Odisha reports only one fresh COVID-19 case after two years

The state's tally now stands at 12,87,980. The total number of active cases has dropped to 85, while 12,78,718 patients have recovered from the disease and 9,124 have succumbed to the infection to date.

PTI

April 23, 2022 / 18:35 IST

Representative image (REUTERS/Danish Siddiqui)

Odisha on Saturday reported only one fresh COVID-19 case for the first time since the outbreak of the pandemic, a health official said. Thirteen of the 30 districts have turned coronavirus free, the official said.

The development has brought some relief to the medical personnel even as Delhi and several states are reporting a spike in COVID-19 cases. "For the first time in over two years, Odisha has reported only one COVID-19 case," the official said, adding that the first infection was detected in Bhubaneswar on March 16, 2020.

Odisha's first COVID-19 patient was a student, who had returned from Italy, and had subsequently recovered from the disease. The state's tally now stands at 12,87,980. The total number of active cases has dropped to 85, while 12,78,718 patients have recovered from the disease and 9,124 have succumbed to the infection to date.

Besides, 53 other COVID-19 patients have died due to comorbidities, he said. The administration tested 19,500 samples for COVID-19 in the last 24 hours.

Though only one fresh case was detected, Health Services Director Bijay Mohapatra said that the next three weeks will be crucial for Odisha as it has been noted that infections spread to the state a month after there was a spike in cases in the national capital. He urged people to maintain all COVID-19 protocols to prevent a resurgence in cases in the state.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Frequently Asked Questions

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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