours.

India may eventually need booster shots post Covid-19 vaccination but the need is not immediate or urgent, Dr Anurag Agrawal, director, Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB), told News18.com. According to Dr Agrawal, Covid infection plus vaccine shots are expected to give immunity as strong or may be better than two shots plus booster.

Explaining the workings of the trial phase, a trial investigator told TOI that the trial is expanded after ensuring the vaccine safety in 100 children from each group in the reverse order of age. The Serum Institute of India (SII), partnering with Novavax, is expected to launch Covovax for adults in India by November this year and for children early next year. READ MORE 

Among other temples, Mumbai’s Siddhivinayak temple will also reopen tomorrow for devotees. The nine-day-long Navratri festival which begins on October 7. All devotees will be allowed only through pre-booking QR codes on Temple Trust’s app. Only 250 devotees to be issued QR codes every hour for darshan, the temple trust informed. The visitors will have to follow the Covid 19 protocol. READ MORE 

The Pfizer-BioNTech Covid vaccine is 90% effective at preventing hospitalisation for up to six months, with no signs of waning during that time period, according to a large new US study conducted by researchers at Pfizer and Kaiser Permanente. The vaccine also provides powerful protection against the highly contagious Delta variant, the scientists found.

The World Health Organisation on Tuesday said a decision on the Emergency Use Listing (EUL) of India’s home-grown coronavirus vaccine, Covaxin, will be finalised next week when the health watchdog and an independent group of experts will meet to carry out an assessment of the risks and benefits of the jab.

The central government has decided that Anganwadi workers would also be covered under the insurance scheme of Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana with an insurance cover of Rs 50 lakh. As per the information available with the Ministry of Women and Child Development, the nodal ministry for Anganwadi workers, there are 13,00,029 Anganwadi workers and 11,79000 Anganwadi helpers and those who aided with Covid-19 related duties will be brought under the insurance cover. READ MORE 

As per government data in Bengal, there are 308 recorded orphans whose both parents had died of Covid-19 till August 26, two of whom were abandoned and are now growing up in a government-sponsored home. There are 6,270 more children whose father or mother has died of the infection during this period.