The dumped corpses have been found near the Uttar Pradesh and Bihar border
They washed up in the Ganges river, sparking a blame-game between the states
Officials in Bihar have said that it had counted 71 bodies washed up on the banks
Authorities placed a net in the river and increased patrols to fish out the corpses
A video has reportedly shown bodies being dumped by medical workers
Locals fear the Covid victims have not been given their sacred funeral rites
WARNING: Graphic images
Biocon ‘perplexed’ about Itolizumab not being in Covid protocol
May 18, 2021
But will ramp up production, says Chief Medical Officer Sandeep Athalye
Pharmaceuticals major Biocon is “perplexed and confused” that its drug, Itolizumab, does not yet figure in the ‘Clinical Management Protocol for Covid-19’ of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, despite proof of the drug’s efficacy.
“But we are ramping up production anyway,” says Dr Sandeep Athalye, Chief Medical Officer, Biocon Biologics, “because the demand has suddenly spiked since April”.
Novel antibody
Itolizumab, a lab-made novel anti-CD6 antibody (monoclonal antibody, or mAb), was approved by the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) for ‘restricted emergency use’ to treat cytokine release syndrome (CRS) in patients experiencing moderate to severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) due to COVID-19. Since July last year it has been administered to thousands of patients.
The dumped corpses have been found near the Uttar Pradesh and Bihar border
They washed up in the Ganges river, sparking a blame-game between the states
Officials in Bihar have said that it had counted 71 bodies washed up on the banks
A video has reportedly shown bodies being dumped by medical workers
Locals fear the Covid victims have not been given their sacred funeral rites
WARNING: Graphic images
MUMBAI, INDIA A growing number of current and recovered COVID-19 patients in India are contracting a deadly and rare fungal infection, doctors told AFP Monday as the vast nation battles to contain a massive outbreak of virus cases. The world s second most populous nation on Monday reported nearly 370,000 coronavirus infections to take the overall number of cases to just under 22.7 million, and more than 3,700 new deaths. Experts warn that the actual number of cases and fatalities could be much higher. Mucormycosis, dubbed black fungus by doctors in India, is usually most aggressive in patients whose immune systems are weakened by other infections.
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Opinion | How crowds are acting as super spreaders of coronavirus
There appeared to be some relief from the rising surge in fresh pandemic cases on Monday when the number of fresh Covid-19 cases went below the 4-lakh mark after a consistent rise for the last four days. Nearly 3.66 lakh fresh cases were reported during the last 24 hours, while there was a jump of only 9,000 odd active cases. This happened after a big surge for the last 55 days. Lockdown and night curfew are in force in 18 states because of which there has been lesser number of cases compared to previous weeks.Â