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India's Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying said on Saturday that bird flu cases had been found in 13 Indian states. The Avian Influenza has been reported in poultry birds from nine states while in wild birds from 12 states.

As on January 23, outbreaks of Avian Influenza (Bird flu) have been confirmed in nine states (Kerala, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab) for poultry birds and in 12 States (Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab) for crow/migratory/wild birds, said the ministry in a statement.

However, crow/pigeon samples submitted from Rudraprayag, Lansdowne Forest Range and Paudi Forest Range of Uttarakhand; pigeon samples from Sriganganagar district of Rajasthan; crow and peacock samples from Fatehpur district of Uttar Pradesh have been found negative for Avian Influenza, the statement added.

Control and Containment is going on in epicentres of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Kerala.

Compensation is paid to the farmers whose poultry birds, eggs and poultry feed are culled/disposed of by the state as per the action plan. The Department of Animal Husbandry &amp; Dairying (DAHD) provides funds to states/UTs on a 50:50 sharing basis under ASCAD component of its LH &amp; DC Scheme, said the ministry.

The statement said that all the states are reporting to the department on a daily basis about control measures adopted by them based on the Revised Action Plan for Prevention, Control and Containment of Avian Influenza 2021.

(With agency inputs)

India's Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying said on Saturday that bird flu cases had been found in 13 Indian states. The Avian Influenza has been reported in poultry birds from nine states while in wild birds from 12 states.

India's Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying said on Saturday that bird flu cases had been found in 13 Indian states. The Avian Influenza has been reported in poultry birds from nine states while in wild birds from 12 states. As on January 23, outbreaks of Avian Influenza (Bird flu) have been confirmed in nine states (Kerala, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab) for poultry birds and in 12 States (Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab) for crow/migratory/wild birds, said the ministry in a statement. However, crow/pigeon samples submitted from Rudraprayag, Lansdowne Forest Range and Paudi Forest Range of Uttarakhand; pigeon samples from Sriganganagar district of Rajasthan; crow and peacock samples from Fatehpur district of Uttar Pradesh have been found negative for Avian Influenza, the statement added. Control and Containment is going on in epicentres of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Kerala. Compensation is paid to the farmers whose poultry birds, eggs and poultry feed are culled/disposed of by the state as per the action plan. The Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD) provides funds to states/UTs on a 50:50 sharing basis under ASCAD component of its LH & DC Scheme, said the ministry. The statement said that all the states are reporting to the department on a daily basis about control measures adopted by them based on the Revised Action Plan for Prevention, Control and Containment of Avian Influenza 2021. (With agency inputs)

Bird Flu cases in 13 Indian states so far, says government

The Bangabandhu Bapu digital exhibition, jointly inaugurated by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina at&nbsp;December's virtual summit has opened in Delhi. The exhibition dedicated to the lives of India's father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi and Bangladesh's father of the nation Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is currently displayed at Delhi's Vigyan Bhawan.

It will be subsequently displayed in different locations in Bangladesh, the United Nations in New York and finally culminated in Kolkata in early 2022. The exhibition has 21 walls of information and over 100 points of digital engagement.&nbsp;Bangladesh High Commissioner to India Muhammad Imran and his officers visited the exhibition as well.&nbsp;

Speaking to WION, Birad Rajaram Yajnik, the curator of the exhibition told WION, "It's a digital exhibition which speaks the language of technology. It gives out the message of the youth today of the lives of the 2 great leaders. The exhibition acts as a catalyst and you come to know interesting things about the 2 great leaders."

Key points of interest of the exhibition are a "meeting wall" that displays the only photo in the world that has both Bangabandhu and Bapu in one frame, a robotic signature of both the leaders, the favourite music of the leaders. Historical moments like Mahatma Gandhi's salt march, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman speech of&nbsp;March 7, 1971 is another noteworthy installation.

The pain and suffering endured by the Indians and Bangladeshi people during the brutal use of force by General Dyer in Jallianwala Bagh in 1919 and the genocide perpetrated by the Pakistani army in 1971 have been digitally shown. The "genocide tunnel" shows the depiction, the experiences of the many Bangladeshis who suffered in the hands of the Pakistani army in 1971 war of liberation.

The exhibition comes at a time when Bangladesh celebrates its 50 years of Independence. Indian PM Modi will be visiting Dhaka in March to be part of the Independence year celebrations. In fact, this year's republic day celebration will see a 122-member strong contingent from Bangladesh's Armed forces taking part in the grand parade. This is only the third time in India’s history that any foreign military contingent has been invited to participate. An Indian Air force's Dakota, which took part in the war, will do a flypast while Navy's tableau will be dedicated to 1971 war and how the war at sea was won.

The Bangabandhu Bapu digital exhibition, jointly inaugurated by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina at December's virtual summit has opened in Delhi.

The Bangabandhu Bapu digital exhibition, jointly inaugurated by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina at December's virtual summit has opened in Delhi. The exhibition dedicated to the lives of India's father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi and Bangladesh's father of the nation Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is currently displayed at Delhi's Vigyan Bhawan. It will be subsequently displayed in different locations in Bangladesh, the United Nations in New York and finally culminated in Kolkata in early 2022. The exhibition has 21 walls of information and over 100 points of digital engagement. Bangladesh High Commissioner to India Muhammad Imran and his officers visited the exhibition as well. Speaking to WION, Birad Rajaram Yajnik, the curator of the exhibition told WION, "It's a digital exhibition which speaks the language of technology. It gives out the message of the youth today of the lives of the 2 great leaders. The exhibition acts as a catalyst and you come to know interesting things about the 2 great leaders." Key points of interest of the exhibition are a "meeting wall" that displays the only photo in the world that has both Bangabandhu and Bapu in one frame, a robotic signature of both the leaders, the favourite music of the leaders. Historical moments like Mahatma Gandhi's salt march, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman speech of March 7, 1971 is another noteworthy installation. The pain and suffering endured by the Indians and Bangladeshi people during the brutal use of force by General Dyer in Jallianwala Bagh in 1919 and the genocide perpetrated by the Pakistani army in 1971 have been digitally shown. The "genocide tunnel" shows the depiction, the experiences of the many Bangladeshis who suffered in the hands of the Pakistani army in 1971 war of liberation. The exhibition comes at a time when Bangladesh celebrates its 50 years of Independence. Indian PM Modi will be visiting Dhaka in March to be part of the Independence year celebrations. In fact, this year's republic day celebration will see a 122-member strong contingent from Bangladesh's Armed forces taking part in the grand parade. This is only the third time in India’s history that any foreign military contingent has been invited to participate. An Indian Air force's Dakota, which took part in the war, will do a flypast while Navy's tableau will be dedicated to 1971 war and how the war at sea was won.

Digital exhibition dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi, Mujibur Rahman opens in Delhi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose would have been proud to see that the country has become strong and is following his footsteps from the Line of Control (LoC) to the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

The LoC divides Jammu and Kashmir between India and Pakistan, while the LAC separates India and China.

Bose would have also been proud that the government he dreamt of is fighting a pandemic with vaccines developed by it, and gave a befitting reply whenever its sovereignty was challenged, Modi said on the occasion of the 125th birth anniversary of Netaji being celebrated by the Centre as 'Parakram Diwas'.

"I sometimes wonder how Netaji would have felt if he had seen how a new and strong India is taking shape," he said at a programme held in the Victoria Memorial Hall here.

"Netaji had dreamt of strong India, from LAC to LOC we are following his footsteps. Whenever our sovereignty was challenged, we have given a befitting reply," he said while adding that country has a strong force and modern fighter aircraft such as Tejas and Rafale.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose would have been proud to see that the country has become strong and is following his footsteps from the Line of Control (LoC) to the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose would have been proud to see that the country has become strong and is following his footsteps from the Line of Control (LoC) to the Line of Actual Control (LAC). The LoC divides Jammu and Kashmir between India and Pakistan, while the LAC separates India and China. Bose would have also been proud that the government he dreamt of is fighting a pandemic with vaccines developed by it, and gave a befitting reply whenever its sovereignty was challenged, Modi said on the occasion of the 125th birth anniversary of Netaji being celebrated by the Centre as 'Parakram Diwas'. "I sometimes wonder how Netaji would have felt if he had seen how a new and strong India is taking shape," he said at a programme held in the Victoria Memorial Hall here. "Netaji had dreamt of strong India, from LAC to LOC we are following his footsteps. Whenever our sovereignty was challenged, we have given a befitting reply," he said while adding that country has a strong force and modern fighter aircraft such as Tejas and Rafale.

Strong India following Netaji's footsteps, from LOC to LAC: PM Modi

The Bangabandhu Bapu digital exhibition jointly inaugurated by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina at December's Virtual Summit has opened in Delhi. The exhibition is dedicated to India's Father of Nation Mahatma Gandhi & Bangladesh's Father of Nation Mujibur Rehman.

Bangabandhu Bapu digital exhibition being displayed at Vigyan Bhawan, Delhi

India will send a "gift" to Sri Lanka next week -- in the form of Covid vaccines.&nbsp;

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has announced the vaccine will reach the country on January 27.

The country will get 500,000 doses of "made-in-India" Covishield vaccine. With this, Sri Lanka has become the eighth country to receive such gift from India.

India began its country wide mega immunisation programme on January 16.

New Delhi has till date gifted vaccines to seven countries in the region as part of its neighbourhood first policy -- Bhutan (150,000) , Maldives (100,000) , Nepal (One million) , Bangladesh (2 million) , Myanmar (1.5 M), Seychelles (50,000) , and Mauritius (100,000).

India has so far been waiting for regulatory approval from Sri Lankan and Afghan authorities. The Sri Lanka's drugs regulatory body -- National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) -- gave a go ahead to Oxford Astrazeneca's vaccine on Friday.&nbsp;

The Indian embassy in Sri Lanka had welcomed the development, tweeting, "this clears the way for scheduling &nbsp;delivery of the vaccine from #India to #lka"

https://twitter.com/IndiainSL/status/1352624199899045900?s=19

The first jabs are expected to be given to health care workers in the country.&nbsp;

Colombo is expected to procure more India-manufactured vaccines commercially later.

Sri Lankan Healthcare Personnel were among the personnel of 13 countries who India trained last week. For two days, from January 19 to 20, India trained foreign personnel in administering the vaccine. These were from Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Bahrain, Brazil, Mauritius, Morocco, Oman, Seychelles and Sri Lanka.

Amid the Covid pandemic as part of Indian Navy's Mission Sagar 1, India has provided medicines to Sri Lanka.&nbsp;

Also, India-supported 1990 Emergency Ambulance service helped the country in a major way to deal with the crisis.

India will send a "gift" to Sri Lanka next week -- in the form of Covid vaccines. Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has announced the vaccine will reach the country on January 27.

India will send a "gift" to Sri Lanka next week -- in the form of Covid vaccines. Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has announced the vaccine will reach the country on January 27. The country will get 500,000 doses of "made-in-India" Covishield vaccine. With this, Sri Lanka has become the eighth country to receive such gift from India. India began its country wide mega immunisation programme on January 16. New Delhi has till date gifted vaccines to seven countries in the region as part of its neighbourhood first policy -- Bhutan (150,000) , Maldives (100,000) , Nepal (One million) , Bangladesh (2 million) , Myanmar (1.5 M), Seychelles (50,000) , and Mauritius (100,000). India has so far been waiting for regulatory approval from Sri Lankan and Afghan authorities. The Sri Lanka's drugs regulatory body -- National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) -- gave a go ahead to Oxford Astrazeneca's vaccine on Friday. The Indian embassy in Sri Lanka had welcomed the development, tweeting, "this clears the way for scheduling delivery of the vaccine from #India to #lka" https://twitter.com/IndiainSL/status/1352624199899045900?s=19 The first jabs are expected to be given to health care workers in the country. Colombo is expected to procure more India-manufactured vaccines commercially later. Sri Lankan Healthcare Personnel were among the personnel of 13 countries who India trained last week. For two days, from January 19 to 20, India trained foreign personnel in administering the vaccine. These were from Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Bahrain, Brazil, Mauritius, Morocco, Oman, Seychelles and Sri Lanka. Amid the Covid pandemic as part of Indian Navy's Mission Sagar 1, India has provided medicines to Sri Lanka. Also, India-supported 1990 Emergency Ambulance service helped the country in a major way to deal with the crisis.

Sri Lanka to get India's Covid vaccine gift next week

20 lakh Contracted doses of India made covid vaccines reached Brazil from India in the wee hours of Saturday morning even as the Brazilian President thanked Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a tweet depicting Hanuman Ji with the "Sanjeevani" herb.

Sanjeevani, mentioned in Ramayan is a "magical herb" which lord Hanuman brought by lifting an entire mountain.

The Brazilian President tweeted, "Brazil feels honoured to have a great partner to overcome a global obstacle by joining efforts. Thank you for assisting us with the vaccines exports from India to Brazil."

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
- Namaskar, Primeiro Ministro <a href="https://twitter.com/narendramodi?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@narendramodi</a> 
 
- O Brasil sente-se honrado em ter um grande parceiro para superar um obstáculo global. Obrigado por nos auxiliar com as exportações de vacinas da Índia para o Brasil. 
 
- Dhanyavaad! धनयवाद <a href="https://t.co/OalUTnB5p8">pic.twitter.com/OalUTnB5p8</a>
— Jair M. Bolsonaro (@jairbolsonaro) <a href="https://twitter.com/jairbolsonaro/status/1352630623173828610?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 22, 2021</a></blockquote>
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Not for the first time the Brazilian President has made references to Hanuman and Ramayan. Last year he wrote a letter to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting hydroxychloroquine and lauding Indian efforts.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/with-a-hanuman-image-brazil-president-bolsonaro-thanks-pm-modi-for-covid-vaccines-358644" hreflang="en">With Hanuman image, Brazil Prez Bolsonaro thanks PM Modi for COVID vaccines</a>

In the letter, he said, "Just as Lord Hanuman brought the holy medicine from the Himalayas to save the life of Lord Rama's brother Lakshman... India and Brazil will overcome this global crisis by joining forces and sharing blessings &nbsp;for the sake of all people."

India gave a go-ahead to commercial exports of India made vaccines from Friday, 7 days after it began its mega countrywide vaccination. Other than Brazil, Morocco got its contracted commercial supplies on Friday, becoming the first country to get the supplies.

South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, and Myanmar expected to get commercial supplies soon commence shortly. Both Myanmar and Bangladesh have contracted 30 million doses of vaccines from India. Supplies to Bangladesh is expected to begin next week.

South African govt has announced that they will be getting one million doses of covid vaccine in January and 500,000 doses in February of the oxford University-Astrazeneca vaccine--COVISHIELD from Pune-based Serum Institute of India.

Last week saw India gifting Covid vaccine supplies to 7 countries in the region as part of "neighborhood first" policy. These are Bhutan (150,000) , Maldives (100,000) , Nepal (One million) , Bangladesh (2 million) , Myanmar (1.5 M), Seychelles (50,000) , Mauritius (100,000),

Indian Navy's P8I reached Seychelles and Mauritius with the supplies on Friday. The delivery is part of a normal profile of the Indian Navy's P-8I, which carries out extensive surveillance in the Indian ocean.

In Mauritius, Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth was personally present at the airport, along with the Indian envoy to the country Nandini Singla as the supplies landed. Lauding India reaching out to its neighbourhood, PM Jugnauth said, "we warmly applaud India for leading by example &amp; PM Modi ji is donating covid vaccine to countries with which India has friendly relations. We feel highly privileged that Mauritius is one of those countries."

Adding, "The shipment of vaccines which have reached our shores today bears testimony of the international solidarity of India....we are also inspired by public announcement of PM Modi ji to the global community that India's vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity to fight the pandemic"

PM Jugnauth joins world leaders like Bhutan PM Lotay Tshering, Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, Nepal PM KP Sharma Oli and Bangladeshi PM Sheikh Hasina in expressing gratitude to India for New Delhi's vaccine outreach.

India produces 60% of the world's vaccines, with world health organization getting 70% of its vaccines from the country. Last year amid the pandemic, the Indian govt sent HCQ and Paracetamol to 150 countries reaffirming its position as the pharma capital of the world.

20 lakh Contracted doses of India made covid vaccines reached Brazil from India in the wee hours of Saturday morning even as the Brazilian President thanked Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a tweet depicting Hanuman Ji with the "Sanjeevani" herb.

20 lakh Contracted doses of India made covid vaccines reached Brazil from India in the wee hours of Saturday morning even as the Brazilian President thanked Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a tweet depicting Hanuman Ji with the "Sanjeevani" herb. Sanjeevani, mentioned in Ramayan is a "magical herb" which lord Hanuman brought by lifting an entire mountain. The Brazilian President tweeted, "Brazil feels honoured to have a great partner to overcome a global obstacle by joining efforts. Thank you for assisting us with the vaccines exports from India to Brazil." - Namaskar, Primeiro Ministro @narendramodi - O Brasil sente-se honrado em ter um grande parceiro para superar um obstáculo global. Obrigado por nos auxiliar com as exportações de vacinas da Índia para o Brasil. - Dhanyavaad! धनयवाद pic.twitter.com/OalUTnB5p8 — Jair M. Bolsonaro (@jairbolsonaro) January 22, 2021 × Not for the first time the Brazilian President has made references to Hanuman and Ramayan. Last year he wrote a letter to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting hydroxychloroquine and lauding Indian efforts. Also read: With Hanuman image, Brazil Prez Bolsonaro thanks PM Modi for COVID vaccines In the letter, he said, "Just as Lord Hanuman brought the holy medicine from the Himalayas to save the life of Lord Rama's brother Lakshman... India and Brazil will overcome this global crisis by joining forces and sharing blessings for the sake of all people." India gave a go-ahead to commercial exports of India made vaccines from Friday, 7 days after it began its mega countrywide vaccination. Other than Brazil, Morocco got its contracted commercial supplies on Friday, becoming the first country to get the supplies. South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, and Myanmar expected to get commercial supplies soon commence shortly. Both Myanmar and Bangladesh have contracted 30 million doses of vaccines from India. Supplies to Bangladesh is expected to begin next week. South African govt has announced that they will be getting one million doses of covid vaccine in January and 500,000 doses in February of the oxford University-Astrazeneca vaccine--COVISHIELD from Pune-based Serum Institute of India. Last week saw India gifting Covid vaccine supplies to 7 countries in the region as part of "neighborhood first" policy. These are Bhutan (150,000) , Maldives (100,000) , Nepal (One million) , Bangladesh (2 million) , Myanmar (1.5 M), Seychelles (50,000) , Mauritius (100,000), Indian Navy's P8I reached Seychelles and Mauritius with the supplies on Friday. The delivery is part of a normal profile of the Indian Navy's P-8I, which carries out extensive surveillance in the Indian ocean. In Mauritius, Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth was personally present at the airport, along with the Indian envoy to the country Nandini Singla as the supplies landed. Lauding India reaching out to its neighbourhood, PM Jugnauth said, "we warmly applaud India for leading by example & PM Modi ji is donating covid vaccine to countries with which India has friendly relations. We feel highly privileged that Mauritius is one of those countries." Adding, "The shipment of vaccines which have reached our shores today bears testimony of the international solidarity of India....we are also inspired by public announcement of PM Modi ji to the global community that India's vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity to fight the pandemic" PM Jugnauth joins world leaders like Bhutan PM Lotay Tshering, Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, Nepal PM KP Sharma Oli and Bangladeshi PM Sheikh Hasina in expressing gratitude to India for New Delhi's vaccine outreach. India produces 60% of the world's vaccines, with world health organization getting 70% of its vaccines from the country. Last year amid the pandemic, the Indian govt sent HCQ and Paracetamol to 150 countries reaffirming its position as the pharma capital of the world.

India's 'Sanjeevani' COVID vaccine supplies reach Brazil, 7 countries in neighbourhood

Indian drugmaker Bharat Biotech's coronavirus vaccine, which has been authorized for use in the country, proved safe and produced an immune response in a small group of adults aged 18 to 55, according to a study published in The Lancet medical journal.

The vaccine, developed with the&nbsp;Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), is being evaluated in a separate 25,800 person trial, which started in November.

Bharat Biotech said on Friday 13,000 people participating in the late-stage trial had been given the second dose.

The interim data published in the journal included three different vaccine formulations and a placebo group among 375 adults.

Two formulations of the vaccine, called COVAXIN, have been selected for more advanced stages of testing and further efficacy trials are warranted, the report said.

COVAXIN is an inactivated vaccine that introduces dead virus into the body to trigger an immune response.

This is the first peer-reviewed data for the vaccine that has come under scrutiny after widespread criticism over the lack of transparency on the approval process for the shot.

The vaccine was granted emergency approval by the drugs controller general of&nbsp;India&nbsp;this month along with another vaccine, Covishield, developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University.

India, which has reported the highest number of coronavirus infections after the United States, kicked off its own vaccination drive on Saturday in what the government called the "world's largest vaccination program."

Indian drugmaker Bharat Biotech's coronavirus vaccine, which has been authorized for use in the country, proved safe and produced an immune response in a small group of adults aged 18 to 55, according to a study published in The Lancet medical journal.

Indian drugmaker Bharat Biotech's coronavirus vaccine, which has been authorized for use in the country, proved safe and produced an immune response in a small group of adults aged 18 to 55, according to a study published in The Lancet medical journal. The vaccine, developed with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), is being evaluated in a separate 25,800 person trial, which started in November. Bharat Biotech said on Friday 13,000 people participating in the late-stage trial had been given the second dose. The interim data published in the journal included three different vaccine formulations and a placebo group among 375 adults. Two formulations of the vaccine, called COVAXIN, have been selected for more advanced stages of testing and further efficacy trials are warranted, the report said. COVAXIN is an inactivated vaccine that introduces dead virus into the body to trigger an immune response. This is the first peer-reviewed data for the vaccine that has come under scrutiny after widespread criticism over the lack of transparency on the approval process for the shot. The vaccine was granted emergency approval by the drugs controller general of India this month along with another vaccine, Covishield, developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University. India, which has reported the highest number of coronavirus infections after the United States, kicked off its own vaccination drive on Saturday in what the government called the "world's largest vaccination program."

Bharat Biotech's COVID-19 shot safe, produced immune response in early human trial: Study

The CBI has booked UK-based Cambridge Analytica and Global Science Research Ltd for illegally harvesting data of Facebook users in India for commercial purposes, officials said on Friday.

The action came after a preliminary enquiry into the matter which showed that Global Science Research had created an app "thisisyourdigitallife" which was authorised by Facebook to collect specific datasets of its users for research and academic purposes in 2014, they said.

The company then entered into a criminal conspiracy with Cambridge Analytica, allowing it to use the data harvested by it for commercial purposes, the officials said.

Facebook had collected certificates from both the firms in 2016-17 that data collected by them using "thisisyourdigitallife" was accounted for and destroyed. However, the CBI enquiry did not find any evidence of any such destruction, according to the officials.

"The enquiry prima facie established that Global Science Research Ltd, UK dishonestly and fraudulently accessed data of app users of "thisisyourdigitallife" and their Facebook friends," an official said, citing the FIR.&nbsp;

The CBI has booked UK-based Cambridge Analytica and Global Science Research Ltd for illegally harvesting data of Facebook users in India for commercial purposes, officials said on Friday.

The CBI has booked UK-based Cambridge Analytica and Global Science Research Ltd for illegally harvesting data of Facebook users in India for commercial purposes, officials said on Friday. The action came after a preliminary enquiry into the matter which showed that Global Science Research had created an app "thisisyourdigitallife" which was authorised by Facebook to collect specific datasets of its users for research and academic purposes in 2014, they said. The company then entered into a criminal conspiracy with Cambridge Analytica, allowing it to use the data harvested by it for commercial purposes, the officials said. Facebook had collected certificates from both the firms in 2016-17 that data collected by them using "thisisyourdigitallife" was accounted for and destroyed. However, the CBI enquiry did not find any evidence of any such destruction, according to the officials. "The enquiry prima facie established that Global Science Research Ltd, UK dishonestly and fraudulently accessed data of app users of "thisisyourdigitallife" and their Facebook friends," an official said, citing the FIR.

CBI files FIR against Cambridge Analytica over illegally harvesting data of Facebook users in India

Brazil, which has world's second-highest COVID-19 death count after the United States, has been urging India to send the AstraZeneca vaccine.

India to begin COVID Vaccine free jabs to Brazil, Morocco from today

India has allowed commercial export of Covid-19 vaccines being manufactured in the country from Friday. Brazil and Morocco will be the first two countries that are getting the commercial contracted supplies of 20 lakh doses each with flights leaving at 4.15 am IST and 8 am IST, respectively tomorrow.&nbsp;

Remember Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro had written to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for vaccines. In a letter, he said, "Brazilian government has launched the National Immunization Program against Covid-19" and "Among the vaccines selected by the Brazilian government, are those from the Indian company Bharat Biotech International Limited (Covaxin) and AstraZeneca and&nbsp;the University of Oxford (Covishield), also produced by the Serum Institute of India."

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/indias-vaccine-diplomacy-earns-praise-from-south-asian-neighbours-as-chinese-dominance-declines-358380">India's vaccine diplomacy earns praise from South Asian neighbours as Chinese dominance declines</a>

The commercial supply of vaccines to South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, and Myanmar is expected to commence shortly. Both Myanmar and Bangladesh have contracted 30 million doses of vaccines from India. South African govt earlier this week announced that they will be getting one million doses of Covid-19 vaccine in January and 500,000 doses in February of the Oxford University-Astrazeneca vaccine--Covshield from Pune-based Serum Institute of India.

Commercial supplies begin 7 days after India began its own countrywide vaccination program in which almost 10 lakh Indians have been vaccinated. On Wednesday began gifting made in India vaccines to countries in the region as part of its neighbourhood-first policy. Seven countries are getting vaccines under what is being referred to as New Delhi's "Vaccine diplomacy". These are Bhutan (150,000), Maldives (100,000), Nepal (One million), Bangladesh (2 million), Myanmar (1.5 M), Seychelles (50,000), Mauritius (100,000), the last 3 countries will get on Friday.

Regulatory approvals from Afghanistan and Sri Lanka is awaited even as officials from both sides are in touch for India's vaccine.&nbsp;

And not just vaccine, India is also providing training. For 2 days, from 19th to 20th India trained Healthcare Personnel of 13 countries in administering Covid-19 vaccines. These were Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Bahrain, Brazil, Mauritius, Morocco, Oman, Seychelles and Sri Lanka. The national and provincial- level Government officials, cold chain officials, and partners from WHO and UNICEF participated.

Amid the pandemic, India reaffirmed its position as the pharma capital of the world by supplying medicines such as HCQ and paracetamol to 150 countries. 60% of global vaccines are produced in India, with the World health organization sourcing 70% of its essential immunization vaccine from the country. India is the largest supplier of DPT, BCG and measles vaccines globally.

India has allowed commercial export of Covid-19 vaccines being manufactured in the country from Friday. Brazil and Morocco will be the first two countries that are getting the commercial contracted supplies of 20 lakh doses each with flights leaving at 4.

India has allowed commercial export of Covid-19 vaccines being manufactured in the country from Friday. Brazil and Morocco will be the first two countries that are getting the commercial contracted supplies of 20 lakh doses each with flights leaving at 4.15 am IST and 8 am IST, respectively tomorrow. Remember Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro had written to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for vaccines. In a letter, he said, "Brazilian government has launched the National Immunization Program against Covid-19" and "Among the vaccines selected by the Brazilian government, are those from the Indian company Bharat Biotech International Limited (Covaxin) and AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford (Covishield), also produced by the Serum Institute of India." Also read | India's vaccine diplomacy earns praise from South Asian neighbours as Chinese dominance declines The commercial supply of vaccines to South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, and Myanmar is expected to commence shortly. Both Myanmar and Bangladesh have contracted 30 million doses of vaccines from India. South African govt earlier this week announced that they will be getting one million doses of Covid-19 vaccine in January and 500,000 doses in February of the Oxford University-Astrazeneca vaccine--Covshield from Pune-based Serum Institute of India. Commercial supplies begin 7 days after India began its own countrywide vaccination program in which almost 10 lakh Indians have been vaccinated. On Wednesday began gifting made in India vaccines to countries in the region as part of its neighbourhood-first policy. Seven countries are getting vaccines under what is being referred to as New Delhi's "Vaccine diplomacy". These are Bhutan (150,000), Maldives (100,000), Nepal (One million), Bangladesh (2 million), Myanmar (1.5 M), Seychelles (50,000), Mauritius (100,000), the last 3 countries will get on Friday. Regulatory approvals from Afghanistan and Sri Lanka is awaited even as officials from both sides are in touch for India's vaccine. And not just vaccine, India is also providing training. For 2 days, from 19th to 20th India trained Healthcare Personnel of 13 countries in administering Covid-19 vaccines. These were Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Bahrain, Brazil, Mauritius, Morocco, Oman, Seychelles and Sri Lanka. The national and provincial- level Government officials, cold chain officials, and partners from WHO and UNICEF participated. Amid the pandemic, India reaffirmed its position as the pharma capital of the world by supplying medicines such as HCQ and paracetamol to 150 countries. 60% of global vaccines are produced in India, with the World health organization sourcing 70% of its essential immunization vaccine from the country. India is the largest supplier of DPT, BCG and measles vaccines globally.

India allows commercial export of Covid-19 vaccines from Friday; first stop Brazil, Morocco

Ex-Desert Knight 21: Rafale jets spearhead India, France air exercise at Jodhpur

The United States said today that the relationship between India and the United States has been further cemented with <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/kamala-harris-indian-family-is-waiting-for-her-to-become-president-358310">Kamala Harris</a> becoming the Vice-President of the country.

US press secretary Jen Psaki has said,"President <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/were-in-national-emergency-biden-warns-covid-19-death-toll-in-us-could-climb-to-half-a-million-next-month-358420">Biden</a> who of course has visited India many times, respects and values the long bipartisan successful relationship between leaders in India and the United States. It looks forward to the continuation of that."

"The first Indian-American to serve as vice-president is certainly a historic moment for all of us in this country which helps in cementing the importance of the ties between the two countries," Psaki added.

At least 20 Indian-Americans have been named or nominated for a key role in the Biden administration. There are at least 13 women in the Biden administration. Among the Indian-Americans Neera Tanden, 50, has been nominated director for the White House Office of Management &amp; Budget.&nbsp;

Vanita Gupta, 45, has been nominated as the Associate Attorney General at the Department of Justice. Mala Adiga has been appointed as the policy director to First Lady Dr. Jill Biden. 
&nbsp; 
Aisha Shah has been named as the partnership manager at the White House Office of Digital Strategy. Another Indian-American Sameera Fazili is set to take the position of Deputy Director at the US National Economic Council in the White House.

Indian-American Tarun Chhabra will serve as the Senior Director for Technology.

The United States said today that the relationship between India and the United States has been further cemented with Kamala Harris becoming the Vice-President of the country.

The United States said today that the relationship between India and the United States has been further cemented with Kamala Harris becoming the Vice-President of the country. US press secretary Jen Psaki has said,"President Biden who of course has visited India many times, respects and values the long bipartisan successful relationship between leaders in India and the United States. It looks forward to the continuation of that." "The first Indian-American to serve as vice-president is certainly a historic moment for all of us in this country which helps in cementing the importance of the ties between the two countries," Psaki added. At least 20 Indian-Americans have been named or nominated for a key role in the Biden administration. There are at least 13 women in the Biden administration. Among the Indian-Americans Neera Tanden, 50, has been nominated director for the White House Office of Management & Budget. Vanita Gupta, 45, has been nominated as the Associate Attorney General at the Department of Justice. Mala Adiga has been appointed as the policy director to First Lady Dr. Jill Biden. Aisha Shah has been named as the partnership manager at the White House Office of Digital Strategy. Another Indian-American Sameera Fazili is set to take the position of Deputy Director at the US National Economic Council in the White House. Indian-American Tarun Chhabra will serve as the Senior Director for Technology.

Kamala Harris as US vice president cements importance of India, US ties: Jen Psaki

Two Sri Lankan Tamils who were the main conspirators in an Rs.100 cr (approx USD 13.6 million) International drugs smuggling case have been nabbed by Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) officials in Chennai. It is learnt that the individuals were living in Chennai by concealing their real identity.&nbsp;

The case is regarding a drug-laden vessel “Shenaya Duwa’ that was intercepted by Indian Coast Guard in late November last year, off the Tuticorin or Thoothukudi Coast in Tamil Nadu. 99 packets of heroin, 20 boxes of synthetic drugs and five 9 mm pistols were unearthed from an unapproachable location on-board the vessel, besides a Thuraya satellite phone set.&nbsp;

Back then, the preliminary investigation had revealed that the drugs were transferred onto the Sri Lankan vessel ‘Shenaya Duwa’ on the high seas by a Pakistani dhow from Karachi and the contraband was meant to be sent to western countries and Australia.

Following the seizure of contraband the vessel’s six-member crew was also put behind bars, but the search for the main conspirators continued.&nbsp;

This led to arrest of the Sri Lankan nationals, MMM Nawas and Mohamed Afnas from Chennai. According to the NCB, Nawas and Afnas held important positions in the multinational Heroin syndicate, as they were controlling the mid-sea pick up and delivery of narcotic drugs from Pakistani and Iranian vessels.&nbsp;

It is said that both of them had fled the island nation when the Sri Lankan authorities closed in on them. It is also believed that there is an Interpol Red Corner Notice issued by Sri Lankan Government against Nawas.

Two Sri Lankan Tamils who were the main conspirators in an Rs.100 cr (approx USD 13.6 million) International drugs smuggling case have been nabbed by Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) officials in Chennai.

Two Sri Lankan Tamils who were the main conspirators in an Rs.100 cr (approx USD 13.6 million) International drugs smuggling case have been nabbed by Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) officials in Chennai. It is learnt that the individuals were living in Chennai by concealing their real identity. The case is regarding a drug-laden vessel “Shenaya Duwa’ that was intercepted by Indian Coast Guard in late November last year, off the Tuticorin or Thoothukudi Coast in Tamil Nadu. 99 packets of heroin, 20 boxes of synthetic drugs and five 9 mm pistols were unearthed from an unapproachable location on-board the vessel, besides a Thuraya satellite phone set. Back then, the preliminary investigation had revealed that the drugs were transferred onto the Sri Lankan vessel ‘Shenaya Duwa’ on the high seas by a Pakistani dhow from Karachi and the contraband was meant to be sent to western countries and Australia. Following the seizure of contraband the vessel’s six-member crew was also put behind bars, but the search for the main conspirators continued. This led to arrest of the Sri Lankan nationals, MMM Nawas and Mohamed Afnas from Chennai. According to the NCB, Nawas and Afnas held important positions in the multinational Heroin syndicate, as they were controlling the mid-sea pick up and delivery of narcotic drugs from Pakistani and Iranian vessels. It is said that both of them had fled the island nation when the Sri Lankan authorities closed in on them. It is also believed that there is an Interpol Red Corner Notice issued by Sri Lankan Government against Nawas.

Sri Lanka-Pak links smugglers involved in USD 13.6 million heroin case held in Chennai

India has highlighted the "irony" as Pakistan co-sponsored a resolution at the United Nations on safeguarding religious sites pointing out to recent demolishment of a Hindu temple in the country.

India in its statement on Adoption of Resolution on "Promoting a culture of peace and tolerance to safeguard religious sites" said,"The resolution can not be a smokescreen for countries like Pakistan to hide behind.".

Adding, "It is a matter of great irony that the country where the most recent attack and demolition of a Hindu temple took place in a series of such attacks" and "where the rights of minorities are being emasculated is one of the co-sponsors of the resolution under the agenda item “Culture of Peace.”

December 2020 saw demolishing of a historic Hindu temple Karak in the country's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The temple has been the target of attack in the past as well. It was demolished in 1997 and later reconstructed again in 2015.&nbsp;

The statement elaborated, "Pakistan with explicit support and connivance with the law enforcement agencies which, stood as mute spectators while the historic temple was being razed.".

It is not for the first time India had spoken about Pakistan's track record on the deteriorating situation of minorities. In fact, New Delhi has taken up several times abduction of Hindu, Sikh, Christian girls in the country by summoning Pakistani diplomats.

India statement saw a reiteration of "application of the principles of objectivity, non-selectivity and impartiality" to form the basis of discussions in the United Nations especially on the issue of religion and the top body "should not take sides and as long as such selectivity exists, the world can never truly foster a culture of peace."&nbsp;

Pakistan has several times raised Islamophobia at the UN but maintained a deafening silence when it comes to discrimination faced by Hindus, and others, particularly on its own soil.

India has highlighted the "irony" as Pakistan co-sponsored a resolution at the United Nations on safeguarding religious sites pointing out to recent demolishment of a Hindu temple in the country.

India has highlighted the "irony" as Pakistan co-sponsored a resolution at the United Nations on safeguarding religious sites pointing out to recent demolishment of a Hindu temple in the country. India in its statement on Adoption of Resolution on "Promoting a culture of peace and tolerance to safeguard religious sites" said,"The resolution can not be a smokescreen for countries like Pakistan to hide behind.". Adding, "It is a matter of great irony that the country where the most recent attack and demolition of a Hindu temple took place in a series of such attacks" and "where the rights of minorities are being emasculated is one of the co-sponsors of the resolution under the agenda item “Culture of Peace.” December 2020 saw demolishing of a historic Hindu temple Karak in the country's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The temple has been the target of attack in the past as well. It was demolished in 1997 and later reconstructed again in 2015. The statement elaborated, "Pakistan with explicit support and connivance with the law enforcement agencies which, stood as mute spectators while the historic temple was being razed.". It is not for the first time India had spoken about Pakistan's track record on the deteriorating situation of minorities. In fact, New Delhi has taken up several times abduction of Hindu, Sikh, Christian girls in the country by summoning Pakistani diplomats. India statement saw a reiteration of "application of the principles of objectivity, non-selectivity and impartiality" to form the basis of discussions in the United Nations especially on the issue of religion and the top body "should not take sides and as long as such selectivity exists, the world can never truly foster a culture of peace." Pakistan has several times raised Islamophobia at the UN but maintained a deafening silence when it comes to discrimination faced by Hindus, and others, particularly on its own soil.

India highlights 'irony' as Pakistan co-sponsors UN resolution on safeguarding religious sites

A video displaying inhumane nature and brutality has emerged from the buffer zone of Mudumalai Tiger Reserve in Tamil Nadu. Few persons at a private homestay cum farm, in Mavanallah, are seen hurling a large burning piece of cloth on a tusker (already hurt) that had wandered inside the property. The video is said to be of an incident that had taken place a few weeks back.&nbsp;

In the first part of the video, an individual holding a burning log is seen chasing the elephant. As the horror unfolds, at least three persons are heard speaking in the background. “That’s it, burn and die” an individual is heard saying towards the end of the video, as the elephant trumpets in fear and runs away.&nbsp;

Watch |&nbsp;

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Absolutely horrific. The people running a private resort throw a lit-tyre on a 50-year-old <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/elephant?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#elephant</a> in the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Nilgiris?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Nilgiris</a>, that died as a result of the injuries it suffered. <a href="https://twitter.com/SanctuaryAsia?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SanctuaryAsia</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/nehaa_sinha?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nehaa_sinha</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/elephantfamily?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@elephantfamily</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/Mugilan__C?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Mugilan__C</a> <a href="https://t.co/YE8UI8dBIi">pic.twitter.com/YE8UI8dBIi</a>
— Rohan Premkumar (@ThinBrownDuke26) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThinBrownDuke26/status/1352565590712487943?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 22, 2021</a></blockquote>
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Forest officials have confirmed that this was the same tusker that died earlier this week&nbsp;on January 19. “The death is caused by an earlier injury and a festering wound, which was a few months old. We had been providing treatment for the wild tusker, but this setting ablaze incident happened after that” KK Kaushal, Field Director, Mudumalai Tiger reserve told Zee Media.&nbsp;

Srikanth, Deputy Director of Mudumalai Tiger reserve has said, based on investigation they have arrested Prasath and Raymond Dean, whereas a search is on for Ricky Rayan, who is currently not in station.&nbsp;

Forest department officials say that the wild elephant nicknamed “Ronaldo” or “SI”was always spotted in and around Masinagudi-bokkapuram area. It was about two months back that the officials got to know of an injury on the elephant’s back and started observing the elephant’s movements, following which they deputed a team to feed, care for it.&nbsp;

“Our watchers noticed a deep hole(injury) in its back and thereafter we started feeding it fruits embedded with medicines. Once we tranquilized the elephant and treated it with antibiotics. There was some progress in the elephant’s condition gradually, but it always kept coming close to habitations and blocking the highways, without causing any harm” Srikanth, had earlier told Zee Media.&nbsp;

He added the their team had found the elephant to be very weak, a couple of days ago, after which they decided to tranquilize it and move it to the elephant camp for further treatment. It was when the elephant was being loaded onto a truck and taken to the camp that it collapsed and died, on Tuesday.&nbsp;

“Post mortem report has revealed that the deep injury in the back had led to puss formation in the lungs. The wound could have been from sharp bamboo edges and the injury was in an area that cannot be reached by the trunk” Srikanth said.&nbsp;

 
&nbsp;

A video displaying inhumane nature and brutality has emerged from the buffer zone of Mudumalai Tiger Reserve in Tamil Nadu. Few persons at a private homestay cum farm, in Mavanallah, are seen hurling a large burning piece of cloth on a tusker (already hurt) that had wandered inside the property.

A video displaying inhumane nature and brutality has emerged from the buffer zone of Mudumalai Tiger Reserve in Tamil Nadu. Few persons at a private homestay cum farm, in Mavanallah, are seen hurling a large burning piece of cloth on a tusker (already hurt) that had wandered inside the property. The video is said to be of an incident that had taken place a few weeks back. In the first part of the video, an individual holding a burning log is seen chasing the elephant. As the horror unfolds, at least three persons are heard speaking in the background. “That’s it, burn and die” an individual is heard saying towards the end of the video, as the elephant trumpets in fear and runs away. Watch | Absolutely horrific. The people running a private resort throw a lit-tyre on a 50-year-old #elephant in the #Nilgiris, that died as a result of the injuries it suffered. @SanctuaryAsia @nehaa_sinha @elephantfamily @Mugilan__C pic.twitter.com/YE8UI8dBIi — Rohan Premkumar (@ThinBrownDuke26) January 22, 2021 × Forest officials have confirmed that this was the same tusker that died earlier this week on January 19. “The death is caused by an earlier injury and a festering wound, which was a few months old. We had been providing treatment for the wild tusker, but this setting ablaze incident happened after that” KK Kaushal, Field Director, Mudumalai Tiger reserve told Zee Media. Srikanth, Deputy Director of Mudumalai Tiger reserve has said, based on investigation they have arrested Prasath and Raymond Dean, whereas a search is on for Ricky Rayan, who is currently not in station. Forest department officials say that the wild elephant nicknamed “Ronaldo” or “SI”was always spotted in and around Masinagudi-bokkapuram area. It was about two months back that the officials got to know of an injury on the elephant’s back and started observing the elephant’s movements, following which they deputed a team to feed, care for it. “Our watchers noticed a deep hole(injury) in its back and thereafter we started feeding it fruits embedded with medicines. Once we tranquilized the elephant and treated it with antibiotics. There was some progress in the elephant’s condition gradually, but it always kept coming close to habitations and blocking the highways, without causing any harm” Srikanth, had earlier told Zee Media. He added the their team had found the elephant to be very weak, a couple of days ago, after which they decided to tranquilize it and move it to the elephant camp for further treatment. It was when the elephant was being loaded onto a truck and taken to the camp that it collapsed and died, on Tuesday. “Post mortem report has revealed that the deep injury in the back had led to puss formation in the lungs. The wound could have been from sharp bamboo edges and the injury was in an area that cannot be reached by the trunk” Srikanth said.

Wounded tusker set ablaze in Tamil Nadu, dies later; video emerges

A woman healthcare worker died in Gurugram in Haryana on Friday, days after she had received a COVID-19 vaccine. An official, however, said there was nothing yet to suggest any link with the vaccination.

The 55-year-old woman died at her Gurugram home. The cause of the death is not yet known, and her body has been sent for an autopsy

"She had been administered COVID-19 vaccination on January 16. Her family reported her sudden death at her home today, but there is nothing yet to suggest and link with the vaccination," Chief Medical Officer of Gurugram Virender Yadav told PTI.

"However, we have sent her viscera for investigation and details will be known once the report comes," he added.

The worker was brought dead at the Medanta hospital. She did not have any reaction to the vaccine on the day it was administered.

Vaccination against COVID-19 began in Haryana on Saturday with several health workers, the foremost warriors in the battle against the pandemic, getting the shots on the opening day.&nbsp;

The vaccination drive will inoculate 3 crore healthcare and other front-line workers first in the queue, followed by about 27 crore people older than 50 or deemed at high-risk.

A woman healthcare worker died in Gurugram in Haryana on Friday, days after she had received a COVID-19 vaccine. An official, however, said there was nothing yet to suggest any link with the vaccination.

A woman healthcare worker died in Gurugram in Haryana on Friday, days after she had received a COVID-19 vaccine. An official, however, said there was nothing yet to suggest any link with the vaccination. The 55-year-old woman died at her Gurugram home. The cause of the death is not yet known, and her body has been sent for an autopsy "She had been administered COVID-19 vaccination on January 16. Her family reported her sudden death at her home today, but there is nothing yet to suggest and link with the vaccination," Chief Medical Officer of Gurugram Virender Yadav told PTI. "However, we have sent her viscera for investigation and details will be known once the report comes," he added. The worker was brought dead at the Medanta hospital. She did not have any reaction to the vaccine on the day it was administered. Vaccination against COVID-19 began in Haryana on Saturday with several health workers, the foremost warriors in the battle against the pandemic, getting the shots on the opening day. The vaccination drive will inoculate 3 crore healthcare and other front-line workers first in the queue, followed by about 27 crore people older than 50 or deemed at high-risk.

Gurugram health worker dies days after receiving Covid jab, autopsy awaited

Three Maharashtra government agencies launched a probe into Serum Institute of India fire on Friday. The fire at the world's largest vaccine manufacturer killed five workers. SII is manufacturing coronavirus vaccine developed by Oxford University and Astrazeneca. The probe into SII fire will be carried out by top officials in the probe agencies.

The fire at SII on Thursday damaged top two floor of the building that is located in SEZ 3 area.

Devendra Potphode, Chief Fire Officer, PMRDA, said officials from the planning and development authority, PMC, and MIDC have come together to ascertain the cause of the fire in the building.

Meanwhile, police have registered an accidental death and burning incident case with the Hadapsar police station, said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 5) Namrata Patil.

"As we are seeing today, the entire floor (4th and 5th) has been damaged. We are trying to ascertain the cause of the fire as well as how the fire spread," said Potphode.

Several types of equipment were damaged in the blaze, he said.

The PMRDA officer refuses to comment on the cause of the fire.

Santosh Warrick, Chief Fire Officer, MIDC, also said it is difficult to comment on the cause right now.

"We have started the probe. Our scope of investigation is to check how the fire broke out," said Prashant Ranpise, PMC's fire department head.

A team of forensic experts reached the spot and conducting their probe, said another official.

The Manjari facility is where Covishield, the SII vaccine against COVID-19, which is being used in the nationwide inoculation drive against the infection, is made.

The building where fire broke out is one km from the Covishield vaccine manufacturing unit.

(With agency inputs)

Three Maharashtra government agencies launched a probe into Serum Institute of India fire on Friday. The fire at the world's largest vaccine manufacturer killed five workers.

Three Maharashtra government agencies launched a probe into Serum Institute of India fire on Friday. The fire at the world's largest vaccine manufacturer killed five workers. SII is manufacturing coronavirus vaccine developed by Oxford University and Astrazeneca. The probe into SII fire will be carried out by top officials in the probe agencies. The fire at SII on Thursday damaged top two floor of the building that is located in SEZ 3 area. Devendra Potphode, Chief Fire Officer, PMRDA, said officials from the planning and development authority, PMC, and MIDC have come together to ascertain the cause of the fire in the building. Meanwhile, police have registered an accidental death and burning incident case with the Hadapsar police station, said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 5) Namrata Patil. "As we are seeing today, the entire floor (4th and 5th) has been damaged. We are trying to ascertain the cause of the fire as well as how the fire spread," said Potphode. Several types of equipment were damaged in the blaze, he said. The PMRDA officer refuses to comment on the cause of the fire. Santosh Warrick, Chief Fire Officer, MIDC, also said it is difficult to comment on the cause right now. "We have started the probe. Our scope of investigation is to check how the fire broke out," said Prashant Ranpise, PMC's fire department head. A team of forensic experts reached the spot and conducting their probe, said another official. The Manjari facility is where Covishield, the SII vaccine against COVID-19, which is being used in the nationwide inoculation drive against the infection, is made. The building where fire broke out is one km from the Covishield vaccine manufacturing unit. (With agency inputs)

Serum Institute fire: Three Maharashtra government agencies launch probe

After administering the coronavirus vaccine in one of the biggest democracies of the world, India has now started exporting the domestically-manufactured vaccine to other parts of the world.

With the intention of helping neighbours and other countries around the world, India, on Friday, started exporting shots of the AstraZeneca-Oxford developed coronavirus vaccine to Brazil.

Also read|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/indias-vaccine-diplomacy-earns-praise-from-south-asian-neighbours-as-chinese-dominance-declines-358380">India's vaccine diplomacy earns praise from South Asian neighbours as Chinese dominance declines</a>

A shipment of 200,000 doses of Covishield vaccine has already left for the European country, Brazil, on Friday morning.&nbsp;

In addition to this, 100,000 doses were also exported to Mauritius and 50,000 dosages to Seychelles packed in an&nbsp;Indian Navy P-8I maritime reconnaissance aircraft.

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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WATCH</a> Mumbai: Indian Navy P-8I maritime reconnaissance aircraft will supply 1 lakh dosages of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/COVID19?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#COVID19</a> vaccine to Mauritius and 50,000 dosages to Seychelles. The consignment will be first delivered to Seychelles and then to Mauritius. <a href="https://t.co/3reSjxSOLB">pic.twitter.com/3reSjxSOLB</a>
— ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/1352507772487704576?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 22, 2021</a></blockquote>
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Brazil's Foreign Affairs minister took to Twitter to thank India and Jaishankar for keeping Brazil in the priority list of receiving the coronavirus vaccine. "The government of India has placed Brazil on the highest priority: we are one of the first two countries to receive vaccines against Covid purchased in India," he tweeted.&nbsp;(translated text)

The Brazilian&nbsp;Ambassador André Aranha Corrêa do Lago also thanked Serum Institute of India (SII) for the doses of vaccine and the 'professionalism' demonstrated during the transportation. "Thank you&nbsp;@SerumInstIndia&nbsp;for the amazing professionalism demonstrated while shipping this batch of #OxfordAstraZeneca vaccines to Brazil &amp; immense appreciation for and thanks to the Government of India for their support," the tweet read.

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“Thank you <a href="https://twitter.com/SerumInstIndia?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SerumInstIndia</a> for the amazing professionalism demonstrated while shipping this batch of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OxfordAstraZeneca?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OxfordAstraZeneca</a> vaccines to Brazil &amp; immense appreciation for and thanks to the Government of India for their support” 
 
— Ambassador André Aranha Corrêa do Lago <a href="https://t.co/za4ThUb9Z7">pic.twitter.com/za4ThUb9Z7</a>
— Brazil in India (@BrazilEmbassyIN) <a href="https://twitter.com/BrazilEmbassyIN/status/1352547326120718336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 22, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/india-to-begin-covid-vaccine-free-jabs-to-brazil-morocco-from-today-358477">WATCH|</a>

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Jair Bolsonaro, the President of Brazil, also acknowledged India's supply of vaccines and thanked the Indian government. "The government of India has released vaccine exports against Covid-19, and the first shipments will be sent this Friday to Brazil and Morocco, said the secretary of Foreign Affairs from India," he tweeted.

India has already supplied consignment of 1 million samples of the coronavirus vaccine, almost a week after it requested India to keep <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/promise-fulfilled-says-indian-envoy-as-vaccine-reaches-nepal-within-a-week-358322">Nepal in priority.</a>

After administering the coronavirus vaccine in one of the biggest democracies of the world, India has now started exporting the domestically-manufactured vaccine to other parts of the world.

After administering the coronavirus vaccine in one of the biggest democracies of the world, India has now started exporting the domestically-manufactured vaccine to other parts of the world. With the intention of helping neighbours and other countries around the world, India, on Friday, started exporting shots of the AstraZeneca-Oxford developed coronavirus vaccine to Brazil. Also read| India's vaccine diplomacy earns praise from South Asian neighbours as Chinese dominance declines A shipment of 200,000 doses of Covishield vaccine has already left for the European country, Brazil, on Friday morning. In addition to this, 100,000 doses were also exported to Mauritius and 50,000 dosages to Seychelles packed in an Indian Navy P-8I maritime reconnaissance aircraft. #WATCH Mumbai: Indian Navy P-8I maritime reconnaissance aircraft will supply 1 lakh dosages of #COVID19 vaccine to Mauritius and 50,000 dosages to Seychelles. The consignment will be first delivered to Seychelles and then to Mauritius. pic.twitter.com/3reSjxSOLB — ANI (@ANI) January 22, 2021 × Brazil's Foreign Affairs minister took to Twitter to thank India and Jaishankar for keeping Brazil in the priority list of receiving the coronavirus vaccine. "The government of India has placed Brazil on the highest priority: we are one of the first two countries to receive vaccines against Covid purchased in India," he tweeted. (translated text) The Brazilian Ambassador André Aranha Corrêa do Lago also thanked Serum Institute of India (SII) for the doses of vaccine and the 'professionalism' demonstrated during the transportation. "Thank you @SerumInstIndia for the amazing professionalism demonstrated while shipping this batch of #OxfordAstraZeneca vaccines to Brazil & immense appreciation for and thanks to the Government of India for their support," the tweet read. “Thank you @SerumInstIndia for the amazing professionalism demonstrated while shipping this batch of #OxfordAstraZeneca vaccines to Brazil & immense appreciation for and thanks to the Government of India for their support” — Ambassador André Aranha Corrêa do Lago pic.twitter.com/za4ThUb9Z7 — Brazil in India (@BrazilEmbassyIN) January 22, 2021 × WATCH| Jair Bolsonaro, the President of Brazil, also acknowledged India's supply of vaccines and thanked the Indian government. "The government of India has released vaccine exports against Covid-19, and the first shipments will be sent this Friday to Brazil and Morocco, said the secretary of Foreign Affairs from India," he tweeted. India has already supplied consignment of 1 million samples of the coronavirus vaccine, almost a week after it requested India to keep Nepal in priority.

India starts export of coronavirus vaccine to Brazil, Mauritius; Brazil thanks for 'professionalism'

India: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday registered a case against UK-based political consulting company Cambridge Analytica for the 'illegal harvesting' of personal data from Facebook users.

CBI registers case against Cambridge Analytica over Facebook data theft

Facebook executives on Thursday fielded questions from an Indian parliamentary panel about changes to WhatsApp's privacy policy, days after the country's technology ministry asked the messaging platform to withdraw them.

The committee asked why Facebook needed to change WhatsApp's privacy terms and how it will impact users, a panel member told reporters on condition of anonymity after the meeting.

"Members wanted to know the implications of the policy for Indian consumers," the panel member said, adding that WhatsApp has said it will submit written responses.

A WhatsApp spokeswoman said the company had provided its views and will continue to assist the committee in the future.

With 400 million users, India is WhatsApp's biggest market, and the messaging service has big plans for the country's growing digital payments space, including selling health insurance via partners.

The messaging platform this month kicked off a storm when it informed users it was preparing a new privacy policy, under which it could share limited user data, including phone number and location, with Facebook and its group firms.

Demand for rival applications such as Signal and Telegram surged on privacy concerns and WhatsApp last week decided to delay the new policy launch to May from February.

Facebook last year invested $5.7 billion in the digital unit of Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate Reliance Industries, with a big part of that aimed at drawing in tens of millions of traditional shop owners to use digital payments via WhatsApp.

India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology this week said in an email to WhatsApp's boss that the new privacy policy terms take away choice from Indian users.

Facebook executives on Thursday fielded questions from an Indian parliamentary panel about changes to WhatsApp's privacy policy, days after the country's technology ministry asked the messaging platform to withdraw them.

Facebook executives on Thursday fielded questions from an Indian parliamentary panel about changes to WhatsApp's privacy policy, days after the country's technology ministry asked the messaging platform to withdraw them. The committee asked why Facebook needed to change WhatsApp's privacy terms and how it will impact users, a panel member told reporters on condition of anonymity after the meeting. "Members wanted to know the implications of the policy for Indian consumers," the panel member said, adding that WhatsApp has said it will submit written responses. A WhatsApp spokeswoman said the company had provided its views and will continue to assist the committee in the future. With 400 million users, India is WhatsApp's biggest market, and the messaging service has big plans for the country's growing digital payments space, including selling health insurance via partners. The messaging platform this month kicked off a storm when it informed users it was preparing a new privacy policy, under which it could share limited user data, including phone number and location, with Facebook and its group firms. Demand for rival applications such as Signal and Telegram surged on privacy concerns and WhatsApp last week decided to delay the new policy launch to May from February. Facebook last year invested $5.7 billion in the digital unit of Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate Reliance Industries, with a big part of that aimed at drawing in tens of millions of traditional shop owners to use digital payments via WhatsApp. India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology this week said in an email to WhatsApp's boss that the new privacy policy terms take away choice from Indian users.

India parliament panel questions Facebook on WhatsApp's privacy terms

India's Bharat Biotech submitted on Thursday an application for the emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccines in the Philippines, Food and Drug Administration chief Rolando Enrique Domingo said.

If allowed to go ahead, this would be the first trial of any coronavirus vaccine in Bangladesh and could give the densely-populated country of more than 160 million faster access to the shot for mass use.

The vaccine, developed with the Indian Council of Medical Research, was given the green light for restricted use in India this month without any efficacy data.

"We have received their proposal. The committee will review it," Mahmood-uz-Jahan, a director at the state-run Bangladesh Medical Research Council, told Reuters, declining to give details.

The Dhaka-based International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B), has applied to run the trial on behalf of Bharat Biotech, said a source with direct knowledge of the matter who declined to be named citing internal rules.

ICDDR,B declined to comment. Spokespeople for Bharat Biotech had no immediate comment.

Sinovac Biotech's late-stage trial of a potential vaccine in Bangladesh has become uncertain after Dhaka refused to meet the Chinese company’s demand for co-funding.

Bharat Biotech started a late-stage trial for COVAXIN at home in November and a top Indian government vaccine official, Vinod Kumar Paul, has told Reuters that a smaller study involving 1,000-2,000 people could also be done in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh will from Thursday start receiving millions of India-made doses of another vaccine licensed from Oxford University and AstraZeneca. It is being mass produced by the Serum Institute of India, the world's largest vaccine maker.

Bangladesh, however, has no immediate plans to buy COVAXIN whose efficacy data from the late India trial are expected by March.

"Our vaccine procurement is in good shape. We are going to start the vaccination in the first week of February," Bangladesh Health Secretary Abdul Mannan told Reuters.

"No plan to buy from Bharat Biotech at present."

Brazil is the only country that has publicly announced plans to buy COVAXIN doses from India.

India's Bharat Biotech submitted on Thursday an application for the emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccines in the Philippines, Food and Drug Administration chief Rolando Enrique Domingo said.

India's Bharat Biotech submitted on Thursday an application for the emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccines in the Philippines, Food and Drug Administration chief Rolando Enrique Domingo said. If allowed to go ahead, this would be the first trial of any coronavirus vaccine in Bangladesh and could give the densely-populated country of more than 160 million faster access to the shot for mass use. The vaccine, developed with the Indian Council of Medical Research, was given the green light for restricted use in India this month without any efficacy data. "We have received their proposal. The committee will review it," Mahmood-uz-Jahan, a director at the state-run Bangladesh Medical Research Council, told Reuters, declining to give details. The Dhaka-based International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B), has applied to run the trial on behalf of Bharat Biotech, said a source with direct knowledge of the matter who declined to be named citing internal rules. ICDDR,B declined to comment. Spokespeople for Bharat Biotech had no immediate comment. Sinovac Biotech's late-stage trial of a potential vaccine in Bangladesh has become uncertain after Dhaka refused to meet the Chinese company’s demand for co-funding. Bharat Biotech started a late-stage trial for COVAXIN at home in November and a top Indian government vaccine official, Vinod Kumar Paul, has told Reuters that a smaller study involving 1,000-2,000 people could also be done in Bangladesh. Bangladesh will from Thursday start receiving millions of India-made doses of another vaccine licensed from Oxford University and AstraZeneca. It is being mass produced by the Serum Institute of India, the world's largest vaccine maker. Bangladesh, however, has no immediate plans to buy COVAXIN whose efficacy data from the late India trial are expected by March. "Our vaccine procurement is in good shape. We are going to start the vaccination in the first week of February," Bangladesh Health Secretary Abdul Mannan told Reuters. "No plan to buy from Bharat Biotech at present." Brazil is the only country that has publicly announced plans to buy COVAXIN doses from India.

India's Bharat Biotech seeks emergency use approval for vaccine in Philippines

Iraq has reduced annual supplies of Basra crude oil to several Indian refiners by up to 20% for 2021, industry sources said, in a rare move by OPEC`s second-largest producer which is trying to meet its obligations under the group`s production deal.

Iraq was the top oil supplier to India in 2020 and a reduction in long-term Basra crude supplies could erode Baghdad`s market share in the world`s third largest oil importer and consumer.

Iraq`s Oil Marketing Company (SOMO) has reduced the 2021 Basra term volumes to several Indian refiners by between 10% and 20%, the sources said.

SOMO did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

"We never expected Iraq to cut volumes. We may have to look for alternatives like tapping the spot markets," said a source at one of the Indian refiners.

"This is happening at a time when we are preparing to increase run rates as fuel demand is recovering." 
SOMO told Indian refiners that it had reduced annual contracts for all Asian buyers to compensate for higher volumes produced in the previous year, one of the sources said.

Iraq has been striving to meet its output target under an agreement between the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, including Russia, to limit production and support global oil prices. Baghdad is heavily reliant on oil revenues to support the country`s economy.

Iraqi Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar said earlier in January that it will stay committed to OPEC decisions and compensate for its overproduction.

India on Tuesday complained that recent output cuts by some OPEC countries had created uncertainty for customers and led to a surge in global oil prices.

The changes in term supply volumes come as Iraq launched its new sour crude grade Basra Medium in January by splitting existing Basra Light crude production into two grades to improve the quality of its oil. SOMO also exports a third grade Basra Heavy.

The sources said SOMO cut term supplies to Indian Oil Corp, the country`s top refiner and its biggest Indian client, by 10% to about 350,000 barrels per day (bpd) for all three Basra crude grades, while the volume for Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd fell by 17% to 50,000 bpd.

SOMO is planning to cut the oil contract of Bharat Petroleum by about a quarter from last year`s 100,000 bpd, the sources said, adding that discussions with BPCL were still ongoing as the Indian company`s annual contract begins from April.

Hindustan Petroleum, which buys Basra Light oil, has asked SOMO to reduce its term supplies to about 50,000 bpd in 2021, down from about 80,000 bpd in 2020.

Iraq has agreed to HPCL`s request for lower supplies, while the companies are in talks about additional supply of Basra Medium grade, they said.

The annual oil contract for Reliance Industries, operator of the world`s largest refining complex, has also been changed. Reliance will get 33,000 bpd of Basra Medium grade instead of 66,000 bpd of Basra Light, the sources said.

The Indian refiners did not respond to Reuters` requests for comment.

The supply cuts to India followed a $2.5 billion oil prepayment deal between SOMO and Chinese state oil trader Zhenhua Oil Corp for 48 million barrels of Basra crude.

Iraq has reduced annual supplies of Basra crude oil to several Indian refiners by up to 20% for 2021, industry sources said, in a rare move by OPEC`s second-largest producer which is trying to meet its obligations under the group`s production deal.

Iraq has reduced annual supplies of Basra crude oil to several Indian refiners by up to 20% for 2021, industry sources said, in a rare move by OPEC`s second-largest producer which is trying to meet its obligations under the group`s production deal. Iraq was the top oil supplier to India in 2020 and a reduction in long-term Basra crude supplies could erode Baghdad`s market share in the world`s third largest oil importer and consumer. Iraq`s Oil Marketing Company (SOMO) has reduced the 2021 Basra term volumes to several Indian refiners by between 10% and 20%, the sources said. SOMO did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. "We never expected Iraq to cut volumes. We may have to look for alternatives like tapping the spot markets," said a source at one of the Indian refiners. "This is happening at a time when we are preparing to increase run rates as fuel demand is recovering." SOMO told Indian refiners that it had reduced annual contracts for all Asian buyers to compensate for higher volumes produced in the previous year, one of the sources said. Iraq has been striving to meet its output target under an agreement between the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, including Russia, to limit production and support global oil prices. Baghdad is heavily reliant on oil revenues to support the country`s economy. Iraqi Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar said earlier in January that it will stay committed to OPEC decisions and compensate for its overproduction. India on Tuesday complained that recent output cuts by some OPEC countries had created uncertainty for customers and led to a surge in global oil prices. The changes in term supply volumes come as Iraq launched its new sour crude grade Basra Medium in January by splitting existing Basra Light crude production into two grades to improve the quality of its oil. SOMO also exports a third grade Basra Heavy. The sources said SOMO cut term supplies to Indian Oil Corp, the country`s top refiner and its biggest Indian client, by 10% to about 350,000 barrels per day (bpd) for all three Basra crude grades, while the volume for Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd fell by 17% to 50,000 bpd. SOMO is planning to cut the oil contract of Bharat Petroleum by about a quarter from last year`s 100,000 bpd, the sources said, adding that discussions with BPCL were still ongoing as the Indian company`s annual contract begins from April. Hindustan Petroleum, which buys Basra Light oil, has asked SOMO to reduce its term supplies to about 50,000 bpd in 2021, down from about 80,000 bpd in 2020. Iraq has agreed to HPCL`s request for lower supplies, while the companies are in talks about additional supply of Basra Medium grade, they said. The annual oil contract for Reliance Industries, operator of the world`s largest refining complex, has also been changed. Reliance will get 33,000 bpd of Basra Medium grade instead of 66,000 bpd of Basra Light, the sources said. The Indian refiners did not respond to Reuters` requests for comment. The supply cuts to India followed a $2.5 billion oil prepayment deal between SOMO and Chinese state oil trader Zhenhua Oil Corp for 48 million barrels of Basra crude.

Iraq has cut crude oil supplies for most Indian refiners in 2021, report says

Several neighbouring countries praised India as the country starts giving millions of <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus-vaccine">coronavirus vaccines</a>&nbsp;to South Asian nations, a move that also counters China's dominance in the region.&nbsp;

In Maldives, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Nepal, free shipments of Covid-19 vaccines of Oxford-AstraZeneca, manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, the world's biggest producer of vaccines, have started arriving.&nbsp;

Watch&nbsp;|

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Soon, Myanmar and Seychelles will also receive coronavirus jabs as India pushes ahead with vaccine diplomacy.&nbsp;

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/pm-narendra-modi-to-receive-coronavirus-jab-in-second-phase-reports-358347">PM Narendra Modi to receive coronavirus jab in second phase: Reports</a>

"The government of India has shown goodwill by providing the vaccine in grant. This is at the people's level, it is the public who are suffering the most from COVID-19," Nepal's Minister for Health and Population Hridayesh Tripathi was quoted as saying by news agency Reuters.&nbsp;

India has started providing vaccines to its Himalayan neighbour Nepal despite strained ties that have worsened post-Nepal's inclusion of Indian territories in its map.&nbsp;

New Delhi on Thursday officially handed over 2 million doses of Covid-19 jabs to Bangladesh as a gift.&nbsp;

"India had stood by Bangladesh during the (1971) Liberation War, and today, when the pandemic is rattling the world, India again came with gifts of vaccines," Bangladesh foreign minister Dr AK Abdul Momen was reported as saying by news agency PTI.&nbsp;

Earlier, Bangladesh was supposed to get 110,000 doses of vaccine free from Chinese firm Sinovac Biotech, but the country rejected to bear the development cost causing a deadlock.&nbsp;

A government source told Reuters that India is mulling over providing about 12 million to 20 million shots to its neighbours in the first wave of assistance in the next three to four weeks.&nbsp;

India is also helping some of these countries by providing them training to administer vaccines and setting up facilities to help in the rollout, the source added.&nbsp;

Several neighbouring countries praised India as the country starts giving millions of coronavirus vaccines to South Asian nations, a move that also counters China's dominance in the region.

Several neighbouring countries praised India as the country starts giving millions of coronavirus vaccines to South Asian nations, a move that also counters China's dominance in the region. In Maldives, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Nepal, free shipments of Covid-19 vaccines of Oxford-AstraZeneca, manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, the world's biggest producer of vaccines, have started arriving. Watch | Soon, Myanmar and Seychelles will also receive coronavirus jabs as India pushes ahead with vaccine diplomacy. Also read | PM Narendra Modi to receive coronavirus jab in second phase: Reports "The government of India has shown goodwill by providing the vaccine in grant. This is at the people's level, it is the public who are suffering the most from COVID-19," Nepal's Minister for Health and Population Hridayesh Tripathi was quoted as saying by news agency Reuters. India has started providing vaccines to its Himalayan neighbour Nepal despite strained ties that have worsened post-Nepal's inclusion of Indian territories in its map. New Delhi on Thursday officially handed over 2 million doses of Covid-19 jabs to Bangladesh as a gift. "India had stood by Bangladesh during the (1971) Liberation War, and today, when the pandemic is rattling the world, India again came with gifts of vaccines," Bangladesh foreign minister Dr AK Abdul Momen was reported as saying by news agency PTI. Earlier, Bangladesh was supposed to get 110,000 doses of vaccine free from Chinese firm Sinovac Biotech, but the country rejected to bear the development cost causing a deadlock. A government source told Reuters that India is mulling over providing about 12 million to 20 million shots to its neighbours in the first wave of assistance in the next three to four weeks. India is also helping some of these countries by providing them training to administer vaccines and setting up facilities to help in the rollout, the source added.

India's vaccine diplomacy earns praise from South Asian neighbours as Chinese dominance declines

Hours after a fire was extinguished, new blazes broke out in a compartment of the same building&nbsp;Serum Institute of India in Pune.&nbsp;

Earlier, at least five people died as a&nbsp;major fire broke out at the premises of the Serum Institute, world's biggest vaccine manufacturer on Thursday.&nbsp;

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Maharashtra: Fire breaks out again in one compartment of the same building at Serum Institute of India (SII), in Pune. Fire fighting operation is underway. More details awaited. 
 
Fire had broken out at Manjri Plant of SII today afternoon and claimed five lives. <a href="https://t.co/6MKDWiCxZt">pic.twitter.com/6MKDWiCxZt</a>
— ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/1352252224961990657?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 21, 2021</a></blockquote>
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Pune mayor said that five people, who were workers at the under-construction building lost their lives in the fires.&nbsp;

The police said that nine people were evacuated from the building located at the institute's Manjari premises, the facility where Covishield', which is Oxford-AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine, is manufactured.&nbsp;

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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BREAKING?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BREAKING</a> | Fire breaks out at Pune's Serum Institute of India; 10 fire tenders deployed 
 
(Video credits: ANI) <a href="https://t.co/EXBkafbC2R">pic.twitter.com/EXBkafbC2R</a>
— WION (@WIONews) <a href="https://twitter.com/WIONews/status/1352192946611707908?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 21, 2021</a></blockquote>
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Serum Institute of India CEO Adar Poonawalla had&nbsp;earlier claimed that there has been no loss or major injuries to anyone, but later confirmed that there has been some fatalities.

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We have just received some distressing updates; upon further investigation we have learnt that there has unfortunately been some loss of life at the incident. We are deeply saddened and offer our deepest condolences to the family members of the departed.
— Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) <a href="https://twitter.com/adarpoonawalla/status/1352231384694177792?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 21, 2021</a></blockquote>
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I would like to reassure all governments &amp; the public that there would be no loss of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/COVISHIELD?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#COVISHIELD</a> production due to multiple production buildings that I had kept in reserve to deal with such contingencies at <a href="https://twitter.com/SerumInstIndia?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SerumInstIndia</a>. Thank you very much <a href="https://twitter.com/PuneCityPolice?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PuneCityPolice</a> &amp; Fire Department
— Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) <a href="https://twitter.com/adarpoonawalla/status/1352219439345795073?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 21, 2021</a></blockquote>
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Thank you everyone for your concern and prayers. So far the most important thing is that there have been no lives lost or major injuries due to the fire, despite a few floors being destroyed.
— Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) <a href="https://twitter.com/adarpoonawalla/status/1352210515880255489?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 21, 2021</a></blockquote>
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He also said that the incident would not affect the production of the Covid-19 vaccine.&nbsp;

"Thank you everyone for your concern and prayers. So far the most important thing is that there have been no lives lost or major injuries due to the fire, despite a few floors being destroyed," Poonawalla wrote in a tweet.&nbsp;

"I would like to reassure all governments &amp; the public that there would be no loss of #COVISHIELD production due to multiple production buildings that I had kept in reserve to deal with such contingencies," he added in another tweet.&nbsp;

Visuals of the fire that straight away caught the public eye showed the smoke billowing out from the facility.&nbsp;

PM Narendra Modi extended his condolences to the families of the ones who lost their lives in the fire.&nbsp;

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Anguished by the loss of lives due to an unfortunate fire at the <a href="https://twitter.com/SerumInstIndia?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SerumInstIndia</a>. In this sad hour, my thoughts are with the families of those who lost their lives. I pray that those injured recover at the earliest.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) <a href="https://twitter.com/narendramodi/status/1352257776924450817?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 21, 2021</a></blockquote>
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The police said that the fire broke out on the fourth and fifth floors of the SEZ 3 building in the Serum Institute premises and was brought under control in two hours.&nbsp;

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said the state government has ordered an investigation into the fire.

Pune Police Commissioner Amitabh Gupta said all the people that were present inside the facility have been evacuated.

To the unversed, Serum Institute is playing a major role in India's mass vaccination dive against Covid-19 that began from January 16 and is also delivering millions of doses of the vaccine to several nations.&nbsp;

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Hours after a fire was extinguished, new blazes broke out in a compartment of the same building Serum Institute of India in Pune. Earlier, at least five people died as a major fire broke out at the premises of the Serum Institute, world's biggest vaccine manufacturer on Thursday.

Hours after a fire was extinguished, new blazes broke out in a compartment of the same building Serum Institute of India in Pune. Earlier, at least five people died as a major fire broke out at the premises of the Serum Institute, world's biggest vaccine manufacturer on Thursday. Maharashtra: Fire breaks out again in one compartment of the same building at Serum Institute of India (SII), in Pune. Fire fighting operation is underway. More details awaited. Fire had broken out at Manjri Plant of SII today afternoon and claimed five lives. pic.twitter.com/6MKDWiCxZt — ANI (@ANI) January 21, 2021 × Pune mayor said that five people, who were workers at the under-construction building lost their lives in the fires. The police said that nine people were evacuated from the building located at the institute's Manjari premises, the facility where Covishield', which is Oxford-AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine, is manufactured. #BREAKING | Fire breaks out at Pune's Serum Institute of India; 10 fire tenders deployed (Video credits: ANI) pic.twitter.com/EXBkafbC2R — WION (@WIONews) January 21, 2021 × Serum Institute of India CEO Adar Poonawalla had earlier claimed that there has been no loss or major injuries to anyone, but later confirmed that there has been some fatalities. We have just received some distressing updates; upon further investigation we have learnt that there has unfortunately been some loss of life at the incident. We are deeply saddened and offer our deepest condolences to the family members of the departed. — Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) January 21, 2021 × I would like to reassure all governments & the public that there would be no loss of #COVISHIELD production due to multiple production buildings that I had kept in reserve to deal with such contingencies at @SerumInstIndia. Thank you very much @PuneCityPolice & Fire Department — Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) January 21, 2021 × Thank you everyone for your concern and prayers. So far the most important thing is that there have been no lives lost or major injuries due to the fire, despite a few floors being destroyed. — Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) January 21, 2021 × He also said that the incident would not affect the production of the Covid-19 vaccine. "Thank you everyone for your concern and prayers. So far the most important thing is that there have been no lives lost or major injuries due to the fire, despite a few floors being destroyed," Poonawalla wrote in a tweet. "I would like to reassure all governments & the public that there would be no loss of #COVISHIELD production due to multiple production buildings that I had kept in reserve to deal with such contingencies," he added in another tweet. Visuals of the fire that straight away caught the public eye showed the smoke billowing out from the facility. PM Narendra Modi extended his condolences to the families of the ones who lost their lives in the fire. Anguished by the loss of lives due to an unfortunate fire at the @SerumInstIndia. In this sad hour, my thoughts are with the families of those who lost their lives. I pray that those injured recover at the earliest. — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 21, 2021 × The police said that the fire broke out on the fourth and fifth floors of the SEZ 3 building in the Serum Institute premises and was brought under control in two hours. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said the state government has ordered an investigation into the fire. Pune Police Commissioner Amitabh Gupta said all the people that were present inside the facility have been evacuated. To the unversed, Serum Institute is playing a major role in India's mass vaccination dive against Covid-19 that began from January 16 and is also delivering millions of doses of the vaccine to several nations.

Fire again breaks out in Serum Institute in Pune

Prime Minister <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/narendra-modi">Narendra Modi </a>will receive <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus-vaccine">coronavirus vaccine </a>in the second phase of the mass vaccination drive launched last week, sources said on Thursday.&nbsp;

Over 700,000 people had registered in India to receive the jabs of the two vaccines approved by the Indian regulator, but a lot of people have so far not taken the jabs over what appears to be "vaccine hesitancy".

The first phase that aims to inoculate frontline workers began on January 16 and the target was to vaccinate 30 million people.

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/at-least-five-dead-as-fire-breaks-out-at-worlds-biggest-vaccine-manufacturer-in-pune-358300">At least five dead as fire breaks out at world's biggest vaccine manufacturer in Pune</a>

In the second phase, people above 50 years of age and with co-morbidities will receive Covid-19 jabs.&nbsp;

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/myanmar-seychelles-to-get-made-in-india-vaccine-on-friday-358291">Myanmar, Seychelles to get Made in India vaccine on Friday</a>

A report claimed that all chief ministers and elected representatives will also be immunised in the next phase.&nbsp;

Meanwhile, the Indian prime minister will also interact with beneficiaries of the vaccination drive in Varanasi on Friday via video conferencing.&nbsp;

The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said on Thursday that people will share their first-hand experience with Modi.

It also said that the PM's interaction follows his continuous engagement with scientists, political leaders, and other stakeholders to ensure smooth conduct of the vaccination drive across the country proactively.&nbsp;

"The world's largest vaccination drive is underway in India. Our frontline warriors are getting vaccinated across the nation. At 1:15 PM tomorrow, 22nd January, I would interact with beneficiaries and vaccinators of Covid vaccination drive in Varanasi, via video conferencing," Modi wrote in a tweet.&nbsp;

 
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will receive coronavirus vaccine in the second phase of the mass vaccination drive launched last week, sources said on Thursday. Over 700,000 people had registered in India to receive the jabs of the two vaccines approved by the Indian regulator, but a lot of people have so far not taken the jabs over what appears to be "vaccine hesitancy".

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will receive coronavirus vaccine in the second phase of the mass vaccination drive launched last week, sources said on Thursday. Over 700,000 people had registered in India to receive the jabs of the two vaccines approved by the Indian regulator, but a lot of people have so far not taken the jabs over what appears to be "vaccine hesitancy". The first phase that aims to inoculate frontline workers began on January 16 and the target was to vaccinate 30 million people. Also read | At least five dead as fire breaks out at world's biggest vaccine manufacturer in Pune In the second phase, people above 50 years of age and with co-morbidities will receive Covid-19 jabs. Also read | Myanmar, Seychelles to get Made in India vaccine on Friday A report claimed that all chief ministers and elected representatives will also be immunised in the next phase. Meanwhile, the Indian prime minister will also interact with beneficiaries of the vaccination drive in Varanasi on Friday via video conferencing. The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said on Thursday that people will share their first-hand experience with Modi. It also said that the PM's interaction follows his continuous engagement with scientists, political leaders, and other stakeholders to ensure smooth conduct of the vaccination drive across the country proactively. "The world's largest vaccination drive is underway in India. Our frontline warriors are getting vaccinated across the nation. At 1:15 PM tomorrow, 22nd January, I would interact with beneficiaries and vaccinators of Covid vaccination drive in Varanasi, via video conferencing," Modi wrote in a tweet.

PM Narendra Modi to receive coronavirus jab in second phase: Reports

As many as 10 fire tenders are deployed after Serum Institute of India in Pune, the world's largest vaccine manufacturer, caught fire.

India: Fire breaks out at world's largest vaccine manufacturer Serum Institute of India

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