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India may resume sending Covid-19 vaccines to Sri Lanka in July-August

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BY S VENKAT NARAYAN Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, June 23: Depending on the scale of production of Covid-19 vaccines, within the country, India is aiming at July-end or August to at least release those vaccines that have been bought by Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal and are now in pending status, it is learnt.

The supplies to Bhutan, which received vaccines from India as grants, will be prioritised, too. 

India, the largest vaccine producer in the world, started sending Covid shots abroad, both as grants as well as commercial shipments, from 20 January onwards under an initiative labelled ‘Vaccine Maitri’ (Vaccine Friendship). However, as India started facing a vaccine shortage, domestically, this came to a halt in April. India had shipped over 66 million doses abroad by then.

With the Indian initiative suspended, China as well as Russia have stepped in to offer their Covid shots to countries in South Asia. 

After initial hiccups in the domestic Covid vaccination drive, caused by shortages, India has launched a policy under which the central government will be the sole public sector vaccine buyer in the country. On the first day of its rollout Monday, over eight million people were vaccinated against Covid-19. 

 

The boost in numbers has encouraged the Union government to begin planning for the release of the pending Covid vaccines in the neighbourhood.  

According to informed sources, the Narendra Modi Government believes that if India can maintain the record number of Covid-19 vaccinations, it will reach a position by August when shipments to other countries can be resumed. 

“If the number of vaccinations that we saw on Monday continues, then the government expects that 40 per cent of the population can be covered by August and we will have a situation when herd immunity will kick in,” said a source.

“There are high chances that is when we can safely resume the shipments. It won’t be like before so soon but, of course, for the neighbourhood, we are responsible,” the source added.

However, the sources also said that, if and when the exports are resumed, it will only be for the neighbourhood since they are of “topmost priority”, and because some of them have also made payments to procure vaccines from India.

While other countries will get support from the US and other nations, it is the immediate neighbourhood that needs India’s attention. The vaccine distribution announced by the US will address concerns of the Caribbean and African countries. India believes it is time Europe stops “cornering” the vaccines and begins distribution in a significant way, said a senior government official. 

According to another official, “no exports will take place unless the domestic vaccinations are really high”. 

“It has to be a quick political call. Of course, the idea is to release the paid ones first. But priority now is domestic over exports. A lot depends on how much production we can ramp up,” the official added.

External Affairs Minister Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar had said in an interview to Bloomberg Tuesday that he sees India “playing a global role in vaccine supply… as the production picks up again”.

When India started its vaccine programme, he said, “we were living up to our obligations with the Covax (WHO-backed initiative for equitable access to vaccines). We were supplying to some of our neighbours”.

Talking about the halt in Vaccine Maitri in April, he added: “Now, when the second wave hit us, obviously we looked to purpose the deployment of vaccines primarily at home.”



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South Korean airline bans emergency seats after plane door opens

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South Korea’s Asiana Airlines has stopped selling some emergency exit row seats following an accident in which a passenger opened an emergency exit door midair causing panic on board.

The incident took place on an A321-200 plane, which was carrying nearly 200 passengers, as it approached the runway at Daegu International Airport, about 240km (150 miles) southeast of Seoul. The plane landed safely but several passengers were hospitalised. There were no serious injuries or damage.

The airline told the AFP news agency on Sunday the emergency exit seats – 31A and 26A – on its 14 A321-200 jets would no longer be offered for sale. “As a safety precaution, this measure will apply even if the flights are full,” it added. It is however unclear how the move might stop passengers seated elsewhere on the plane from attempting to open the emergency door.

The man, in his 30s, was arrested by authorities in Daegu for allegedly breaking aviation security laws. He faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted. He told Daegu police that he had been under a lot of stress after losing his job recently and that he opened the door because he wanted to get off quickly after feeling suffocated, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported on Saturday.

Video footage apparently taken by a person on board and posted on social media showed passengers’ hair being whipped about by air rushing into the cabin when the emergency door opened.

It is still unclear how Lee was able to open the emergency exit door mid-flight.

Jin Seong-hyun, a former Korean Air cabin safety official, said as far as he knew, this case was unprecedented, although passengers have opened emergency exits without authorisation while planes were on the ground.

A South Korean transport ministry official said it was possible to open emergency exits at or near ground level because the pressures inside and outside the cabin were similar.

(Aljazeera)

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Heat Index at Caution level in Northern, North-Central, North-western and Eastern provinces and Monaragala and Hambanthota districts

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Heat index Advisory Issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre At 07.30 a.m. 28 May 2023, valid for 28 May 2023

Heat index, the temperature felt on the human body is expected to increase up to ‘Caution’ level at some places in Northern, North-Central, North-western and Eastern provinces and Monaragala and Hambanthota districts.

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GCE Ordinary Level examination commences on Monday (29)

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The General Certificate of Education (Ordinary Level) examination 2022 (2023) will commence on Monday (29).

472,553 candidates have applied to to sit this years examination which will be held at 3568 examination centers

The examination will conclude on 8th June 2023

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