India has approved its first intranasal vaccine against Covid-19 infection, a step seen as a “big boost” in the country’s fight against the pandemic.
Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday announced that the intranasal vaccine designed by Bharat Biotech had received government approval for primary immunisation against the disease in adults aged over 18, for restricted use in emergency situations.
“This step will further strengthen our collective fight against the pandemic. India has harnessed its science, R&D and human resources in the fight against Covid-19 under Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Mr Mandaviya said on Twitter.
He also expressed hope that the science-driven approach would help defeat the pandemic that has claimed over 528,000 lives and infected more than 44 million people in the country since it broke out in 2020.
The Hyderabad-based vaccine manufacturer Bharat Biotech International Limited had last month completed controlled clinical Phase III and booster dose trials for its intranasal Covid-19 vaccine.
It conducted two separate trials for the intranasal vaccine, one as a primary dose schedule and another as a booster dose, for subjects who had been double vaccinated with the two commonly administered Covid-19 vaccines in India.
It submitted the trial data to the national drug regulatory authority, the Drugs Controller General of India.
India started its ambitious vaccination drive in January last year after giving emergency approval to indigenously produced Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin and Oxford-AstraZeneca’s Covishield, manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, and later approved Russia’s Sputnik V.
The South Asian nation has so far vaccinated over 2.13 billion, including giving 40 million doses to children aged 12-14.
Covid cases are ebbing. with nearly 6,000 cases and 16 fatalities reported in the last 24 hours.
But the government is aggressively pushing the vaccination drive and running special booster doses and free door-to-door vaccination campaigns to improve vaccine access for its huge population in remote corners of the country.
The years Ramadan fell in May
About Krews
Founder: Ahmed Al Qubaisi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Founded: January 2019
Number of employees: 10
Sector: Technology/Social media
Funding to date: Estimated $300,000 from Hub71 in-kind support
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
CHINESE GRAND PRIX STARTING GRID
1st row
Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari)
Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
2nd row
Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes-GP)
Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
3rd row
Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing)
Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull Racing)
4th row
Nico Hulkenberg (Renault)
Sergio Perez (Force India)
5th row
Carlos Sainz Jr (Renault)
Romain Grosjean (Haas)
6th row
Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
Esteban Ocon (Force India)
7th row
Fernando Alonso (McLaren)
Stoffel Vandoorne (McLaren)
8th row
Brendon Hartley (Toro Rosso)
Sergey Sirotkin (Williams)
9th row
Pierre Gasly (Toro Rosso)
Lance Stroll (Williams)
10th row
Charles Leclerc (Sauber)
arcus Ericsson (Sauber)
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
The biog
Profession: Senior sports presenter and producer
Marital status: Single
Favourite book: Al Nabi by Jibran Khalil Jibran
Favourite food: Italian and Lebanese food
Favourite football player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Languages: Arabic, French, English, Portuguese and some Spanish
Website: www.liliane-tannoury.com
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
