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Coronavirus Pandemic | Maharashtra minister Aslam Shaikh tests COVID-19 positive

The state textile minister said he is currently asymptomatic and urged those who came in close contact with him to get themselves tested.

July 20, 2020 / 10:18 IST
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Image: Facebook/@AskamShaikhOfficial

Maharashtra minister Aslam Shaikh on July 20 said he has tested positive for coronavirus and is isolating himself.

The state textile minister said he is currently asymptomatic and urged those who came in close contact with him to get themselves tested.

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"This is to inform that I have tested positive for COVID-19. I am currently asymptomatic and isolating myself. I request all those who have come in close contact with me to get themselves tested," Shaikh, who is also Mumbai City's guardian minister, tweeted.

Shaikh, the Congress MLA from Malad-West seat in Mumbai, also said he will continue to work from home.

COVID-19 Vaccine
Frequently Asked Questions

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How does a vaccine work?

A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine.

How many types of vaccines are there?

There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine.

What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind?

Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time.
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