Over 150 transgender persons get free vaccination at special drive in Santacruz

As part of the PRIDE month, over 150 transgender persons were provided free
Covid vaccination on Tuesday at a camp in Santacruz (E). The drive was
organised by Woman of India Sustainable Empowerment (WISE), a platform
that understands, trains and nurtures young women and transgender persons,
along with The Humsafar Trust, an NGO towards advance health, advocacy,
capacity building and research for the LGBTQIA+ community.
MUMBAI
MUMBAI | WEDNESDAY | JUNE 30, 2021

Clinical trial of Covovax

Residents say they have collected money for repairs

Gajanan bldg in Goregaon is safe

begins at KEM hospital & not dangerous, claim residents B L SONI

Seven more hospitals in state have been selected to carry out the trials RONALD RODRIGUES
ronald.rodrigues@fpj.co.in
have collected funds to un-
dertake repairs.
Another resident said,

SWAPNIL MISHRA
swapnil.mishra@fpj.co.in
A clinical trial of the fourth
Covid vaccine Novavax,
known as Covovax in India,
has begun at the civic-run
KEM hospital in Parel last
week. The trial is being con-
ducted by the Indian Council
of Medical Research (ICMR)
at 20 hospitals across the
country, of which KEM is one
of them. Besides KEM, seven
more hospitals have been se-
lected to carry out trials in
the state.
Covovax is the second vac-
cine being made by Serum In-
stitute of India (SII). The first
was Oxford-AstraZeneca vac-
cine that was produced in In-
dia by SII as Covishield.
Dr. Hemant Deshmukh,
dean of KEM hospital, said
the ethics committee of the
hospital has given a nod to
carry out clinical trials of
Covovax. Around 80 to 100
al. So far, Covovax has shown
100% protection against mod-
erate to severe impact of the
virus. Overall, there was a
90.4% efficacy in the phase 3
the trial but we cannot com-
ment more,” said Dr Desh-
mukh.
As per the Clinical Trial
Registry issued on June 29,
tered to volunteers, while the
second jab will be given after
22 days. Also, the written con-
sent has been taken from par-
ticipants.
R
esidents of Gajanan
Building No. 9 in
Goregaon (W) are in a
state of limbo. As their
building falls in the BMC’s
C1 list, which means ex-
tremely dangerous and not
suitable for living, residents
knocked on the doors of the
Bombay high court. Howev-
er, residents have been
served eviction notices from
the BMC. The ground-plus-
three-storey building in
P/south ward faces the rail-
way tracks and is over 50
years old.Over 49 families
reside in the building, of
which 24 are tenants. The
building has a terrace and
an additional outside space.
The BMC sent a notice to
the residents on May 25,
stating to evacuate the
building as it needs to be
razed. But the matter is in
the HC.
The ground-plus-three-storey
Gajanan Building No. 9 in
Goregaon (W) is over 50
years old. Over 49 families
reside in the building, of
which 24 are tenants
What residents say: other steps suggested by the
A resident who owns a flat BMC. But we do not want to
in the building said, “We are vacate the building as it is in
ready to renovate and un- good shape. It is not highly
dertake the necessary re- dangerous or dilapidated as
pairs. We are also willing to the BMC claims it to be.”
initiate reconstruction and Meanwhile, residents
“We have contributed and
gathered funds to initiate re-
pairs. But the BMC has sent
a notice directing us to va-
cate. Where are we sup-
posed to go? Why should we
be forced to leave our homes
when we are ready to repair
and carry out the necessary
renovations?”
What officials say:
BMC assistant engineer
(building and factories) of
P/south ward Mandar
Chaudhary said, “We have
informed the residents to
vacate the building. A no-
tice in this regard has also
been sent to them. But the
matter is now in the high
court. We will act as per the
directions of the court.”
Every year before the mon-
soons, BMC publishes a list
of dilapidated structures in
the city.

Over 70% plan to give private cars,

volunteers have been selected trial. the nation-wide clinical trial As reported, SII plans to ap-
based on the criteria pre- “Two days ago, we started will be conducted on 1,600 vol- ply for permission from the
pared by the ethics commit- the clinical trials of the Covo- unteers across 20 hospitals, Drug Controller and General
tee, which includes patients vax that has an efficacy of which means 80 volu nteers of India (DCGI) to conduct a

taxis a skip & travel by AC trains

who will be tested for Covid 90.4% in the phase 3 trial. We from each hospital. Moreover clinical trial of the same
before being a part of the tri- have around 80 volunteers for two shots will be adminis- among children.

COURT RAPS BMC, SAYS IT’S FAILURE ON STATE’S PART

Main accused
surrenders before
Kandivli police
STAFF REPORTER
A day after the sessions court
rejected Dr. Manish Tripathi’s
anticipatory bail plea, he
surrendered before the Kandivli
police on Tuesday in connection
with the fake vaccination drive.
With Tripathi, 11 arrests have
been made in the case so far.
The police said Tripathi was the
main accused and he ran a
coaching institute for nursing
students on the premises of
Shivam hospital in Charkop.
DCP (Zone 11) Vishal Thakur, who
is also heading the SIT, said that
Tripathi has been arrested and a
probe is underway. A senior
official said Tripathi had lured
some students to be a part of the
vaccination drive by promising
them extra marks in their practical
exam. During interrogation, one of
Tripathi’s students, Qareem Ali,
who has been arssrested, told the
police that the victims were
administered saline water.
Meanwhile, the Samta Nagar
police are likely to register an FIR
after a complaint will be lodged
by the BMC regarding a fake drive
in Kandivli. The custody of
Shrikant Mane and Seema Ahuja
have been handed over from
Bhoiwada to Borivili police.
Arrest everyone involved in
fake vax drive, HC tells cops
NARSI BENWAL
narsi.benwal@fpj.co.in
A bench of the Bombay high
court ordered the Mumbai po-
lice to arrest each and every
accused involved in the fake
vaccination drive, in which
over 2,000 citizens were
duped. The bench, compris-
ing Chief Justice Dipankar
Datta and Justice Girish
Kulkarni, on Tuesday, ob-
served that it is the “state’s
failure” and ordered the au-
thorities to find out what ex-
actly was administered to
these 2,053 citizens.
The judges also sought to
know from the BMC as to
when it would inoculate these
citizens. The bench was hear-
ing a PIL filed by Siddharth
Chandrashekhar through ad-
vocate Anita Shekhar-
Castellino, highlighting the
incident of the fake vaccine
camps held at housing soci-
eties and production houses.
Chief public prosecutor
Deepak Thakre, representing
the city police, informed the
bench that 12 accused have
been named in the seven FIRs
lodged at various police sta-
tions across the city. “Out of
12, we have arrested 11 and
the prime accused Dr. Manish
Tripathi surrendered before
the police on Tuesday morn-
ing after a court turned down
his anticipatory bail applica-
tion on Monday,” Thakre
said.
Having gone through the re-
port, chief justice Datta said,
“The police must investigate
the case properly as there
might be some big people in-
volved in it. Thus, we are of
the opinion that the probe in
this case must be fair, proper
and meaningful. Whoever the
accused is, must be arrested,
irrespective of what he is.”
“When we are saving the
lives of citizens, we need to
arrest all the accused,” the
chief justice added. Castelli-
no told the judges that the
state needs to check what ac-
tually was administered to
these citizens as there are sev-
eral students who were also
administered the vaccine.
“When did the first incident
take place?” CJ Datta asked
senior counsel Anil Sakhare,
representing the BMC. “With-
in 11 days all incidents took
place,” Sakhare said. The
chief justice noted that the in-
cident took place some one
month ago.
“More than 2,000 persons
have been duped. How do you
(BMC) propose to vaccinate
them?” CJ Datta questioned.
Sakhare told the court that af-
ter 15 days, these citizens will
have to undergo an antigen
test. “They can either come to
us or opt for a private test,” he
added.
“It appears to be a state fail-
ure. You find out what was ex-
actly administered to these
citizens. In fact, the BMC
should have checked it by
now,” CJ Datta said, adding,
“By the next date tell us what
are you complimenting so far
as these unfortunate persons
are concerned.”
Meanwhile, Sakhare sub-
mitted that the BMC is likely
to issue fresh SOPs against
fake vaccine camps and
would provide detailed guide-
lines for housing societies be-
fore holding vaccine camps
on their premises.
SHASHANK RAO
Shashank.rao@fpjindia.co.in
In a move to find out what
changes need to be made in
terms of train operations, the
Indian Railways had come up
with an online survey called
‘Feedback on AC Local’ on
June 15. A fortnight later,
around 11,000 commuters on
both Western and Central
lines took the survey. The on-
line survey is still on and peo-
ple can submit their informa-
tion. On June 29, the railways
met the rail passengers asso-
ciations, seeking their views
on the future of AC locals are
currently lying in car sheds.
The survey had multiple
choice questions seeking
views from commuters. The
railways are hoping for at
7% drop in Covid
cases in last 24
hrs but state see
rise in cases
Mumbai witnessed 7% drop in
the Covid cases on Tuesday,
with 562 new infections and 12
covid deaths being reported in
the last 24 hours. With this, the
total count is at 7,21,526, while
15,426 fatalities have taken
place. Meanwhile, the recovery
rate has increased to 96%.
Maharashtra witnessed a jump
in cases on Tuesday, with 8,085
A COMFORTABLE
JOURNEY
least 50,000 to 55,000 people to
respond; which means five
times the existing number of
respondents. Sources said
that as of now, close to 70%
have responded that they
were ready to switch over
from private cars, autos, taxis
and aggregator cabs to AC lo-
cals.
This, according to the rail-
A STINKING ISSUE
ways, is a good sign and they
feel that the AC locals have a
future. If properly planned
and operated, at least 65% are
eager to travel by the AC train.
This comes at a time when 13
AC locals (nine with WR and
four with CR) are lying idle
due to the pandemic. Even
during pre-Covid times, all the
AC locals weren’t running as
there was opposition to re-
place existing regular rake
with AC ones.
“We have suggested that the
railways attach three AC
coaches to the existing nine-
car or 12-car non-AC subur-
ban train. The demand from
commuters for an entire 12-
car AC local hasn’t gained
much traction,” said Madhu
Kotian, president, Mumbai
Railway Pravasi Sangh.
One of the questions in the
survey includes the coach
composition of AC local,
which is six-car AC and six-
car non-AC or nine-car non-
AC and six-car AC. Currently,
a 12-car AC local is divided
into half, with six-car each.
The passengers’ associations
claimed that a similar meet-
ing with the rail authorities
took place in January 2019 as
well, but nothing much
changed since then.
“We have demanded that
fares should not be more than
10 percent of fares of First
Class compartment,” said
Subhash Gupta, president,
Rail Yatri Parishad. The sur-
vey also talks about fares,
probable train schedule, train
composition and other issues
pertaining to it.

Saline jabs given, antibody tests for victims: Tope
SWAPNIL MISHRA
swapnil.mishra@fpj.co.in
More than 2,000 people who
fell prey to the fake vacci-
nation drive in Mumbai
“According to prelimi-
nary report, 2,040 benefici-
aries have been adminis-
tered saline water during
the fake vaccination drive.
Following which, the state
Tope.
The vaccine racket came
to light after residents of a
housing society in Kandivli
claimed that they were the
victims of the “vaccination
Covid vaccine certificate of
the first dose. Moreover, the
accused procured vaccine
bottles from another state
and filled them with saline
water,” he said.
new infections and 231 deaths
being reported in the last 24
hours. With this, the total stands
at 60,51,633, with 1,21,804
fatalities so far. Moreover the Despite a dustbin, garbage has been dumped on the road near Lok Everest society in Mulund (W). Even
state recovery rate has also though the BMC cleans up the place, residents throw garbage on the road PHOTO: PIYUSH M SHAH
touched 96%. - Staff reporter
NOT A GOOD SIGN

City records 46%

will undergo antibody tests government will conduct scam”. “The preliminary investi-
in July, said state health an antibody test on the vic- Tope added that the BMC gations suggest that the ac-
minister Rajesh Tope on tims in the first week of and city police are investi- cused procured the empty

drop in vaccine
Tuesday. Tope added that July. After the test, the state gating the matter and so far Covishield vaccine bottles
all beneficiaries will re- will inform the central gov- they have arrested 11 peo- of the ’97 batch that was
ceive two doses of Cov- ernment and ICMR about ple in the racket. sent to Gujarat. These bot-
ishield after the state the same and ensure that “Interestingly all the ben- tles were filled with saline
writes to the Centre. all get vaccinated,” said eficiaries have received the water,” Tope said.
turnout on Tuesday
After spending crores on beautification, SWAPNIL MISHRA
swapnil.mishra@fpj.co.in

Powai lake lies in a state of neglect The city recorded a 46%

DIPTI SINGH
dipti.singh@fpj.co.in
Powai lake has returned to its
state of neglect despite crores
of rupees being spent on its
beautification. Environmen-
talists and residents allege
that disrepair has become its
biggest single malaise. They
said that musical fountains
erected as part of the beautifi-
cation project, jogging tracks
and iron bars and railings
have been damaged due to
lack of maintenance and neg-
lect on part of the Brihan-
mumbai Municipal Corpora-
tion (BMC).
Expressing fears that the
rapidly spreading water hy-
acinth could deplete the lake’s
oxygen content and pose a
threat to its biodiversity, envi-
ronmentalists said all the
money spent in the past few
years has gone down the
drain.
In March this year, mass
deaths of fish were reported
Environmentalists and residents allege that disrepair has become
its biggest single malaise
in the lake. Alarmed by fish
debris floating on its surface,
the Maharashtra State An-
gling Association (MSAA)
conducted a field investiga-
tion. As per the report, the fac-
tors contributing to fish
deaths include fluctuation of
dissolved oxygen (DO) level
(low oxygen during early
morning time) and clogging
due to blue-green algae in the
gills of the more vulnerable
species of fish.
After several complaints
and objections from activists
and residents in the past
decade, the BMC undertook a
plan to prevent sewage from
entering the lake. At the same
time, beautification of the
area was also undertaken.
Footpaths and separate jog-
ging tracks were built, and
iron railings and bollards
were erected. Musical foun-
tains were installed to add to
the charm despite opposition
from activists.
Environmentalist Sunish
Subramaniam wrote to the
BMC about the issue. He said
after the implementation of
the scheme, the lake attracted
many tourists, but in the past
few years he has seen vehicles
being parked along the jog-
ging track. “Peddlers and
unauthorised hawkers start-
ed occupying some of the key
spots frequented by tourists.
Some shanties have also come
up along the lake,” he said,
adding that garlands, flowers
and plastic waste is unrepen-
tantly thrown into the water
body. “Vehicles have started
crossing the jogging tracks
and also the small Ganpati
immersion site,” he said.
Subramaniam added green
activists had opposed the in-
stallation of musical foun-
tains due to the biodiversity of
the lake, but the BMC ignored
their caution.
A BMC official said that the
civic body is looking into the
issue, but it has taken a back-
seat because of the pandemic.
drop in vaccine turnout at
its various centres on Tues-
day. As per the data re-
ceived from the BMC,
97,846 were vaccinated in
the last 24 hours, as com-
pared to 1.80 lakh who were
administered the jab on
Monday.
Of the total vaccinated,
58,307 beneficiaries were
between 18 to 44 years of
age, followed by 28,820 in
the age group of 45 to 59
years and 9,435 in the 60
years bracket.
Additional civic chief around two to three days.
Suresh Kakani said, “Vac- Every vaccination centre is
cination across all age given 200 to 300 vaccine
groups will be conducted at doses as per the demand,”
all centres to ensure there said the officer.
is no crowding. We had ini- Meanwhile, state immu-
tially thought to designate nisation officer Dr. D N
centres based on the age Patil said it all depends on
groups, but this may result the doses received from the
in overcrowding.” central government. “We
According to BMC offi- have the necessary infra-
cials, if there is crowding structure and planning in
at centres, they will devel- place. Our drive depends
op a mechanism to control on the number of doses
the same. “We have vaccine supplied by the central gov-
stock that will last for ernment,” said Dr Patil.