NATIONAL NEWS
A) States complain of shortage as pace of immunization dips after Centre’s takeover of vaccine procurement.
The weekly pace of vaccination has declined to nearly 60% of what was seen in the week after June 21, when the Centre entirely took over vaccine procurement from the States. The slackening has resulted in several States complaining of a shortage and an inability to cater to demand. On June 21, the first day of the new policy, nearly 91 lakh doses were administered and until June 27, about 4 crore doses were administered. While the week after didn’t match up, the period from July 5 to July 11 saw only 2.3 crore doses dispensed. So far about 38 crore vaccines have been administered since the drive commenced in January. In the week since June 21, six lakh vaccines a day were the norm. However, the last time India crossed that daily figure was July 3. To meet the Centre’s commitment to fully vaccinate all Indian adults by the year end, at least eight lakh doses have to be administered every day. Several States have reported having to shut down vaccination centres due to unavailability of stocks. We have 3,96,750 doses left in hand. So, the total coverage will reach 1.70 lakh. This is definitely not enough…We need nearly 11.5 crore doses but have received 1.67 crore doses. We require 10 crore more doses. The government is continuing its efforts to get more vaccines, said Ma. Subramanian, Tamil Nadu Minister for Medical and Family Welfare. Maharashtra has administered 3.7 crore doses thus far. The State government has claimed it has the capacity to administer 15 lakh doses a day. Health Minister Rajesh Tope said 70 lakh doses had arrived last week but was exhausted in just three days. The State Assembly had recently passed a resolution demanding 3 crore doses per month from the Centre for the next three months.
B) Uttarakhand cancels Kanwar Yatra over fears of Third Wave of Covid-19
Uttarakhand has decided to cancel the Kanwar Yatra in view of the Covid-19 situation, giving top priotity to the protection of human life, according to an official statement. The decision was taken by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami following a meeting with senior state officials on Tuesday evening. In the meeting, a detailed discussion was held on the occurrence of the delta plus variant of COVID, the possibility of a third wave and its effects in the country and abroad. The opinion of experts in this regard was also considered, said the statement issued after the meeting. The Chief Minister directed the Home Secretary and Director General of Police to take appropriate action. He also directed that the officials of neighbouring states should be requested to coordinate and take effective action so that they can be successful in stopping the pandemic.
C) Poll strategist Prashant Kishor meets Rahul Gandhi in Delhi amid factional strife in Punjab Congress
Ahead of a likely organisational and government reshuffle in Punjab, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday met poll strategist Prashant Kishor at his residence, PTI reported. Other party leaders like Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, AICC general secretary Punjab-in-charge Harish Rawat and KC Venugopal were also present during the meeting, where they are learnt to have discussed the party’s overhaul in Punjab and efforts to end factionalism in the state unit ahead of assembly elections. Kishor had earlier met Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on the impending changes in the Punjab Congress. Amarinder Singh and Navjot Singh Sidhu, who have been at loggerheads, have made a number of public statements against each other in recent months. Amid the tiff, the Gandhis have met the Punjab chief minister and Sidhu separately. There was no official word on what was discussed at the meeting with Kishor which lasted about an hour, but sources said the new Punjab Congress body would be announced in the next few days and the discussions were focused on it. There have been hectic deliberations over the past few days over the likely changes in the Punjab government and the party’s state unit. Both Sidhu and Amarinder Singh have also met the three-member AICC panel headed by Mallikarjun Kharge. The panel had earlier submitted its report to the Congress chief with its recommendations. The CM had then said any decision taken by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi would be acceptable to him and the party. The role for Sidhu in the organisation has remained a sticking point from the beginning as he is keen on the post of PCC chief, which is not acceptable to the chief minister, according to party sources.
D) India’s first Covid-19 patient tests positive again
A medical student at Wuhan University, China, who was the first Covid-19 patient in the country, has tested positive for the virus again. District Medical Officer K.J. Reena confirmed that the student, hailing from Mathilakam, near Kodungallur, has tested positive. The student did the screening test for travelling to Delhi for her study purpose. Her RT-PCR test is positive. As the student is asymptomatic, she is under observation at home, the DMO said. She has not taken Covid-19 vaccine. The third year medical student in Wuhan university was tested positive on January 30, 2020, becoming the first Covid-19 case in the country, when she came for holidays to her house at Mathilakam. She was discharged from hospital on February 20, 2020, after she tested negative. The student was continuing her studies online at Wuhan University when she was tested positive again. Nobody else in her family has tested positive so far, according to the Health officials.
E) Serum Institute to produce Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine
Serum Institute of India (SII) will be producing at least 300 million doses of Sputnik V a year, with the first batch of the Russian vaccine against Covid-19 from its facility likely to be rolled out in September. These details emerged with Russia’s sovereign wealth fund RDIF announcing, on Tuesday, a partnership with the vaccine maker to manufacture Sputnik V for the India market as well as for exports to several countries. We have reached a partnership agreement with Serum Institute of India to manufacture Sputnik V, Russian Direct Investment Fund CEO Kirill Dmitriev said in a media briefing from Moscow. The process of technology transfer to Serum was underway for the last three months and the firm is expected to release the first batch of the vaccine in September. As part of the technical transfer process, SII has already received cell and vector samples from Gamaleya Center, the developer of Sputnik vaccine. With their import approved by the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI), the cultivation process has begun, RDIF said in a statement. India is set to emerge as a leading production hub for Sputnik vaccine. RDIF’s partnership with Serum follows similar agreements it has got into with a clutch of other vaccine makers in India, including Hetero Biopharma, Gland Pharma, Panacea Biotec, Stelis Biopharma, Virchow Biotech and Morepen, to manufacture around 850 million doses a year of the vaccine.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
A) Sher Bahadur Deuba becomes Nepal’s PM for fifth time
Nepali Congress president Sher Bahadur Deuba on Tuesday became the country’s Prime Minister for the fifth time after the Supreme Court’s intervention. President Bidya Devi Bhandari appointed the Opposition leader as the Prime Minister in accordance with Article 76(5) of the Constitution. This is the fifth time that 75-year-old Deuba is returning to power as the Prime Minister of Nepal. His appointment is in line with the ruling issued by the Supreme Court on Monday to make way for his claim to premiership, replacing incumbent K.P. Sharma Oli. In line with the apex court’s verdict, President Bhandari named Deuba as the Prime Minister, Bhesh Raj Adhikary, personal secretary of President Bhandari, told reporters. A programme to administer the oath of office and secrecy to Deuba will be held at 6:00 PM in the evening, Adhikary said. Previously, Deuba served as Nepal’s Prime Minister four times, from June 2017–February 2018, June 2004–February 2005, July 2001–October 2002 and September 1995–March 1997. Deuba is required to seek a vote of confidence from the House within 30 days of his appointment as the Prime Minister, as per the constitutional provisions. The Supreme Court on Monday overturned Prime Minister Oli’s May 21 decision to dissolve the House of Representatives and ordered the appointment of Deuba as prime minister. The five-member Constitutional Bench led by Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher Rana said that Oli’s claim to the post of prime minister was unconstitutional. Reinstating the House yet again — the court had restored the House earlier on February 23 after Oli dissolved it on December 20 — the bench has ordered to make arrangements for holding the House meeting by 5 PM on July 18. In its order, the constitutional bench said President Bhandari’s decision to reject Deuba’s claim to form a new government was unconstitutional.
B) 1983 World Cup hero Yashpal Sharma dies of cardiac arrest
1983 World Cup hero Yashpal Sharma, who was admired for being a gutsy middle-order batsman at the peak of his prowess, died on Tuesday in New Delhi after suffering a massive cardiac arrest. He was 66 and is survived by his wife, two daughters and a son. Yes, Yashpal is no more with us. We just received the information from his family, a former India teammate of Yashpal confirmed to PTI. According to sources, Yashpal collapsed at home after returning from his morning walk. In his international career, Yashpal played 37 Tests, scoring 1,606 runs, and 42 ODIs in which he made 883. He also picked up one wicket each in the two formats. He was known for his gutsy attitude and his stroke-filled half century in the semifinal against England in the 1983 campaign at Old Trafford will forever be etched in public memory. Former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar expressed shock at his teammate’s demise. The 1983 squad had met on the sidelines of a book launch here couple of weeks ago. It is unbelievable. He was the fittest among all of us. I had asked him that day when we met about his routine. He was a vegetarian, teetotaller, used to have soup for his dinner and very particular about his morning walks. I am just shocked, Vengsarkar said. As a player, he was a proper team man and a fighter. I fondly remember the 1979 Test against Pakistan in Delhi (where Vengsarkar scored an unbeaten 146 and Yashpal 60). We both had a partnership which helped us save the game. I knew him since my university days. Still can’t believe it, he added. He was also a national selector in the early 2000s and was part of the panel which gave M S Dhoni his maiden India call-up in 2004. Yashpal was also part of the selection panel that picked the triumphant 2011 World Cup squad under Dhoni’s leadership. So, from being a part of a World Cup-winning to picking one that also won the trophy, Yashpal had seen it all. In between, he also witnessed closely a phase of immense turmoil in Indian cricket when the then captain Sourav Ganguly had a bitter fallout with the team’s Australian coach Greg Chappell in 2006. As a selector, he had famously backed Ganguly at that time.
