XBB1.5 variant of coronavirus found in India
New Delhi/IBNS: XBB1.5 strain of coronavirus responsible for the rising infections in the United States, was detected in India for the first time on Friday, media reports said.
Health
New Omicron subvariant accounts for over 40 pc of cases in US
Los Angeles: New Omicron subvariant XBB.1.5 is estimated to account for 40.5 per cent of Covid-19 cases in the United States in the week ending December 31, nearly doubling from the previous week, according to data updated Friday by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
France introducing mandatory Covid testing for people flying in from China
Paris: Beginning next month, all plane passengers traveling from China to France will be required to present negative COVID-19 test results and will be tested again upon arrival, Clement Beaune, the Minister Delegate for Transport of France said.
Maternal Mortality: Ticking up in Pakistan while India stems rise
Despite gains, maternal deaths haunt South Asia. While the figure ticks up in Pakistan, in India the rise has been stemmed amid challenges, report Amer Malik and Abantika Ghosh from across the border
France introducing mandatory Covid-19 testing for people flying in from China
Paris: Beginning next month, all plane passengers traveling from China to France will be required to present negative COVID-19 test results and will be tested again upon arrival, Clement Beaune, the Minister Delegate for Transport of France said.
1,50,000 Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres operationalized
New Delhi: In a significant achievement demonstrating strengthening of the country’s health infrastructure, India has surpassed a notable landmark- 150,000 Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres (AB-HWCs) have been operationalised before Dec 31.
India registers 243 fresh COVID-19 cases in past 24 hours
New Delhi: India registered 243 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours as the government has recently announced several precautionary measures to prevent a surge in cases amid rise in infection in China and few other nations.
Mandatory Covid negative report for all fliers arriving from China, 5 other countries from Jan 1: Centre
New Delhi/IBNS: All fliers from China, Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore and Thailand will have to submit a negative Covid-19 test report before arrival in India starting Jan 1, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said Thursday.
Floods in Philippines leave 32 dead
Manila/UNI: The death toll from heavy rain and floods triggered by a shear line in the Philippines has climbed to 32, according to the government data released on Thursday.
All govt centres in Delhi are out of free Covid booster shots, shows CoWIN app
New Delhi/IBNS: No government health centre in the national capital has free-of-cost Covid vaccines left, while paid vaccines for all at private facilities, continue to be available over the next few days, media reports said.
Floods of Fury Crush Tourism Earners in India and Pakistan
Fatalism and hope hang heavy in the air as Pakistan and India battle nature’s fury dealing a big blow to the small-scale earners in the tourism industry. Iffat Hasan Rizvi, K Rajendran and Sai Manish report from the two sides of the border
IIT Guwahati researchers report an efficient multifunctional enzyme that can breakdown woody biomass for conversion to bioethanol fuel
Guwahati: Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati researchers have studied the efficacy of a specific bacterial endoglucanase enzyme, RfGH5_4 from Ruminococcus flavefaciens in breaking down woody biomatter into simple sugar that can be fermented efficiently to produce bioethanol – a promising renewable fuel that can replace petroleum-based fuel systems.
Four international travellers test COVID positive in Tamil Nadu
Chennai: Four international travellers who returned from China and Dubai have tested COVID positive at the Madurai and Chennai international airports on Wednesday.
UN chief issues global ‘wake-up call’ on Day of Epidemic Preparedness
New York: Three years ago this month, the virus that causes COVID-19 was first detected, the UN chief reminded on Tuesday, the International Day of Epidemic Preparedness.
2022 Year In health: New Ebola and cholera outbreaks, mpox emergency, COVID-19 ‘not over’
New York: The UN warned that the COVID-19 pandemic is still a cause for global concern, and outbreaks of cholera, Ebola and Monkeypox (now renamed mpox) led to the mobilization of health and aid workers to contain life-threatening illnesses.
Assam: Health Department conducts Covid-19 mock drill in Government and Private Health Institutions
Guwahati: In line with the Covid-19 mock drill held all over the country, the Health Department, Assam has successfully conducted the mock drill in the state.
Japan govt imposing mandatory Covid-19 testing for arrivals from China: Reports
Tokyo: Mandatory testing for COVID-19 is being introduced by the Japanese government from December 30 upon arrival for travelers from China due to an increase in the number of confirmed cases there, Japanese media reported on Tuesday.
India fully prepared to deal with any Covid-19 eventuality: Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya
New Delhi/UNI: Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday said the country was fully prepared to deal with any eventuality, if the Covid-19 cases spike once again in the country.
Covid-19: Hospitals across country to hold mock drills to tackle any spike
New Delhi/IBNS: Hospitals across the country will be holding mock drills on Tuesday to assess their preparedness to tackle any Covid-19 spike, media reports said.
Philippines floods: Death toll touches 13
Manila: The death toll from heavy rain and floods triggered by shear lines in the Philippines has climbed to 13, said the government's disaster agency on Tuesday.
Death toll due to heavy winter storm across US rises to 50
Washington: At least 50 people had died in the United States by Monday morning as a result of heavy winter storm-related incidents, media reported.
Four foreigners found Corona positive in Bihar
Gaya: Four foreigners were found Corona positive in Bodh Gaya of Bihar who had come to participate in Kalchakra puja and discourse of Tibetan religious head Dalai Lama.
Kolkata: Suspected COVID-19 British national sent to isolation ward
Kolkata: A British national, who was on his way to Gaya via Kolkata, was on Monday taken to a city hospital after being detected with Coronavirus-19 during a random check at the airport, official sources confirmed.
Hetero’s Covid-19 oral drug 'Paxlovid' to receive WHO prequalification
Hyderabad: Hetero, a pharmaceutical company, on Monday announced the receipt of World Health Organization Prequalification of Medicines Program (WHO PQ) approval for its generic version of COVID-19 oral antiviral treatment candidate nirmatrelvir.
Leaked document shows Chinese health officials estimate 248 million people contracted COVID-19 infection in December:Report
Beijing: China might have witnessed 248 million people, or nearly 18 percent of the total population, contracting COVID-19 during the first 20 days of December, a leaked document has shown.
Agra: China-returnee tests COVID-19 positive, sample sent for genome sequencing
Agra: A man, who returned from China on Friday, has tested positive for COVID-19 in Agra, media reports said.
Centre asks states to hold mock drills at health facilities amid Covid spike in China
New Delhi/IBNS: As the Covid-19 cases are on a spike in China setting off an alarm, the Centre has asked states to hold mock drills at health facilities to ensure swift response if Covid cases in the country surge again.
Centre focuses on oxygen supply, ventilators in fresh advisory to states on Covid management
New Delhi/IBNS: The Centre has asked the states and Union Territories to focus on reliable medical oxygen supply in its fresh guidelines for pandemic management amid a massive surge in Covid-19 cases in China.
WMO releases ‘tell-tale signs’ of extreme weather conditions around the world
New York: From extreme floods to heat and drought, weather and climate-related disasters have affected millions and cost billions this year, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Friday, describing the “tell-tale signs and impacts” of intensified climate change.
Toronto surpasses target for 2020 Greenhouse Gas Emissions, calls for ambitious future targets
Toronto/IBNS: 2020 Sector-based Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Inventory, which tracks Toronto’s progress towards its GHG reduction targets has been released showing the city's community-wide emissions in 2020 was 43 per cent lower than in 1990, which exceeds the 2020 target of a 30 per cent reduction.