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PM greets people on Dussehra

New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi today greeted the nation on the occasion of Vijaya Dashami. In his monthly ‘Mann Ki Baat’ radio show, the PM also urged people to keep Dussehra and Durga Puja celebrations a low key affair in view of the Covid-19 pandemic.

He also asked the citizens to keep in mind their resolve for “vocal for local” and buy local products while shopping during the festive season.

The PM further stated that India stands firmly with the country’s brave soldiers and security forces, while people to light a lamp for soldiers while celebrating festivals.

He said the soldiers are serving the nation away from their family as they guard country’s borders to ensure that the people in the country are safe.

-ARK

India’s Covid tally reaches 78.64 lakh with 50,129 new cases

New Delhi (NVI): India has recorded 50,129 cases of Covid-19 in the last 24 hours taking the overall tally to 78.64 lakh. 1,18,534 people have died in the country due to the virus so far, with 578 patients succumbing to the infection since yesterday

Apart from that, the detection of new cases has remained below 60,000 for the last seven days.

The country’s overall tally of 78,64,811 cases includes 6,68,154 patients who are undergoing treatment and 70,78,123 who have recovered. In addition to that, the active cases have declined for the 22nd consecutive day and is now the lowest since August 13.

Kerala yesterday reported 8,253 new COVID-19 cases, taking the total infection count to 3,73,148, while 25 fatalities pushed the toll to 1,306.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra’s COVID-19 tally increased to 16,38,961 with 6,417 new cases. The state is the worst affected in the country.

The national capital Delhi has recorded 4,116 fresh COVID-19 cases, the highest single-day spike in 35 days. Delhi’s death toll due to the disease has mounted to 6,225.

-ARK

Rajnath performs ‘shastra puja’, meets soldiers in Sikkim near China border

New Delhi (NVI): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh today performed Shastra Puja (worshipping of weapons) in Sikkim near China border with the soldiers of Indian Army on the occasion of Dussehra.

Singh performed the puja with one of the local units deployed in Sikkim, amid border stand-off with China. While talking to media, Rajnath said that the morale of soldiers in high.

He said that India wants the tensions to ease and peace prevail on India-China border while asserting that the Indian Army will not allow even an inch of land to be taken away.

The Defence Minister embarked on a two-day visit to West Bengal and Sikkim yesterday.
He is also expected to review the deployment of troops at the borders with China and assess their preparedness against the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA).

Yesterday, Singh visited the headquarters of the Indian Army’s 33 Corps at Sukna in Darjeeling where he said that the country’s boundaries are secure.

India is locked in a standoff with China for over five months now. The India army has deployed troops along the nearly 3,500 km-long border with China, including Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh sectors. There is no sign of easing of tensions despite several rounds of military and diplomatic level talks.

-ARK

Prez greets nation on Dussehra eve

President Kovind

New Delhi (NVI): President Ram Nath Kovind today extended his greetings and warm wishes to the nation on the eve of Dussehra.

In a message, the President said, “On the auspicious occasion of Dussehra, I extend my warm greetings and best wishes to all the fellow citizens in India and abroad.”

“This festival symbolises the triumph of good over evil. The festival is celebrated throughout India in different forms. This festival strengthens the cultural unity of India and inspires us to live in harmony, following the path of virtue and shunning evil,” he added.

He further stated, “This festival is also associated with the life and values of Maryada Purushottam Shri Ram. His life is a shining example of morality and righteousness.”

“May this festival of joy and happiness protect us from the evil effects of the ongoing pandemic and bring prosperity and affluence to our countrymen,” the President concluded.

-CHK

Pak resorts to unprovoked CFV along LoC in J&K’s Poonch

Narco smuggling
Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir (File Pic)

Abid Bashir

Srinagar (NVI): Pakistan army resorted to unprovoked firing in Degwar sector of Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district, by firing mortars and small arms, defence officials said today.

Officials said that at around 6.30 pm, Pakistani rangers fired mortars and small arms in a bid to target forward posts of Indian Army at Degwar sector in Poonch.

“Our troops gave a befitting reply,” a defence official said, adding that “there was no report of any loss to life or property.”

Locals living close to the Degwar sector in Poonch district said panic gripped the area and people locked themselves and their livestock to stay safe.

Defence sources said that Pakistan started intense shelling post abrogation of Article 370 last year and continues to resort to frequent unprovoked ceasefire violations in both the regions of Kashmir and Jammu.

“Indian Army has been giving a befitting reply to Pakistan every time it violates ceasefire. Our troops are alert across LoC and are keeping a watch on every attempt made by the neighbor, be it ceasefire violation or an infiltration bid,” they said.

According to the recent statement of Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), since January this year, over 3,800 ceasefire violations have taken place in J&K, majority of them in Poonch, Rajouri, RS Pura, Keran, Tangdhar, Machil and Uri sectors, and at some sectors on International Borders as well in the J&K UT.

An Army official said that it is the Pakistan army that violates the 2003 CF pact every time. “We are always giving them a befitting response. There have been casualties on both sides,” he said, adding that “this year so far, there is a surge in CFV from across the LoC.”

Pertinently, after a long gap of over three decades, the government in the J&K UT has once again started construction of community bunkers in villages close to LoC in J&K.

However, NVI was the first to break the story about construction of community bunkers in Uri, Tangdhar and Gurez sectors of north Kashmir’s Kupwara, Bandipora and Baramulla district. The construction of almost 140 bunkers is in full swing in areas close to LoC.

-CHK

Afghanistan: At least 10 killed in suicide bombing in Kabul

Two Afghan policemen killed as Kabul hit by bomb blasts
A soldier keeping vigil somewhwere in Afghanistan. (Representational/ file image)

New Delhi (NVI): A suicide bombing attack in Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, has killed at least 10 people and wounded nearly 20 others, including children, according to Afghan government officials.

The explosion struck outside Kawsar-e-Danish education center in a heavily Shiite neighborhood of western Kabul.

The interior ministry spokesman Tariq Arian said that the attacker was trying to enter the center when he was stopped by security guards.

His tweet read, “The suicide bomber was identified before reaching the target. This evening, a suicide bomber in the 13th district of Kabul, in the area of Pol-e-Khoshk, who wanted to enter the Kowsar training center, was identified by the center’s guards before reaching his target and blew himself up inside the alley. So far, 10 martyrs and 20 wounded have been transferred.”

However, no group has claimed immediate responsibility for the bombing. The Taliban rejected any connection with the attack.

Earlier today, a roadside bomb blast killed nine people in eastern Afghanistan after it struck a minivan full of civilians, a local official said.

There has been an upsurge in violence between Taliban and Afghan forces in the country recently, even as representatives from the two warring sides began their own peace talks in Doha to end the decades-long war in Afghanistan.

-CHK

Southwest monsoon set to withdraw by Oct 28: IMD

(File/Representational image)

New Delhi (NVI): The southwest monsoon is likely to withdraw from the country around October 28, with the setting in of northeasterly winds over Bay of Bengal and peninsular India, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.

According to the Met department, the southwest monsoon normally withdraws from the country by October 15. This year it has stayed longer.

“With likely setting in of northeasterly winds in the lower tropospheric levels over Bay of Bengal and extreme south peninsular India, the southwest monsoon is likely to withdraw from entire country around 28 October, 2020,” IMD said.

Moreover, the conditions are favourable for the further withdrawal of monsoon from remaining parts of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, north and the central Arabian Sea, Odisha and north Maharashtra during next 48-hours.

“Similar conditions will prevail over parts of West Bengal, Sikkim, Odisha, Telangana, north-eastern states, Andhra Pradesh and most parts of Maharashtra during the subsequent two days,” the IMD noted.

Simultaneously, the northeast monsoon rains are also likely to commence over Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, Coastal Andhra Pradesh and adjoining areas of Karnataka and Kerala around 28 October, 2020.

The Met Department further said that the depression, which had shaped over the Bay of Bengal has moved north-north-eastwards, weakened right into a well-marked low-pressure area and lays centred over central Bangladesh.

Under its influence, moderate to heavy rain is likely over south Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, and Tripura, IMD said.

-RJV

Delhi’s air quality remains in ‘very poor’ category

Delhi air pollution
Delhi air pollution (Representative Image)

New Delhi (NVI): Delhi’s air quality remained in the “very poor” category today with the Air Quality Index (AQI) recorded at 346 and is expected to deteriorate further in the next two days, according to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) estimates.

Areas like Mundka, Wazirpur and Alipur recorded “severe” levels of air pollution.

The air pollution levels in Delhi has shot up to severe levels mostly due to stubble burning in Haryana, Punjab and neighbouring regions.

In addition to this, PM2.5 has now become the lead pollutant instead of PM10 as a characteristic of wintertime.

The AQI was recorded at 366 on Friday while it was 302 the previous day.

An AQI between 0 and 50 is considered “good”, 51 and 100 “satisfactory”, 101 and 200 “moderate”, 201 and 300 “poor”, 301 and 400 “very poor”, and 401 and 500 “severe”.

Ten monitoring stations in Delhi entered the “severe” zone on Friday, according to the AQI-monitoring mobile application SAMEER, developed by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

In addition to this, Noida registered air quality in the ‘very poor’ category with an AQI of 424, while Gurugram recorded moderate air with an AQI of 321.

-CHK

Farooq Abdullah appointed prez, Mehbooba VP of People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration

Abid Bashir

Srinagar (NVI): The ‘People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD)’ has announced Dr Farooq Abdullah as its president and Mehbooba Mufti as Vice-president while Sajad Lone will be the spokesman.

The PAGD said that the flag of erstwhile J&K state will be the symbol of the group.

The decision was taken in a two-hour-long meeting of top leaders of the alliance held at PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti’s Gupkar residence in Srinagar.

Talking to the media persons, Sajad Lone, who has been appointed as spokesperson of the group, said Farooq Abdullah has been appointed as president of the group while Mehbooba Mufti will be its vice-president. He said that M Y Tarigami has been appointed as convener of PAGD while Hassnain Masoodi will be its coordinator.

He further informed that during the meeting, it was decided the flag of erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir State will be the symbol of the group.

Lone added that the next meeting of the group will be held in Jammu within two weeks.

He added that the group has decided to come up with a document on lies being spread against people of Jammu and Kashmir.

“The whitepaper will compare the reality and false propaganda on the ground,” he added. He also said that the group is going to hold a convention on November 17.

Meanwhile, Farooq Abdullah while talking to the media persons said that it is being propagated that the group formed by the leaders is anti-national. “The group is not anti-national, but anti-BJP,” he stated.

He said that the BJP has tried to divide people and are making attempts to break the federal structure of the country, but it won’t succeed. “It is not a religious fight but the fight for the identity of the nation,” he said.

-CHK

Certain pre-existing conditions may triple COVID-19 death risk: Study

(File/Representational image)

New Delhi (NVI): The certain number of pre-existing health conditions may double or triple the risk of death due to COVID-19, according to a new study.

The study by ‘Penn State College Of Medicine’ researchers on COVID-19 patients showed that cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes, congestive heart failure, chronic kidney disease, stroke, and cancer can increase a patient’s risk of dying from the virus.

In a statement, the researchers said that their findings may help public health officials improve patient care and develop interventions that can target these high-risk populations, the World Economic Forum (WEF) reported.

The researchers also found that cardiovascular disease may double a patient’s risk of dying from COVID-19. They discovered that other pre-existing conditions may increase a COVID-19 patient’s risk of death by one-and-a-half to three times. However, the results were recently published in peer-reviewed journal PLOS ONE.

“This study suggests that these chronic conditions are not just common in patients with COVID-19, but their presence is a warning sign to a higher risk of death,” Paddy Ssentongo, research assistant professor in Penn State’s said in a release.

“There is a high prevalence of cardiovascular disease and hypertension around the world and in particular, the US. With the persistence of COVID-19 in the US, this connection becomes crucially important,” Ssentongo added.

Moreover, to determine which chronic conditions put hospitalized patients at risk of dying from COVID-19, they examined 11 co-existing conditions that pose a risk of severe disease and death among COVID-19 patients.

Among them were diabetes, cancer, chronic kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, stroke, congestive heart failure, HIV/AIDS and chronic liver disease.

Researchers analyzed data from over 65,000 patients from 25 global studies involving patients from Asia, Europe, North America and Africa. On average, patients in the chosen studies were 61-years-old, the study said.

The team of researchers conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies published from December 2019 through early July this year. They found that certain pre-existing health conditions affected survival rates more than others.

The study also shows that patients with diabetes and cancer are 1.5 times more likely to die, patients with cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and congestive heart failure are twice as likely to die and patients with chronic kidney disease are three times more likely to die.

“Although the health care community has circulated anecdotal information about the impact of these risk factors in COVID-19 mortality, our systematic review and meta-analysis is the most comprehensive to date that attempts to quantify the risk,” said senior author of study Vernon Chinchilli.

“As the COVID-19 pandemic continues through 2020 and likely into 2021, we expect that other researchers will build on our work,” he added.

More research is needed to fully understand health risks and implications, particularly in understanding the effects of race and ethnicity on COVID-19 survival rates. Still, these findings can help inform global prevention and treatment strategies, according to Ssentongo.

-RJV

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