Today something Important

 

1. No breathing space for govt. amid covid mayhem as IIP contracts while

inflation surges

Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

There has been no respite for the govt. on the economic front as it struggles to contain a

huge second wave of the covid pandemic. The latest data figures are a clear indication of

this depressing scenario. As per them, while the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) has

been declining over the past couple of months, inflation has been rising during the same

period.

The Details

As per the economic figures, India’s Industrial activity which is measured by the Index of

Industrial Production (IIP), contracted 3.6% for the month of February. This shrinkage

comes on the back of a 4.6% contraction in the Index of Eight Core Sector Industries that

account for 40% of the IIP basket.

All components except consumer durables contracted on an annual basis in February. The

shrinkage in non-consumer goods categories such as primary goods, capital goods,

intermediate goods and infrastructure/construction goods was higher. Talking of figures,

the manufacturing output contracted by 3.7%, while the mining output declined by 5.5%.

The power generation grew by a negligible 0.1%.

In all, the contraction in IIP suggests a weaker demand outlook by manufacturers and

shrinking capital expenditure in the economy.

Inflation 'adds to the pain'

India's retail inflation which is measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), rose to a four-month

high of 5.52 % in March. Food inflation jumped to 4.94% in March. Though it is still

within the RBI’s comfort level of 6%, the number doesn’t truly disclose the magnitude of

food inflation in full. The prices of important food items such as pulses, edible oils, egg, fish

, and meat continued to grow in double digits. Aggravating the problem, fuel inflation also

increased to 4.5% in March.

Core inflation, which measures the non-food, non-fuel component of the CPI basket, also

increased to 6.07%, its highest value since July 2018.

Back to square one!

As more and more states have started imposing partial lockdowns or restrictions on

movement and activities there are genuine concerns that the economy could lose further

momentum in its bid towards a recovery.

The RBI’s decision to keep the repo rate unchanged at 4% in its latest monetary policy is an

indicator of such worries. There has also been a fall in high-frequency indicators such as

Nomura India Business Resumption Index (NIBRI), which fell to 90.7 in the week ending

April 4.

2. The road to foreign vaccines

Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

With an aim to fast-track approvals for foreign manufacturers to market their Covid-19

vaccines in India, the government on Tuesday announced that vaccines that have been

granted emergency approvals by US, UK and Japanese regulators, and those listed by the

World Health Organization (WHO), may be granted emergency use approvals in India.

The move comes at a time when vaccine shortages are being reported from various parts of

the country. The Centre said the decision will facilitate quicker access to foreign vaccines in

India. India’s current vaccination programme involves two vaccines — Covishield (Serum

Institute of India) and Covaxin (Bharat Biotech) — while the expert body of the national

regulator has recommended emergency use approval for Russia’s Sputnik V.

What are the rules on regulatory approvals for foreign Covid-19 vaccines?

The New Drugs & Clinical Trials Rules, 2019 mandate that whenever a foreign

manufacturer applies for emergency use authorisation of vaccines, it has to submit the

result of local clinical trials. These trials are called bridging trials, in which the

manufacturers conduct phase 2/3 studies to collect safety and immunogenicity data. Since

the efficacy data is already established at a foreign site, limited participants are enrolled

(around 1,000) and a clinical trial is conducted to ascertain if the vaccine is safe in the

Indian population.

On the basis of this rule, Serum Institute conducted a bridging trial of Covishield, which is a

a version of the vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca, and Dr

Reddy’s conducted a bridging trial of the Sputnik V vaccine from Russia.

The Rules also empower the regulator to relax the rules if the vaccine has been approved

by the national regulator of another country. These relaxations are invoked if there “no

major unexpected serious adverse events have been reported” in the vaccine; and if the

the vaccine is indicated “in life-threatening or serious disease” or “special relevance to Indian

health scenario”; and for an “unmet need in India”.

This clause has now been invoked; India has technically waived the pre-condition to

conduct phase 2-3 trials at Indian sites.

What does this mean for foreign manufacturers?

Any vaccine manufacturer whose Covid-19 vaccine has received approval for restricted use

by the foreign national regulators USFDA, EMA, UK MHRA or PMDA Japan, or which are

listed in WHO (Emergency Use Listing), can come directly to India and get emergency

approval for the vaccine. It fast-tracks the process for approval.

How will the regulator then assess the safety of these vaccines?

It has introduced a special condition, under which foreign manufactures have to assess the

first 100 beneficiaries for seven days for safety outcomes before it is rolled out for further

immunisation programmes in India.

After approval, a parallel bridging clinical trial will continue and the manufacturers have to

submit the safety data to the regulator.

What are the implications of the changes?

The decision will facilitate quicker access to such foreign vaccines. Second, it will be the

first time that India starts importing foreign vaccines for Covid-19; currently, only vaccines

manufactured domestically are being used in the vaccination drive ((Sputnik V is being

manufactured in India under collaborations with the Russian developers). Third, local

manufacturers can import these vaccines in bulk from foreign companies, and utilise their

domestic infrastructure to fill these in India.

Since India is considered the vaccine capital of the world, it can utilise the third option to

ramp up vaccine production.

Which companies are likely to benefit?

US pharma giant Johnson & Johnson, the only manufacturer with a single-dose Covid-19

vaccine has communicated to the Indian regulator that it will soon begin bridging clinical

trials in the country. With Tuesday’s decisions, it can directly use this route to introduce its

product in India.

The J&J vaccine has run into a hurdle in the US, where the regulator has temporarily paused

its use following reports or blood clots. This does not affect the company’s application to

India, received approvals from the WHO on March 12.

The new move may also see Pfizer reapply for emergency use authorisation for its mRNA

Covid-19 vaccine, which it had earlier withdrawn after the regulator sought more data.

India could also see the US-based Moderna entering the market.

The move opens up a door for Serum Institute to seek speedier approval for Covovax, its

version of the Covid vaccine developed by Novavax. The American vaccine maker had said

in March that it could file for authorisation for this vaccine in the UK, and for EUA nod in

the US, by the early second quarter of 2021.

Which newer vaccines are expected to figure in the WHO EUL list?

One is a vaccine developed by the Chinese state-owned company Sinopharm, called BBIBPCorV.

Another is a vaccine developed by a Beijing-based biopharmaceutical company:

CoronaVac.

In both these vaccine, the WHO has held a pre-submission meeting and a final decision is

expected at the end of April.

There are other vaccines whose expressions of interest have been accepted, and whose

pre-submission meetings are still to be held. These are EpiVacCorona, developed by Vector

State Research Centre of Virology and Biotechnology; and a Chinese vaccine developed by

Zhifei Longcom, IMBCAMS, and Clover Biopharmaceuticals.

Will vaccines be now made available in the commercial market?

Not yet. Currently, the decision is only with respect to approvals for foreign vaccine

manufacturers. No decision has been taken by the Centre on if, or when, vaccines will be

made available to the private market. The outcome of that decision will largely depend on

how many foreign vaccine manufactures are willing to seek approvals to commercially

market their products in India.

One should also remember that most of the promising candidates, including Pfizer,

Moderna and Johnson & Johnson, have made advance commercial commitments to supply

millions of doses to other countries.

Source: The Indian Express

3. Results and takeaways of Tripura tribal polls

Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; Polity & Governance

Recent elections in Tripura’s Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) have

thrown up results that are significant for several reasons. A ragtag alliance of tribal political

parties, forged two months ago at the initiative of Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma of

the erstwhile royal family, have swept the polls covering nearly 70% of Tripura’s

geographical area. The BJP was a distant second, the Congress drew a blank and the results

decimated whatever was left of the Left.

What is TTAADC

Formed on January 18, 1982, TTADC governs areas that enjoy a set of protective

constitutional safeguards for people from 19 tribal communities. These include statutory

protection of tribal land. One-third of the state’s population lives here, a large majority of

them still depending on slash-and-burn cultivation and traditional livelihood for

sustenance.

The TTADC has 30 seats, of which 28 are elected. The newly formed TIPRA Motha and its

ally INPT won 18 seats (vote shares 37.43% and 9.3%), the BJP 9 (18.72%) and an

independent candidate 1. For the BJP, it is still again from the previous TTADC polls, when

it had won no seats (7.87%). But BJP’s tribal ally IPFT (10.62%) failed to win any seat. The

CPM, during whose government TTADC was formed 39 years ago, was washed out with a

12.46% vote share — the Left Front had won all 28 seats (48.88%) in the last council

and had governed the tribal council for three consecutive terms.

Poll issues

Pradyot’s TIPRA Motha contested the polls over the demand of Greater Tipraland, a

proposed administrative authority governing Tripuri tribals in Tripura, Assam, Mizoram

and parts of Bangladesh. Greater Tipraland is essentially an extension beyond the ruling

IPFT’s demand of Tipraland, which sought a separate state for tribals of Tripura. The new demand seeks to include every tribal person living in indigenous areas or villages outside

TTAADC under the proposed model, including in areas outside the state and the country.

Pradyot has said details of the demand would be placed before the central government for

dialogue if all indigenous tribal leaders of Tripura including himself are invited for talks.

Pradyot has been quoted as saying in an interview that the results are a vindication of his

stand on the CAA (Citizenship Amendment Bill). Formerly in the Congress, he had quit over

the party’s stand on the CAA. Tripura’s demography has been shaped by decades of

migration, and Pradyot opposes CAA, which allows migrants of certain groups to seek

Indian citizenship. He has also gone to court demanding a National Register of Citizens (

NRC) in Tripura.

The BJP contested the polls on the issue of good governance. The CPM fought for rescuing

democracy.

The message

The results are a jolt to the IPFT, which had claimed to be the sole stakeholder of tribal

issues. IPFT’s agenda of Tipraland or a separate state for tribals has taken a back seat

behind Pradyot’s Greater Tipraland demand. With IPFT looking irrelevant now, it opens up

the possibility of BJP reviewing the need for an alliance in the next Assembly polls.

For the BJP, the results show their limitations in making inroads in tribal politics. The

results also set TIPRA on the way to becoming the main rival of the BJP, which is against

dividing the tiny state and had turned down even ally IPFT’s Tipraland demand.

Eight decades after launching a movement against the grip of royalty, the CPM’s poor

showing reflects its disconnect from tribals and failure to ensure adequate development

while in power.

Pradyot enjoys a connection with the people, formed over decades by the erstwhile royal

family. That said, his demand of Greater Tipraland, whilst advocating community inclusion,

is ethnic at its core and could possibly lead to a resurgence of ethnic politics.

Source: The Indian Express

4. Judge who acquitted all Babri accused is U.P. deputy Lok Ayukta

Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; Polity & Governance

Less than seven months after he acquitted all 32 accused in the Babri Masjid demolition

case, in what was his last day at work, retired district judge Surendra Kumar Yadav was

appointed as a deputy Lok Ayukta in Uttar Pradesh.