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When and How Will This COVID-19 Pandemic End?

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  Legend has it that as Rome was being ravaged by a deadly plague in 590 CE, Pope Gregory I saw a vision of Archangel Michael sheathing a sword atop Emperor Hadrian’s mausoleum. He interpreted this as a sign that the plague is about to be over. As the epidemic soon came to an end, a grateful Rome installed a statue of Archangel Michael on top of that building and renamed it as Castel Sant’ angelo, which continues to be a major landmark of the eternal city even today. As vaccination picks up pace worldwide and the number of new infections decline sharply, especially in Asia, is it time to proclaim the end of this pandemic? The coronavirus pandemic has been a vital threat to humanity for more than a year now (the WHO had officially designated it as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, PHEIC, on January 30, 2020). Globally, there have been 106 million cases of coronavirus, of which 2.3m people have died (as of 8 th February). Around the world, epidemiologists are c...
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Vaccine Nation: India Begins COVID Vaccination

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  It is a great moment of hope as India begins the world’s largest vaccination drive, but we must remember that it is too early to think of an absolute triumph over COVID-19. India is reportedly planning to use 600 million vaccines doses to the most vulnerable sections in the next 6-8 months. But to break the chain of viral transmission it is essential for at least 70% of the 1.3 billion strong Indian population to acquire immunity to SARS CoV 2 virus, leading to herd immunity at the national level. Numerically, this amounts to 910 million people. Since both the vaccines being used in India need two doses, this would necessitate 1820 million doses of vaccines to achieve sufficient vaccine coverage to reach population immunity. [1] What are the different vaccines available (or under final stages of testing) and what are the differences between them? Researchers have been working worldwide on vaccines against SARS-CoV-2. Through unprecedented public/private partnerships, a few ...
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