作者： bharat.cn

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Saturday that three vaccines, that are being developed and tested in India to fight the novel coronavirus, are at different stages of testing. PM Narendra Modi also said his government will ensure every Indian gets vaccinated against coronavirus.

Addressing the nation from the iconic Red Fort in Delhi on India completing 73 years of Independence, PM Modi said the roadmap for the production of coronavirus vaccine and its distribution to every Indian in the least amount of time, is ready. He said the mass production of coronavirus vaccine will begin once scientists give their nod.

PM Modi said, “Three coronavirus vaccines are at different testing stages in India. The roadmap for its production and distribution among the Indians is also ready. The government will ensure every Indian gets the vaccine against coronavirus.”

“As soon as the scientists give a green signal, the country will begin their large-scale production,” PM Narendra Modi said, adding the talent of “our scientists is like that of rishi munis”.

“We will announce the roadmap for its distribution as soon as it gets final clearances,” PM Modi said.

He said whenever there is talk of coronavirus, the question that comes to everyone’s mind is that when will a vaccine be ready. “I want to tell people, the talent of our scientists is like that of ‘rishi munis’ and they are working very hard in laboratories. Three vaccines are in various stages of testing,” he said.

PM Modi said the government would soon announce the National Digital Health Mission under which, every citizen would get a health ID. “National Digital Health Mission will bring a new revolution in India’s health sector,” PM Modi said, adding, “Health updates will be logged in the health ID on every visit to a pharmacy or a doctor.”

India mourned the deaths of 18 passengers of the ill-fated Air India Express (AIE) flight that skidded off the tabletop runway and broke into two on landing at Kerala’s Kozhikode Airport, also known as the Karipur International Airport, on Friday evening.

Pilot of the flight, Capt Deepak Sathe and his co-pilot Akhilesh Kumar Sharma are also among the 18 who died in the tragic flight mishap.

The AIE flight (IX-1344) from Dubai with 190 people on board including a 6-member crew overshot the table-top runway while landing at the Karipur Airport and fell into a valley 35 feet below and broke into two portions.

Rest of the passengers were rescued from the crash site and rushed to hospitals for treatment. Of them, 23 are said to be in critical condition while another 23 have been discharged after initial medical assistance.

The crucial black box Air India Express flight, that could throw light on how it overshot the runway and crashed, has been recovered.

Kerala government on Saturday announced Rs 10 lakh compensation to the families of those who died in the incident. Air India Express also announced compensation for those killed in the plane crash. Air India Express said it will give Rs 10 lakh to the next kin of the deceased passenger 12 years and above, Rs 5 lakh to the passengers below the age of 12 years, Rs 2 lakh to critically injured passengers and Rs 50,000 to the passengers who are injured in the incident.

Black box of Air India flight retrieved

Officials on Saturday said that the crucial black box of the ill-fated Air India Express flight that could throw light on how it overshot the runway and crashed has been recovered.

Investigations into the cause of the crash are underway with top officials of the airlines and aviation regulator DGCA rushing to Kozhikode while Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri also arrived in this city in north Kerala and took stock of the situation and implementation of the relief measures.

“Digital Flight Data Recorder (DFDR) and Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) of the ill-fated aircraft have been retrieved. AAIB (Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau) is conducting investigations,” Puri tweeted.

The minister said he would hold consultations “with senior civil aviation officials & professionals”, adding reasons for the mishap, in which the two pilots were among those dead, were being investigated.

The digital flight recorder and cockpit voice recorder from the Air India flight that crashed in Kerala’s Kozhikode were recovered on Saturday morning. The devices may be crucial in the investigation to know what caused the crash.

The recovered components will be crucial in learning about the last moments before the flight skidded on runway on Friday and killed 18 people including two pilots.

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) had said the Air India Express plane, carrying 190 people from Dubai, on Friday touched down near a taxiway that is around 1,000 metres from the beginning of the runway at the Kozhikode airport before breaking up into two pieces.

The pilot of the ill-fated flight — IX-1344 — could not sight the runway in the first landing attempt due to heavy rains.

The Kozhikode airport in Kerala has a table-top runway and is operated by the Airports Authority of India (AAI). Generally, table-top runways are constructed on a hilly or an elevated terrain.

At least 18 people, including two pilots, have died in the crash.
An AAI spokesperson said that runway 28 was in use and in the first landing attempt, the pilot could not sight the runway and requested for runway 10.

Citing information from the Air Traffic Controller (ATC), the spokesperson said the aircraft touched down near taxiway ‘C’, which is approximately 1,000 metres from the beginning of runway 10. The total length of the runway is 2,700 metres.

Rescue operations were completed around midnight and airport operations resumed at 3 am on Saturday morning.

The Boeing 737-800 aircraft while landing overshot the runway and went down 35 feet into a slope before breaking up into two pieces.