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Centre’s Covid panel recommends new protocols, increases Covishield dose gap to 12-16 weeks

The Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech’s indigenously developed Covaxin and Oxford-AstraZeneca’s Covishield are currently being used in India’s inoculation drive against coronavirus.

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The government panel the National Immunization Technical Advisory on Thursday recommended that the gap between two doses of the Covishield can be increased to 12-16 weeks while no changes were suggested in dosage intervals for Covaxin.

Currently, the interval between two doses of Covishield is four to eight weeks. This is the second time in three months Covishield dosage intervals have been widened. Earlier in March, the Centre had written to states and Union Territories to increase the gap between two doses of Covishield from 4-6 weeks to 4-8 weeks

The recommendations will be implemented after the approval of the Health Ministry. The recommendations of the NTAGI will be sent to the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for Covid-19.

The panel also said pregnant women could choose their vaccine and that lactating women would be eligible any time after delivery. Under current vaccination protocols, neither group is eligible to get the shots. 

Amid multiple states reporting a shortage of Covid-19 vaccine, Serum Institute and Bharat Biotech said that they can ramp up production up to 10 crore doses by August. Currently, Bharat Biotech’s indigenously developed Covaxin and Serum Institute of India’s Covishield are being used in India’s inoculation drive against coronavirus.

The National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation also recommended that those who have tested positive for Covid-19 and are waiting to take the vaccine should defer vaccination for six months after recovery.

The Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech’s indigenously developed Covaxin and Oxford-AstraZeneca’s Covishield are currently being used in India’s inoculation drive against coronavirus.

Even as the second wave of Covid-19 wreaks havoc, states have reported an acute shortage of Covid-19 vaccines. Maharashtra on Wednesday suspending its drive to vaccinate people in the age group of 18 to 44 years and Delhi temporarily shut Covaxin administering Centres for them as it has run out of stock.

Amid demands to ramp up domestic supply, Serum Institute and Bharat Biotech have submitted to the Centre their production plan for the next four months, informing that they can scale it up to 10 crore and 7.8 crore doses respectively by August, official sources said.

He stressed that India is the fastest country globally to reach the landmark of administering 17 crore doses in 114 days.

Read Also: Religious gatherings, election rallies among factors behind Covid-19 surge in India, says WHO

Meanwhile, leaders of 12 opposition parties wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking a free mass vaccination campaign against coronavirus among other steps in the wake of the COVID crisis.

2024 Lok Sabha Elections

Mallikarjun Kharge casts vote in Kalaburagi, Karnataka

The 81-year-old leader of the INDIA Alliance was accompanied by his wife Radhabai Kharge to a polling station at Basavanagara in Kalaburagi.

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Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge cast his vote at a polling booth in Kalaburagi, Karnataka on Tuesday. After casting his vote the Congress leader predicted a landslide victory for the grand old party in Karnataka and said he had no doubt about it.

The second phase of Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka is undergoing in 14 constituencies. The 81-year-old leader of the INDIA Alliance was accompanied by his wife Radhabai Kharge to a polling station at Basavanagara. While speaking to the media the Congress President said things are good, good reports are coming from everywhere. He said  Allinace partners  are getting strength in this 3rd phase (nationally). He said definitely in this phase of elections the INDIA Alliance will get good support from the people.

Kharge said he has been voting from Basavanagara in Kalaburagi since he became eligible for voting at the age of 21. He said he never got his polling locality changed. When he became Minister, when he became opposition leader in Parliament, he never forgot Basavanagara. He said the people here have given him love and affection and helped him in developing his leadership. He said he was grateful to the poor people who stood by him. He said he would always stand by them.

Kharge’s son in law Radhakrishna Doddamani is the Congress candidate from Gulbarga (Kalaburagi) Lok Sabha segment, which the Congress leader has represented twice in 2009 and 2014 but lost the election in 2019. BJP has fielded Umesh G Jadhav from the Kalaburagi constituency.

The 14 Lok Sabha constituencies where elections are underway on Tuesday are Shimoga, Davangere, Uttara Kannada, Dharwad, Haveri, Bellary, Koppal, Bidar, Raichur, Gulbarga, Bijapur, Bagalkot, Belgaum and Chikkodi. Karnataka has 28 Lok Sabha constituencies. The first phase of polling in the other 14 seats in most of the southern and coastal districts was held on April 26.

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Salman Khan firing case: Mumbai Crime Branch arrests fifth accused

The Mumbai Crime Branch on Tuesday made its fifth arrest in the case regarding firing at Salman Khan’s residence in Bandra.

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The Mumbai Crime Brand made its fifth arrest in relation to gunfire at the Bandra home of Bollywood celebrity Salman Khan, on Tuesday. Mohammed Chaudhary, the fifth accused in the case, was taken into custody by Rajasthan police.

The inquiry indicates that on Sunday, April 14, at Galaxy Apartments, Muhammad Chaudhary assisted the two gunmen who have since been detained in carrying out the shooting event. It is said that Chaudhary gave the two shooters money and assisted them in scouting the crime scene.

Chaudhary is being brought to Mumbai today where he will be produced in the court and a demand for custody will be made, the Mumbai Crime Branch said in a statement.

Chaudhary’s arrest coincides with the continuing investigation into the shooting incident that shook Mumbai’s Bandra neighborhood. This arrest adds a new dimension to the intricate network of people connected to the attack on Salman Khan’s home.

On April 14, two attackers riding a bike opened fire outside Salman Khan’s residence, the Galaxy Apartments. Before leaving the area, the two also fired rounds in the direction of Khan’s flat. After the two gunmen were captured by the police, their ties to the Lawrence Bishnoi gang came to light.

However, the case took a dark turn when Anuj Thapan, one of the gun suppliers, passed away. On May 1, Thapan was found dead in his cell, perhaps from a suicide. According to Mumbai Police, Thapan tried suicide while in custody and was declared dead after being taken to the hospital.

An important development in the inquiry was revealed by Anuj Thapan’s arrest on April 26, which illuminated the network that supplied the attack’s perpetrators with firearms.

However, the Thapan’s family has moved the Bombay High Court seeking a CBI probe into his death.

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2024 Lok Sabha Elections

PM Modi votes at a polling booth in Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat, urges people to ensure record turnout

Union minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah, who is contesting to retain the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat, was present when Modi reached the polling booth.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday voted at a polling booth in Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat in the single-phase voting for 25 seats in Gujarat. He reached the polling booth at Nishan Public School in Ranip locality of Ahmedabad city soon after the voting started at 7 am and cast his vote. The prime minister greeted people and signed autographs on his way to the polling booth.

Union minister and senior BJP leader Amit Shah, who is contesting to retain the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat, was present when Modi reached the polling booth. PM Modi also urged people to cast their vote in record numbers in the 3rd phase of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections on Tuesday and said their active participation will make the election more vibrant. Amit Shah was accompanied by his wife Sonal Shah, son Jay Shah other family members as they exercised their franchise.

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The prime minister congratulated the Election Commission for conducting the first 2 phases of Lok Sabha polls with hardly any violence and asked the people to come out in large numbers to vote. PM Modi further added the way the Indian elections are being conducted can be a learning process for other democracies, and it has been the subject of case study for many universities.

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Voting is taking place in 93 constituencies which are spread over 11 states and Union territories in the 3rd phase of the Lok Sabha elections. PM Modi also posted on X in Bengali, Assamese, Kannada, Gujarati, Marathi and Hindi. More than 1,300 candidates, including around 120 women, are contesting in the 3rd phase of the Lok Sabha election.

PM Modi votes at a polling booth in Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat, urges people to ensure record turnout

Among the prominent leaders Union ministers Amit Shah (Gandhinagar), Jyotiraditya Scindia (Guna), Mansukh Mandaviya (Porbandar), Parshottam Rupala (Rajkot), Pralhad Joshi (Dharwad) and S P Singh Baghel (Agra) are contesting the election.

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