Do you know - which country would innoculate ALL its citizens first ?

2020 changed the way the World lived .. .. and there were predictions that India would sooner edge out USA and become the top most affected Nation – but that now looks far beyond as the no. of cases in India is apparently shrinking and the gap between India and USA is widening considerably daily.  As of date, United States has 21689735 – India has 10413417; more importantly the single day nos. in India in past 24 hours was put at 18139 while in USA it was 280292; Brazil too had 87843 cases !  and has more deaths than India.

Back home, the State which was touted to have Corona totally under control – Kerala is struggling – now it has 795933 cases as compared to Tamil Nadu’s 823986 [last 24 hours in TN was 805 – Kerala 5051 !] and Kerala was given awards !!

Thousands of angry Trump supporters, incited by the President himself, stormed the US Capitol in a chaos lasting several hours and unleashed unprecedented scenes of mayhem as lawmakers tried to enforce the peaceful transition of power. Members of Congress were forced into hiding, offices were ransacked. The riot amid a pandemic that is sweeping through the country, could be dangerous and might be a potential super-spreader event, warn scientists. Many of the intruders were seen without masks and social distancing was too much to ask from the mob. Experts warned even if some have been infected, the virus could have spread wildly among the group

In India, the steady fall in the number of fresh Covid cases in the country has ensured the contraction of its active caseload, which stands at 2,25,449 as on date and accounts for only 2.16 per cent of the total infections, the union health ministry has informed. At least 1,50,570 people have died of the disease so far. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will hold a virtual meeting with chief ministers of all states and union territories on January 11 to review the preparedness ahead of the rollout of coronavirus vaccines across the country. In what will be the biggest inoculation drive in the world, India is gearing up to begin vaccinating its population against the novel coronavirus. While two mock drills were held across the country, the date of the vaccination rollout is not known yet. 

Palau, is an island country located in the western Pacific Ocean. The country contains approximately 340 islands, and together with parts of the Federated States of Micronesia, forms the western chain of the Caroline Islands. The capital Ngerulmud is located on the nearby island of Babeldaob, in Melekeok State. Palau shares maritime boundaries with international waters to the north, Micronesia to the east, Indonesia to the south, and the Philippines to the west.  Spain was the first European nation to explore the islands in the 16th century, and they were made part of the Spanish East Indies in 1574. Following Spain's defeat in the Spanish–American War in 1898, the islands were sold to Imperial Germany in 1899 under the terms of the German–Spanish Treaty, where they were administered as part of German New Guinea. After World War I. Politically, Palau is a presidential republic in free association with the United States, which provides defense, funding, and access to social services.   The country's two official languages are Palauan (a member of the Austronesian language family) and English, with Japanese, Sonsorolese, and Tobian recognized as regional languages. 

Britain today suffered its deadliest day since the Covid pandemic began after health chiefs recorded 1,325 more Covid fatalities with the count having doubled within a week and also posted a record-high 68,053 infections. The grisly toll - which surpasses the 1,224 declared on April 21 in the darkest days of the first wave - takes the UK to the brink of almost 80,000 victims. Experts fear the daily death counts will continue to spiral because of rocketing cases and hospitalisations, piling further pressure on Boris Johnson to speed up the sluggish vaccination programme designed to get Britain out of lockdown by mid-February.Department of Health figures show the UK has recorded more than 50,000 cases for 11 days in a row, with the five worst days of the pandemic all since the start of 2021. Cases have risen by almost 30 per cent week-on-week.

Draconian measures announced two days ago are yet to have an effect on the crisis because it can take a week for patients to develop symptoms and get tested. But they argue that the tough restrictions will curb the spread of the virus because they curb social interaction, which the virus thrives on. In yet another sign that darker days lie ahead, No10’s advisory panel today revealed that the R rate could be as high as 1.4 in the UK or at the crucial mark of one, with outbreaks growing at similar speeds across all seven regions of England.  England is now in its toughest and longest lockdown since last spring and may not emerge from it until all the most vulnerable groups have been vaccinated against Covid-19. The Government has ambitious plans to immunise 13.9million by mid-February and Boris Johnson claims it will be able to give 200,000 jabs a day by next week. The Prime Minister has called in the Army to ramp up Britain's vaccination roll out, which offers the only glimmer of hope for ending lockdowns.  

The Republic of Palau could be among the first countries in the world to have its entire population vaccinated against Covid-19, despite not recording a single case of the virus.  According to data from the World Health Organisation, the island nation in the western Pacific Ocean with a population of 18,000 people has not recorded a single coronavirus case or virus-related death. On Saturday last, the country received its first shipment of 2,800 doses of the Covid-19 vaccine by US pharmaceutical company Moderna.  The vaccine must be administered in two separate doses, 28 days apart. 

Doctor of geriatric medicine Sylvia Osarch, 60, was the first person in Palau to receive the vaccine on Sunday and said she felt 'excited' to lead the way for the rest of her country.   'I want to tell the community that I took the vaccine to protect them. So when it is their turn to take it, please take it to protect us, the health care providers.'  The country had begun testing its citizens for the virus by April.

So Big Nations, powerful Nations, Small Nations – peaceful Nations !!

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

8.1.2021.