Tag: COVID-19

PM Modi virtually lays foundation stone of 13 critical care projects in Jammu and Kashmir

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday virtually laid the foundation stone of 13 critical care projects worth ₹350.25 crore in Jammu and Kashmir. He also dedicated six Food Safety on Wheels’ amounting to ₹2.63 crore to the people of the Union Territory through virtual mode from Rajkot in Gujarat.

Foundation stone for 100-bedded critical care block units (CCBUs) were laid at Government Medical College (GMC) Jammu and District Hospital Budgam, and 50-bedded CCBUs at district hospitals in Kulgam, Pulwama, Kupwara, Reasi, Poonch and Shopian besides GMC Baramulla, GMC Rajouri, GMC Kathua, SKIMS Bemina (Srinagar) and Public Health Centre Sonamarg.

Approved under PM-ABHIM and ECRP, the critical care units would provide services of emergency, surgical and intensive care to the patients, an official said. Most of the critical care services are confined to the tertiary care level with limited access to secondary care and referral transport systems.

The top five causes of mortality – coronary artery disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, stroke, diarrhoeal diseases and neonatal disorders – shall be managed timely at the level of these units itself, the official said, adding it will not only reduce the burden on tertiary care facilities but will also reduce the out of pocket expenses significantly, the official said.

The COVID pandemic has highlighted the need for critical care facilities, especially at the level of the districts. To augment the capacity of the district for assured treatment and management of patients with infectious diseases or critical illnesses by creating critical care hospital blocks or wings at district hospitals and medical colleges, according to the official.

He said the current architecture of the public hospitals is not equipped fully to handle the dual burden of meeting critical care needs and maintaining essential services as was seen during the two waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many hospital buildings, especially in the districts, do not have provision for segregating a part of the building as an infectious disease treatment block, the official said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Applications for US jobless benefits fall again as labour market powers on

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The number of Americans applying for jobless benefits fell to its lowest level in five weeks, even as more high-profile companies announced layoffs.

Applications for unemployment benefits fell by 12,000 to 201,000 for the week ending February 17, the Labour Department reported Thursday. The four-week average of claims, a less volatile measure, fell by 3,500 to 215,250, down from 218,750 the previous week.

Weekly unemployment claims are broadly viewed as representative of the number of US layoffs in a given week. They have remained at historically low levels in recent years, despite efforts by the US Federal Reserve to cool the economy.

The Federal Reserve raised its benchmark borrowing rate 11 times beginning in March of 2022 in an effort to bring down the four-decade-high inflation that took hold after the economy roared back from the COVID-19 recession of 2020.

Many economists expected the rapid rate hikes to weaken the labour market and potentially tip the country into recession, but it hasn’t happened. Jobs have remained plentiful and the economy has held up better than forecast thanks to strong consumer spending.

US employers delivered a stunning burst of hiring to begin 2024, adding 353,000 jobs in January in the latest sign of the economy’s continuing ability to shrug off the highest interest rates in two decades.

Last month’s job gain — roughly twice what economists had predicted — topped the December gain of 333,000, a figure that was revised sharply higher. The unemployment rate stayed at 3.7% and has been below 4% for 24 straight months — two full years — the longest such streak since the 1960s.

Though layoffs remain at low levels, there has been an uptick in job cuts recently across technology and media. Google parent company Alphabet, eBay, TikTok, Snap and the Los Angeles Times have all recently announced layoffs. Last week, Cisco Systems announced it was cutting 4,000 jobs.

Outside of tech and media, UPS, Macy’s and Levi’s also recently cut jobs. In total, 1.86 million Americans were collecting jobless benefits during the week that ended February 10, a decrease of 27,000 from the previous week.

Though inflation has eased considerably in the past year, the Labor Department reported last week that consumer prices remain well above the Fed’s 2% target. The Fed has left rates unchanged at its last four meetings.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

COVID-19: India logs 1,226 cases of JN.1 variant, highest from Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A total of 1,226 cases of COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 have been reported in the country so far with Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh recording the highest number of cases till now, according to INSACOG on Thursday.Da ta compiled by the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG) showed that 17 states and UTs have detected the presence of the variant.

Karnataka has detected 234 cases of JN.1 sub-variant followed by Andhra Pradesh (189), Maharashtra (170), Kerala (156), West Bengal (96), Goa (90), Tamil Nadu (88) and Gujarat (76). Rajasthan recorded 37 JN.1 cases, Telangana 32, Chhattisgarh 25, Delhi 16, Uttar Pradesh 7, Haryana five, Odisha three, and Uttarakhand and Nagaland one each, according to the data accessed by PTI.

The Centre has asked the states and Union Territories to maintain a constant vigil amid an uptick in the number of Covid cases and the detection of the JN.1 sub-variant in the country.

The states have been urged to ensure effective compliance with the detailed operational guidelines for the revised surveillance strategy for COVID-19 shared with them by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The states have also been asked to regularly monitor and report district-wise cases of influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) from all health facilities for early detection of a rising trend of Covid cases.

The World Health Organisation has classified JN.1 as a separate “variant of interest” (VOI) given its rapidly increasing spread but said it poses “low” global public health risk.

The JN.1 sub-variant of the coronavirus was previously classified as a VOI as part of the BA.2.86 sub-lineages, the parent lineage that is classified as a VOI, the world body said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

COVID-19: India reports 682 cases of JN.1 from 12 states till Jan 7

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The number of cases of COVID-19 sub-variant JN.1 reported from 12 states till January 7 rose to 682, official sources said on Monday. They said 199 cases have been reported from Karnataka, 148 from Kerala, 139 from Maharashtra, 47 from Goa, 36 from Gujarat, 30 from Andhra Pradesh, 30 from Rajasthan, 26 from Tamil Nadu, 21 from Delhi, three from Odisha, two from Telangana and one from Haryana.

Even though the number of cases is rising and the JN.1 sub-variant has been detected in the country, there is no cause of immediate concern as the majority of those infected are opting for home-based treatment, indicating mild illness, officials said. The Centre has asked the states and Union territories to maintain a constant vigil amid an uptick in the number of Covid cases and the detection of the JN.1 sub-variant in the country.

States have been urged to ensure effective compliance with the detailed operational guidelines for revised surveillance strategy for COVID-19 shared by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. They have asked to monitor and report district-wise cases of influenza-like illness and severe acute respiratory illness in all health facilities regularly for early detection of rising trend of cases.

The WHO has classified JN.1 as a separate “variant of interest” given its rapidly increasing spread but said it poses a “low” global public health risk. The JN.1 sub-variant of the coronavirus was previously classified as a variant of interest (VOI) as part of the BA.2.86 sub-lineages, the parent lineage that is classified as a VOI, the world body said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

COVID-19 cases rise in Singapore, clinics face higher than usual patient loads

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Doctors in Singapore believe the latest COVID-19 wave has peaked in the country, even as some clinics still face higher than usual patient loads, and doctors are watching out for possible surges in the coming months.

The doctors are seeing cases stabilise, down by around 20% from December, according to a Channel News Asia report on Friday.

However, clinics are already planning for more man power and medication supplies in anticipation of another surge in the months ahead. Healthway Medical, for instance, now sees an average of 50 to 60 patients come in daily with respiratory infections across its 57 clinics, the report said.

COVID-19 and influenza cases make up the bulk of them.

This is around 10% higher than regular patient loads but a slight drop from the peak around Christmas. The peak of all the upper respiratory tract infection cases has plateaued. Majority of people have already returned from travelling, CNA quoted head of primary care at Healthway Medical Group Dr John Cheng as saying.

Most of our clinics actually had enough buffer for all the acute and upper respiratory tract infections to cater for a sudden surge of patient numbers, he said. For the end of the year, there will definitely be a surge. And then, most of the time, during festive seasons, during holidays – with more and more people interacting, more travellers (travelling) in and out – we will be expecting some surges during those periods,” he said.

OneCare Medical is also seeing cases stabilise across its 38 clinics. It said cases are less likely to go up significantly again in the near term. We feel that the ARI (Acute Respiratory Infection) has already peaked, so we should see the numbers stabilise and probably slowly come down over the next few weeks, back to the usual baseline numbers, CNA quoted CEO of OneCare Medical Dr Jimmy Chew as saying.

Of course, if the weather continues to be quite cold, and there continues to be a lot of circulating strains of ARI pathogens, then perhaps we might still see the numbers being sustained,” he said. With Chinese New Year coming up (February 10), there will still be ongoing gatherings. And of course there are still some travellers travelling, especially those who want to take advantage of the off-peak season, said Chew.

There might still probably be a bit of infectious diseases still ongoing. But of course, hopefully, we have already seen the peak of ARI cases, so that we will observe a downward trend in the coming weeks,” he said. I think we need to keep a close surveillance of the situation. So, medication wise, we tend to stock up more prior to the expectation of this peak, said Dr Daniel Soong, medical director at Unihealth Clinic, was quoted as saying by CNA.

If we notice that there is an increase in cases and caseloads, we might deploy more manpower in our clinic to ease off the waiting time for the patients, Soong said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

India records single-day rise of 774 fresh COVID-19 cases in India

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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India has recorded a single-day rise of 774 COVID-19 cases while the number of active cases stands at 4,187, the Union health ministry said on Saturday. Two deaths — one each from Tamil Nadu and Gujarat — were reported in a span of 24 hours, according to the ministry’s data updated at 8 am.

The number of daily cases was in double digits till December 5 but it began to rise again amid cold weather conditions and after the emergence of a new COVID-19 variant, JN 1.

After December 5, the highest single-day rise of 841 cases was reported on December 31, 2023, which was 0.2% of the peak cases reported in May 2021, official sources said. Of the 4,187 active cases, the majority (over 92%) are recovering under home isolation.

An official source said, “The currently available data suggests that the JN.1 variant is neither leading to an exponential rise in the new cases nor a surge in the hospitalisation and mortality.”

India has witnessed three waves of COVID-19 in the past with the peak incidence of daily cases and deaths being reported during the Delta wave during April-June 2021. At its peak, 4,14,188 cases and 3,915 deaths were reported on May 7, 2021. Since the pandemic began in early 2020, more than 4.5 crore people have been infected and over 5.3 lakh have died across the country.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease stands at over 4.4 crore with a national recovery rate of 98.81%, according to the ministry’s website. According to the website, 220.67 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered so far in the country.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

54% of families in Karnataka have at least one member with COVID, viral symptoms, survey shows

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Karnataka, which has been grappling with Covid, has at least 54% of households having one or more persons unwell with viral or flu-like symptoms, a survey by LocalCircles shows.

Respondents were asked about the number of people in their family who currently have one or more Covid/flu/viral fever symptoms such as runny nose, sore throat, cough, headache, joint pain, body ache, respiratory issues. Out of 3,783 responses, 23% indicated that “four or more individuals” in their household have one or more Covid/viral fever symptoms; 23% said “two-three members”; 8% hinted at one person, and 46% stated no one.

In August, a similar survey was conducted in Karnataka, in which 33% of households were found to have one or more individuals down with Covid or viral symptoms compared to 54% this time around.

A few weeks ago, the Union Health Ministry sent an advisory to local authorities to maintain surveillance of “trends of influenza like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory infections (SARI)” leading to the state government stepping up vigilance. The states were asked to monitor “increase in respiratory illness predominantly due to usual causes like influenza, mycoplasma pneumonia, SARSCoV-2”. In addition, the states were asked to review hospital preparedness in terms of the availability of beds, masks, oxygen cylinders, antibiotics and ventilators.

A total of 15 deaths have been reported in the state since December 15, out of which, three patients were infected with JN.1 sub-variant.

Health officials said most of the Covid deaths in Karnataka were due to presence of comorbidities. Experts have stressed that there is no need to panic in the state as the infectious JN.1 variant seems to be affecting those who are elderly or have comorbidities.

With the majority of individuals with viral or Covid-like symptoms not undertaking the RT-PCR test, LocalCircles decided to conduct a citizen survey in Karnataka to estimate the magnitude of illnesses.

The LocalCircles survey received over 3,000 responses from residents of Karnataka. 62% respondents were men while 38% respondents were women.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

India reports 511 cases of JN.1 variant of COVID-19 till Jan 2

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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India has reported 511 cases of JN.1 variant of COVID-19 till January 2. Eleven states have so far detected the presence of the JN.1 sub-variant of the virus.

Karnataka has reported the highest number of cases at 199 followed by Kerala (148), Goa (47). Gujarat has added 36 cases, Maharashtra (32), Tamil Nadu (26), Delhi (15), Rajasthan (4), Telangana (2) and one each from Odisha and Haryana, according to the data by the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG).

The INSACOG’s data showed 279 Covid cases recorded in the country in December had the presence of JN.1, while 33 such cases were detected in November 2023.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has classified JN.1 as a separate “variant of interest” given its rapidly-increasing spread, but said it poses a “low” global public health risk. The JN.1 sub-variant of the coronavirus was previously classified as a variant of interest (VOI) as part of the BA.2.86 sub-lineages, the parent lineage that is classified as a VOI, the world body said.

However, in recent weeks, JN.1 cases continued to be reported from multiple countries and its prevalence has rapidly increased globally. The Centre has asked states and Union territories to maintain a constant vigil amid an uptick in the number of Covid cases and the detection of the JN.1 sub-variant in the country.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

India logs 656 new COVID-19 cases, active case tally now 3,742

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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India saw a single-day rise of 656 COVID infections while the active cases have increased to 3,742, according to Union health ministry data updated on Sunday.

The death toll was recorded at 5,33,333 with one new death reported from Kerala in 24 hours, the data updated at 8 am showed.

The country’s COVID case tally is 45 million (4,50,08,620).

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease has increased to 44.47 million and the national recovery rate stands at 98.81%, according to the health ministry’s website.

The case fatality rate stands at 1.19%.

According to the ministry’s website, 2.2 billion doses of COVID vaccines have been administered in the country so far.

Also read: New COVID-19 strain JN.1 mild, high vaccination rate eases concerns: Max Healthcare

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

New COVID-19 strain JN.1 mild, high vaccination rate eases concerns: Max Healthcare

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Hospital chain Max Healthcare Institute has shared encouraging news about the new COVID-19 strain, JN.1, indicating that its symptoms are generally mild, mostly manifesting as coughs and colds. This new variant, identified as JN.1, has been responsible for 341 cases so far, with a significant concentration in the southern state of Kerala.

Sandeep Budhiraja, Group Medical Director at Max, in an interview with CNBC-TV18, pointed out that with over 95% of the population vaccinated, severe symptoms from this variant are unlikely, suggesting a minimal health impact from JN.1.

While JN.1 is more transmissible than previous strains, leading to quicker spread, the resulting illness has been mild. “The good news is that the disease it will cause, or it has caused so far, has been mild,” Budhiraja stated. He also mentioned that India’s population has developed hybrid immunity against COVID-19, which should mitigate the severity of the illness.

Also Read | COVID-19 subvariant JN.1 live updates: Know mask guidelines and other details

However, he advises continued vigilance, especially for the elderly and those with existing health conditions, due to the variant’s transmissibility.

New-Delhi based Max Group operates in various sectors, including life insurance, healthcare, hospitality, real estate, and independent senior living. Max Group encompasses several companies, such as Max Healthcare, Max Life Insurance, Max Financial Services, Max Ventures and Industries, Max India, Max Specialty Films, Max Estates, and Antara Senior Living. Notably, Max Healthcare alone holds a market capitalisation of ₹63,090.95 crore.

Also Read | COVID-19 cases on the rise in India — what we know so far

For the entire interview, watch the accompanying video

Also, catch all the live updates on markets with CNBC-TV18.com’s blog

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow