The interim efficacy trend of 81 per cent, analysed as per the protocol approved by the Drugs Controller General of India, puts it at par with other global front-runner vaccines, stated ICMR

Notification came after government started phase 2 of inoculation drive, which will cover people aged over 60 and above 45 with co-morbidities. As many as 25 lakh potential beneficiaries registered on Co-Win portal on Monday alone

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday took the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi as the country gets ready to expand its nationwide vaccination drive against coronavirus to drive down infections. This drive is for people above the age of 60 and those above 45 with comorbidities. PM Narendra Modi was administered home-grown 'Covaxin' by Bharat Biotech. In the current phase, eligible citizens can register and book an appointment for vaccination, anytime and anywhere, using the Co-WIN 2.0 portal or through the Aarogya Setu app. Watch the video for more.Also Read: Phase 2 COVID-19 vaccination: Are you eligible and how to register?

According to Maharashtra's health department, the Pune division's COVID-19 tally has increased to 5,24,760 with 1,765 new cases, while six fatalities took the death toll to 11,742

Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar said those who go to government centres will be administered the vaccine free of cost

Assembly Elections 2021 Full Schedule Live Updates: Polling will happen in eight phases in West Bengal starting March 27, Assam in three phases beginning March 27, and Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and Kerala in single phase on April 6

If you are above 45 and with comorbidities (with one or more diseases), you are eligible to get a Covid-19 jab. However, you'll have to produce a signed medical certificate, showing the severity of your illness

Vaccines will be given free of cost at govt centres. Amount people will need to pay in private hospitals will be decided by health ministryin 3-4 days, says Union minister Prakash Javadekar

The market in Wuhan, in the end, was more of an amplifying event rather than necessarily a true ground zero, said Dominic Dwyer, part of the WHO team that visited Wuhan

Balkrishna said that the medicines introduced during the press conference have been validated through in-depth in-vitro and in-vivo biological and chemical studies, along with randomised clinical trials

The commissioner said that these cases were detected between February 15 and 22, following which nine mobile teams were deployed and 500 RT-PCR samples were taken

Only two states, Maharashtra and Kerala, account for 75.87 per cent of the total number of active COVID-19 cases, as per the union health ministry

Yoga guru Ramdev's Patanjali Ayurved had on February 19 said that the Coronil tablet had received certification from the Ayush Ministry as a medicine supporting COVID-19 treatment as per the World Health Organization's certification scheme

Google on Wednesday said it would invest $15 million (around Rs 109 crore) to support small and micro enterprises in India in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic; The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation to register offences against people who violate COVID-19 safety guidelines; Air pollution caused an estimated 54,000 premature deaths in the Indian capital New Delhi last year, according to a study released on Thursday. Watch this and more on News Blast.Also Read: Drug marketing firms, manufacturers to be made equally responsible for medicine quality

Patanjali had rolled out Coronil for treating novel coronavirus on June 23 in the presence of Union ministers Harsh Vardhan and Nitin Gadkari

The vaccines currently approved for emergency use in India are Covishield, from the Oxford-AstraZeneca stable manufactured by Pune's Serum Institute of India, and Covaxin, developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research and the National Institute of Virology (NIV)

The surge in COVID-19 cases in some areas of Mumbai has triggered possibilities of another lockdown in the city. Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is planning to impose local lockdown measures and also seal the society in case of high prevalence of positive cases among residents.  Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray also issued instructions for all districts to make COVID norms stringent, including limited gathering during marriages, fines for face mask violations, geo-mapping in rural areas to identify regions with high positivity rate, and sealing of buildings where a cluster of cases are found. Watch the video for more details.Also Read: Mumbai to face another lockdown if people violate COVID-19 rules: BMC mayor

ICMR Director General Balram Bhargava further added that those taking aspirin and blood thinners can also be given these vaccines. \"There is no contraindication,\" he said

With no relief in sight from incessant rise in petrol and diesel prices, people turned to Twitter to vent their frustrations on the matter; The central government is set to notify the rules under new labour codes, which will have an impact on employees' cost to company (CTC) as well as employers' wage bills; Vaccination drive against COVID-19 and improving economic indicators have enthused employers to recruit. Watch this and more on News Blast.Also Read: Amazon to manufacture Fire TV Stick in India from this year

Serum Institute has applied for registration with Health Canada with the help of Toronto-based Verity Pharmaceuticals, Adar Poonawalla said