Researchers at the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) in Chandigarh announced on Sunday said that the use of the Mycobacterium w (Mw) vaccine as an adjunct to the treatment of coronavirus disease (COVID-19)-affected patients will be jointly studied upon, in collaboration with AIIMS Delhi and AIIMS Bhopal. The institute added that the Mw vaccine (heat-killed Mycobacterium indicus pranii) is not a vaccine specifically dedicated to the coronavirus but that it will be used only as an adjunct.

The total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 infection in India neared the 28,000-mark on Monday, while the death toll had topped the 850-mark on this day. At 9:15 AM on Monday, India's COVID-19 tally stood at 27,892, which includes 20,835 active cases, 6,185 cured, discharged, or migrated patients, and 872 deaths.

According to the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, as many as 1,396 new cases and 48 deaths were reported in the country in the last 24 hours.

While Maharashtra remains the most affected state in India by the coronavirus, state chief minister Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said that further decision on the lockdown will be taken only after May 3.

He also thanked people for following the lockdown restrictions amid religious events and further asked them to stay inside their homes and offer prayers for there during the holy month of Ramzan.

As a huge relief to both shopkeepers and consumers alike, the central government on late Friday night allowed the neighbourhood shops in residential areas to function, albeit with adherence to wearing masks and gloves and following social distancing norms.

The order by the Ministry of Home Affairs stated that the lockdown exemption is being extended to shops in residential complexes, neighbourhood, and standalone shops.

India’s economic growth, which was already slowing, has been hit hard by the coronavirus lockdown. Some of the leading indicators only tell the magnitude of its impact.

Power demand, for example, has fallen sharply. From an average of 148,282 megawatts (MW) during March 1-22, demand fell to 122,025 MW between March 23 and April 23, a decline of 17.7 per cent.

The central government had Rs 1.35 trillion in outstanding loans with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) under ways and means advances in the week ended April 17, the central bank said on Friday.

The central government had Rs 1.11 trillion in outstanding loans in the previous week, according to the RBI’s weekly statistical supplement.

A US lawmaker has urged President Donald Trump to suspend the foreign workers programme, including H-1B, as more than 26 million Americans have lost their job because of the coronavirus pandemic.

In a letter to Trump, Congressman Paul Gosar sought additional suspension of the H-1B, H4, L1, B1, B2, Optional Practical Training Program, and further guest worker admissions in order to promote wages and opportunities for American workers during this period of rising unemployment.

From next week, US President Donald Trump might ‘pare back’ his daily coronavirus task force briefings, which usually last more than two hours a day. There has been a concerted effort among his aides and allies to get the President to cut short his daily briefings on coronavirus, which has so far killed over 50,000 Americans. On Friday, too, Trump took no questions from reporters to be able to shorten the daily coronavirus task force briefing.

The death toll due to the coronavirus pandemic in the US crossed the 50,000 mark on Friday, as the number of confirmed cases rose above 8.8 lakh.

According to Johns Hopkins University's coronavirus trackers, 50,114 people have died in the pandemic in the US alone, with the number of infections reaching 880,112.

As the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic continues to create chaos with most of the countries across the globe imposing lockdown measures, the hunt for a vaccine has also picked up the pace. Several trials and studies are being conducted in the US, UK, China, and India with the hopes of finding the elusive vaccine to stop the novel coronavirus pathogen.

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