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COVID-19 claims 4 more lives in J&K, toll 136

Abid Bashir

Srinagar (NVI): In Jammu and Kashmir, four more people have died due to coronavirus taking the total number of death toll in the Union Territory to 136.

The fresh deaths include a 55-year-old man from Boniyar, Baramulla, a 56-year-old man from Kralpora Budgam, a 90-year-old man from Baramulla and a 54-year-old man from Aloosa, Bandipora.

Farooq Jan, Medical Superintendent at SKIMS Soura hospital said that a 55-year-old man from Boniyar, Baramulla, who tested positive for COVID-19, died today morning. “The patient was suffering from Cardiac problems and other ailments,” he added.

He further added that another Covid-19 causality was of a 56-year-old man from Budgam, who was very sick and was tested positive for the virus.

“The patient was suffering from Bilateral Community acquired Pneumonia and other underlying ailments. He was on dialysis as well,” the doctor said.

Saleem Tak, Medical Superintendent at Chest Diseases Hospital Srinagar, said that a 90-year-old man from Baramulla who was admitted on June 26 died early morning today. “The patient was suffering from hypertension, bilateral pneumonia and cardiac ailments,” he said.

Nazir Choudhary, Medical Superintendent at SMHS hospital Srinagar, said that a patient from Aloosa, Bandipora, who was admitted on June 4, died today morning. “The patient was tested positive for the virus,” he said. “The patient was also suffering from hypertension, bilateral pneumonia and other ailments.”

With four more deaths, the total number of people who have died due to coronavirus in J&K has reached 136, which includes 122 from Kashmir division and 14 from Jammu division.

The government has already declared entire Kashmir as a red zone barring two districts that include Bandipora and Ganderbal given the spurt in Covid related deaths and surge in positive cases.

A senior official in the divisional administration said that government was deliberating whether to enforce lockdown again in the red zone districts or to put in place other measures to contain the spread of virus further.

-CHK

Taj Mahal, other Agra monuments not to re-open as coronavirus cases spurt

Taj Mahal

New Delhi (NVI): Due to rise in number of coronavirus cases, the monuments in Agra – Taj Mahal, Akbar’s Tomb and Fatehpur Sikri – will not re-open from today as they were located in containment or buffer zones for COVID-19.

The development comes after the Union Culture Ministry decided to open all the historical places on July 6 along with other monuments that comes under Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

However on Sunday, the district administration said in a statement that there had been 55 new COVID-19 cases in the past four days and 71 areas have been declared containment zones.

The decision to not re-open these monuments from July 6 was taken during a meeting between the district’s COVID-19 team and the Superintendent Archaeologist of Agra.

Agra administrations would decide on which monuments to open, depending on the list of containment zones and guidelines of the Ministries of Home Affairs and Health.

According to the officials, reopening these monuments will lead to increased movement of tourists and could cause a surge in the number of COVID-19 cases in Agra.

-RJV/CHK

State-wise details of Covid-19 cases in India

New Delhi (NVI): India has become the third worst-hit country after surpassing Russia in the total number of coronavirus cases.

The coronavirus cases in the country saw a rise of 24,248 in the last 24 hours, taking the overall tally to 6,97,413, according to Union Health Ministry data.

Meanwhile, the total number of fatalities due to the deadly contagion rose to 19,693 in the country after 425 new fatalities were reported during this period.

Total positive cases in States/UTs:

Andaman and Nicobar Islands- 125

Andhra Pradesh- 18,697

Arunachal Pradesh- 269

Assam- 11,388

Bihar- 11,876

Chandigarh- 466

Chhattisgarh- 3,207

Dadar Nagar Haveli- 26

Delhi- 99,444

Gujarat- 36,037

Goa- 1,761

Haryana– 17,005

Himachal Pradesh- 1,063

Jammu and Kashmir- 8,429

Jharkhand- 2,781

Karnataka- 23,474

Kerala- 5,429

Ladakh- 1,005

Madhya Pradesh- 14,930

Maharashtra- 2,06,619

Manipur- 1,366

Meghalaya- 62

Mizoram- 186

Nagaland- 590

Odisha- 9,070

Puducherry- 802

Punjab- 6,283

Rajasthan- 20,164

Sikkim- 123

Tamil Nadu- 1,11,151

Telangana- 23,902

Tripura- 1,568

Uttarakhand- 3,124

Uttar Pradesh- 27,707

West Bengal – 22,126

State/UT wise total death toll:

Andhra Pradesh- 232

Arunachal Pradesh- 1

Assam- 14

Bihar- 95

Chandigarh- 6

Chhattisgarh- 14

Delhi- 3,067

Goa- 7

Gujarat- 1,943

Haryana- 265

Himachal Pradesh- 11

Jammu and Kashmir- 132

Jharkhand- 19

Karnataka- 372

Kerala- 25

Ladakh- 1

Madhya Pradesh- 608

Maharashtra- 8,822

Meghalaya- 1

Odisha- 36

Puducherry- 12

Punjab- 164

Rajasthan- 456

Tamil Nadu- 1,510

Telangana- 295

Tripura- 1

Uttar Pradesh- 785

Uttarakhand- 42

West Bengal- 757

A total of 4,24,433 people have been cured or discharged from hospitals in India. There are around 2,53,287 active cases currently, according to the Health Ministry.

-CHK

PM pays tribute to SP Mookerjee

Prime Minister Narendra Modi

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today paid tributes to the founder of Bharatiya Jan Sangh, Syama Prasad Mookerjee on his birth anniversary, saying he made courageous efforts to further India’s unity.

SP Mookerjee was born on this day in 1901 in then Calcutta.

Taking to twitter, PM Modi wrote, “I bow to Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee on his Jayanti. A devout patriot, he made exemplary contributions towards India”s development.”

“He made courageous efforts to further India’s unity.His thoughts and ideals give strength to millions across the nation,” the prime minister said.

Mookerjee was a prominent Indian politician, barrister and academician and served as the Minister for Industry and Supply in the Jawaharlal Nehru cabinet but he later resigned from the Nehru’ cabinet.

In 1951, with the help of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), he founded the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, former to the Bharatiya Janata Party. He breathed his last on June 23, 1953.

-RJV

Coronavirus cases surge past 11.4 million worldwide

Coronavirus cases

New Delhi (NVI): More than 11.4 million people around the world have been diagnosed with coronavirus while 5,33,781 have died, according to Johns Hopkins University tally.

In the US, the total number of cases have surpassed 2.8 million while the death toll is nearing 1,30,000 due to the deadly contagion in the country.

Meanwhile, officials in Texas are warning that hospitals in the United States state could soon be overwhelmed if coronavirus cases continue to surge.

Brazil, second only to the US in Covid-19 cases and deaths, has surpassed 1.5 million coronavirus cases.

Mexico now has 30,639 deaths, the fifth highest in the world, overtaking France. While the total number of cases in the country has exceeded 2,55,000.

Peru has jumped past 3,00,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19, the fifth-highest in the world. The country’s death toll from the virus now stands at 10,589, the 10th-highest in the world.

About 3,000 people were suddenly put under a hard lockdown in Melbourne, Australia, after a spike in cases led to fears of a second wave.

In Iran, a record 163 people have died in the past 24 hours, higher than any daily figure in the country over the course of the pandemic so far.

-CHK

India becomes third worst-hit country; coronavirus tally nears 7 lakh

covid cases
File photo

New Delhi (NVI): India has now become the third-worst affected country after surpassing Russia in terms of the total number of coronavirus cases. The country reported 24,248 new cases in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of cases to 6,97,413.

The death toll due to the virus rose to 19,693, with 425 new fatalities being reported in the last 24 hours, Union Health Ministry said.

As many as 4,24,432 COVID-19 patients have been cured and discharged so far.

With 2,06,619 confirmed cases of COVID-19 so far, Maharashtra remains the worst-affected state in the country, followed by Tamil Nadu with 1,11,151 cases and Delhi with 99,444 cases.

Maharashtra has also reported the highest number of fatalities at 8,822, followed by 1,943 in Gujarat.

The death toll in Delhi rose to 3,067, while 71,339 patients in the national capital have recovered so far, the healthy ministry data shows.

The other worst affected states are Gujarat (36,037) Uttar Pradesh (27,707) and West Bengal (22,126) and Rajasthan (20,164).

Meanwhile, the Kerala government made it mandatory to follow the safety regulations for coronavirus pandemic till July 2021,  which includes wearing face masks or covers and social distancing.

Apart from this, monuments in and around Agra, including the Taj Mahal, are not reopening from today, amid a rise in the number of coronavirus cases.

-RJV

India, Afghanistan sign 5 MoUs for developing edu infra in 4 Afghan provinces

New Delhi (NVI): India and Afghanistan today signed five agreements for the development of educational infrastructure in four Afghan provinces of Nooristan, Farah, Badakhshan and Kapisa, in a further expansion of development partnership cooperation.

The moves is seen as a reiteration of India’s support to Afghanistan at a time when the war-torn country’s peace process is facing challenges.

“#India & #Afghanistan further expanded Development Partnership cooperation by signing of 5 MoUs for development of educational infrastructure in 4 Afghan provinces namely Nooristan, Farah, Badakhshan and Kapisa,” the Indian Embassy in Afghanistan said in a tweet.

The five memorandums of understanding (MoUs) were signed under the high impact community development projects (HICDP) programme being implemented by India to further strengthen the bilateral development partnership, read an official statement by the Indian Embassy in Kabul.

“Since 2001, India has undertaken projects worth $3 billion in Afghanistan, including $1 billion pledged in 2016 under the new development partnership scheme over the period of five years. These projects are part of India’s commitment to assist Afghanistan emerge as a peaceful, united, prosperous and pluralistic nation”, the statement read.

Projects under the MoU signed today come within the purview of HICDP Scheme. Since 2005, GOI has committed USD 200 million to support over 550 projects throughout Afganistan under HICDP, the Indian embassy said. Of these, over 400 projects have been completed while the remaining are under various stages of implementation, it added.

The ceremony was presided over by the Afghan minister of economy, Mustafa Mastoor. Tripartite agreements were signed between the Indian government, the Afghan ministry of economy and the implementing ministries, such as the ministry of education.

The MoUs were signed by Indian ambassador Vinay Kumar and ministers Mustafa Mastoor and Abdul Tawab Balakarzai, while three were signed by Kumar and ministers Mastoor and Rangina Hamidi.

-ARK

Pak violates ceasefire along LoC in J&K’s Poonch

Ceasefire
Representational image

Jammu (NVI): In yet another ceasefire violation, Pakistan army today resorted to unprovoked firing in Balakore sector of Poonch district in Jammu and Kashmir, defence sources said.

“…at about 1945 hours, Pak initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation by firing with Small Arms & intense shelling with Mortars along LoC in Balakote sector, District Poonch (J&K),” defence officials said, adding that Indian Army is retaliating befittingly.

Yesterday also, Pakistan resorted to intense shelling in forward areas along LoC in Poonch.

(More details awaited)

Govt blocks 40 websites of banned group Sikhs for Justice

New Delhi (NVI): The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology today banned 40 websites of banned pro-Khalistan group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) that had launched an online campaign for registering supporters for its cause.

The Ministry has issued an order in this regard under section 69 of IT Act, 2000 on the recommendation of MHA. Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) is an unlawful organization under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

“Sikhs For Justice (SFJ), an unlawful organization under the UAPA, 1967, launched a campaign for registering supporters for its cause. On recommendation of MHA, MeitY has issued orders under sec. 69 A of the I.T. Act, 2000, for blocking 40 websites of SFJ,” the Home Ministry spokesperson tweeted.

The home ministry had banned SFJ for its alleged anti-national activities last year. The SFJ pushed for Sikh Referendum 2020 as part of its separatist agenda. The US-based organisation had declared July 4 as the inaugural day for registration of referendum on Khalistan.

The Centre has blocked a Russian portal which was used by SFJ for online voter registration for “Referendum 2020” to demand for Khalistan, which seeks a separate homeland for the Sikhs.

The MeitY order came four days after MHA declared nine individuals as designated terrorists under provisions of amended UAPA Act, for trying to revive militancy in Punjab.

According to the ministry, out of nine individuals, four belong to Pakistan-based terrorist organisations. They include Wadhawa Singh Babbar, chief of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI); Lakhbir Singh, who heads International Sikh Youth Federation; Ranjeet Singh, chief of Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZB) and Paramjit Singh, who leads Khalistan Commando Force.

-ARK

WATCH | Foundation of Hindu temple vandalised in Islamabad


In this video, a person can be seen vandalising the boundary wall of an under-construction Hindu temple in Islamabad. The construction work of Krishna temple in the Pakistan capital has been halted by Hindu Panchayat following strong opposition from some religious and extremist groups. Read story

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