Covid-19 Wrap-up: Which is the best approach in the quest to vaccinate the world?

Everyone deal with grief in different ways, however, this man who lost friends to Covid-19 in the second wave, thought it fitting to deal with grief by encouraging people to get themselves vaccinated, and how? By placing a fake ad seeking a fully vaccinated groom for a fully vaccinated bride.

India reported 92,596 fresh Covid-19 cases, taking the infection tally to 2,90,89,069, while the number of active cases dropped to 12,31,415, according to the Union Health Ministry's data updated on Wednesday.

Hinting at the possibility of an unlocking process in Karnataka from next week, Revenue Minister R Ashoka on Wednesday said that the state government is considering initiating the easing of curbs in four to five different phases. To begin with, the government is considering the extension of existing shopping hours to 12 noon. Besides, it is also considering allowing people to visit parks for exercising.

Vaccination is seen as the answer to slow a nation’s Covid-19 woes and Delhi’s Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia has said that the Centre should move proactively to procure Covid-19 vaccines for children as many countries have started working on it.

Several nation-states, especially low-middle income countries are still struggling to get their fair share of vaccine. Gavi’s Covax program aimed at solving this issue, however, has not been very successful yet. Covax was created to facilitate equitable access to vaccines. The first two pillars were focused on equitable access to diagnostics and treatment. As helpful as the arrangement has been, its model of approaching the problem has become out of date.

India is a strategic ally of the US and it needs America's help in its ongoing fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, top lawmakers here have said, urging the Biden administration to share the extra vaccines with New Delhi. They also said that at the same time, while assisting friends and allies, US intellectual property and innovations should be protected.

Covid-19 has hit India’s hinterland, no doubt, but among very few villages unaffected by Covid-19 is Elaneer village in Karnataka’s Chikkamagaluru district. As many as 136 families with a total population of 632 are residing in the village. The villagers had strictly adhered to Covid-19 regulations of the state government and did not move around unnecessarily. As a result, they did not contract the infection.

On the urban front, few places looked as vulnerable as Mumbai. But a year on, South Asia's most crowded city has surprised many by tackling a vicious second wave with considerable success. A proactive approach focused on 55 slums including India's largest, Dharavi, where a strict lockdown was accompanied by aggressive sanitisation of public toilets, mass coronavirus screening and a huge volunteer effort to ensure that nobody went hungry.

After Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday announced a price cap on service charges for Covid-19 vaccines at private hospitals, prices of jabs across manufacturers have seen a revision. After the revision, here’s how much you will have to pay for Covid-19 vaccines at private hospitals.