Covid-19 active cases dip by 4,899 in 24 hrs in India

Beneficiaries show their Aadhaar cards as they wait to receive COVID-19 vaccine, in Nadia, West Bengal, on Monday. Pic/PTI

India logged 14,306 new COVID-19 infections, taking the total Coronavirus tally to 3,41,89,774, while the active cases declined to 1,67,695, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Monday morning. A decrease of 4,899 cases has been recorded in the total number of active caseload in a span of 24 hours.

The death toll climbed to 4,54,712 with 443 fresh fatalities. Kerala has reconciled 363 fatalities from the previous period, officials said, adding that it reported 71 deaths in the past 24 hours. The cumulative doses administered in the country so far has exceeded 102.27 crore.

A medic prepares a Covishield jab during a vaccination drive in Chennai. File pic/AFP

Meanwhile, a top government official on Monday said that India is likely to begin supplying COVID-19 vaccines to other nations by the end of this year. "India's commitment to provide vaccines to other nations stands. However, major supplies to other nations will have to be balanced against India's own needs of vaccines," the official told PTI on condition of anonymity.

India, the world's largest producer of vaccines overall, had suspended exports of COVID-19 vaccines in April to focus on inoculating its own population following a sudden spike in infections. "... Going into late 2021 and beyond, there will be generous vaccine supplies, which would then become available for exports, so the situation is being watched carefully, it is a dynamic situation," he said.

A health worker inoculates a resident, at a slum in Chennai, on October 18. Pic/AFP

Another vax on the way

Biological E. Limited (BE) is expecting its COVID-19 vaccine, Corbevax, to be rolled out by the end of November even as the Hyderabad-based firm is getting ready with 100 million doses for the launch, BE Managing Director Mahima Datla said on Monday.

She said the manufactured doses are being sent to Central Drugs Laboratory (CDL), Kasauli, in Himachal Pradesh for regulatory testing.

"Cobevax is in Phase 3 trials. We are likely to complete all the studies by end of November which is when we are expecting licence (from the drug regulator). The licence for children should follow one month later. The study in children is underway as well," she said.

Corbevax is currently undergoing Phase 2/3 clinical trials on adults. The Phase 3 trials are going to be a study in comparison with the already licensed vaccines, though the study in children is not a comparative study, she added.

443
No. of COVID-19 deaths govt added on Monday morning

556 students in Himachal get COVID in a month

Over 550 students have tested positive for COVID-19 in Himachal Pradesh in one month, a state health official said on Monday. As many as 556 students of various government and private schools have tested positive from September 27 to October 25, he added. As many as 250 are still suffering from the infection, while 305 students have recovered, he said.

Bengal to reopen schools, colleges from Nov 15

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said schools and colleges would reopen from November 15, and directed the chief secretary to take necessary measures to facilitate the process. Schools and colleges in the state have been closed since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March last year.

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