India's leading Tech Institute and Software company TCS jointly develop a remotely-controlled factory operation system

India’s premier institute IIT, Kharagpur, and the world’s leading software company, TCS, have jointly developed an innovative technology to remotely control factory operations and real-time quality correction during industrial production.

IIT Kharagpur has developed novel Industry 4.0 technology for remotely controlled factory operations and real-time quality correction during industrial production, jointly with TCS to set a new trend in India’s advanced manufacturing sector.

Though the remotely controlled factory operations would help at the time of pandemic when workers have to maintain social distancing due to the hygiene and social distancing norms, the innovation would have a bigger impact in reducing cost and ensuring safe working environment to its workers.

The cloud infrastructure, remote and real-time operations systems developed by the IIT and TCS would hold the key to maintaining effective industrial operations. The benefits of controlled operations have a bigger impact especially in the context of Atma Nirbhar Bharat in delivering quality output at low costs said a senior officer of the Ministry of Science and Technology.

The present innovation upgraded the industrial process of friction stir welding to a multi-sensory system of Industry 4.0. It has not only set the course for remotely controlled operations in the Indian industrial sector but has also enabled real-time quality check and correction during the production process.

The new Technology would make possible for industrial houses to achieve standardized quality goals throughout the production process and reduce rejection hence lowering the cost of production.

Emphasizing on the need for such technologies to achieve the ‘Make in India’ goal, the Director IIT Kharagpur,  Prof Virendra K Tewari remarked, “While we are aiming to boost indigenous production and exports, our primary goal should be the quality output with minimum disruptions. Be it consumers in India or abroad, these are the two basic needs our industrial sector, which we must address for procuring orders in large volumes,”.

He said at IIT Kharagpur’s Centre of Excellence in Advanced Manufacturing Technology, scientists have set a target to bring to the forefront indigenously developed industry 4.0 technologies to support our industrial sector to achieve this goal.

The innovative technology was developed by Prof Surjya K Pal, Professor in-charge at the Centre of Excellence in Advanced Manufacturing Technology in association with TCS. It would acquire real-time information about the welding process through multiple sensors and enable online control of weld quality by means of cloud-based communication with the friction stir welding machine.

“Welding is at the heart of any industrial operations. If we can improve the weld quality in real-time during batch production we can reduce rejections in post-production sample checks,” said Prof. Pal.

Explaining the new technology, he said, “Our multiple sensor process involves various signal processing and machine learning techniques to predict the ultimate tensile strength of the weld joint is fabricated. This technology is connected with a vast experimental knowledge base to conform to a standard system and prediction of the weld joint strength. Any defect identified during the monitoring the procedure is corrected in real-time by sending modified parameters to the machine thus ensuring the standardized quality of the process.”

The concept of this technology can further be evolved for real-time control of other industrial processes and such work will be carried at the Centre with other industrial partners soon, affirmed Prof. Pal.

The Industry partner TCS views such innovation has helped to give a direction as an enabler of technology-based transformations in the country, especially in overcoming challenges called out by the pandemic.

“The remote friction stir welding machine quality control via multi-sensor fusion developed by Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Advanced Manufacturing Technology at IIT Kharagpur is a case in point,” said K Ananth Krishnan, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer. According to him, “The Embedded Systems & Robotics, IoT and ICME platform teams from TCS Research and Innovation are working closely with IIT Kharagpur’s CoE towards AI-driven prediction/control of weld strength using a scalable and robust platform. Academic partnerships are an important part of TCS Research and TCS Co-Innovation Network (TCS CoIN) in creating real world solutions with scientific rigour.”

Ends.

New Parliament building to showcase democratic heritage of India

 

Raman Pandit

The planned new Parliament of India will not be just another building but it will showcase democratic heritage of India.
The building besides Chambers of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, will have a grand Constitution Hall which will house, among other things, the original copy of the Constitution, digital displays for showcasing India’s democratic heritage. The visitors will be given access to this Hall to help them to appreciate and understand India’s journey as a parliamentary democracy. 

The ground plus two-storey triangular-shaped building with a built-up area of approximately 60,000 metre square, is set to come up on plot number 118 of the Parliament House Estate, which currently houses a reception, boundary walls and other temporary structures. The current Parliament building, which is over 90 years old, will continue to house the famed Parliament library and function in tandem with the new Parliament. Unlike the current Parliament, however, the Lok Sabha in the new one could be used for joint sessions. With a regular seating capacity of 900, divided into 450 pairs of seating units, it has been designed to accommodate 1,350 MP for joint sessions. Designed in the line of Egyptian Parliament, the Lok Sabha hall will provide 50 per cent more space to each MP. The current Lok Sabha hall can only accommodate 552 MPs.   

 Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla chaired a review meeting this regard. During the meeting, Birla was briefed about the progress made in the shifting of facilities and other infrastructure from the area proposed for the construction of the new building.  The barricading plan and the various mitigating measures to control the air and noise pollution during the construction process were elaborated. The officers of the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs further briefed Birla about the proposed movement plan of VIPs and staff during this period, including during the Parliament Sessions. The existing Parliament House building will be suitably retro-fitted to provide more functional spaces for parliamentary events, to ensure its usage along with the new building, the officers mentioned. 

Reviewing the various aspects and progress of the project, Birla stressed on the smooth coordination and resolving issues between various agencies involved on a regular basis. He emphasized that there should be no compromise in ensuring quality-control and timely completion of the work. During the meeting, a decision has been taken regarding the formation of monitoring committee to oversee the day-to-day execution of the construction work of the new Building. The Committee will include, among others, officers of Lok Sabha Secretariat, Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs, CPWD, NDMC and architect/designer of the project. The new Building will have separate offices for Members of Parliament. Among other facilities for the Members, each seat for them in the Chambers will be comfortable (with blocks of two seats) and equipped with digital interfaces, which will be a step forward towards a paperless office. The new Building will also have a MP’s Lounge, a Library, six Committee rooms, dining areas and parking space. 

The construction of the new Building will commence in December 2020 and is likely to be completed by October 2022.

COVID-19 vaccine: No separate pathways for states

 

 Though the BJP has promised free coronavirus vaccine for everyone in Bihar but, in actual, the vaccine, once available, will be distributed under a special COVID-19 immunisation programme with the Centre procuring the doses directly and making it available for priority groups free-of-cost and states have been asked not to chart separate pathways of procurement. 

This special COVID-19 immunisation programme would run in parallel with the Universal Immunisation Programme, but will use its processes, technology and network of the existing vaccine distribution framework. The Centre has started the process of identifying around 30 crore priority beneficiaries who will be given vaccine in the initial phase. The government has demarcated four categories of people for vaccination in the initial phase -- around one crore healthcare professionals including doctors, MBBS students, nurses and ASHA workers, etc.; around two crore frontline workers including municipal corporation workers, personnel of the police and armed forces; about 26 crore people aged above 50; and a special group of those below 50 years of age with co-morbidities and requiring specialised care.

The existing digital platform and processes used for the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP) are being enhanced to track COVID-19 vaccine administration and movement -- from procurement to storage to distribution to individual beneficiaries -- as and when the vaccine becomes available, Health Ministry officials have said. Also, online training modules are being developed for vaccinators. The digital platform that is being enhanced is Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network (eVIN), which provides real-time information on vaccinestocks and storage temperatures across all cold chain points in the country under UIP.

Under UIP, children, adolescents and pregnant women are currently vaccinated against vaccine-preventable diseases free-of-cost by the state. The National Expert Committee on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19has already mapped the existing cold chain being utilised under the government's immunisation programme and has also made a projection of the additional requirement, Health Ministry officials had said earlier.

Presently, the committee is engaged in mapping private sector facilities that could serve the needs of supplementing the cold chain equipment.

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan has said that the Centre estimates to receive and utilise 40-50 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccine covering around 25 crore people by July next year.

Vardhan had said the government is working round-the-clock to ensure that there is a fair and equitable distribution of vaccines, once they are ready.

The biggest benefit that India has is that it has a robust immunisation programme in place and it is implementing the largest immunisation programme of the world, with nearly 27 million newborns targeted for immunisation annually, the minister said.

“We have an established infrastructure for supply, storage and delivery of vaccines to the last mile, under our Universal Immunisation Programme, where we are administering around 600 million doses to children every year,” he said.

“The strength of these experiences in the vaccination landscape, our best practices and the robustness of our health delivery System will be leveraged and augmented using a strong IT backbone to ensure that this humongous national mission of vaccinating the identified priority groups with COVID-19 vaccine is achieved in a timely manner. The Indian government will leverage the integrated IT platform eVin for managing vaccine distribution,” Vardhan said.

Vardhan re-affirmed the commitment of the Indian government and assured that it has accorded top most priority to the research and manufacturing to ensure that the vaccine reaches to the last person.

.

India permits Power Company to use Hi-Tech Drones for data collection and mapping

India permits Power Company to use Hi-Tech Drones for data collection and mapping

India today permitted country’s premier power PSU NTPC (National Thermal Power Corporation) to deploy hi-tech Drone RPAS (Remotely Piloted Aircraft System) for carrying out inspection activities in thermal power plants. Though the permission is only till December 2020, it is likely to extend as per the requirement of the thermal company.

The Hi-Tech drones would be used for terrain mapping, aerial inspections stockpile volumetric analysis and other applications at three sites of NTPC. The deployment of RPAS would drastically reduce the data collection cost and would also provide accurate data for site examination.

Initially, the deployment would be for carrying out research and inspection activities at Vindhyachal Super Thermal Power Station, Madhya Pradesh, Gadarwara Super Thermal Power Plant, Madhya Pradesh, and Sipat Super Thermal Power Project, Chhattisgarh, said a senior officer of the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) which had granted a conditional exemption to National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC).

Ministry of Civil Aviation Joint Secretary Amber Dubey said “NTPC will use the drones to carry out terrain mapping, stockpile volumetric analysis, aerial inspections and other applications at the three NTPC sites. This will provide NTPC excellent data with high accuracy at a fraction of the cost. This is in line with Government of India’s attempts to promote the use of industrial drones in infrastructure, mining, agriculture and disaster relief etc.”

He said the conditional exemption is till 31December or until the full operationalization of Digital Sky Platform, whichever is earlier. Conditions and limitations to National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd, the Ministry said.

(by Vijay Thakur)

Condition and Limitation to NTPC for use of Drone

1.       This exemption to National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd from the relevant provisions of CAR Section 3, Series X, Part I, is subject to exemption from Rule 15A of the Aircraft Rules, 1937 by Ministry of Civil Aviation.

2.       The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall obtain necessary clearances from (a) Local Administration (b) Ministry of Defence (c) Ministry of Home Affairs (d) Air Defence clearance from Indian Air Force and (e) Airport Authority of India (AAI) prior to operation of Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS).

3.       The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall only operate the RPAS which has been voluntarily disclosed to Government of India and issued with a valid Drone Acknowledgement Number (DAN) (i.e. D1DXOOS1T and D1DXOOS24 for NETRA PRO of M/s ldeaForge Technology Pvt Ltd).

4.       The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall submit a comprehensive brief on the scope of operations and the copy of SOP to Flight Standards Directorate (FSD), DGCA. Operation of Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) shall be carried out only after the vetting/ approval of SOP.

5.       National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall take necessary permission regarding Aerial Photography, if applicable, from Directorate of Regulations & Information, DGCA.

6.       The photographs/video-graphs, if taken through RPAS shall be used by National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd only. National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall be responsible for security of RPAS and data collected through RPAS.

7.       The operation of RPAS shall be restricted to day operations (from sunrise to Sunset), within Visual Line Of Sight (VLOS).

8.       The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall indemnify DGCA from any legal cases or any other issues arising due to these operations.

9.       The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall ensure that the RPAS is in working condition and shall be responsible for any eventualities due to malfunction I disorientation of equipment.

10.     In case of any injury to any person due to physical contact with the equipment, National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall be responsible for medico-legal issues.

11.     The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall have adequate level of insurance to cover any damage to third party resulting from accident I incident occurred during the operation of RPAS.

12.     The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall ensure that hazardous material or variable payload are not carried in I using the RPA under any circumstances

13.     National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall ensure safety, security and privacy of public, property, operator etc. Further, in case of any eventuality, DGCA shall not be held responsible.

14.     National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall not operate the RPAS in no-fly zones specified in Para 13.1 of the CAR Section 3, Series X, Part I without the approval of concerned Ministries/ authorities.

15.     RPAS shall not be operated in the vicinity of airport as per the provisions of the CAR. If operated near the airport, approval from Airports Authority of India (AAI) shall be taken in advance regarding time and area of operations of RPAS.

16.     National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd shall ensure that only trained I experienced bonafide personnel operates the RPAS.

17.     This letter shall not override other restrictions I SOP on Remotely Piloted Aircraft System framed by other Government Agencies.

In case of incident/accident during at any phase of the operations, reports to be submitted to Air Safety Directorate of DGCA.

COVID-19 ~ a threat to gender-based equality: UNESCO report

 

 Raman Pandit

The COVID-19 has created the biggest education disruption in human history, forcing millions of students out of school. It threatens the future of a generation with 24 million children and youth at risk of dropping out. The pandemic has brought to light already-existing challenges to education that have not been adequately addressed and has also highlighted deep and multiple forms of inequality having gender roots and implications, the Global Education Monitoring (GEM) report by UNESCO has pointed out.

Increase in gender-based violence during the period families spent at home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, potential rise in teenage pregnancies or early marriages, possibility of a section of girls dropping out of schools or colleges, girls being at a disadvantage due to shift to online learning and increased responsibilities of household chores, are among the several implications pointed out by UNESCO in the report.

“Uncertainty over the contagiousness and deadliness of COVID-19 led governments around the world to impose lockdowns, curtail economic activity and close schools and universities. In April, 91 per cent of the global student population was affected in 194 countries. The COVID-19 pandemic has precipitated an education crisis, fuelled by deep and multiple forms of inequality. Some of these forms have gender roots and gender implications,” it   said.

The report said while the extent of implications is difficult to predict with precision, they need to be monitored closely. “The first of these implications is concern that the extended period families spent at home during the lockdown increased gender-based violence. Whether such violence affects mothers or girls, the consequences for girls' ability to continue learning are clear. Second, sexual and gender-based violence coupled with restricted access to reproductive health, police, justice and social support services may increase early pregnancy,” it added.

The UNSECO report has raised a red flag about the potential increase in early pregnancy likely to be a result of increased early marriages, a consequence of households being plunged deeper into poverty due to the pandemic. “One estimate is that COVID-19 could cause 13 million more child marriages over the next 10 years. There have been attempts, based on previous knowledge of the links between poverty and school attendance, to project the potential effect of COVID-19 on dropout. UNESCO suggests that 3.5 per cent of adolescent girls of lower secondary school age and 4.1 per cent of young women of upper secondary school age in sub-Saharan Africa are at risk of not returning to school,” it said.

Quoting the World Bank that girls aged 12 to 17 are more at risk than boys of not returning to school in low and lower-middle-income countries, the report recommended that the countries need to recognise the need to maintain contact with girls during the pandemic to support their eventual return to schools. “Fourth, the shift to online distance learning could disadvantage girls. In low and middle income countries, women are 8 per cent less likely than men to have a mobile phone and 20 per cent less likely to use the internet on it. Finally, school closures have led to increased child care and chore responsibilities at home, which are likely to disadvantage girls more.

“A study of secondary school students in Ecuador during lockdown showed boys and girls were equally likely to continue their education in the morning but more girls did chores in the afternoon, while boys were engaged in leisure activities,” it said.

According to United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) estimates, over 154 crore students are severely impacted by closure of educational institutions across the world amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

Indian doctors perform life-saving surgery on a 35-week pre-term baby, implants permanent pacemaker within 12 hours of birth

Working out wonders doctors of capital performed life-saving surgery on a 35-week pre-term baby and successfully implanted permanent pacemaker within 12 hours of birth.

Baby Bhavishya’s heart could only beat 40 times a minute, the normal being 140-160 times a minute.

The baby was treated at Fortis Escorts Heart Institute of capital , it was an emergency case of a pre-term baby born with a complete congenital heart block. At the time of birth, baby Bhavishya’s heart was beating 40 times a minute as compared to 140-160 times a minute of a healthy newborn.  The birth of the baby took place in another hospital in New Delhi and as the health of the baby started deteriorating, the father was advised to take the baby to a pediatric cardiac centre.

The father contacted Dr Gaurav Kumar, Director, Pediatric Cardiac Surgery at Fortis Escorts Heart Institute. Under the guidance of Dr Gaurav Kumar and Dr Sushil Azad, Principal Consultant Pediatric Cardiology, arrangements were made for this critically ill baby to be shifted to FEHI.

After thorough evaluation and stabilization of the baby by a team of doctors at FEHI, he was taken up for permanent pacemaker implant at midnight.

Complete congenital heart block is a rare condition occurring in 1 in 20000 births. Such cases are challenging because these babies are commonly born preterm with low birth weight, their heart invariably functions poorly, and they have a poor chance of survival if emergency intervention is not done. In such babies, all procedures including anaesthesia and surgery pose a very high risk.

 

Dr Gaurav Kumar, Director Pediatric Cardiac Surgery said, “It was late evening when we received a call from another hospital regarding baby Bhavishya. We knew that the baby was in real danger and made immediate arrangements for the safe transfer of the baby to Fortis Escorts Heart Institute. On arrival, the baby was found to have very poor heart and lung function. The case was technically challenging as the baby was pre – term and low birth weight and operating upon a newborn always involves a lot of associated risks. We decided to go ahead with the surgery at night itself because it was unlikely the baby would have survived till morning.

 

Father of Bhavishya, Mr Pravin Kumar, Assistant Sub Inspector, CRPF said,” I am very grateful to the staff of Fortis Escorts Heart Institute, especially Dr Gaurav Kumar and Dr Sushil Azad, who looked after my baby with great care, while his mother was admitted in another hospital. The world was crashing down on us when we first heard about our baby’s health. Without any delay, they suggested us to move the baby to FEHI and it was the right decision that we made. I would really like to appreciate the efforts put in by the whole team at FEHI and ensured a safe and healthy environment amidst the pandemic”.

 

Dr Sushil Azad, Principal, Consultant, Paediatric Cardiology said, “Operating upon a pre-term baby suffering from a complete congenital heart block involves a lot of risks related to maintaining complete care of other vital organs and protecting these babies from infection especially during this covid pandemic. This surgery was only possible due to the multidisciplinary approach adopted by our team and we are happy to see how the baby has responded post the surgery”.

written by Swimmi 

Donot repeat Kerala during the coming festival season, said Indian Health Minister "Kerala paid the price of gross negligence during Onam festivities"

Indian Health Minister warned not to repeat the mistake Kerala had committed during Onam festivities and asked people to stay safe at home celebrate the coming festivals in a traditional way. 

During his public interaction virtually, Dr Harsh Vardhan shared his views on the recent spike in COVID-19 cases in Kerala. Noting that between January 30 & May 3, Kerala had reported just 499 cases and 2 deaths due to COVID-19, he regretted that Kerala was paying the price of gross negligence during the recent Onam festivities when State-wise unlocking of services, along with an increase in inter and intrastate travel for trade and tourism led to the spreading of COVID-19 cases across various districts.

“Epicurve of Kerala changed completely due to Onam festivities across the State, the daily new cases nearly doubled.” The Minister said this ought to serve as a good lesson for all the state government which were being negligent in planning for the festival season.

Offering his heartfelt wishes for Navaratri, he exhorted his followers to honour the Prime Minister’s call for Jan Andolan and religiously follow COVID appropriate behaviour becoming its ambassador to others. He reiterated his request to everyone to celebrate at home with their loved ones in the traditional way.

“This festive season, the charity must take precedence over the celebration. My own celebrations too shall remain subdued due to the heart-rending impact of COVID19 on lakhs of corona warriors across the world battling for us”, the Union Health Minister stated.

Responding to another question on the market being flooded with oximeters made in China, Dr Harsh Vardhan observed that “consumers should look for FDA/CE approved products with ISO/ IEC specifications while purchasing a pulse oximeter from the market or from online retailers.” However, he made it clear that a dip in oxygen the saturation level is not a COVID-19 symptom, as it may happen due to other underlying medical conditions as well.

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Remdesivir is not effective against COVID-19: WHO trial

Dexamethasone still only hope for patients with severe disease

 

 

Raman Pandit

The interim results of WHO Solidarity Trial' indicate that four repurposed drugs for COVID-19 --remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir/ritonavir and interferon regimens --appeared to have little or no effect on reducing mortality, initiation of ventilation and duration of hospital stay. For the moment, the corticosteroid dexamethasone is only therapeutic shown to be effective against the COVID-19 for patients with severe disease.

The interim findings of the trial in which the four drugs were tested in 405 hospitals across 30 countries, covering 11,266 adults, were released on medRxiv', a preprint server, on Thursday. The findings are under review for publication in a medical journal. In 405 hospitals across 30 countries, 11,266 adults were randomised, with 2,750 of them given remdesivir, 954 hydroxychloroquine, 1,411 lopinavir, 651 interferon plus lopinavir, 1,412 only interferon, and 4,088 no study drug, the uploaded trial study stated. The trial arms related to hydroxychloroquine and lopinavir were discontinued earlier as the interim results had showed no benefit.

“The remdesivir, hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir and interferon regimens appeared to have little or no effect on hospitalised COVID-19 patients, as indicated by overall mortality, initiation of ventilation and duration of hospital stay,” the study said. The findings hold significance as the use of remdesivir (for restricted emergency use purposes) has been recommended for treating coronavirus patients in moderate stage of the illness as investigational therapies” in Clinical Management Protocol for COVID-19 issued by the Union health ministry.

Other uses of the drugs, for example, in treatment of patients in the community or for prevention, would have to be examined using different trials, the WHO said. The WHO Solidarity Trial was conducted from March 22 to October 4.

Meanwhile, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on Friday said it was an active partner in the Solidarity Therapeutics Trial conducted under the aegis of the World Health Organization (WHO). “The trial tested four repurposed drugs, namely, remdesivir, interferon 1a, lopinavir/ritonavir and hydroxychloroquine. Interim analysis showed that no benefits of remdesivir in any groups of COVID-19 (asymptomatic/mild/moderate/severe/critical) patients,” it said in a statement. The ICMR has succeeded in conducting this large randomised controlled study even during a pandemic situation and earlier lockdown. The study reliably answers critical public health questions concerning therapeutics. “Earlier, ICMR conducted PLACID trial for convalescent plasma indicating no benefit of it in COVID-19 treatment,” the apex health research body said.

This was a well-coordinated national effort led by ICMR-National AIDS Research Institute (NARI), Pune with scientist Sheela Godbole at the helm, it said. The trial comprised 26 actively randomising sites with 937 participants in India. We are grateful to the trial participants and their families for contributing to these crucial findings, Samiran Panda, Head, ICMR-Division of Epidemiology and Communicable Diseases (ECD), and Director, ICMR-NARI said. 

The Solidarity Therapeutics Trial is the world's largest global randomised controlled trial in a pandemic situation for COVID-19 therapeutics, spanning 30 countries. India contributed one-tenth of the participants in the trial, the statement added.

PM Modi holds high-powered meeting on Covid 19 testing and vaccines

 

 Dipankar Chakraborty 

Given its size and complex and varied climatic situations and geographic landscapes, reaching emergency drugs to deal with unprecedented situations like current Covid-19 pandemic to each and every door steps in India is going to be a no-easy-task mission.

Though a drug to kill the deadly virus is still in the making, at the government and departmental level Indian government has begun marshalling its state and central resources to ensure smooth and mass delivery of vaccine to the people.

Modi’s  review meeting on Covid

At a high-level Covid-19 review meeting in New Delhi on 15 October, Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed the nitty-gritty of mass procurement and delivery of Covid-19 vaccine across the country as and when a vaccine finally sees the light of the day.    

The Prime Minister took stock of Health Ministry’s comprehensive distribution and delivery mechanism for vaccines. This includes mechanisms for adequate procurement, and technologies for bulk-stockpiling, filling vials for distribution and ensuring effective delivery.

Affordable testing for all

Modi directed that both sero-surveys and testing must be scaled up. He said that the facility to get tested regularly, speedily and inexpensively must be available to all at the earliest.

The Prime Minister also underscored the need for continuous and rigorous scientific testing and validation of traditional medicine treatments. He  appreciated the efforts of Ministry of AYUSH for conducting evidence based research and providing reliable solution in this difficult time.

The PM further reiterated the country’s resolve to provide cost effective, easily available and scalable solutions for testing, vaccine and medication, not only for India but for the entire world. He called for continued vigilance and high state of preparedness against the pandemic.

Modi took a review meeting of the research and vaccine deployment ecosystem against the COVID-19 pandemic including testing technologies, contact tracing, drugs and therapeutics etc.

India’s Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, Member (Health), NITI Aayog, India’s top policy formulation and planning institution; Principal Scientific Advisor, senior scientists and other officials were present at the Modi’s review meeting.

 

Vaccine developers

Modi appreciated the efforts made by Indian vaccine developers and manufacturers to rise to the COVID-19 challenge, and reiterated his government commitment to continue facilitation and support for all such efforts.

The Prime Minister said regulatory reform was a dynamic process, and experts in every current and emerging domain should be used by the regulator proactively, as many new approaches have emerged.

100 Covid-19 vaccine candidates

According to World Health Organisation (WHO), there are currently more than 100 COVID-19 vaccine candidates under development, with a number of these in the human trial phase. WHO is working in collaboration with scientists, business, and global health organizations through the ACT Accelerator to speed up the pandemic response. When a safe and effective vaccine is found, COVAX (led by WHO, GAVI and CEPI) will facilitate the equitable access and distribution of these vaccines to protect people in all countries. People most at risk will be prioritized, WHO maintains.

Serum Institute of India (SII) Role

A WHO report says that a collaboration between Serum Institute of India (SII), Gavi and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced will ensure up to 100 million doses of AstraZeneca or Novavax’s candidate vaccines, if successful, will be available to low- and middle-income economies through the COVAX Facility at just US$ 3 per dose. The arrangement also provides an option to secure additional doses if COVAX sees a need for it. Separate agreements between Gavi, CEPI and AstraZeneca, announced in June, guarantee a further 300 million doses of their candidate vaccine, if successful, for the COVAX Facility.

Funding for vaccines

In addition, in June Gavi launched the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC), a financing instrument aimed at supporting the participation of 92 lower and middle income economies in the COVAX Facility. The COVAX AMC has raised more than US$ 600 million against an initial target of securing US$ 2 billion seed funding from sovereign donors as well as philanthropy and the private sector, needed by the end of 2020. Funding the COVAX AMC will be critical to ensuring ability to pay is not a barrier to accessing COVID-19 vaccines, a situation which would leave the majority of the world unprotected, with the pandemic and its impact continuing unabated. 

Earlier eighty higher-income economies expressed their interest to finance the vaccines from their own public finance budgets. They are partnering with 92 low- and middle-income countries that will be supported by the AMC if it meets its funding targets. Together, this group of 172 countries represents more than 70% of the world’s population. Among the group are representatives from every continent and more than half of the world’s G20 economies.

Unprecedented global effort

“The momentum we are witnessing behind this unprecedented global effort means there could be light at the end of the tunnel: A vaccine is our best route to ending the acute phase of the pandemic and the COVAX effort is the best way to get there,” said Dr Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. “For higher-income countries it represents a win-win: not only will you be guaranteed access to the world’s largest portfolio of vaccines, you will also be negotiating as part of a global consortium, bringing down prices and ensuring truly global access. Signing up to the COVAX Facility gives each country its best chance at protecting the most vulnerable members of their populations – which in turn gives the world its best chance at mitigating the toll this pandemic has taken on individuals, communities and the global economy. To make this end-to-end vision a reality, we need countries to make end-to-end commitments: funding R&D, signing up to the Facility, and supporting the COVAX AMC.”

Fair and equitable access

The COVAX Facility is coordinated by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and forms a key part of COVAX – the vaccines pillar of the ACT Accelerator, a ground-breaking global collaboration involving vaccine manufacturers to accelerate the development, production, and equitable access to COVID-19 tests, treatments, and vaccines. The overall aim of COVAX is to accelerate the development and manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines, and to guarantee fair and equitable access for every country in the world. It will achieve this by sharing the risks associated with vaccine development, and where necessary investing in manufacturing upfront so vaccines can be deployed at scale as soon as they are proven to be safe and effective, and pooling procurement and purchasing power to achieve sufficient volumes to end the acute phase of the pandemic by 2021.

Two billion doses by 2021

The goal of COVAX is by the end of 2021 to deliver two billion doses of safe, effective vaccines that have passed regulatory approval and/or WHO prequalification. These vaccines will be offered equally to all participating countries, proportional to their populations, initially prioritising healthcare workers then expanding to cover vulnerable groups, such as the elderly and those with pre-existing conditions. Further doses will then be made available based on country need, vulnerability and COVID-19 threat. The COVAX Facility will also maintain a buffer of doses for emergency and humanitarian use, including dealing with severe outbreaks before they spiral out of control, according to the WHO. (Image - courtesy - pharmaceutical-technology.com)

Ends

WHO: COVID-19 pandemic threatens to reverse
progress achieved in reducing burden of TB

25-30 pc drop in TB case notifications in three high-burden 
countries ~ India, Indonesia, the Philippines ~ from Jan-Jun

 BY: Raman Pandit                 

               

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries were making steady progress in tackling tuberculosis (TB), with 9 percent reduction in incidence seen between 2015 and 2019 and a 14 percent drop in deaths in the same period. However a new report from WHO shows that access to TB service remains a challenge, and that global targets for prevention and treatment will likely be missed without urgent action and investments.

A drop of around25-30 per cent in tuberculosis case notifications was reported in three high-burden countries -- India, Indonesia and the Philippines -- between January and June 2020, compared to the corresponding period in 2019, according to a WHO report. The COVID-19 pandemic threatens to reverse the recent progress achieved in reducing the global burden of TB, the Global Tuberculosis Report 2020 said, while underlining that urgent and more ambitious investments and actions are required to put the world on track to meet the targets.

The global number of TB deaths could increase by around two lakh to four lakh in 2020 alone, if health services are disrupted to the extent that the number of people with TB who are detected and treated falls by 25-50 per cent over a period of three months, the report noted.

“In India, Indonesia, the Philippines and South Africa, four countries that account for 44 per cent of global TB cases, there were large drops in the reported number of people diagnosed with TB between January and June 2020. “Compared with the same six-month period in 2019, overall reductions in India, Indonesia and the Philippines were in the range of 25-30 per cent,” the World Health Organization (WHO) report said.

The economic impact of the pandemic is predicted to worsen at least two of the key determinants of TB incidence: GDP per capita and under nutrition. Modeling has suggested that the number of people developing TB could increase by more than 10 lakh per year in the 20202025 period. The impact on livelihoods resulting from lost income or unemployment could also increase the percentage of people with TB and their households facing catastrophic costs.

In line with WHO guidance, the actions that countries have reportedly taken to mitigate the impacts on essential TB services include an expanded use of digital technologies for remote advice and support (108 countries, including 21 high-TB burden nations) and reducing the need for visits to health facilities by giving preference to home-based treatment and providing TB patients with a one-month supply of drugs (100 countries, including 25 high-TB burden nations). The negative impacts on essential TB services include the reallocation of human, financial an

d other resources from TB to COVID-19 response, the report said.

Globally, an estimated 29 lakh TB cases went unreported to national TB programmes across the world in 2019, according to the report. In India, of the estimated 26.4 lakh TB cases emerging in 2019, 24 lakh were reported to the Union government -- a gap of 2.4 lakh patients who are going unreported, it showed. However, the notifications have seen a significant increase in the last few years -- from 17.4 lakh in 2015 to 24 lakh in 2019. The total TB incidence rate in India has decreased by almost 50,000 patients over the last one year. In 2018, India had an estimated 26.9 lakh tuberculosis patients, which has come down to 26.4 lakh in 2019 -- incidence per one-lakh population has decreased from 199 in 2018 to 193 in 2019. In India, notifications of people newly diagnosed with TB rose from 12 lakh in 2013 to 22 lakh in 2019.

Drug-resistant TB continues to be a public health threat. In 2019, around five lakh people developed rifampicin-resistant TB (RR-TB) worldwide, of which 78 per cent had multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB), the report said. The three countries with the largest share of the global burden were India (27 per cent), China (14 per cent) and the Russian Federation (eight per cent), it added.

 

Japan's does and Donot to fight COVID-19,

 

Japan has decided to coexist with the new coronavirus! Announced the "new life model" calling the people to be prepared to follow this model for an extended period of time and learn to live and work with the virus lurking around the corner.

Looking closely at these new life models, it can be seen that the Japanese government established these very practical set of SOPs using principles of rationality, science, and risk assessment.

Maybe it is related to the Japanese understanding that "bad" things can't be forsaken for all times.  Using risk assessment models in principle, humans can continue to live well. Read them one by one. There are three basic points:

1. Keep a distance between people.

2. Wear a mask.

3. Wash hands frequently

Specific requirements

1. People keep a distance of 2 meters.

2. Play as much as possible outdoors

3. Try to avoid being face to face direct facing when speaking to other people 

4. Go home and wash your face and clothes immediately

5. Wash as soon as you touch someone's hand

6. Try online shopping and electronic settlement

7. Supermarket shopping is best for 1 person, to choose time there are less people

8. Try not to touch commodity samples

9. Don't talk on public transportation

10. Go to work by bike or on foot

11. It is best to use electronic business cards

12. Try to use video conference when meeting

13. To control the number of people in meetings, wear masks and open windows for ventilation.

14. Work at home or commute at off  peak time

15. Do not go to countries or places where the virus is endemic

16. Try not to return home to visit relatives and travel, and control business trips.

17. When you have symptoms, remember where you went and who you met.

18. Eat meals with others not face to face, preferably side by side

19. Do not use large bowls and large pots to share food, implement a divided individual portion system

20. Chat less at meal, eat more vegetables

21. Try not to have too many people gathering at meal together as possible

22. Avoid "closed spaces, dense crowd flow, intimate contact"

23. Self-test body temperature every morning to strengthen health management

24. Cover the lid when flushing the toilet

25. Don't stay too long in a narrow space

26. When walking and running, the number of people should be small, when meet each other stagger the distance.

Shigeru Oo, chairman of the Japanese government committee, said that it takes at least one and a half years for the vaccine to be fully developed and officially put into use. 

Since the enemy cannot be completely eliminated, it is necessary to learn to coexist with the virus.  

Only by following the new rules of life can we live in peace with the corona virus for a long time.

In fact, most of the above methods have been implemented in China. 

Everyone understands that it is a long-term war, but each item is not listed in detail. 

The Japanese are genetically a very disciplined nation and they do things and follow instructions scrupulously. 

COVID-19: 'Behave appropriately  
during festive season and winter'

BY: Raman Pandit

Urging people to observe COVID-19-appropriate behaviour during coming festive season and winter “when the likelihood of an increase in the disease is high”, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said India has the highest COVID-19 recovery rate of 86.78 per cent globally with 62,27,295 recovered cases and the lowest fatality rate at 1.53 per cent.

Vardhan, who chaired the 21th meeting of the high-level Group of Ministers (GoM) on COVID-19 via video-conference here, said India has the highest COVID-19 recovery rate and lowest fatality rate,according to a Health Ministry statement. At the outset, Vardhan expressed deep gratitude and offered salutations to all the COVID-19 warriors who have been steadfastly fighting against the pandemic since many months, the ministry said. He informed the meeting of the sturdy public health response mounted by India in its fight against the pandemic and the encouraging results so far, it said in the statement.

With 62,27,295 recovered cases, India has the highest recovery rate of 86.78% in the world. Fatality Rate of 1.53 per cent is the lowest in the world and the doubling time has been successfully raised to 74.9 days in the last three days, he said. “A total of 1,927 labs at present have led to an upsurge in testing. India's testing capacity has been hiked to 1.5 million tests per day. Close to 11 lakh samples were tested in the last 24 hours, he was quoted as saying in the statement. “The Prime Minister has launched the countrywide Jan Andolan to encourage people to adopt and encourage COVID-appropriate behaviours to curb spread of the diseases while celebrating the festivals,” he stated.

Dr Sujeet K Singh, Director of National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), presented a detailed report on how the data-driven, graded government policies have helped India achieve significant control over the pandemic. He showed figures related to number of cases, number of deaths, their growth rate and how they compared favourably to the world due to the aforesaid policy interventions, the statement said.

While the overall recovery rate for India is 86.36 per cent, he informed that Dadar and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu have the highest recovery rate of 96.25 pc in India, followed by Andaman and Nicobar Islands (93.98 pc) and Bihar (93.89 pc). Kerala has the lowest recovery rate of 66.31 pc because of the huge surge in number of cases in the recent days, the statement said.

“Pointing out the pattern of influenza and vector-borne diseases which peak during this season, he noted with concern the less reporting of cases of Influenza due to the COVID-19 pandemic across the country,” it said.He also apprised the ministers of the advisories issued for improving the testing and surveillance activities for seasonal influenza to simultaneously detect it with COVID-19 in view of the upcoming influenza season in the country.

Reiterating Vardhan's concern on the fresh challenge to the containment efforts in view of the upcoming winters and festive season, he stressed on the gradual transition to mitigation in affected cities over the next few weeks and a sustained campaign to instil COVID appropriate behaviour among the people. Through a detailed presentation, Vinod K Paul of NITI Aayog apprised the GoM of the process of COVID-19 vaccine development in India and around the world.

He presented a comprehensive study on the priority sections of the population that would have initial access to the vaccine drawing upon recommendations of Centre for Disease Control (CDC), USA and the WHO. He also presented an age-group wise gender composition of COVID death, the percent composition of the vulnerable age-groups in the Indian population and the overlap of known COVID co-morbidities amongst these age-groups, the ministry said in the statement.

“The eVIN network which can track the latest vaccine stock position, temperature at storage facility, geo-tag Health Centres, and maintain facility level dashboard is being repurposed for the delivery of COVID Vaccine. “He apprised everyone present that the listing of healthcare workers (HCWs)would be complete by the end of October or early November while the task of identifying frontline workers, recalibration of digital platform, logistics of non-vaccine supplies, cold chain augmentation are being carried out as per the detailed implementation plan,” the statement said.

Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan noted the importance of keeping up aggressive testing to keep the positivity rate below 5 per cent, the countrywide mortality rate below 1 per cent and the deepening and strengthening of COVID appropriate behaviour among the general population. He also cautioned the need to observe the trajectory of the disease in key states of Kerala, Karnataka, West Bengal, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh which have recently exhibited a surge in cases, the statement said.

Vardhan at the GoM was joined by Dr S Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs, and Hardeep S Puri, Minister of Civil Aviation.

 

India expected to have COVID vaccine from more than one source by early next year

 

India is expected to have a COVID-19 vaccine from more than one source by early next year and the government is formulating distribution strategies for the immunisation of people across the country, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Tuesday.

“We're expecting that early next year we should have vaccine in the country from more than one source. “We are formulating strategies for planned distribution of the vaccine in the country,” he said in a tweet after chairing the 21st meeting of the high-level Group of Ministers (GoM) on COVID-19 through video-conference.

Vardhan had earlier said a COVID-19 vaccine is likely to be available by the first quarter of 2021. He had also said the Centre estimates to receive and utilise 40-50 crore doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, covering 20-25 crore people, by July next year.

On Sunday, the minister said considering the large population size of India, one vaccine or vaccine manufacturer will not be able to fulfil the requirements of vaccinating the entire country and added that the government is open to assessing the feasibility of introducing several COVID-19 vaccines in the country in accordance with their availability. Vardhan further said the country's preparedness to make a COVID-19 vaccine available to its citizens was reviewed at the GoM meet.

He added that work is going on around 200 vaccine candidates across the world, of which 151 are in pre-clinical stages and about 40-42 are in various clinical trial stages. Nine vaccine candidates are in an advanced clinical trial stage, of which three are in India.

 

Govt exploring various options on financing COVID-19 vaccine development: Health secretary

Advanced market commitments or providing financial help to firms for conducting research and development and clinical trials of COVID-19 vaccine are options that are under active consideration, the Centre said on Tuesday while reiterating that sufficient financial resources are available to procure 400-500 million doses of vaccine as and when it becomes available.

At a press conference on Tuesday, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan said that a subgroup under the National Expert Committee on Vaccine Administration for COVID-19 has already mapped the existing cold chain presently being utilised under the government's immunisation programme and has also made a projection of the additional requirement.

“Presently, that group is now engaged with mapping the private sector facilities that could serve the needs of supplementing the cold chain equipment,” Bhushan said.

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan had on October 4 said that the Centre estimates to receive and utilise 40-50 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccine covering 20-25 crore people by July next year.

Responding to a question, Bhushan said that various countries are exploring different options of extending financial support. The first option that is being explored is advanced market commitments by     different countries and the second one is providing financial help to vaccine manufacturers in terms of conducting their research and development.

“This financial support may not directly come from the government but may come from financial institutions. These are some of the international models which are being explored.

“In India, through the department of Biotechnology, direct financial assistance is being provided already to designated vaccine manufacturers to assist in research and development including presently preclinical trials and in future may get extended to clinical trials also. The other options are also on the table and are under active consideration of the government,” he said.

Responding to a question on the budget estimated for securing COVID-19 vaccines, Bhushan said the price of single dose or two dose vaccines that are being worked across the globe is still evolving. “We have seen in an extremely dynamic situation till the time the vaccines prove their safety and efficacy whatever figure is being bandied around is just a figure. Any indicative price for a single or double dose vaccine becomes a plausible figure once the vaccine has been able to demonstrate its safety and efficacy and once that is being done by multiple vaccines, then their prices decline drastically,” he said.

“I want to reiterate that sufficient financial resources are available with the government to go in for this kind of procurement,” he said.

Providing an update on ongoing clinical trials of vaccines in India, NITI Aayog member (Health) V K Paul said that phase 2 clinical trials of two indigenously developed vaccines -- one by the Bharat Biotech in collaboration with ICMR and the other by Zydus Cadila Ltd -- are near completion and results will be available by early November. The Oxford vaccine candidate is undergoing phase 3 trial which is being conducted by the Serum Institute of India.

“Progress is good and by the end of November we may have results. Vaccine preparedness is parallelly being done to reach masses,” he said.