The Evening Wrap: Covaxin recipients asked to sign consent form

The Hindu Newsletter - Here are the latest updates and the big news stories to follow today [The Hindu Logo]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Youtube]( [Linkedin]( [Instagram]( Saturday 16, January 2021 [alt_text]( The Evening Wrap Here are the biggest news stories of the day [alt_text]( Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. We hope you are staying safe. Covaxin recipients asked to sign consent form on ‘clinical trial mode’ India began its Covid-19 vaccination drive on Saturday with two approved vaccinations, Serum Institute of India’s Covishield — developed by Oxford-AstraZeneca and Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin. Those receiving Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin have been [asked to sign a consent form before being vaccinated]( as the vaccine “has been allowed by the government in clinical trial mode”. The screening and consent form adds that compensation for serious adverse events will be paid by the company if it is proven to be causally related to the vaccine. “The clinical efficacy of Covaxin is yet to be established and it is still being studied in phase 3 clinical trials. Hence, it is important to appreciate that receiving the vaccine does not mean that other precautions related to Covid-19 need not be followed. The Central Licensing Authority has granted permission for the sale or distribution of Covaxin for restricted use in emergency situations in public interest as an abundant precaution, in clinical trial mode,’’ notes the form. It, however, states that in phase 1 and phase 2 clinical trials, Covaxin has demonstrated the ability to produce antibodies against Covid-19. The declaration says: “I further emphasise that any information provided by me prior to taking the vaccine will be archived in the database maintained by the immunisation program of the government and privacy as well as confidentiality of the information provided by you will be maintained.” The recipients will be handed over a fact sheet and a form to report adverse effects, in which they have to note down symptoms like fever, pain within seven days. Currently, beneficiaries don’t have a choice of vaccine and several Central government hospitals in Delhi — AIIMS, Safdarjung, Ram Manohar Lohia hospital, Kalawati Saran Children Hospital — administered Covaxin to its staff under the first round of vaccination. Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while launching the world’s biggest Covid-19 vaccination drive, said the India-made vaccines were safe and asked people not to believe rumours. Three days before Balakot air strikes, Arnab Goswami tells BARC chief ‘something big will happen’ Three days before the Indian Air Force’s Balakot strike, Republic TV Editor [Arnab Goswami told his friend and former Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) CEO Partho Dasgupta that “something big will happen”](, indicating that he knew about the confidential military action, transcript of WhatsApp messages between the two reveals. The transcript is part of the supplementary charge sheet filed by the Mumbai Police investigating the TRP-tampering case On February 26, 2019, the IAF hit a Jaish-e-Mohammad training camp in Pakistan’s Balakot town. The government claimed that this was in response to the February 14 terrorist attack in Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir, where 40 CRPF personnel were killed after an explosive-laden car driven by a suicide bomber rammed into their bus. At 10 p.m. on February 23, three days before the Balakot strike, the conversation begins with Goswami boasting about Republic TV bagging then Home Minister Rajnath Singh’s first-ever interview after the Pulwama incident. Goswami during a conversation said to Dasgupta, “On another note something big will happen”. To which Dasgupta asked, “Dawood?”. Goswami responded, saying, “No sir Pakistan. Something major will be done this time.” [ Arnab Goswami. File Photo. ] Arnab Goswami. File Photo. Dasgupta, in response, said that “it’s good for big man in this season” and that “he will sweep polls then.” The 2019 general election was just a few months away. Dasgupta pressed for further clarity, asking Goswami, “Strike? Or bigger”. And Goswami responded, saying that it would be “bigger than a normal strike”. Then he went on to add, “And also at the same time something major on Kashmir. On Pakistan the government is confident of striking in a way that people will be elated. Exact words used.” The Congress party did not hold an official press conference on the issue, but a few senior leaders have raised questions on this conversation. Party spokesperson and Supreme Court lawyer Abshishek Manu Singhvi said, “Arnab's chats dated 23.02.2019 refer to sharing of Intel reaction along the Pak border. It means someone very senior in Govt is leaking highly confidential info which may endanger the lives of our soldiers and so that mercenary considerations can add to TRPs.” Ex-CEO of BARC Partho Dasgupta hospitalised; daughter alleges torture Partho Das Gupta, former CEO of TV ratings agency BARC, who was arrested in the Television Rating Points (TRP) rigging case, has been [admitted to the ICU of a hospital in Mumbai]( after his sugar level shot up, officials said on Saturday. His daughter took to Twitter to allege that he was tortured in prison, and appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and others to “save his life”. Dasgupta, a diabetic, was rushed to the State-run J.J. Hospital from the Taloja Central Prison in Navi Mumbai around mid-night after his blood sugar levels shot up. He was admitted to the ICU and was on oxygen support. Dasgupta was arrested in the alleged TRP-rigging scam by crime branch of the Mumbai Police on December 24 last year. A Mumbai court had earlier this month rejected his bail plea, stating that he appeared to have played a vital role in the scam to rig TRPs as per the police’s case. The Mumbai Police had earlier told the court that Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami allegedly bribed Dasgupta with “lakhs of rupees” to ramp up the news channel’s viewership numbers in a fraudulent manner. On Saturday, Pratyusha Dasgupta, Dasgupta's daughter, demanded that he be shifted to a reputed private hospital. She tweeted a message titled ‘A helpless daughter's anguished appeal’, tagging PM Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah, the PMO as well as Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. WhatsApp delays policy rollout to May 15 WhatsApp has decided to [delay the rollout of its new policy update to May 15]( after massive criticism from users globally, including India, over concerns that data was being shared with its parent company Facebook, PTI reported. The move assumes significance for users in India given that the country is among the biggest markets for WhatsApp with over 400 million users. In a blog post, WhatsApp said it is moving back the date on which people will be asked to review and accept the terms. “No one will have their account suspended or deleted on February 8. We’re also going to do a lot more to clear up the misinformation around how privacy and security works on WhatsApp. We’ll then go to people gradually to review the policy at their own pace before new business options are available on May 15,” it said in the blog post. [ WhatsApp did not specify how it calculated the number of users. File ] WhatsApp did not specify how it calculated the number of users. File A raging debate ensued after WhatsApp said it will update its terms of service and privacy policy around how it processes user data and partners with Facebook to offer integrations across the social media giant’s products. Concerned about the privacy of their data, many users have thronged to rival messaging platforms such as Signal and Telegram that have seen millions of downloads in the past few days. WhatsApp rival Telegram has added 25 million new users in the last few days and while it did not specify India-specific user numbers, it said 38% of the new users are from Asia, followed by Europe (27%), Latin America (21%) and MENA (the Middle East and North Africa at 8%). Signal, too, is hoping to capitalise on the opportunities in India with its “simple and straightforward” terms of service and privacy policy. NIA summons 40 persons to be examined as ‘witnesses’ in fresh case against Sikhs for Justice The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has [summoned around 40 persons to be examined as ‘witnesses’ in a fresh case registered against the Sikhs for Justice (SFJ)](, a foreign-based group that advocates secessionist and pro-Khalistani activities in India. A senior government official said the summons was served to “ascertain details relating to the investigation”. The notices sent on January 15 include those sent to a farm leader, a TV journalist, a cable TV operator, tourist bus owner, an actor, a sweet shop owner and other businessmen, who have been asked to appear at the NIA’s Delhi headquarters from January 18-21. The Hindu spoke to some of the persons summoned by the NIA. Jasveer Singh Muktsar, a journalist with the U.K.-based TV channel KTV, who has been covering the protests at Delhi border said, “I have been asked to appear before the NIA on January 18. I shall be going there with my legal team. I do not know why I have been summoned. I am a journalist covering the protest.” [ The National Investigation Agency office in New Delhi. File ] The National Investigation Agency office in New Delhi. File Punjabi actor Deep Sidhu, who campaigned for BJP’s Sunny Deol in the Gurdaspur Lok Sabha constituency during the 2019 general elections, has been summoned to appear on Sunday. Ranjit Singh of the Damdami Taksal, Amritsar, said he and his friends have organised several langars (food stalls) at Tikri and Singhu border and also distributed books and other items there. “I and 16-17 other young leaders have also received notices. We have no connection with the SFJ. This is a ploy to implicate us in a false case. I agree that we accept donations to organise langars but that is from friends and known people. We returned from Delhi only last week,” he said. Sri Lanka’s Tamil parties seek international mechanism to probe ‘war crimes’ Sri Lanka’s main Tamil political parties have [sought an international probe](, including at the International Criminal Court (ICC), into allegations of human rights abuses during the civil war, deeming there is “no scope” for a domestic process that can “genuinely” deal with accountability. In a joint letter dated January 15, 2021 and addressed to members of the UN Human Rights Council, they observed, “Leaders across the political spectrum in Sri Lanka including from both the major political parties have categorically and without exception stated that they will protect the Sri Lankan armed forces from prosecutions. It is now time for Member States to acknowledge that there is no scope for a domestic process that can genuinely deal with accountability in Sri Lanka.” Significantly, different Tamil political parties that were until now fiercely critical of each other’s strategies — political or regarding accountability — appear to have reached a consensus ahead of the 46th session of the Council (February 22 to March 19). Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments The [number of reported coronavirus cases from India]( stood at 1,05,56,480 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 1,52,321. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. 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