Kumaraguru Action for Relief and Empowerment (KARE), was founded in Nov, 2015 during the Chennai floods. KARE supports the victims of natural disasters such as floods, cyclone and other calamities and has supported during Kerala floods & Gaja Cyclone. This is a volunteer movement of Kumaraguru Institutions where many join hands when the need arises.

KARE COVID 19 Response Bulletin is an effort by a group of Kumaraguru alumni, students & informed citizens alike to clear the clutter around COVID 19 by providing informative, insightful news, articles & data around the world under various tags such as Research, Technology, Education, Economy & Insights with a short summary for each.

COVID19 Basic Info & Previous Bulletin Link: tinyurl.com/blog-KARE

STATISTICS

India vs the World – The race to find a cure

COVID-19
 
Active Cases
 
Recovered
 
Casualties 
 
India357,4469,387,608143,393
World20,112,40650,758,759
1,616,969

The above graph depicts the COVID-19 death rate per million people in top 30 countries across the globe. It can be seen that there is a notable increase in death rate across European countries but comparatively low in India.| Prof. Shamika Ravi

The above graph depicts the newly confirmed cases in Top 5 countries including Germany, Turkey, UK, Italy and India. The daily cases per million has increased drastically in Turkey even in comparison to most European countries which are currently going through large second waves.| Prof. Shamika Ravi

VACCINE AND TESTING

India becomes the largest buyer of COVID-19 vaccines

India has purchased 500 million doses of the Oxford University-AstraZeneca vaccine candidate, 1 billion from the U.S. company Novavax and 100 million doses of the Sputnik V candidate from Russia’s Gamaleya Research Institute, according to the U.S.-based Duke University Global Health Innovation Center. With 1.6 billion doses, India has become the largest buyer. This, Dr. Jameel, director of the Trivedi School of Biosciences, Ashoka University said, should be enough to develop herd immunity, a form of indirect protection from infectious disease that occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population has become immune to an infection. It was said that all the vaccines ‘pre-booked’ by India are manufactured by Indian companies, Oxford-AstraZeneca and Novavax by Serum Institute of India (SII) in Pune and Sputnik V by Dr. Reddy’s Lab in Hyderabad.| The Hindu

Vaccination in India

Private hospitals in India have been criticized for sitting on the sidelines of the coronavirus crisis. Though the private sector accounts for around 60% of India’s total hospital bed capacity, there were widely reported instances of some private hospitals and doctors refusing to treat COVID-19 patients as cases accelerated in India starting from June. Apollo has treated more than 30,000 COVID patients and provided about 400,000 tests. India has nearly 10 million cases of the coronavirus, and is adding over 30,000 new infections daily.| NDTV

India’s mRNA vaccine receives approval

The Indian drug regulator, Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation has approved human safety trials of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pune-based Gennova Biopharmaceuticals. The vaccine, HGCO19 contains a short synthetic version of mRNA that mimics the spike protein of SARS-COV-2. These mRNA vaccines have several advantages over conventional vaccines including a faster pace of development as they don’t need a bacterial host to grow.  It is also said that the vaccine would be easily scalable and cost-effective.|  Deccan Herald

RESEARCH

COVID-19 vaccine delivered in record-time

The U.S health regulators authorized the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech SE. The shot is already in UK use and will be the first given in the US capping the fastest development ever in the west. The company, which has spent more than $2 billion on the effort, achieved more, faster results. According to reports the scientists realized that making vaccines out of mRNA would be much faster. However, it was tough as mRNA vaccines weren’t tried-and-true commodities. And to save time the researchers combined the second and third stages of trials and worked on different versions of the vaccine. It was after various trials that Pfizer disclosed it would make 50 million doses this year. Live Mint

Kids’ immune systems seem better equipped to eliminate SARS-CoV-2

Children are also the main reservoir for seasonal coronaviruses that cause the common cold. Some researchers have suggested that antibodies for these coronaviruses might confer some protection against SARS-CoV-2, but the evidence is mixed says Munro. Meanwhile, there is evidence that when children are exposed to the virus, they receive a smaller dose than adults, because their noses contain fewer ACE2 receptors11, which the virus uses to gain access to cells. This might also explain why COVID-19 is less prevalent in children than in adults, say researchers. But the reason behind the immune response of children against COVID-19 is yet to be verified.| Nature

ECONOMY

Job cuts in COVID-19 aftermath not as widespread as expected 

According to a report, work from home has solved many problems albeit creating some concerns about fragmentation of cultures. “Despite the severe impact on revenue and cash, very surprisingly, the display of compassion and community outreach have produced a spontaneous level of commitment and loyalty from employees and job cuts and salary adjustments have not been as widespread an occurrence as originally apprehended,” said the report. It said reimagining the organization and making more permanent design changes requires newer skills and that is a definitive work in progress. Around 250 companies participated in the survey spanning several sectors, conducted between August-end and mid-November.| Tribune India

Economy to reach pre-COVID levels by end of 2022

‘India’s economic growth is likely to reach pre-COVID-19 levels by the end of the 2021-22 fiscal as the GDP contraction in this financial year is expected to be less than 8 per cent’, Niti Aayog vice-chairman Rajiv Kumar said on Sunday. The government is looking to raise Rs 2.10 lakh crore through disinvestment in the current fiscal. India’s economy recovered faster than expected in the September quarter as a pick-up in manufacturing helped GDP clock a lower contraction of 7.5 per cent and held out hopes for further improvement on better consumer demand.| Tribune India

EDUCATION

Impact of COVID-19 on education

Based on historical learning trends and prior research on how out-of-school-time affects learning, it is estimated that students would potentially begin fall 2020 with roughly 70% of the learning gains in reading relative to a typical school year. In mathematics, students were predicted to show even smaller learning gains from the previous year, returning with less than 50% of typical gains. The math achievement of students in 2020 was about 5 to 10 percentile points lower compared to same-grade students the prior year. It presented a grim portrait of the challenges facing students and educators this fall, they were nonetheless projections. Compared to all public schools in the nation, schools in the sample had slightly larger total enrollment.| Brookings

How COVID-19 has changed the face of fundraising for higher education

This pandemic, we have seen spontaneous, unstructured, collaborative, voluntary initiatives come forth across the globe, led by individuals, associations, public administration and companies from different sectors, which seem to have blurred the line between philanthropy and solidarity. Foundations are now increasing their attention and investment in social issues, from racial justice to supporting public interest journalism, by channeling funds into universities to research misinformation. Universities will probably have to transform more clearly into problem-solvers for third and vulnerable parties even outside their communities.| WeForum

Design changes that schools  would need in the post COVID-19 world

The design changes needed will vary from school to school, here are the main changes we will see in school design in the post-COVID-19 world. Exams can be conducted on different dates, reducing the number of working hours and physical interaction amongst students in schools. All team sports activity, as well as spectator sports, need to be put on hold. Physical distancing  at least 1 meter between students in school,  removal of standard twin benches at school would be of utmost priority. Sanitation stations should be installed in every classroom and floor markings can be used to ensure unidirectional movement in all passages and corridors. Students psychological health must also be considered.| India Today

MENTAL HEALTH

The Burden Of Mental Disorders In India

World mental health Day is observed on 10th October every year, with an overall objective of raising awareness of mental health issues around the world . The theme for the year 2020 is “Mental health for all” as the entire world is grappling with COVID-19 pandemic. There is a widespread in levels of anxiety, fear, isolation, social-distancing and emotional distress associated with the virus. There is still stigma attached to mental illness and the number of psychiatrists and counselors in country remain at an abysmal number. | NDTV

ENVIRONMENT

Environmental impacts of  COVID-19  as observed from space

Researchers found that the environment is changing  quickly and the timing of those changes seems to indicate that the pandemic may be a reason. Satellite images and data from landsat also show a reduction in environmental pollution in this time period. The water has become clearer in the western Manhattan area because there were fewer people communicating in lockdown.  The finding were murky in some areas. For example in  San Francisco, California changes in rainfall made it difficult to tell whether the pandemic impact water quality.  Many of the environmental improvements that researchers are seeing wont last if the world goes back to its pre-pandemic ways.| Science Daily

HEALTH & FITNESS

Making lung health a priority 

Lungs are the main battlefield for COVID-19 and proper care of these organs is inevitable. Although suggestions to take up various breathing exercises and asanas have been surfacing throughout the pandemic , doctors warn that people who test positive for COVID-19 or patients with pre-existing respiratory ailments are not advised to take up forceful breathing exercises like pranayama. According to experts, slow walks in the room, yogic breathing while sitting ideally are known to help people with lung diseases instead.| Times of India

Where can we get authentic information about Coronavirus?

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KARE COVID-19 Response

KARE is now supporting the front-line workers through local government by providing Food, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) & sanitizers made in-house at the Kumaraguru Institutions. KARE is also connecting the farmers with communities who would required vegetables in bulk.

KARE COVID-19 Response So Far 

  • 43038 Cooked meals
  • 2259 Volunteering hours clocked
  • 10 Tons of Vegetables transacted so far
  • 28+ Number of Farmers impacted so far
  • 500 kg Rice
  • 1300 Liquid sanitizer packs
  • 2500 Masks
  • ₹ 4,95,141 Funds Raised
  • ₹ 6,50,000 Funds Spent
  • 57000+  Lives Impacted

Impact areas: 

Chinnavedampatti, Saravanampatty, Vellaikinar, Sathyamangalam, Sulthanpet, Paapampatti, Sulur, Thondamuthur, Narasipuram, Kangayam, Coimbatore & Pollachi.

TO MAKE A DONATION

KARE Bank Account Details

Account name: KCT KARE
Account number: 1245155000078376
Bank: Karur Vysya Bank
Branch: KCT Extension Counter
IFSC: KVBL0001245
Bank address: Kumaraguru College of Technology, Chinnavedampatti,Coimbatore – 641036