India Coronavirus Dispatch: Daily death toll spikes after Bihar recount

Over 94,000 fresh cases reported; over 6,000 deaths

India reported 94,052 fresh coronavirus infections on Thursday, taking the cumulative caseload to about 29.2 million, according to central health ministry data. The country saw 6,148 deaths due to the pandemic, taking the death toll to 359,676. The record jump in daily deaths was because Bihar revised its data to add backlog fatalities. The active caseload is at about 1.2 million, while the total recoveries have surged to 27.7 million. As many as 242.7 million vaccine shots have been administered since the nationwide inoculation programme kicked off on January 16. Of these, 3.3 million were given on Wednesday. Read more

AstraZeneca shots carry slightly higher risk of bleeding problem: Study

A new study has found that people receiving the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, marketed as Covishield in India, had a slightly higher risk of a bleeding disorder and possibly other rare blood problems, a report in The New York Times said. The findings, published in the journal Nature Medicine, from a study that examined 2.53 million adults in Scotland who received their first doses of either the AstraZeneca vaccine or the one made by Pfizer-BioNTech. About 1.7 million of the shots were the AstraZeneca vaccine. The study found no increased risk of the blood disorders with the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, the report said. Read more

Bihar sends Ganga samples for Covid testing after bodies were found floating

Bihar’s pollution control officials have sent samples collected from the river Ganga for Covid-19 testing, days after bodies were found floating in the river, a report in the Hindustan Times said. The tests are being carried out to examine if the river has been contaminated with the coronavirus since there were reports of bodies of Covid victims being dumped in Ganga. Read more

Finance ministry proposes 24/7 vaccination drive to revive growth

The finance ministry has suggested that the vaccination programme be carried out round the clock in order to achieve herd immunity quickly against the virus and regain economic growth momentum, a report in the Scroll said. Rapid vaccination is key to reviving investment and consumption cycles in the coming fiscal quarters, the ministry said in a monthly report published by the Department of Economic Affairs. The report said that India needs to vaccinate 700 million residents as herd immunity can be achieved when 80% of the population is immune or less susceptible to the infection, according to the report. Read more

Flu vaccine may help keep kids safe in a potential third wave

Some doctors believe vaccinating your child against flu could be effective in fighting the third Covid wave, a report in The Indian Express said. Dr Jesal Sheth, senior consultant-pediatrician, Fortis Hospital, Mulund, the Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP) recommends giving annual flu shots to all children below five. “Recent studies conducted during the pandemic in Michigan and Missouri, among children infected with Covid-19, showed those who had been vaccinated with inactivated influenza vaccine during the flu season in 2019-20 in the US, had slightly reduced risk of catching Covid-19 infection, as well as reduced risk of suffering from severe infection,” she said. Read more

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