Indigenous Indian COVID-19 vaccines in the global race to end the pandemic

With the announcement of COVAXIN by Bharat Biotech and ZyCov-D Vaccine by Zydus Cadila the proverbial silver line in the dark clouds of COVID-19 appears at the horizon. Now the nod given by the Drug Controller General of India CDSCO (The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation) for the conduct of the human trial for the vaccines, marks the beginning of the end.

In the past years, India has emerged as one of the significant vaccine manufacturing hubs. Indian manufacturers account for 60 per cent of vaccine supplies made to UNICEF. The vaccine for novel coronavirus may be developed anywhere in the world, but without Indian manufacturers involved the production of required quantity is not going to be feasible.

Vaccine race

More than 140 candidate vaccines are under various stages of development. One of the leading candidates is AZD1222 developed Jenner Institute of University of Oxford and licenced to AstraZeneca British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, England. The MRNA-1273 vaccine developed by Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute, Washington and taken up for production by the US-based Moderna pharmaceutical is just a step behind. Both these firms have already inked an agreement with Indian manufacturers for production of the COVID vaccines.

Parallelly Indian institutions have also engaged in R&D for the development of vaccines in India. With the primary scientific inputs coming from institutions like Pune based ICMR institution National Institute of Virology and Hyderabad based CSIR institution Center for Cellular and Molecular Biology, six Indian companies are working on a vaccine for COVID-19. Along with the two Indian vaccines, COVAXIN and ZyCov-D, the world over, 11 out of 140 vaccine candidates have entered the human trials.

Immune system

Antigen from the pathogen and antibodies produced by the human immune cells can be thought of as matching the compatible pair. Every pathogen has specific molecular structures called as antigen. They are like the surface with a particular hue and design. Once infected by the germ, the human immune system develops antibodies that match the antigen.

Just as the retailer of design matching material stockpile hundreds of design pieces of riots of colours and hues, our immune system has ten thousand types of antibodies. If the pathogen is a known enemy, the immune system can pull the matching design piece from the stock. Once the match is made the pathogen is inactivated. No longer it can infect.

However, if the microorganism is unfamiliar, and mainly when it has evolved for the first time, there is no matching colour and hue in the repertoire.  Nonetheless, unlike the textile, the antibody can evolve. At first, near matches are tried. After various cycles of antibody development, the best fit matures. The time lag between the identification of the main surface colour that is an antigen, and finding a pairing design piece, that is antibodies, is what makes the infection mild or severe. If only the immune system can neutralise the germ instantly, the infection can be prevented.

Immune System memory and vaccine

Like a new hue of design piece once acquired is stocked for future, once the new antibody matching the antigen evolves, it is retained in the immunological memory. Next time the same pathogen invades, immunological memory gets activated, and twinned antibody is released. The infection is nipped in the bud. We acquire immunity.

A vaccine is a method to artificially inducing the immunological memory. Once the antigens of the nasty pathogen are introduced, the immune system is triggered into developing pairing antibodies and immunological memory.

There are many ways in which one can artificially stroke the immune system to develop antibodies and memory. The bottom line is presenting the antigens of the novel coronavirus to the human immune system. From adenovirus-based live-attenuated virus to recombinant genetic technology is used to develop several types of vaccines. Two among the various possibilities produced in India are inactivated virus vaccine and DNA plasmid vaccine.

 

How these vaccines work

We can inactivate a whole virus with heat or formaldehyde (that is 'killed') yet keep the antigen molecular structures still intact. However, the inactivated virus will not be able to infect or cause disease, as it is no longer functional. The Bharat Biotech's COVAXIN uses the virus isolated from an Indian patient by the National Institute of Virology to develop the inactivated virus vaccine.

Novel coronavirus infects the human cells with the help of its spike proteins. The spike protein of the virus binds with the ACE2 receptors on the surface of the human respiratory tract cells. Once the virus fuse, the viral genome is slipped into the human cell where around a thousand copies of the virus are made in just ten hours. These baby viruses emigrate to nearby cells. Infection can be arrested if only we can deactivate the spike protein of the novel coronavirus.  Thus, the antigen on the spike protein is a crucial vaccine target. If the antibody blocks the spike protein, then the virus cannot bind the cell and multiply.
The genomic code of the spike protein is spliced into a harmless DNA plasmid. This modified plasmid DNA with the genetic code of viral spike protein is introduced into the host cells. The cellular machinery translates the DNA and produces the viral protein encoded in the genome. The human immune system recognises the alien protein and develops a matching antibody. After this vaccination, if at any time, we are infected by the novel coronavirus, then sensing the spike protein antibodies are released instantly. The immune killer cells seize deactivated viruses. Contagion is arrested even before infection sets in.

 

Rural sector will be transformed by constitution of 10000 Farmers' Producer Organizations; FPOs will not only help in agricultural progress, but also create new avenues of development - Union Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare Minister, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar

Union Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar today said that a new dimension is going to be added to farmers’ groups with the creation of ten thousand new Farmers’ Producer Organizations (FPOs). He said that 86 per cent farmers in the country are small and marginal farmers, who will strengthen the rural economy through these FPOs, which will not only help in agricultural progress, but also create new avenues for the development of the country. The Union Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare Minister was addressing a meeting of Laghu Udyog Bharati and Sahakar Bharati through video conference, in which Ministers of State for Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare, Shri Purushottam Rupala and Shri Kailash Choudhary, and Union Minister of State for Water Resources Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal were also present.

Shri Tomar said that in the beginning, the minimum number of members in the FPOs would be 300 in the plains and 100 in the North-East and hilly areas. The FPOs which are being formed for the benefit of small, marginal and landless farmers, will be managed in such a way that these farmers get access to technological inputs, finances, and better markets and prices for their crops, so as to fulfil the target of doubling farmers’ incomes by the year 2022 as envisaged by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. The FPOs will help to reduce the cost of production and marketing, also help to improve production in the agricultural and horticultural sectors. This will also help to increase employment opportunities.

Shri Tomar said that in the Budget 2020-21, there is a proposal to adopt cluster approach for horticultural produce through “One district – One Product” scheme so as to give a fillip to value addition, marketing and exports. This is a central scheme; with total budget of Rs 6,865 crore (US$ 973.90 million). All FPOs will be provided professional support and handholding for 5 years. 15 per cent of the FPOs are to be constituted in aspirational districts and will be formed on priority basis in scheduled tribal areas. This is a produce cluster-based scheme. The FPOs will also boost organic and natural farming.

Further elaborating on the scheme, Shri Tomar said that it will be implemented through agencies like NABARD, SFAC and NCDC. They will be provided facility of equity grant up to Rs 15 lakh (US$ 21,279.61) on matching equity basis for financial stability. There will be credit guarantee fund with NABARD and NCDC, under which suitable credit guarantee up to Rs 2 crore (US$ 0.28 million) per FPO will be provided. To understand the importance of capacity building, training and skill development of the stakeholders, there is a provision to provide training in organizational management, resource planning, marketing, and processing through national and regional level institutions.

Several suggestions were received from the representatives of the participating organizations and discussion on various issues was held.

 

PM launches Aatmanirbhar Bharat Innovation Challenge

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has launched Aatmanirbhar Bharat Innovation Challenge, to identify the best Indian Apps that are already being used by citizens and have the potential to scale and become world class Apps in their respective categories.

 “Today there is immense enthusiasm among the tech & start-up community to create world class Made in India Apps. To facilitate their ideas and products @GoI_MeitY and @AIMtoInnovate are launching the Aatmanirbhar Bharat App Innovation Challenge.

This challenge is for you if you have such a working product or if you feel you have the vision and expertise to create such products. I urge all my friends in the tech community to participate”, the Prime Minister said.

Today there is immense enthusiasm among the tech & start-up community to create world class Made in India Apps. To facilitate their ideas and products @GoI_MeitY and @AIMtoInnovate are launching the Aatmanirbhar Bharat App Innovation Challenge. https://t.co/h0xqjEwPko

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 4, 2020

--

This challenge is for you if you have such a working product or if you feel you have the vision and expertise to create such products. I urge all my friends in the tech community to participate.

Sharing my thoughts in my @LinkedIn post. https://t.co/aO5cMYi4SH

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 4, 2020

UPI payments hit all-time high of 1.34 billion transactions in June

According to National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) data, payments on Unified Payments Interface (UPI) in June hit an all-time high of 1.34 billion in terms of volume with transactions worth nearly Rs 2.62 lakh crore (US$ 37.17 billion).

It grew 8.94 per cent on a month-on-month basis from 1.23 billion in May.

In April 2020, UPI payments decreased to 999.57 million in terms of volume with transactions worth Rs 1.51 lakh crore (US$ 21.42 billion), because of the coronavirus-induced lockdown that halted almost all services, except essentials.

The online payments slowly gathered pace from May, with staggered opening of the economy. The data showed that in May, the number of UPI transactions stood at 1.23 billion valued at Rs 2.18 lakh crore (US$ 30.93 billion).

According to the data available, with the first set of data dating back to April 2016 -- with nil transaction, the volume in terms of transactions was highest level in June so far.

The number of transactions through all the available means on NPCI platform, were in upwards of 1 billion since October 2019 before dipping to 999.57 million in April this year. However, it soon regained the 1 billion plus transaction volume in May.

NPCI was integrated in 2008 as an umbrella organisation for operating retail payments and settlement systems in India. It has established a robust payment and settlement infrastructure in the country.

It facilitates payments through a bouquet of retail payment products such as RuPay Card, Immediate Payment Service (IMPS), UPI, Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM), BHIM Aadhaar, National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC Fastag) and Bharat BillPay.

It has also launched UPI 2.0 to offer more secure and comprehensive services to consumers and merchants.

 

Government launches Drug Discovery Hackathon 2020 (DDH2020), a first of its kind National Initiative for supporting drug discovery process

The Union Government launched Drug Discovery Hackathon here today in the presence of Union Minister for Science and Technology Dr Harsh Vardhanand Union Minister for Human Resource Development Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’. This Drug Discovery Hackathon is a joint initiative of MHRD’s Innovation Cell (MIC), All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and supported by Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC), MyGov as well as private players.

Minister of State for HRD Shri Sanjay Dhotre, Principal Scientific Advisor Prof Vijay Raghavan, DG CSIR, Dr Shekhar Mande, Chairman AICTE, Prof Anil Sahasrabudhe, President, Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) Prof B Suresh and Chief Innovation Officer, MHRD, Dr Abhay Jere were also present during the online launch program.

This Hackathon is first of its kind National initiative for supporting drug discovery process and will see participation from professionals, faculty, researchers, and students from varied fields like Computer Science, Chemistry, Pharmacy, Medical Sciences, Basic Sciences and Biotechnology.

Dr Harsh Vardhan, Minister for S&T said, “We need to establish the culture of Computational Drug Discovery in our country. In this initiative, MHRD’s Innovation cell and AICTE will focus on identifying potential drug molecules through the Hackathon while CSIR will take these identified molecules forward for synthesis and laboratory testing for efficacy, toxicity, sensitivity and specificity.” Pointing out that drug discovery is a complex, expensive, arduous and time-consuming process, Dr Harsh Vardhan said, “While we pursue clinical trials of few repurposed drugs for COVID-19, as they are faster and can quickly be launched, it is also important that we find other suitable repurposed drugs while at the same time continue working on new drug discovery to develop specific drugs against COVID-19”. He added, “in-silico drug discovery which utilizes Computational methods such as Machine Learning (ML), AI and Big Data will help in accelerating this process”.

Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’, HRD Minister said, “MHRD and AICTE have huge experience in organizing Hackathons but for the first time, we are using hackathon model for tackling a great scientific challenge. More importantly, this initiative is open for researchers/faculty across the globe as we are keen on attracting international talent to join and support our efforts.”

Minister of State for HRD Shri Sanjay Dhotre also appreciated the concept and said, “Our government has kick-started Hackathon culture in this country which is very critical for challenging our youngsters to solve some of the daunting problems faced by our nation.”

Prof K. Vijay Raghavan, PSA, Govt. of India said, “I wish to thank MHRD, AICTE and CSIR and all our partners for supporting this Hackathon which will help India establish new model for expediting drug discovery process. The Hackathon consists of challenges that are posted as problem statements and, are based on specific drug discovery topics which, are open to the participants to solve. It will have three phases of three months each and the whole exercise is to be completed by April-May 2021. At the end of each phase, successful teams will be rewarded. The ‘lead’ compounds identified at the end of phase 3 will be taken forward for experimental level at CSIR and other interested organizations.

During the launch function, Dr Abhay Jere, Chief Innovation Officer explained the concept of Drug Discovery Hackathon, while Prof Anil Sahasrabudhe extended all the support from AICTE and appealed all technical institutions to participate in this initiative in big numbers. Dr Shekhar Mande extended all the required commitment from CSIR’s side for this initiative. He also expressed satisfaction on the quality and variety of problem statements released today.

 

Background Information and Methodology of Hackathon

• The Hackathon consists of challenges that are posted as problem statements and, are based on specific drug discovery topics which, are open to the participants to solve. A total of 29 Problem Statements (PS) have been identified.
• MyGov portal is being used and any Indian student can participate.
• Professionals and researchers from anywhere in the world can participate.
• The Hackathon will have three Tracks.
  • Track 1 will primarily deal with drug design for anti-COVID-19 hit/lead generation: this is done using tools such as molecular modelling, pharmacophore optimization, molecular docking, hit/lead optimization, etc.
  • Track 2 will deal with designing/optimizing new tools and algorithms which will have an immense impact on expediting the process of in silico drug discovery.
  • There is also a third track called “Moon shot “which allows for working on problems which are ‘out of the box’ nature.

Movement of record 73 fertiliser rakes in a single day on June 30, 2020

Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilisers Shri D. V. Sadananda Gowda today congratulated officers of Department of Fertilisers and expressed gratitude to Ministry of Railways for helping move 73 fertiliser rakes in a single day on June 30, 2020. "Till date, this is a record number of fertiliser rakes moved in a single day," he stated.

During the month of June this year, average movement of Fertilizer rakes was 56.5 per day. It’s also a record number for any June month historically.

He added that the Government under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is committed to make available affordable fertilisers at appropriate time to farmers. So far for ongoing Kharif season, the Central Government in close coordination with State Governments has ensured steady supply of fertilisers in adequate quantity to farmers across the country.

DAC approves capital acquisition of various platforms & equipment worth Rs 38,900 crore; Focus on indigenous design and development; acquisitions from Indian industry of Rs 31,130 crore

In the current situation and the need to strengthen the Armed Forces for the defence of our borders and in line with Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s clarion call for ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’, Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) in its meeting of today held under the chairmanship of Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh accorded approval for capital acquisition of various platforms and equipment required by the Indian Armed Forces. Proposals for an approximate cost of Rs 38,900 crore (US$ 5.52 billion) were approved.

Focused on indigenous design and development these approvals include acquisitions from Indian industry of Rs 31,130 crore (US$ 4.42 billion). The equipments are going to be manufactured in India involving Indian defence industry with participation of several MSMEs as prime tier vendors. The indigenous content in some of these projects is up to 80 per cent of the project cost. Many these projects have been made possible due to Transfer of Technology (ToT) by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to the indigenous industry. These include Pinaka ammunitions, BMP armament upgrades and software defined radios for the Indian Army, Long Range Land Attack Cruise Missile Systems and Astra Missiles for the Indian Navy and Indian Air Force (IAF). The cost of these design and development proposals is in the range of Rs 20,400 crore (US$ 2.89 billion).

Acquisition of new/additional missile systems will add to the fire power of three Services. While acquisition of Pinaka missile systems will enable raising additional regiments over and above the ones already inducted, addition of Long Range Land Attack Missile Systems having a firing range of 1,000 kilometres to the existing arsenal will bolster the attack capabilities of the Navy and the Air Force. Similarly, induction of Astra Missiles having Beyond Visual Range capability will serve as a force multiplier and immensely add to the strike capability of the Navy and Air Force.

Further, addressing the long felt need of the IAF to increase its fighter squadrons, the DAC also approved the proposal for procurement of 21 MIG-29 along with upgradation of existing 59 MIG-29 aircraft and procurement of 12 Su-30 MKI aircraft. While the MIG 29 procurement and upgradation from Russia is estimated to cost Rs 7,418 crore (US$ 1.05 billion), the Su-30 MKI will be procured from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) at an estimated cost of Rs 10,730 crore (US$ 1.52 billion).

Intel Capital invests Rs 1,894 crore in Jio Platforms

Intel Capital plans to invest Rs 1,894.50 crore (US$ 268.76 million) in Jio Platforms Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), at an equity value of Rs 4.91 lakh crore (US$ 69.66 billion) and an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore (US$ 73.20 billion). Intel Capital’s investment will translate into a 0.39 per cent equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis.

The total investment received by Jio Platforms has reached Rs 117,588.45 crore (US$ 16.68 billion). Intel Capital has joined the list of marquee firms who have recently invested in the firm. Jio Platforms has more than 388 million subscribers. It has made significant investments across its digital ecosystem, powered by leading technologies spanning broadband connectivity, smart devices, cloud and edge computing, big data analytics, artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, augmented and mixed reality and blockchain.

The investment made by Intel Capital are focused on innovative companies that have portfolio in disruptive technology areas like cloud computing, artificial intelligence and 5G – opportunities where Jio is also innovating and investing for growth. Intel Capital is the investment arm of Intel Corporation, a leader in the semiconductor industry, shaping the data-centric future with computing and communications technology that is the foundation of global innovations. It has operated in India for more than two decades and currently employs thousands of employees there with state-of-the-art design facilities in Bengaluru and Hyderabad.

“We are extremely delighted to deepen our ties with technology leaders that embody our vision of transforming India into a leading Digital Society in the world. Intel is a true industry leader, working towards creating world-changing technology and innovations. Intel Capital has an outstanding record of being a valuable partner for leading technology companies globally. We are therefore excited to work together with Intel to advance India’s capabilities in cutting-edge technologies that will empower all sectors of our economy and improve the quality of life of 1.3 billion Indians," Mr Mukesh Ambani, CMD of Reliance Industries said.

“Jio Platforms’ focus on applying its impressive engineering capabilities to bring the power of low-cost digital services to India aligns with Intel’s purpose of delivering breakthrough technology that enriches lives. We believe digital access and data can transform business and society for the better. Through this investment, we are excited to help fuel digital transformation in India, where Intel maintains an important presence."

Morgan Stanley acted as financial advisor to Reliance Industries and AZB & Partners and Davis.

Bank credit grows 6.18 per cent, deposits 11 per cent: RBI data

According to Reserve Bank of India(RBI), Bank credit and deposits witnessed a growth of 6.18 per cent and 11 per cent to Rs 102.45 lakh crore (US4 1.45 trillion) and Rs 138.67 lakh crore (US4 1.96 trillion), respectively, in the fortnight ended June 19, 2020. Whereas, in the fortnight ended June 21, 2019, bank credit had stood at Rs 96.48 lakh crore (US$ 1.36 trillion) and deposits at Rs 124.92 lakh crore (US4 1.77 trillion).

In the previous fortnight that ended on June 5 this year, advances had grown 6.24 per cent and deposits by 11.28 per cent.

According to a recent report by the rating agency Crisil, bank credit growth is likely to drop to a multi-decadal low of 0-1 per cent in 2020-21 as economic activity is sharply impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

For May 2020, the non-food credit growth slowed to 6.8 per cent year-on-year from 11.4 per cent in the corresponding period of the previous year, as per RBI data.

The outstanding incremental non-food credit stood at Rs 90.3 lakh crore (US$ 1.28 trillion) as of May 22, 2020, against Rs 84.51 lakh crore (US$ 1.19 trillion) on May 24, 2019.

In May 2020, bank loan growth to industry slowed down to 1.7 per cent from 6.4 per cent in the corresponding month last year.

The loan growth to the services sector decreased to 11.2 per cent in May, compared with 14.8 per cent a year ago.

Personal loans growth decelerated to 10.6 per cent in May 2020, against 16.9 per cent in May 2019, RBI data showed.

 

Jio's string of deals drives up PE investments 12 per cent in H1 2020 to US$ 18.8 billion

The private equity (PE) investments registered a 12 per cent increase in the first half of this calendar year to US$ 18.8 billion (across 341 deals). This rise was driven by a string of deals struck by Reliance Industries' Jio Platforms. Though, this was despite the subdued April-June quarter for PE activity on account of the coronavirus crisis, according to a report by financial data tracker Venture Intelligence.

In 2019, during same period, PE investments worth US$ 16.8 billion (across 503 deals) were recorded.

In HI 2020, Jio Platforms accounted for 51 per cent of the total investment value, as per the data.

Jio Platforms' US$ 9.5 billion private equity haul, excluding Facebook’s US$ 5.7 billion strategic investment, was led by investors from Middle East to the US. KKR, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, and Vista Equity Partners invested US$ 1.5 billion each, while by Silver Lake Partners and Mubadala Investment invested over a US$ 1 billion each.

H1 2020 witnessed 24 PE/VC investments worth US$ 100 million or more, down from 37 such transactions in the same period last year.

Without the Jio investments, PE-VC investments during H1 2020 would have been 45 per cent lower year-on-year, according to the Venture Intelligence data.

At US$ 4.1 billion across 270 deals, venture capital investments fell 11 per cent in value terms and 31 per cent in terms of volumes when compared with the corresponding period in 2019, which had witnessed US$ 4.6 billion across 393 transactions. There was a decrease in VC investments by 52 per cent in value terms year-on-year to US$ 1 billion in the April-June quarter.