India has entered into a recession with a likely contraction in its GDP during the July-September period, according to a report by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

India’s economy contracted 7.5 percent between July and September, performing the poorest among major advanced and emerging economies and entering a technical recession for the first time since independence, official data showed Friday.

Although the figures were an improvement on the record 23.9-percent contraction recorded last quarter, they indicate that Asia’s third-largest economy is in for a tough fight as it attempts to revive demand and create jobs even as coronavirus infections climb.

The two successive quarters of contraction mean that the country has now entered a “technical recession” for the first time since 1947.

After virus-led lockdowns ravaged the globe, the growth recorded by major economies including the United States, Japan and Germany during the quarter ending on September 30 raised expectations that India would also enjoy a revival.

But, while consumer businesses saw a boost due to increased spending in the run-up to the October-November festive season, hopes of a broader recovery were dashed, with the construction and hospitality sectors taking a hit.

Farming continued to be a relatively bright spot, while manufacturing activity also increased during the July-September period after plunging nearly 40 percent during the previous quarter due to the lockdown.

New Delhi has struggled to kick-start an economy that is expected to shrink 9.5 percent this year, according to estimates released by India’s central bank governor Shaktikanta Das last month.

The International Monetary Fund has meanwhile predicted that India’s economy would contract by 10.3 percent this year, the biggest slump for any major emerging economy and the worst since independence.

A report by Oxford Economics released earlier this month said that India would be the worst-affected economy even after the pandemic eases, stating that annual output would be 12 percent below pre-virus levels through 2025.

India’s economy had struggled to gain traction even before the pandemic, and the hit to global activity from the virus and one of the world’s strictest lockdowns combined to deal the country a severe blow.

The shutdown in the vast country of 1.3 billion people left huge numbers of people jobless almost overnight, including tens of millions of migrant workers in the shadow economy.

Read Also: Netherland Returns 600-year-old Smuggled Terracotta To Nigeria.

India’s economy contracted 7.5 percent between July and September, performing the poorest among major advanced and emerging economies and entering a technical recession for the first time since independence, official data showed Friday.

Although the figures were an improvement on the record 23.9-percent contraction recorded last quarter, they indicate that Asia’s third-largest economy is in for a tough fight as it attempts to revive demand and create jobs even as coronavirus infections climb.

The two successive quarters of contraction mean that the country has now entered a “technical recession” for the first time since 1947.

After virus-led lockdowns ravaged the globe, the growth recorded by major economies including the United States, Japan and Germany during the quarter ending on September 30 raised expectations that India would also enjoy a revival.

But, while consumer businesses saw a boost due to increased spending in the run-up to the October-November festive season, hopes of a broader recovery were dashed, with the construction and hospitality sectors taking a hit.

Farming continued to be a relatively bright spot, while manufacturing activity also increased during the July-September period after plunging nearly 40 percent during the previous quarter due to the lockdown.

New Delhi has struggled to kick-start an economy that is expected to shrink 9.5 percent this year, according to estimates released by India’s central bank governor Shaktikanta Das last month.

The International Monetary Fund has meanwhile predicted that India’s economy would contract by 10.3 percent this year, the biggest slump for any major emerging economy and the worst since independence.

A report by Oxford Economics released earlier this month said that India would be the worst-affected economy even after the pandemic eases, stating that annual output would be 12 percent below pre-virus levels through 2025.

India’s economy had struggled to gain traction even before the pandemic, and the hit to global activity from the virus and one of the world’s strictest lockdowns combined to deal the country a severe blow.

The shutdown in the vast country of 1.3 billion people left huge numbers of people jobless almost overnight, including tens of millions of migrant workers in the shadow economy.

Take a vaccine developed in haste? Never again, says Meissa Chebbi, who, like hundreds of other young Swedes suffered debilitating narcolepsy after a mass vaccination campaign against the 2009-2010 swine flu pandemic. The experience has shaken some Swedes’ confidence in any future vaccine against the new coronavirus, compounding fears about unknown long-term side effects.

“I will never recommend that,” 21-year-old Chebbi told AFP when asked about taking a speedily developed vaccine. “Unless you really have to take it because of life-threatening circumstances.”

The Swedish case highlights the complex task governments face in rolling out vaccines against the coronavirus, especially at a time when rabid social media misinformation is feeding scepticism in state institutions and even about the disease itself.

The trauma over vaccines is particularly notable in Sweden, which normally boasts participation of more than 90 percent in its voluntary children’s vaccination programme.

But a recent survey conducted by the Novus polling institute suggested that 26 percent of Swedes do not plan to take any of the Covid-19 vaccines being developed and 28 percent are undecided. Forty-six percent said they would get a jab. Of those opposed, 87 percent said it was due to fears over as-yet  unknown side effects.

What is Narcolepsy

Narcolepsy is a central nervous system disorder characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) and abnormal manifestations of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. This disorder is caused by the brain’s inability to regulate sleep-wake cycles normally, but it can be treated with medication and behavior modification. About narcolepsy and other sleep disorders.

Pandemrix is manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline in Europe and was specifically produced for pandemic 2009 H1N1 influenza. It was not used before 2009, and has not been used since the influenza pandemic season (2009-2010). It contains an oil-in-water emulsion adjuvant called ASO3. Adjuvants are substances added to a vaccine to increase the body’s immune response to that vaccine.

Pandemrix was not licensed for use in the United States.

CDC Vaccine Safety Efforts and Research

In response to the events in Europe, CDC reviewed data from the U.S. Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) and the Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD) and found no indication of any association between U.S.-licensed H1N1 or seasonal influenza vaccine and narcolepsy.

In 2014, CDC published a study to assess the occurrence of narcolepsy following vaccination with 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine or 2010-2011 seasonal influenza vaccine, both of which contained the 2009 H1N1 virus strain (more about types of influenza viruses). The analysis included more than 650,000 people who received the 2009 pandemic flu vaccine and over 870,000 people who received the 2010-2011 seasonal flu vaccine. The study found that vaccination with influenza vaccines containing the 2009 H1N1 virus strain used in the United States was not associated with an increased risk for narcolepsy.

Health authorities in the Scandinavian country in 2009 urged the public to voluntarily take the Pandemrix vaccine against swine flu, made by British drug company GlaxoSmithKline. More than 60 percent heeded the call — the highest level in the world.

According to the director of the Swedish Public Health Agency, Johan Carlson, 60 to 70 percent of the population would have to be vaccinated in order to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

Vaccine development

Following covid-19 warp speed vaccine produced around the world by different pharmaceutical companies, the scepticisms of side effects continues to grow.

Firstly, vaccine development is normally a very long process to ensure vaccines are safe and effective before they are used.

Clinical trials will have to be done for efficacy. This is not optional – regulators will need to know extensive testing has taken place before licencing any vaccine. Even if animal tests are done in parallel with early human tests, the remainder of the process is still lengthy.

In the UK a number of vaccines have recently reported successful trials but none have yet gained safety approval.

England and Scotland have already made vaccine rollout announcements.

A number of vaccines have recently reported successful trials but none have yet gained safety approval.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said her government hopes to vaccinate a million people by the end of January, while in England they hope to have all vulnerable people vaccinated by Easter.

Now the Million Dollar Question is why the rush in Vaccine Roll Out that has not been Certified Safe or approved.