Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his speech at the 76th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) at the UN Headquarters in New York on Saturday said that India’s first mRNA vaccine was in the final stages. He said that “India has developed the world’s first DNA vaccine. An mRNA vaccine is in the final stages of development. Indian scientists are also developing a nasal vaccine against Covid-19.”

The Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) gave permission for conducting Phase II and Phase III study protocols for HGCO19, India’s first mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccine in August.

Gennova Biopharmaceuticals also submitted the interim clinical data of the Phase I study to the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), the Government of India’s National Regulatory Authority (NRA).

The vaccine Subject Expert Committee (SEC) had reviewed the interim Phase I data and found that the mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccine (HGCO 19) was tolerable, safe, and immunogenic in the participants of the study.

At present the Phase II studies are being conducted at approximately 10-15 sites and Phase III at 22-27 sites. Gennova is using the DBT-ICMR clinical trial network sites for this study. The vaccine is being developed by Gennova Biopharmaceuticals Limited, a subsidiary of Pune-based Emcure Pharmaceuticals.

The scientists are working hard to come up with vaccine against COVID-19. Due to the dangerous coronavirus, many people have lost their lives.

The number of coronavirus cases in India are increasing in the country. The government of India is taking all the measures to contain the spread of COVID-19. According to the reports, the national R value or the reproductive rate of the coronavirus is more than 1.0 mark. The national ‘R’ value crossed the 1.0-mark last month, according to data provided by the Health Ministry; in the last March it was 1.32, and that was before the second wave.

Punjab and Himachal Pradesh have an effective ‘R’ value of 1.3, whereas Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh have ‘R’ values of 1.1 and 1.0, respectively, according to the government. Daily cases from three states is “likely growing,” with Punjab’s trend “increasing.” Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh (both 1.1), as well as Goa and Nagaland, have high ‘R’ scores (both 1.0).

The government said that even if the number of coronavirus cases are low but if the R value is more than 1.0 then it should be a matter of worry.

The ‘R’ factor is a measure of how many people are being infected by one infected person. An ‘R’ value of 1 means one person will, on average, infect one other person.

The ‘R’ target in a pandemic is less than 1.0, which ensures that the virus will eventually stop spreading because it cannot infect enough individuals to sustain the outbreak.

The US is one of the worst hit nations with COVID-19 and the country is hit hard by the Delta variant of the SARS-CoV-2. The number of coronavirus cases are increasing and the American city of Austin on Monday had only six beds in the Intensive Care Units (ICU) in its hospitals.

According to data released by the state health authority, the ICU bed crisis in Austin was sparked by a huge increase in Covid-19 cases caused by the Delta variety. Last year, the Delta variety was discovered for the first time in India. According to Bloomberg report, the situation in Austin is “serious,” with only 313 ventilators and six ICU beds available in the city of over 2.4 million people.

“The situation is critical,” Dr Desmar Walkes, Austin’s medical director of the state’s health authority, said according to the report. He further added that, “Our hospitals are severely stressed and there is little we can do to alleviate their burden with the surging cases. We are running out of time and our community must act now.”

Increase in COVID-19 cases is putting up an extraordinary pressure on hospitals, emergency departments and healthcare professionals, and it has further challenged hospital staffing due to a longstanding nursing shortage. On Sunday,a total of 6,594 people joined hospitals in Texas with Covid-19. Texas is the third worst hit state in the US.