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

COVID-19Active Cases Recovered Casualties  
India298,65032,948,928447,362
World18,563,166209,482,5844,764,952

FROM THE PORTALS OF KUMARAGURU INSTITUTIONS

COVID-19 Vaccination update

A COVID-19 vaccination drive was organized at Kumaraguru campus, during which nearly 390 Covishield doses and 100 Covaxin doses were procured and administered to the staff members of Kumaraguru Institutions. This commendable effort aims to encourage and upscale the COVID-19 vaccination among the general public.

VACCINE AND TESTING

FDA authorizes Booster Dose for Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for certain populations 

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) amended the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for the administration of a single booster dose at least six months after completion of the primary series in: individuals 65 years of age and older, individuals through 18 – 64 years of age who are at a high risk of severe COVID-19 and individuals through 18-64 years of age whose frequent institutional or occupational exposure to the Coronavirus puts them at a high risk of serious COVID-19 complications. The FDA analyzed safety and immune response data from a subset of participants from the original clinical trial of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. |FDA

President Biden pledges 500 million more vaccine doses to developing world

At a virtual COVID-19 summit on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, U.S. President Joe Biden promised to donate 500 million more doses of the Pfizer vaccine to developing nations from next year. The US had already pledged 580 million doses but delivered only 160 million of them so far. Experts say some 11 billion doses are required to vaccinate at least 70% of the global population. According to data from Oxford, only 2% of people in low-income countries have had their first dose. |BBC

Government allows COVID-19 vaccines at home for those with restricted mobility

The Government announced that differently-abled people and those with restricted mobility will be administered COVID-19 vaccine doses at their homes. Dr V K Paul, Member-Health, NITI Aayog said that an advisory has been issued to make arrangements for ‘Vaccination at home’ for those who are differently challenged. Around 66 percent of the country’s adult population has been given at least one jab while 23 percent is fully vaccinated. |Business Standard

RESEARCH

Evidence shows COVID-19 vaccine is safe, effective for cancer patients

Vaccination against COVID-19 is effective in patients with cancer, whose immune systems get weakened by various anti-cancer medicines, according to studies presented at the annual congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology. The findings revealed that individuals with cancer have an appropriate, protective immune response to vaccination without experiencing any more side-effects than the general population. One of the studies, named VOICE, showed that patients with cancer who took the jab were protected regardless of the current oncology treatment. |Business Standard

Nanobodies from llamas can potentially treat COVID-19

A simple nasal spray of tiny antibodies produced by llamas could provide a new frontline treatment against the Coronavirus that causes COVID-19, according to a study. The team found three nanobody chains that were able to neutralise both the original variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and the Alpha variant. A fourth nanobody chain was able to neutralise the Beta variant. Nanobodies have a number of advantages over human antibodies. They are way cheaper to produce and can be  delivered directly to  airways through a simple nebulizer or nasal spray. The team was able to generate the nanobodies by injecting a portion of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein into a llama called Fifi. Successful and approved, nanobodies could provide an important treatment around the world. |Indian Express

‘Ultra-potent’ antibody against SARS-CoV-2 variants isolated

A technology developed at Vanderbilt University Medical Center called LIBRA-seq (Linking B-cell Receptor to Antigen) has helped speed up the discovery of antibodies that can neutralize SARS-CoV-2. The antibody has uncommon genetic and structural characteristics that distinguishes it from other monoclonal antibodies commonly used to treat COVID-19. The discovery involves the development of an “ultra-potent” monoclonal antibody against multiple variants of SARS-CoV-2 including the delta variant.This technology enables the researchers to also screen antibodies for diseases that have the potential to affect humans. |Science Daily

ECONOMY

Signs of World Economy emerging from COVID-19: RBI Governor

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das pointed out that there are signs of the world emerging from the impact of COVID-19 pandemic. He added that India’s financial system has transformed rapidly to support the needs of the economy and the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme is an important initiative to boost the manufacturing sector. The RBI Governor also stressed upon the need for better technology in the post pandemic world. According to him, moving from a bank-dominated financial system to a hybrid one is a sign of a steadily manufacturing financial system. |Money Control

EDUCATION

Centre to map learning loss due to COVID-19 in 733 districts

The National Achievement Survey (NAS) will be one of India’s largest official school education assessment exercises and will include both state-run and private schools. This survey which is planned by the Union Government aims to assess the learning loss from extended school closures. The report will have separate data for national and district levels thereby giving a clear view on the damage done and the expected time of recovery. The exercise which was held as a competence-based test in 2017 would be conducted in 22 languages. |Live Mint

Steep rise in the charts of EdTech companies during the pandemic

The EdTech companies of India attracted 1 billion USD worth of investment between March and September 2020. In the initial stages of the pandemic, most people were ill-equipped with knowledge about making a digital switch in the fields of education. Now, almost two years after the pandemic, the situation has improved a lot, and more comprehensive courses and detailed lessons are being offered online. The presence of online academies and their services has been critical to the sustenance of education in the current scenario. |India Today

ENVIRONMENT

COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t slowed down climate change 

The COVID-19 pandemic caused only a temporary decline in carbon dioxide emissions last year and this was not enough to reverse rising levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said. The average global temperature for the past five years was among the highest on record, estimated at 1.06º C to 1.26º C above pre-industrial levels. There is now a 40% chance that the average global temperature in one of the next five years will be at least 1.5º C warmer than pre-industrial levels. The pace of climate change has not been slowed by the global COVID-19 pandemic and the world remains behind in its battle to cut carbon emissions, the UN said. |The Wire

MENTAL HEALTH

COVID-19 created cycle of mental health struggles and physical inactivity

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a cyclical public health problem by exacerbating mental health challenges and making it more difficult for people to maintain physical activity, suggests a recent multi-state study. A survey was conducted and it was found that, the more physically active people were, the better their mental health status. The open-ended survey results revealed that many participants struggled with staying active during stay-at-home orders, but rural participants talked about how their open spaces and places provided more opportunities to get outside and get moving. There is a need for structural changes in communities to ensure people have equitable access to safe spaces where they can be active, say experts. |Business Standard

Where can we get authentic information about Coronavirus?

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Bulletin 53 Team

  1. Architha R
  2. Nakshatra Lakshmi M S
  3. Shabnam S
  4. Shivani S
  5. Vaishnavi Bose S

KARE COVID-19 Response So Far

43038 Cooked meals
2279 Volunteering hours clocked.
10 Tons of Vegetables transacted so far.
28+ Number of Farmers impacted so far.
640 Helpline Calls.
500 Grocery Kits & 500 kg Rice
50+ hours of student mentoring & 8 Gadgets
1400 Liquid sanitizer packs
5500 Masks
₹ 4,95,141 Funds Raised.
₹ 6,50,000 Funds Spent.
63000+ 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