Covid-19: China city under lockdown, India rejects claims of underreporting death toll

India’s daily Covid-19 cases remained below 5,000 on Saturday with 3,614 people testing positive in the past 24 hours, according to Union Health Ministry data. The country’s cumulative infection tally has risen to 42,987,875.

India has also administered 179.9 crore vaccine doses, including 91.9 crore first doses and 77.8 crore second does, according to the latest reports.

Here are 10 coronavirus updates of the day so far:

CHINA CITY UNDER LOCKDOWN

China’s ‘zero-Covid- approach to the pandemic has led to the administration of Changchun in the country’s northeast being ordered to lock down following a recent spurt in cases. The city’s nine million residents have been ordered to work from home. The government has also announced that it would soon begin mass testing.

Changchun, in north-eastern China, is the capital of Jilin province and an important industrial base. China’s Covid-19 cases crossed 1,000 this week for the first time since the pandemic’s early days in 2020.

CENTRE REJECTS CLAIMS THAT DEATHS EIGHT TIMES HIGHER

A study in the Lancet journal has claimed that India’s estimated cumulative excess deaths due to the pandemic between January 2020 and December 2021 was the highest at 4.07 million, eight times higher than reported. However, the Union Health Ministry has called the analysis “speculative and misinformed”, adding that the authors had admitted to several methodology flaws and inconsistencies.

US CONGRESS MEMBERS URGE VACCINE COLLABORATION WITH INDIA

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus in the US has urged President Joe Biden to launch a vaccine collaboration with India to end the pandemic. In a letter dated March 10, the Caucus members requested the US to lead distribution of low-cost vaccines to low-income countries that had low vaccination rates. They urged Biden to use the two vaccines resulting from India-US collaborations and end vaccine inequity through Covovax and Corbevax.

mRNA VACCINE

Pune-based Gennova Biopharmaceuticals, which is developing India’s first mRNA vaccine, has submitted the final trial data to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI), reports suggest. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his speech at the recent 76th United Nations General Assembly, had said the vaccine was in the final stages.