Dr. Srinivas Kakkilaya demands withdrawal of expert panel report on sudden cardiac deaths
Mangaluru: Well-known physician Dr. Srinivas Kakkilaya has urged the government to withdraw the recent report submitted by the expert committee headed by Dr. K.S. Ravindranath of the Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research. The report concerns sudden cardiac deaths and, according to Dr. Kakkilaya, is incomplete and flawed.
Speaking to Vartha Bharati, Dr. Kakkilaya said that the report, as claimed by media outlets, states there is no link between COVID-19 vaccination and recent sudden deaths. However, he clarified that no such conclusion exists in the report. He pointed out that the studies cited by the committee have no connection to the actual study it claims to have conducted.
“No study referenced in the report addresses whether there is any connection between the COVID-19 vaccine and the recent sudden deaths occurring years after vaccination,” he said. He further questioned how reputed institutions like ICMR and Jayadeva Hospital could publish such inadequate reports, raising concerns over the state of medical science in the country.
Dr. Kakkilaya also criticised discrepancies in the data. "Even children can say that 53+17+180 equals 250. But the report lists the total as 249," he noted. He questioned how the committee could call it a ‘small percentage’ when 1 in 3 of the 77 cases examined showed no cause for heart attack. “If a third of the cases remain unexplained, how can that be considered negligible?” he asked.
He further pointed out that the report itself suggests the possibility of a new or unknown cause behind these cardiac deaths, which contradicts any blanket dismissal of a link with vaccines or past COVID-19 infections.
Dr. Kakkilaya stressed that unless there is clarity, neither the Jayadeva Institute, nor its director, nor the state or central government, nor any doctor has the authority to declare “there is no link” between vaccines and these deaths. “The only honest answer is: ‘We do not know yet,’” he said.
Calling the report half-baked and mathematically incorrect, Dr. Kakkilaya demanded its immediate withdrawal and urged the committee to conduct a proper, in-depth study over the next six months and only then draw any conclusions.
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Indian mobile hospital treats over 2,200 cyclone-hit people as New Delhi ramps up relief efforts in
Colombo (PTI): A mobile hospital set up by India in Sri Lanka has provided medical care to over 2,200 people affected by Cyclone Ditwah, as New Delhi ramped up its assistance to the flood-ravaged island nation with engineering support and delivery of fresh relief consignments, the Indian mission here said on Sunday.
Sri Lanka has been grappling with widespread flooding, landslides and severe infrastructure collapse triggered by the cyclone, leaving several districts isolated and severely straining the country's disaster-response capacity.
At least 627 people have been killed and 190 remain missing as of Sunday noon due to catastrophic floods and landslides caused by extreme weather conditions since November 16.
Sharing a social media post by the Ministry of External Affairs on its X handle, the Indian High Commission said a field hospital set up by India in Mahiyanganaya near Kandy has provided medical care to more than 2,200 people affected by the cyclone since December 5.
The hospital has also performed 67 minor procedures and three surgeries, it said. The field hospital was airlifted to Sri Lanka by an IAF C-17 aircraft along with a 78-member Indian medical team on Tuesday.
In another post, the mission said Indian Army engineers, working with Sri Lanka Army Engineers and the Road Development Authority, in Kilinochchi have begun removing a damaged bridge on the Paranthan–Karachchi–Mullaitivu (A35) road, a key route disrupted by the cyclone.
"This joint effort marks another step toward restoring vital connectivity for affected communities," it said.
India has additionally sent nearly 1,000 tonnes of food items and clothing contributed by the people of Tamil Nadu. Of these, about 300 tonnes reached Colombo on Sunday morning aboard three Indian Naval ships.
High Commissioner Santosh Jha handed over the supplies to Sri Lankan Minister for Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development Wasantha Samarasinghe.
India, on November 28, launched 'Operation Sagar Bandhu', a Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) initiative, to aid Sri Lanka in its recovery from the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah.
Since the launch of the operation, India has provided about 58 tonnes of relief material, including dry rations, tents, tarpaulins, hygiene kits, essential cloths, water purification kits and about 4.5 tonnes of medicines and surgical equipment, the Indian mission said in a press release on Sunday.
Another 60 tonnes of equipment, including generators, inflatable rescue boats, Outboard Motors, and excavators, have also been brought to Sri Lanka, it said, adding that 185 tonnes of Bailey Bridge units were airlifted to restore critical connectivity along with 44 engineers.
Two columns of the National Disaster Response Force, comprising 80 experts and K9 units with specially trained dogs, assisted with immediate rescue and relief efforts in Sri Lanka.
Besides the field hospital in Mahiyanganaya, medical centres have also been set up in the badly hit Ja-Ela region and in Negombo. INS Vikrant, INS Udaygiri, and INS Sukanya provided immediate rescue and relief assistance to Sri Lanka.
Apart from the two Chetak helicopters deployed from INS Vikrant, two heavy-lift, MI-17 helicopters of the Indian Air Force are actively involved in evacuations and airlifting relief material, the release said.
At the request of the Sri Lankan Disaster Management Centre, a virtual meeting was organised between DMC and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)'s National Remote Sensing Centre on Saturday.
Since the onset of the disaster, ISRO has been providing maps to assist DMC in its rescue efforts, the release said.
