Health

Coronavirus update: India adds more than 47,000 cases

Chinese doctor alleges authorities covered up the initial scale of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Wuhan

 
By DTE Staff
Published: Tuesday 28 July 2020
__

The world’s biggest vaccine trial for the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), that causes COVID-19, was underway July 27, 2020, reported news agency Associated Press.

The first of 30,000 planned volunteers received test shots created by Moderna Inc and the United States National Institutes of Health.

There are a number of vaccines in various stages of clinical trials across the world, said the AP report. The final phase of the Oxford trial will begin in August, followed by a vaccine candidate from Johnson and Johnson in September and Novavax in October.

Vaccines developed by China and by the United Kingdom’s Oxford University have started smaller final-stage tests in Brazil and other countries that are the most affected, the report said.

A Chinese doctor alleged local authorities of covering up the initial scale of the COVID-19 outbreak at Wuhan, considered to be the epicentre of the disease.

Professor Kwok-Yung Yuen, a microbiologist, physician and surgeon in Hong Kong, said physical evidence at the Huanan wildlife market was destroyed, said a July 27 report by news agency Press Trust of India, citing the British Broadcasting Corporation.

“When we went to the Huanan supermarket, of course, there was nothing to see because the market was clean already,” Yuen was quoted as saying by the report.

“We cannot identify any host which is giving the virus to humans. I do suspect they have been doing some cover-up locally at Wuhan,” he said.

Meanwhile, COVID-19 figures in India continued to climb.

  • 47,703 fresh infections were added July 28, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
  • The total number of cases were 1,483,156.
  • Of these, 496,988 were active cases, while 952,743 were cured or discharged. There were 33,425 deaths.
  • The number of people infected by SARS-CoV-2 rose to 16,661,850 in 213 countries & territories, according to worldometers.info and the World Health Organization.

Subscribe to Daily Newsletter :

Comments are moderated and will be published only after the site moderator’s approval. Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name. Selected comments may also be used in the ‘Letters’ section of the Down To Earth print edition.