‘Covaxin’ and ‘Covishield’ vaccination drive on Jan 16: No answer from govt on who would get what

News Network
January 15, 2021

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India is all set to kickstart the world's biggest Covid-19 vaccination drive with two shots – Covaxin and Covishield tomorrow (on January 16). But there are no clear answers from the government on as both vaccines would be treated equally at the ground level though Covaxin lacks efficacy data.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday morning will launch the campaign at 3,006 session sites across all the states and Union Territories and around 100 beneficiaries would be vaccinated at each site. Healthcare workers, both in government and private sectors including ICDS workers, will receive the vaccine in this phase.

Multiple public health researchers told DH that there were "no specific instructions given to the states on which vaccine is to be used for which category of workers".

The Union Health Ministry has procured 11 million doses of Covishield, manufactured by the Serum Institute, Pune and 5.5 million doses of Covaxin made by Bharat Biotech, Hyderabad. The full initial procurement of 16.5 million doses has been allocated to the states according to the healthcare worker database.

"There are no specific instructions on which vaccine is to be used for which category of workers. The stock will be used as per the recipients' lists. Some will indeed get Covaxin as, according to the programme, all vaccines are being treated equally," said a senior public health specialist in Delhi.

The two-vaccine rollout comes amid concerns among a section of scientists, medical researchers and policy planners on the governmental push being given to the Bharat Biotech vaccine without the efficacy data even though the epidemic has been on a decline since September.

"The government has still not clarified the basis of the original unusual approval for Covaxin use and the actual terms and conditions under which its 'emergency use' is to be done," said senior scientist Satyajit Rath, a visiting faculty at the Indian Institute of Science, Education and Research, Pune.

"Not waiting for preliminary Covaxin efficacy evidence to actually start quite small numbers of injections of Covaxin is simply one more step in a process which seems more focused on nationalist brownie points than on substantive public good."

Earlier this week, health officials stated there would be no choice for the vaccine recipients. Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan asserted that no other country offered such a choice.

"Providing a vaccine without adequate efficacy data can lead to a false sense of security among vaccine recipients. A greater degree of transparency prior to the start of the vaccination programme is essential. This is especially true for Covaxin for which phase-3 safety and efficacy data are not yet available," said a group of scientists from the Indian Academy of Sciences in a statement.

But another group of researchers – backed by BJP – came out openly in support of the two vaccines asking the people to "reject the manipulations of vested interests aimed at politicisation and defamation of our nation's scientists, doctors and scientific community for their narrow vested interests".

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News Network
May 11,2024

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Out of jail and immediately hitting the campaign trail, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday trained guns at Prime Minister Narendra Modi claiming that he will make way for Amit Shah next year when he turns 75 after sidelining all BJP leaders, including Yogi Adityanath, and jailing Opposition leaders.

Predicting that the BJP will be reduced to “220-230 seats” in the Lok Sabha polls, he claimed that Yogi Adityanath will be removed as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister in two months if at all BJP returns to power to ensure Shah’s elevation as Prime Minister, as Modi himself has set the 75-year retirement rule in his party.

Accusing Modi of being dictatorial and seeking to implement ‘One Nation, One Leader’, Kejriwal insisted that the Prime Minister is not seeking votes for himself  and  people voting for BJP should know that they are not voting for Modi but Shah while wondering whether the latter would implement ‘Modi ki Guarantees’.

He also defended his decision not to resign as Chief Minister after his arrest, as it was a “trap” set by the Prime Minister to “finish off” AAP  and felt that JMM top leader Hemant Soren, who resigned as Jharkhand Chief Minister, also should not have quit his post.

Addressing a press conference that turned out to be a meeting of AAP supporters at the party headquarters here a day after he was released from Tihar jail on interim bail, he also asked Modi to “learn from Kejriwal on how to fight corruption”, as he referred to the induction of leaders who were accused of graft into the BJP. 

In his 20-minute address, which came after his visit to the Hanuman Temple in Connaught Place in the national capital, Kejriwal said Modi wants to crush his party as he knows that the AAP with its good work would replace the BJP.

If Modi does 'good work', no one will talk about AAP but people will not accept the attempts to decimate his party, which is working for the people, Kejriwal said.

“The Prime Minister says he fights against corruption but is inducting thieves and dacoits into his party. A leader who he described as one involved in a Rs 70,000 crore scam was inducted into the party ten days after Modi made the charges. If you want to fight corruption, learn from Kejriwal,” he said, citing instances of sacking and arrests of AAP ministers in Delhi and Punjab.

Warning that Opposition leaders like Mamata Banerjee, Tejashwi Yadav, NK Stalin and Uddhav Thackeray will be jailed by Narendra Modi if BJP wins, he said his arrest was meant to be a message to the country that if Kejriwal can be taken into custody, then anybody can be.

“People need to know, his mission's name is 'One Nation, One Leader'. To achieve this, there are two ways. One is to jail all Opposition leaders and the second is to sideline all leaders in BJP if they win. They have already sidelined L K Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Sumitra Mahajan, Shivraj Singh Chouhan who brought BJP back to power in Madhya Pradesh, Vasundhara Raje, ML Khattar…” Kejriwal said.

“Who is next in line? It is Yogi Adityanath. Take it in writing from me, if BJP wins, the UP Chief Minister will be changed in two months...He wants to crush democracy in this country. I am fighting against it," he said.

Referring to questions on who will be I.N.D.I.A. bloc's Prime Ministerial candidate, he said he has a counter question as Modi is turning 75 next September and he himself has set the retirement rule in the party.

“Now my question is who is BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate? If they can form the government, Yogi Adityanath will be first sidelined and then Amit Shah will be made the Prime Minister. Modiji is not seeking votes for him but for Amit Shah. Who will fulfil Modi's guarantees? Will Amit Shah fulfil it? I don't think they are going to form a government. But those who are going to vote for BJP should know that they are voting for Amit Shah,” he said.

Insisting that I.N.D.I.A. bloc will form the next government and that AAP will be part of it, Kejriwal promised full statehood for Delhi in such a dispensation. Emphasising that he did not resign when he was arrested because Modi had scripted it to finish off the party, he said he wanted to show that if democracy was jailed, it would run from jail.
 

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News Network
May 12,2024

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Mangaluru: Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat High School in Harekala, popularly known as Padma Shri awardee Harekala Hajabba’s school, is gearing up to inaugurate its first batch of Pre-University (PU) courses starting June 1. 

The government issued an order to elevate the school established by Padma Shri awardee Harekala Hajabba to the status of a PU College a few months ago.

The School Education and Literacy Department (PU Education) has formally sanctioned the upgrade for the school.

CD Jayanna, the deputy director of PU Education, confirmed that all necessary approvals have been obtained from the government to initiate PU classes.

“Hajabba’s school will kick off PU classes for its inaugural batch on June 1. We have appointed a senior lecturer as the interim principal for the PU college. Presently, the school possesses the essential temporary infrastructure to begin the I PU batch. Plans are underway to enhance the infrastructure for the PU college in the future. Currently, the school boasts adequate classrooms and facilities to commence PU classes,” stated Jayanna.

Harekala Hajabba, an orange vendor, personally erected the school in his native village, New Padpu in Harekala, situated approximately 35 km from Mangaluru. For several years, he has tirelessly petitioned the government for the establishment of a PU college.

Expressing his gratitude, Hajabba mentioned that 19 students who recently completed their SSLC examinations are poised to enroll in the new PU college. He added, “We anticipate enrollment from neighboring villages as well. Both the interim principal and the PU education department have been diligently orchestrating the necessary arrangements to initiate classes.” 

He extended his appreciation to the government, local representatives, and officials for their unwavering support.

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News Network
May 5,2024

Karwar, May 5: What commenced as a mere exchange of words between spouses swiftly transmuted into a calamitous ordeal, resulting in the heartbreaking loss of their innocent offspring. The heart-wrenching incident unfolded in the serene confines of Halamaddy village in the picturesque expanse of Dandeli, nestled within the idyllic expanse of Uttara Kannada district.

In the throes of a fervent dispute with her spouse, the aggrieved wife, succumbing to an overwhelming surge of emotions, callously propelled their tender six-year-old progeny into the somber depths of a nearby canal, thereafter alerting the local populace to her grievous act.

Promptly apprised of the distressing occurrence by concerned bystanders, the authorities were swiftly summoned to the scene to confront the harrowing aftermath.

Responding to the distress call, the diligent officers of Dandeli rural police swiftly converged upon the site where the innocent child had been cast into the unforgiving waters of the canal, subsequently effecting the retrieval of the child's lifeless form. 

Regrettably, it was discerned that a portion of the child's remains had been tragically claimed by the lurking jaws of a predatory crocodile.

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