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Assam floods: PM speaks to CM Sarbananda Sonowal, assures all support

New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi today spoke to Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal over phone as the state is facing several floods along with the coronavirus pandemic.

Along with the flood situation in the state, the Prime Minister also took stock of Baghjan oil well fire in Tinsukia district of Assam.

Taking to Twitter, CM Sonowal wrote: “Hon’ble PM Shri narendramodi ji took stock of the contemporary situation regarding #AssamFloods2020, #COVID19 and Baghjan Oil Well fire scenario over phone this morning. Expressing his concern & solidarity with the people, the PM assured all support to the stat.”

Around 107 people have been killed across the north eastern state due to floods and landslides. According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA), while 81 were killed due to flood-related incidents, 26 have died due to landslides.

The devastating floods have affected 54 lakh people in 30 of 33 districts of the states. The floods have affected the wildlife in Kaziranga National Park in Golaghat as well, with around 96 animals dead.

-ARK

J&K LG appeals to people as Covid cases surge in UT

Abid Bashir

Srinagar (NVI): Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Girish Chandra Murmu today made a fervent appeal to the people of the Union Territory, especially in the Valley, to wear masks and maintain social distancing as Covid-19 cases have swelled in the past 15 days.

In a video message, the LG Murmu that when Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced Janta Curfew across India, the J&K administration also followed the same model and implemented lockdown for almost two months. “The lockdown helped us contain the spread of virus and the situation was under control to a large extent and we managed to prevent the spread of pandemic,” he said.

He said since Unlock-2 on July 1, there has been a spurt in the Covid-19 positive cases and every day, there is a surge in the positive cases. “I want to appeal to the people of J&K, especially Kashmir to follow announcements made by the UT government and to follow the guidelines. Whenever there is a change in guidelines, we put the same before the public,” he said. The J&K LG said that there are certain ways that can help people save themselves from the pandemic.

“When you come out of the house, wear a mask and follow guidelines in letter and spirit. I urge people to wear a mask and maintain social distancing. If people don’t follow the guidelines, cases will shoot up further,” he said.

He said economic activities are also a must and keeping that in view, the UT administration has announced some relaxations. “But there are many hotspots in Kashmir where Covid-19 danger is alive and has not subsided yet. I reiterate that guidelines have to be followed in spirit as that’s good for the administration and also good for the people of J&K, especially Kashmir,” he said.

The LG’s appeal to the people comes at a time when J&K is witnessing a spurt in both, Covid-19 related deaths and positive cases as well. The LG’s appeal also coincides with the alert issued by the senior medicos who have already termed the prevailing situation in the Valley as grim.

In the past two weeks, Kashmir has recorded four to five Covid deaths every day while 400 to 500 positive cases are reported on an average every single day in J&K, majority of them from Kashmir. Earlier, Covid patients were asymptomatic and now the majority of the patients who test positive have bilateral pneumonia and need oxygen support to breathe freely.

-ARK

J&K: No let-up in Covid deaths, 6 more die in 24 hrs; docs say situation grim

Over 3,200 cops COVID positive in J&K and 15 succumbed to virus
File photo

Abid Bashir

Srinagar (NVI): Jammu and Kashmir today recorded six more Covid-19 deaths in the past 24 hours, taking the number of fatalities to 242. With no let-up in the Covid deaths, doctors have pressed the alarm button and stated that if spurt in cases and deaths continue, things are set to go out of control soon.

Officials said that the patients who died include an 80-year-old woman from Rainawari, Srinagar, a 59-year-old man from Turkawangan, Shopian, an 84-year-old man from Kanispora Baramulla, a 50-year-old woman from Rajouri, a 75-year-old woman from Tullamulla in Pulwama and a 70-year-man from Bungalow Bagh, Baramulla.

An official said that the woman from Baramulla who was admitted on July 16, died at SKIMS on Saturday late night. He said the patient was suffering from bilateral Pneumonia.

He said the other two patients including an 80-year-old woman from Rainawari in Srinagar and a 59-year-old man from Turkawangan died at CD hospital.

Both the patients were suffering from Pneumonia and other ailments, he said.

Additional DC Rajouri, Sher Singh said that a 50-year-old diabetic patient who was tested positive for COVID-19 passed away at Government Medical College (GMC), Jammu this morning.

An official from SMHS said that the 75-year-old woman from Pulwama, who was suffering from many ailments, died at SMHS today.

Another official from GMC Baramulla said that the 70-year-old patient who was suffering from some ailments died at GMC Baramulla today.

With six more deaths, the death toll related to COVID-19 has reached 242 including 223 from Kashmir and 19 from Jammu.

Senior doctors in Kashmir have already stated that if deaths don’t stop, time is not far when hospitals will be short of beds and doctors won’t be able to take care of the Covid-postive patients. “There is a huge rush in major hospitals in Srinagar with people complaining chest pain, bilateral pneumonia and breathlessness. Many of those who come to the hospital need ventilator support, which wasn’t the case earlier,” said Dr Nisar-ul-Hassan, Associate Professor at Government Medical College Srinagar, who is also a flu expert.

Professor Farooq Jan, who is the Medical Superintendent SKIMS, Soura hospital said that things are going worse in Kashmir as the patient flow has increased manifold. “If situation doesn’t improve, things may go out of control,” he said.

Pertinently, Srinagar administration has re-imposed lockdown in the majority of parts in the summer capital, but people continue to violate the guidelines and don’t wear masks, let alone keeping social distancing in markets and other places including gardens and parks. It has been observed that people during evening hours, flood parks and gardens and spend time on the banks of famous Dal Lake without wearing masks and maintaining social distancing.

-ARK

PM condoles death of John Lewis

New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi today expressed grief over the death of US Congressman and civil rights icon John Lewis. He was 80.

“We mourn the loss of US Congressman John Lewis, a champion of civil rights, non-violence and Gandhian values. His legacy will continue to endure and inspire,” he tweeted.

Lewis, who had been suffering from pancreatic cancer, dedicated his life to the fight for racial equality and justice. He marched along with Martin Luther King Jr in the 1960s during the civil rights movement in the US. He became a congressman in 1987.

Former US President Barack Obama and American talk show host and actress, Oprah Winfrey have also paid tributes to the civil rights hero.

-ARK

Pepper, cardamom…Indian spices exports up by 34% post Covid-19, says ASSOCHAM

New Delhi (NVI): As more and more people rush to strengthen immunity amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the demand for Indian spices has gone up with a whopping 34 per cent rise in their exports, according to an ASSOCHAM study.

“Spices exports from India went up (by 23 per cent)  to USD 359 million in June, 2020 from USD 292 million in the same month last year, contrary to a decline of 12.41 per cent in the country’s overall merchandise export basket during this period,” ASSOCHAM said in a statement.

After the outbreak of the pandemic, demand for Indian spices has shown an increase, as a number of studies show how they can boost immunity to ward off potential virus threat.

“In domestic currency, thanks to forex advantage, spices exporters raked in even better realisations which rose (up 34 per cent) to Rs 2721 crore in June, 2020 from Rs 2030 crore in the comparative month a year ago,” as per the ASSOCHAM official data.

Among major spices shipped abroad are pepper, cardamom, ginger, turmeric, coriander, cumin, celery, fennel, fenugreek, nutmeg, spice oils and oleoresins, and mint products. Indian spices reach almost to the entire world while the main importers include the US, UK, Germany, France, Italy, Canada, Australia, UAE, Iran, Singapore, China and Bangladesh, among others, ASSOCHAM said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also acknowledged the rising demand of Indian spices amid the pandemic.

“The Prime Minister noticed how demand for spices of which India is among the main producers, is increasing as more and more people rush to strengthen immunity. Thanks to the efforts of the Aayush Ministry and traditional knowledge about spices being a strong immunity builder, an increasing number of Indians are taking to higher consumption of spices. But the rising exports trend does show how the world is benefiting from these items,” said ASSOCHAM Secretary General Mr Deepak Sood.

The ASSOCHAM dipstick study also noticed how rising demand for spices in the domestic market even led to a sharp increase in their prices by almost 12 per cent in June, 2020 whereas the headline CPI inflation was half that level.

”While the Aayush Ministry has been making commendable efforts to promote India’s Traditional Knowledge, the Covid-19 pandemic is compelling us to go an extra mile to document evidence based benefits of our TKs , as per the WTO norms so that we are able to protect  and promote our treasure,” Sood said.

Covid-19: South Africa leaves behind Peru in number of cases, now fifth in world

New Delhi (NVI): With the African continent witnessing a constant surge in the number of Covid-19 cases, South Africa now ranks fifth in the world, ahead of Peru for confirmed coronavirus caseload.

The African nation has reported 13,285 new confirmed cases with the overall tally at 3,50,879. With this, the country now has roughly half the number of cases in Africa.

Other countries with the most cases are the US, Brazil, India and Russia.

Although the virus arrives in Africa a little later than other countries, giving health officials more time to prepare, lack of health infrastructure and testing facilities makes it difficult for the continent to manage the sudden surge of cases. Even the hospitals in South Africa are having a tough time handling the growing number of cases.

Pretoria’s Gauteng province has emerged as the epicentre for the virus. The province has one-quarter of the country’s population and many of the poor are crowded in township areas with inadequate access to clean water and sanitation.

South Africa now has over 3,51,000 cofirmed cases with 4,948 deaths. Around 1,82,000 patients have already recovered from the deadly virus in the country.

Meanwhile, over 14 million people have been infected with the virus globally, while 6,02,656 have died.

-ARK

Over 39,000 fresh Covid cases in India, death toll at 26,816

Representational Image

New Delhi (NVI): The total number of coronavirus cases in India today rose to over 10.7 lakh with 39,000 fresh cases reported in the past 24 hours. At least 543 people have died due to the virus since yesterday, taking the death toll to 26,816.

With this, the total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in the country have gone up to 10,77,618. At present, there are 3,73,379 active cases, while around 6.7 lakh patients have recovered.

Maharashtra remains the worst-affected state as the tally of Covid cases crossed the three-lakh mark today with Mumbai reporting over 1 lakh cases alone.

In Delhi, the AIIMS Ethics Committee has given its nod for a human clinical trial of the indigenously developed COVID-19 vaccine candidate Covaxin. The hospital is likely to begin the exercise from tomorrow.

Meanwhile, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) has said that with the spike in cases, the country now shows community transmission and the situation looks bad.

Over 14 million people have been infected with the virus globally, while 6,02,656 have died.

In another development, South Africa now ranks fifth in the world as per the caseload as Africa witnesses a surge in positive cases. South Africa has reported 13,285 new confirmed cases as the tally reaches 3,50,879. With this the country leaves behing Peru and makes up roughly half the cases in Africa.

The US, Brazil, India, and Russia are top four countries with the most number of cases.

-ARK

Covid-19: Positive cases in J&K cross 13,000-mark with 441 fresh cases

Abid Bashir

Srinagar (NVI): Jammu and Kashmir today recorded 441 new cases, including 55 travelers, taking the total number of positive cases to over 13,000 in the Union Territory.

With 441 new cases, the tally of positive cases in J&K reached 13,198 including 10,511 from Kashmir and 2,687 from Jammu.

Among 441 new cases, 398 belong to Kashmir division while 43 are from Jammu division, officials said. The total number of positive cases in Kashmir division has reached 10,511 including 5,456 recoveries and 218 deaths while the total number of positive cases in Jammu division have reached 2,687 including 1,709 recoveries and 18 deaths.

The total number of active cases in Jammu and Kashmir stands at 5,797 including 4,837 from Kashmir division and 960 from Jammu division.

With 607 more recoveries, the tally of total recoveries in the UT has reached 7,165 which is 54.28 percent of the total cases.

Cases tested positive in J&K include 124 from Srinagar, 25 from Kulgam, 63 from Baramulla, 27 from Shopian, 47 from Anantnag, 02 from Kupwara, 48 from Pulwama, 41 from Budgam, 05 from Bandipora and 16 from Ganderbal in Kashmir division while as 43 from Jammu division include 15 from Jammu, 02 from Udhampur, 03 from Kuthua, 06 from Rajouri, 12 from Samba, 04 from Doda and 01 from Reasi.

Officials added that out of 1,055 samples tested 79 including 1-year-old baby from Saloora, Ganderbal and three from Sonawari camp Bandipora were tested positive.

Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir today reported five deaths including one each from Kulgam, Anantnag, Pulwama, Budgam and Bandipora.

As per the official figures, 1,982 positive cases including 59 deaths and 570 recoveries are from Srinagar, 1,527 including 48 deaths and 848 recoveries are from Baramulla, 1,140 including 791 recoveries and 24 deaths are from Kulgam, 1,082 including 18 deaths and 791 recoveries are from Shopian, 1,032 including 18 deaths and 679 recoveries are from Anantnag, 833 including 533 recoveries and 13 deaths are from Kupwara, 842 including 463 recoveries and 11 deaths are from Pulwama, 749 including 388 recoveries and 18 deaths are from Budgam, 428 including 329 recoveries and 05 deaths are from Bandipora, 267 including 111 recoveries and 04 death are from are from Ganderbal.

In Jammu division, 584 including 394 recoveries and 11 deaths are from Jammu district, 352 including 239 recoveries and 01 death are from Kathua, 339 including 109 recoveries and 01 death are from Rajouri, 324 including 291 recoveries and 01 death is from Udhampur, 318 including 223 recoveries are from Ramban, 328 including 174 recoveries and 01 death are from Samba, 158 including 02 death and 82 recoveries are from Samba, 158 including 82 recoveries and 02 deaths are from Doda, 152 including 124  recoveries and 01 death is from Poonch and 68 including 28 recoveries are from Kishtwar and 64 including 45 recoveries are from Reasi.

As per the daily information bulletin, 3,26,536 peeople in Jammu and Kashmir are under observation while 38,750 persons have been kept under home quarantine besides that 5,797 people are in hospital isolation, meanwhile, 13 people are under hospital quarantine.

According to the bulletin, 2,38,260 persons have completed surveillance period and 43,480 people are under home surveillance.

-CHK

Arunachal Pradesh to get 100% tap connections by 2023 under Jal Jeevan Mission

New Delhi (NVI): Arunachal Pradesh government has decided to provide 100 percent tap water connections to all the households in the state by 2023 under Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM), the flagship programme of the Central Government, which aims to provide safe drinking water to all, according to the Jal Shakti Ministry.

In hilly areas, it is a huge burden on the women of the household to go and fetch water from a distance, which takes heavy toll on their body. To reduce their drudgery, this mission has come as a boon and aims to provide potable water to every rural household in adequate quantity and of prescribed quality on regular and long-term basis.

The Government of India has approved Rs 255 crore for Arunachal Pradesh under Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) in 2020-21.

Even though water availability in Arunachal Pradesh is not an issue, it is challenges faced in the implementation due to the tough mountainous terrain, sparsely located habitations and the harsh climatic conditions. However, the state government has charted a plan to cover all villages/ habitations so as potable water reaches every rural household.

Being a hilly state, gravity-based water supply system is used in Arunachal Pradesh, which means the force of gravity is used to move the water downhill from a source to the village. An intake structure is built to collect the water from surface sources, which is then conveyed to the village through a pipe system.

The implementation of the Jal Jeevan Mission in these tough terrains and high altitude is a challenging task. Impediments increase with the harsh climatic conditions and poor connectivity.

Jal Jeevan Mission was announced in August last year and is a centrally-sponsored project which aims to provide Functional Household Tap Connection (FHTC) to every rural household by 2024.

It is Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision to bring improvements in the lives of people of the country, especially the rural people.

-CHK

India lodges protest with Pak over cross-LoC killing in J&K

Representational image

New Delhi (NVI): India today lodged a strong protest with Pakistan over killing of three members of a family in cross-LoC shelling in Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir yesterday by summoning Charge d’Affaires of the Pakistan High Commission to the External Affairs Ministry.

The acting envoy of Pakistan was “summoned today and a strong protest lodged on the death of three innocent civilians, including a child (and injury to another child), in an unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistani forces in the night of 17 July 2020 in Krishna Ghati Sector in Jammu and Kashmir. The deceased persons belonged to a single family,” External Affairs Ministry said in a statement tonight.

“India condemns, in the strongest terms, the deliberate targeting of innocent civilians by Pakistan forces,” it added.

This year alone, 21 Indians have been killed and 94 injured in over 2711 unprovoked ceasefire violations by Pakistani forces, it noted.

“India also protested Pakistan’s continued support to cross border terrorist infiltration into India, including supporting cover fire provided by Pakistani forces,” the statement said.

Pakistan was called upon to adhere to the 2003 Ceasefire Understanding for maintaining peace and tranquility along the Line of Control and the International Boundary, it said.

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