Telangana near to reach 1 lakh corona cases, death toll reaches to737

 HYDERABAD: Telangana reported 1,967 Covid-19 positive cases on Friday, taking the state’s tally to 99,391.Males accounted for more than 65% of the infected.

The state public health department said in a bulletin on Friday morning that eight people had succumbed to the virus in the 24 hours till Thursday night.

The fatality rate in the state on account of Covid-19 stands at 0.74%, lower than the national average of 1.90%. The government reported that 46.13% of the deceased had died of Covid-19, while 53.87% passed away due to comorbidities.

According to the bulletin, 1,781 people recovered in the past 24 hours, taking the total recoveries to 76,967. The recovery rate in the state stands at 77.43%, higher than the national average of 73.91%.

By Thursday night, the state reported 21,687 active Covid-19 cases, including 15,332 persons in either home or institutional isolation.

The state tested 26,767 samples by Thursday, taking the total number of tests to 848,078. The state said it was awaiting results of 1,300 samples. The number of tests per million people amounted to 22,843 by Thursday night.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/telangana-nears-one-lakh-mark-in-coronavirus-cases-death-toll-reaches-737/articleshow/77668237.cms

Covid-19 vaccine trials to be begin in Russia on 40,000 people next week

 Russia on August 11 declared that it had become the first country to approve a vaccine against novel coronavirus.Russia health ministry earlier said that the COVID-19 vaccine offers lasting immunity from the virus.

Days after registering "world's first COVID-19 vaccine", Russia will finally start the advanced trial. The phase III trial will involve more than 40,000 people, the TASS news agency reported on Thursday.

Russia on August 11 declared that it had become the first country to approve a vaccine against novel coronavirus. Dubbed as Sputnik V, the vaccine was developed by Gamaleya Research Institute and the Russian defence ministry. Russia registered the vaccine after less than two months of human testing. The results of initial trials have not been made public yet.

Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that one of his daughters had been inoculated with the vaccine. “I know it has proven efficient and forms a stable immunity, and I would like to repeat that it has passed all the necessary tests," Putin said.

However, the entire world raised question on safety and effectiveness of the vaccine developed by Russia. Russia health ministry said that the COVID-19 vaccine offers lasting immunity from the virus. The vaccine is expected to provide immunity from the coronavirus for up to two years, according to health ministry.

Clinical human studies started on June 17 among 76 volunteers. Half were injected with a vaccine in liquid form and the other half with a vaccine that came as soluble powder. Professor Alexander Gintsburg, head of the Gamaleya Institute that developed the vaccine, said that vaccination will start while the Phase III trials continue.

WHO begins discussion with Russia on COVID-19 vaccine

The World Health Organization’s Europe office said it has begun discussions with Russia to try to obtain more information about the experimental COVID-19 vaccine the country recently approved. Catherine Smallwood, a senior emergency official at WHO Europe said the agency had begun “direct discussions" with Russia and that WHO officials have been sharing “the various steps and information that’s going to be required for WHO to take assessments."

“This concern that we have around safety and efficacy is not specifically for the Russia vaccine, it’s for all of the vaccines under development," said Smallwood. She acknowledged WHO was taking an “accelerated approach" to try to speed development of coronavirus vaccines but said “it’s essential we don’t cut corners in safety or efficacy."

Russian officials said doctors might start getting vaccinated with their experimental shot this month and that mass campaigns could begin in October.

https://www.livemint.com/

Amazon launches online e-pharmacy services in India

Amazon continues to spread its wings in India. And now the e-tailer company has launched its e-pharmacy service for consumers. The Amazon Pharmacy is piloting in Bengaluru for now, allowing people to buy over-the-counter and prescription medicines online. Bengaluru is usually the pilot market for most companies, and Amazon has used the region for a similar test with its food delivery service earlier this year. Also Read - Samsung Galaxy M01 now coming to Amazon at discounted price from August 18.

Amazon, quoted in multiple reports, pointed out the medicines come with 20 percent discount. And this is clearly going to be Amazon’s play, looking to offset the existing players in the market. You have other online sellers like 1mg, Netmeds, Medlife and PharmEasy offering similar service. But Amazon’s wider pull and most likely, offering them through Prime program could entice consumers to switch sides. Also Read - Amazon beats Flipkart in Q2 smartphone sales online in India: Counterpoint.

The company claims it will offer genuine medicines in secure packaging. It is also offering medical equipment and devices like glucose meters,  and nebulisers among others. With the pandemic, those conditions are likely to appeal to the buyers. Also Read - Amazon launches food delivery service 'Amazon Food' in India.

Having said that, Amazon’s limited service availability could work against them for now. So, we’re eager to see if the company can expand its service base at the earliest. The Indian online pharmacy segment is riddled with unclear regulations, and Amazon could surely benefit from such a scenario.

https://www.bgr.in/news/amazon-online-pharmacy-india-launch-bengaluru-pilot-test-details-909548/

India’s role as pharmacy of the world has come into focus amid COVID-19 crisis

Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla today said India’s role as a pharmacy of the world has come into focus during the COVID-19 crisis. He said, India has a world-class pharmaceutical industry that is the producer of choice for critical medications with brand recognition in all geographies and markets. He added that the pandemic produced an explosion in demand for drugs such as Hydroxychloroquine and Paracetamol produced in India.

The Foreign Secretary was giving a virtual address to the National Defence College on 'India’s Foreign Policy Options in the Emerging World Order'.

Mr Shringla said, in a coordinated response involving several branches of government and multiple private sector pharma companies, India was able to supply large volumes of these drugs to friends and consumers across the world. It is also making its medical and public health expertise and capacity available to the entire South Asian region.

He said, India has not let the pandemic come in the way of diplomatic engagements. The Foreign Secretary pointed out that India’s wise counsel and the Prime Minister’s statesmanship have been sought and appreciated at various bilateral, plurilateral and multilateral platforms.

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