Thursday, September 10, 2026
Home Blog Page 1121

WHO chief lauds PM Modi’s commitment to end Covid-19 pandemic

New Delhi (NVI): World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has appreciated Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s commitment to put an end to the Covid-19 pandemic that has so far infected over 32 million people in the world while claiming over 9,95,000 deaths.

The WHO chief said that the pandemic can be defeated together by mobilising forces and resources. “Thank you for your commitment to solidarity, Flag of India Prime Minister @narendramodi. Only together, by mobilizing our forces and resources jointly for the common good, can we end the #COVID19 pandemic,” Tedros tweeted.

Yesterday, while addressing the virtual 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said that “as the largest vaccine producing country of the world, I want to give one more assurance to the global community today. India’s vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity in fighting this crisis.”

“Even during these very difficult times of the raging pandemic, the pharmaceutical industry of India has sent essential medicines to more than 150 countries,” PM said.

The Prime Minister’s address was a pre-recorded video statement that was broadcast at the UNGA hall in New York as it is being conducted mostly virtually amid the coronavirus pandemic.

“As the largest vaccine producing country of the world, I want to give one more assurance to the global community today. India’s vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity in fighting this crisis,” Modi said.

“Today, the people of India are concerned whether this reform process will ever reach its logical conclusion. For how long will India be kept out of the decision-making structures of the United Nations?” PM Modi asked at UNGA.

-ARK

Two terrorists killed in encounter with security forces in J&K’s Pulwama

July 18 Shopian encounter: Army completes summary of evidence
An encounter site in Kashmir (File Pic)

Abid Bashir

Srinagar (NVI): Two terrorists were been killed in an encounter with security forces in Samboora village in the Pampore belt of South Kashmir’s Pulwama district, police officials said. One Army jawan has also been injured in the gunfire, they said.

“Op Samboora, Pulwama update: Two terrorists eliminated, joint search operation is in progress,” Defence spokesman Colonel Rajesh Kalia said.

An official said that a joint team of Police, Army’s 50 RR and CRPF launched a cordon and search operation on specific information about the presence of militants in the area.

He said that as the joint teams of forces approached towards the suspected spot, the hiding militants fired upon them which was retaliated, triggering an encounter.

A senior police officer said the exchange of fire between forces and militants is going on while a terrorist has been killed.

As per the sources, one or two militants are believed to be trapped in the area.

-ARK

Armenia declares martial law following fighting with Azerbaijan in disputed area

New Delhi (NVI): A fierce fighting has erupted over disputed land between Armenia and Azerbaijan as Armenian forces hit 2 Azerbaijan choppers, following which tanks, aircraft and artillery were engaged.

Armenian defence ministry was quoted as saying by foreign media that Armenian forces hit three Azerbaijani tanks. However, there was no immediate word on casualties.

The fighting broke out around the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh, which has been a disputed land for decades.

Nagorno-Karabakh is an ethnically Armenian enclave within Azerbaijan that has been out of Azerbaijan’s control since the end of a war in 1994.

According to reports, both sides have heavy military presence along a demilitarized zone separating the region from the rest of Azerbaijan.

The fighting today began with an Azerbaijani attack, but Azerbaijan said the Armenian side attacked and that Azerbaijan launched a counteroffensive.

Meanwhile, Turkey has urged Armenia to immediately cease what it called hostility towards Azerbaijan that could “throw the region into fire”, following clashes.

-ARK

Storytelling is as old as civilisation: PM

Mann Ki Baat

New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister today said that the history of stories is as ancient as the human civilization itself and said ‘where there is a soul, there is a story’. He was speaking in his monthly Mann Ki Baat radio address today.

PM Modi discussed and reaffirmed the importance of storytelling. He said that the coronavirus pandemic has brought family members even closer.

While talking about the significance of the convention of storytelling by elder members of the family, he discussed that through his interaction with children in the course of his travels, he realized that jokes had pervaded their lives in a major way, and they had no clue of stories.

Discussing the rich tradition of storytelling or Qissagoi in the country, PM said that India has nurtured the tradition of Hitopadesh and Panchatantra, which impart wisdom through an imaginary world of animals, birds and fairies.

He mentioned ‘Katha’, an ancient form of religious storytelling, cited example of ‘Villu paat’ in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, which is a confluence of story and music, and also talked about the vibrant tradition of Kathputli. He noted the growing popularity of storytelling based on science and science- fiction.

PM also urged storytellers to find ways to connect the new generation of the country with lives of great men and women through stories. He said that the art of storytelling must be popularized in every home and telling good stories to children should be a part of public life.

He said that the country is soon going to celebrate 75 years of independence, and urged storytellers to propagate inspiring events from the freedom struggle through their stories. He asked them to introduce every major and minor incident from 1857 to 1947 to the new generation through these stories.

-ARK

76% of new recovered cases in 10 States/UTs: Health Ministry

covid cases
File photo

New Delhi (NVI): Around 92,043 new Covid -19 recoveries have been reported in the last 24 hours in the country, 76% of which are found in 10 States/Union Territories, the Health Ministry said today.

India has been recording a higher number of recoveries than the new cases for several consecutive days in the recent past, according to the ministry.

Maharashtra continues to top the list with more than 23,000 recovered cases, followed by Andhra Pradesh which has more than 9,000 such cases.

Apart from that, a total of 88,600 new cases have been reported in the last 24 hours in the country. 10 States/UTs account for 77% of the new confirmed cases.

Maharashtra continues to lead here also as it has contributed more than 20,000 new cases, followed by Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh with more than 8,000 and 7,000 cases respectively.

There have been 1,124 deaths in the past 24 hours. 10 States/UTs account for 84% of the deaths in the last 24 hours due to COVID.

Of the new deaths, Maharashtra reported more than 38% of deaths with 430 deaths followed by Karnataka and Tamil Nadu with 86 and 85 deaths, respectively.

Yesterday, the Health Ministry had said that India’s Covid recovery rate has further improved to 82 per cent. India continues to remain the second worst-hit country after the United States but it has topped the global chart in terms of Covid recoveries.

-ARK

BSF foils another major infiltration bid along IB in J&K’s Samba                   

LoC

Abid Bashir

Samba (NVI): The Border Security Force (BSF) foiled another major infiltration bid along the International Border (IB) in Samba sector of Jammu and Kashmir, the force officials said today. This is the second such attempt that has been foiled by BSF in Samba since September 14-15 night.

In a statement issued here, BSF spokesman said that on the intervening night of 26-27 September, alert troops of BSF foiled another major infiltration bid from the Pakistan side in Samba.

“Movement of a group of five militants was noticed in Pakistan side of the International boundary in Samba sector by alert BSF troops. This is the second attempt of infiltration through the Samba sector by the terrorist group after 14/15 September foiled attempt,” he said.

He said that during night hours, taking advantage of the darkness, a heavily armed group of five militants tried to enter into Indian territory but were engaged by alert BSF troops.

The spokesman said the BSF troops challenged them to stop on which they started firing, with Pakistan Ranger posts also giving them backup fire.

“BSF alert troops fired on the infiltrating anti-national elements with coordinated effective fire, however, they managed to flee back to Pakistan territory. With this, BSF foiled another possible infiltration bid of armed militants from Pakistan side well supported by Pakistan Rangers,” he added.

-ARK

Farm sector freed from many shackles, farmers empowered: PM in Mann Ki Baat

PM Modi
Narendra Modi (File photo)

New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his monthly Mann Ki Baat radio programme today, talked about how the Farm Bills and the revocation of APMC will help farmers across the country as they have been empowered and the farm sector has been freed from many shackles.

“Recently our farm sector has been freed from many shackles. Now, farmers have been empowered to sell their produce directly to consumers,” PM Modi said during his Mann Ki Baat address.

He said the farmers now have the power to sell their produce anywhere and to anyone and have the freedom to grow any crop and to sell it at a price best suited to them.

The farmers of the country will be able to avail these benefits as the APMC (Agricultural produce market committee) will be kept out of their transactions, he added.

PM said that farmers are playing a major role in the efforts to build an Atmanirbhar Bharat. He said the farmers have suffered a lot during the lockdown but still the agriculture sector has shown its prowess in the pandemic.

While speaking in the 68th edition of his monthly radio address, the Prime Minister recalled the push for an Atmanirbhar Bharat by talking about the country’s ability to become a toy hub for the entire world. He called upon young entrepreneurs to ‘team up for toys’ as part of his government’s ‘vocal for local’ initiative.

Modi concluded his address by urging citizens to not be careless in following coronavirus restrictions. He said there should be no laxity till the time a vaccine comes up.

-ARK

Global coronavirus cases top 32.7 million

US sees highest single-day spike in Covid cases

New Delhi (NVI): The total number of coronavirus cases in the world have gone up to 32.7 million, while 9,92,000 people have lost their lives due to the virus so far, according to Johns Hopkins University.

The total number of cases stood at 32,746,134 and the deaths rose to 992,946, the University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) said in its latest update.

The US is the worst-hit country with the world’s highest number of cases and deaths at 7,077,450 and 204,485, respectively, according to the CSSE.

India is at the second spot at 59,92,532 total confirmed Covid cases while the country’s death toll has climbed to 94,503.

However, India has topped the global chart in terms of Covid recoveries. India’s recovery rate has inched up to 82 per cent, the Health Ministry said yesterday.

Brazil, at third place, has recorded 4,717,991 confirmed cases. The country has the second-highest number of fatalities, in the world, at 141,406.

Brazil is followed by Russia (1,138,509), Colombia (806,038), Peru (794,584), Mexico (726,431), Spain (716,481), Argentina (702,484), South Africa (669,498), France (552,454), Chile (455,979), Iran (443,086), the UK (431,816), Bangladesh (357,873), Iraq (345,969) and Saudi Arabia (332,790), according to the CSSE figures.

The countries with a death toll above 10,000 are Mexico (76,243), the UK (42,060), Italy (35,818), Peru (32,037), France (31,675), Spain (31,232), Iran (25,394), Colombia (25,296), Russia (20,140), South Africa (16,376), Argentina (15,543), Chile (12,591), Ecuador (11,236) and Indonesia (10,308).

-ARK

India records 88,600 new Covid cases, tally nears 60-lakh mark  

New Delhi (NVI): With 88,600 new coronavirus cases reported in the last 24 hours, India’s Covid-19 tally has reached near the 60-lakh mark, according to the Union Health Ministry data.

There are 59,92,532 confirmed Covid cases in the country so far. Apart from that, 1,124 deaths have been reported since yesterday, taking the death toll to 94,503.

There are 9,56,402 active cases in the country now and 49,41,627 patients have recovered from the deadly virus so far.

Maharashtra continues to be the worst affected state with 13,21,176 cases and 35,191 deaths. The state is followed by Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu where total confirmed cases are at 6,68,751 and 5,75,017 respectively.

According to the Maharashtra state health department, the state has recorded 20,419 fresh Covid cases since yesterday and 430 new deaths.

Meanwhile, India continues to remain the second worst-hit country after the United States. However, India has topped the global chart in terms of Covid recoveries.

India’s recovery rate has inched up to 82 per cent, the Health Ministry said yesterday.

-ARK

Jaswant Singh passes away at 82

New Delhi (NVI): Former union minister Jaswant Singh passed away this morning at Army’s R&R hospital in Delhi Cantt after a prolonged illness. He was 82.

A statement by R&R hospital said that the former minister died at 6:55 am in the morning. “He was admitted on 25 Jun 2020 and being treated for Sepsis with Multiorgan Dysfunction Syndrome and effects of Severe Head Injury old (Optd) had a Cardiac arrest this morning,” the statement read.

“Despite the best efforts of the attending team of specialists to resuscitate him, he could not be revived and passed away at 0655 hours on 27 Sep 2020,” it added.

Singh’s Covid status was negative.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has condoled his death. “Jaswant Singh Ji served our nation diligently, first as a soldier and later during his long association with politics. During Atal Ji’s Government, he handled crucial portfolios and left a strong mark in the worlds of finance, defence and external affairs. Saddened by his demise,” he wrote on Twitter.

Tributes poured in on the demise of the former cabinet minister. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah and Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar also paid tributes to the late leader.

Singh was a member of the Parliament for nine terms and served as the Minister of Finance (2002-2004), Minister of Defence (2000-2001), Minister of External Affairs (1998-2002). in the Vajpayee government.

-ARK

1...1,1201,1211,122...1,732Page 1,121 of 1,732

MUST READ