Jammu (NVI): An eighteen-year-old teenage boy from Tain Mankote village of Mendhar in Poonch district of Jammu was killed this evening in shelling by Pakistani troops, defence officials said.
At around 7 PM, when people in Mendhar village were preparing to break their Ramzan fast, Pakistan violated ceasefire by starting mortar shelling in Krishna Ghati sector and Mankote sector.
“Civil population of five villages in the area came under shelling,” the officials said.
Eighteen-year-old Gulfraz Ahmed of Tain Mankote village also got injured when a mortar shell exploded near his house and its splinters hit him in the chest.
“Boy died on the spot,” a police official confirmed.
Srinagar (NVI): Jammu and Kashmir government today said that an effective lockdown with the cooperation of people has helped in preventing the spread of the deadly coronavirus in the Union Territory while informing that there are 614 total cases so far.
The UT government said that 33 fresh cases were reported today, all from Kashmir.
The government, however, said that even “a small premature celebration” can cost the J&K dearly and that an extreme level of alertness needs to be maintained on all fronts which include wearing a mask and maintaining a proper social distancing while going out.
Addressing a press conference in Jammu, the government spokesperson Rohit Kansal said that 33 new cases have been tested positive today and the total number of positive cases in the UT has reached 614.
“Of these, 390 cases are active in Kashmir and 6 are active in Jammu region. There are 216 recoveries so far and unfortunately, there were eight deaths too,” he said.
Kansal said that so far 70,000 people have been enlisted for the surveillance and 50,000 have completed the mandatory quarantine period.
“Let me tell you that doubling rate of the positive cases has slowed down. The number of days it takes cases to double have increased. Our mortality rate is just above 1 per cent which is quite low,” he said. “More than 90 per cent of our cases are traceable and we can trace the source. Over 80 per cent of cases asymptomatic.”
He said this all was possible due to the wholehearted cooperation of people in enforcing the lockdown.
“This has helped us to slowdown the spread of virus,” Kansal said. “We have 17 Covid hospitals in J&K and we have been following aggressive testing strategy,” Kansal said adding that at present, the J&K’s testing rate is 1500 per million and the next target is 2000 per million, one of the highest in the country.
“Our current position appears to be comfortable but there is a note of caution. We are dealing with highly unpredictable disease. Even a premature celebration can cost us dearly,” he said.
He said J&K will further strengthen surveillance system and procedure. Kansal said that J&K will be doing 100 per cent health audit in entire J&K, the first ever in the country. “The audit will be completed within 10 days,” he said.
He urged people to wear masks and maintain social distancing while going out. “J&K government is procuring 1.2 crore masks, a total of which 40 lakh are being distributed. Masks will be available at subsidised rates and people should make use of it,” Kansal said.
In another development, the Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Council today approved Rs 350 crore relief package for people affected due to lockdown. Principal Secretary (Planning and Information), Rohit Kansal, said that the Lieutenant Governor has earmarked Rs 350 Crore for every section of society including houseboat owners, shikara wallas, pony wallas, students under mid-day meal scheme, labourers, street vendors, free refills of gas cylinders, etc.
New Delhi (NVI): The Union Home Ministry today issued an order to States to ensure free movement of trucks, including empty ones, to maintain supply chain of goods and services in the country amid lockdown due to Covid-19 pandemic.
In its letter to Chief Secretaries of all States, the MHA asked local authorities not to insist on separate passes for inter-state movement of trucks across the country.
“MHA to States: Ensure free movement of trucks/goods carriers, incl empty trucks. Local authorities must not insist on separate passes at inter-state borders across the country. This is essential to maintain supply chain of goods & services in the country,” the Home Ministry spokesperson tweeted.
While referring to an April 15 MHA order on movement of goods/cargo, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla wrote: “It has been reported that at inter-State borders in different parts of the country, movement of trucks is not allowed freely and local authorities insist on separate passes. While this matter has been clarified earlier vide my D.O. letters of even numbers dated 03.04.2020 and 12.04.2020, it is now re-iterated, as per the guidelines referred above, that no separate passes are required for through traffic of trucks and goods carriers, including empty trucks, etc. This is essential for maintaining the supply chain of goods and services across the country during the lockdown period.”
The Home Ministry has asked all States and UTs to ensure that district authorities and field agencies are informed of the latest directions in this regard “so that there is no ambiguity at the ground level, and movement of through traffic of trucks and goods carriers, including empty trucks is allowed without any hindrance.”
India is currently under an extended lockdown till May 3 to contain the spread of coronavirus that has killed more than 1000 people in the country, while more than 33,000 people have been tested positive for the virus.
New Delhi (NVI): Pakistan today reported the highest number of deaths in a single day with 26 new fatalities, taking the total deaths to 361, with the total confirmed cases rising to 16,276.
Looking at the breakdown of cases, Punjab province has reported 6,220 coronavirus cases, highest among all the provinces, while Sindh has 6,053 positive cases.
On the other hand, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa has recorded 2,313 cases, Balochistan is at 978, Gilgit-Baltistan at 333, Islamabad at 313 and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir is at 66 cases so far, according to Geo News.
In the last 24 hours, 204 recoveries have been recorded in the country to take the number 3,233.
Meanwhile, Sindh province has banned all religious gatherings during the holy month of Ramzan in a bid to contain the spread of coronavirus.
New Delhi (NVI): To give a fillip to the economy amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today held a comprehensive meeting to discuss strategies to attract more foreign investments into India as well as to promote local investments.
During the meeting, it was discussed that a scheme should be developed to promote more plug and play infrastructure in the existing industrial lands/plots/estates in the country and provide necessary financing support, the PMO said in a statement.
In this regard, PM Modi directed that the action should be taken for a more proactive approach to handhold the investors, to look into their problems and help them in getting all the necessary Central and State clearances in a time-bound manner.
Apart from that, various strategies to bring investments into India in a fast-track mode and to promote Indian domestic sectors were discussed. Detailed discussions were held on guiding states to evolve their strategies and be more proactive in attracting investments, the PMO said.
The meeting, which was attended by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Home Minister Amit Shah also discussed that the reform initiatives undertaken by the various Ministries should continue unabated and action should be taken in a time-bound manner to remove any obstacles which impede promotion of investment and industrial growth.
Minister for Commerce & Industries Piyush Goyal and MoS (Finance) Anurag Thakur were also present along with senior officials of the Government.
New Delhi (NVI): The total number of deaths from coronavirus continues to rise in Bangladesh as 5 more people have died in the last 24 hours, taking the total casualties in the country to 168, according to United News of Bangladesh.
Besides, a whopping 564 new cases of coronavirus infection were reported during this period, raising the number of such cases in the country to 7,667.
29 PCR labs have collected 5,626 samples and tested 4,965 of them across the country, Prof Nasima Sultana, Additional Director General of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) said.
Meanwhile, 10 more patients recovered from coronavirus, taking the total number of recovered patients to 113 in the country, according to media reports.
In addition to this, Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen has urged expatriate workers not to plan to return home unless they are forced to do so.
He assured them of return of good days after the coronavirus crisis is over.
New Delhi (NVI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi today had a telephonic conversation with Aung San Suu Kyi, State Counsellor of Myanmar and talked over the status of coronavirus pandemic in the two countries.
The leaders discussed the evolving COVID 19 scenario in the domestic and regional contexts and updated each other on the steps being taken to control the spread of the pandemic, as per a statement released by Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
During the conversation, PM Modi underlined the importance of Myanmar as a vital pillar of India’s Neighbourhood First policy and conveyed India’s readiness to provide all possible support to Myanmar for mitigating the health and economic impact of COVID 19.
Apart from this, the Prime Minister assured all possible support for Myanmar citizens present in India. He also thanked the Suu Kyi for the cooperation being extended by Myanmar authorities to Indian citizens there.
New Delhi (NVI): A Control Room set up by Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has resolved or settled 1,739 out of total 1,962 queries related to industry and trade, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said today.
The control room, which was set up by DPIIT, under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry on w.e.f 26.3.2020, is playing a pivotal role in monitoring the issues of Industry and Trade, and solving the difficulties faced by various stakeholders during the lockdown period.
According to the ministry, 89% of queries have been resolved/settled. The Control Room monitors the issues of internal trade, manufacturing, delivery & logistics of essential commodities and difficulties faced by various stakeholders during the lockdown period to resolve any supply chain issues.
“Out of the total number of 1962 queries registered till 28th April 2020, 1739 have been resolved/settled. 223 are currently under resolution. Out of 1962 queries registered, more than 1000 queries were received from five States/UTs viz., Delhi, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Gujarat, the Commerce and Industry Ministry said.
The Ministry informed that a dedicated team has been put in place to monitor and tracking the disposal of queries and to generate daily reports for information of senior officers in the department.
The team closely tracks the important queries by calling up the affected people and obtains their inputs while taking up the matter with the concerned agency, it said.
This also helps in making an assessment about the efficacy of various agencies involved in resolution of issues, it said. This team of professionals helps senior officers to know the impact of their interventions and thus keeps everyone apprised of the status of resolution of grievances, it added.
Any manufacturing, transporter, distributor, wholesaler or e-commerce companies facing ground level difficulties in transport and distribution of goods or mobilization of resources can reach out to the department through phone number or email.
The queries can be emailed to “[email protected]” or informed through telephone (011-23062487). This number will be functional from 8am to 6pm, the ministry said in a statement.
The control room has been receiving queries regarding ground level difficulties as well as the procedural and policy issues being faced by the manufacturers, transporters, distributors, wholesalers and e-commerce companies, the Ministry informed.
After registering the queries, the DPIIT control room staff forwards the same to the state level control rooms and the Chief Secretary of the State with the request to initiate necessary action and ensure that the required relief is provided to the querists at the earliest, it added.
The queries received in the control room are forwarded to the senior officers of DPIIT. All the senior officers have been assigned specific States with which they continuously interact and urge upon the state functionaries to initiate action on pending issues, it said.
Meanwhile, the state government departments such as Industry, Transport, Consumer Affairs and Food and Public Distribution are also closely monitoring the resolution of such queries.
Business location (Source: WEConnect International)
New Delhi (NVI): Coronavirus outbreak has impacted women business owners and their companies worldwide, according to a survey which shows the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on various sectors where women are engaged or in control of respondents in the study.
The survey has been conducted by WEConnect International, a non-profit organization, connecting women’s enterprises with global opportunities.
Out of total 590 respondents from various Industry sectors in the survey, 97% are at least 51% owned, managed and controlled by one or more women.
Among different industry segments, 3% of the business owned by women in the Construction and Food Services sector has been affected amid Covid-19, 5% in Travel/Tourism, 4% in Human Resources and 3% in Health Care.
Apart from that, 2% of Wholesale Trade where women are engaged has been affected, 11 % in Manufacturing, 7% in Food/Beverage, 5% in both Education and Business Support, 8% in Technology Service, 1% in Utilities, 2% in Architecture, 24% in Professional Services and 9% in Others.
As per the January to March findings of the survey regarding the impact on business from Covid-19, 43% of respondents are losing customers as face-to-face business goes digital.
While 35% can’t move inventory that is sitting idle due to decreased demand, 34% feel that increased anxiety about the situation has reduced their productivity/time spent on business.
The report says that 31% of respondents faced inability to source raw materials and inputs for their products due to supply chain disruptions. 27% said that employees can’t work causing delays in meeting client needs.
Another 27% were of the view that increased care demands from children, elderly and other loved ones have reduced the time they spend on their business.
19% feel that they need to shift to digital business but not sure where to start. 10% are not sure where to go for advice and guidance.
In 36% of other cases, client and partner shutdowns due to pandemic have led to a trickle-down effect.
The survey further states that 90% of women business owners have seen a significant decrease in sales or revenue from January-March 2020.
77% of them have anticipated decreased sales between April and July 2020. Among them, 55% anticipate decreases of more than half and 23% anticipate that sales will stop completely.
The global pandemic has also thrown new financial challenges at women entrepreneurs and business owners. 56% of respondents in the survey are in need of support with their employee wages. 76% need tax relief through delayed or canceled payments. While 39% of respondents are in need of extensions of credit or penalty waivers from banks, 22% are in need of government-funded healthcare for Covid-19.
(Illustration source: WeConnect International)
Some other challenges for women business owners amid Covid-19 that require immediate concern are:
1. Adjusting products or services to remain relevant in response to economic changes.
2. Securing funding to remain operational
3. Funding for the organiation to remain fiscally stable
4. Adjusting delivery of products or services at a time of social distancing
5. Directly responding to or supporting customers, suppliers and other critical businesses and partners dealing with the crisis.
6. Responding to immediate potential or actual health needs of employees
However, on a brighter side, women are adapting to optimise or refocus on their businesses. According to the survey, 54% reported identifying and cutting unnecessary expenses. 42% have shifted to a digital business model. 32% are creating a new business line in response to local or global needs.
16% have launched a new product or service early. 3% found that their clients want to move quickly to sign contracts and 5% want to finish projects more quickly. 11% have seen an increase in demand of products or services. 34% have identified new business opportunities. 37% are growing an area of business in response to local or global needs.
Coronavirus outbreak, which started from Wuhan in China in December last year, has left the global economy devastated under its impact, with markets across the world bearing the brunt. People in the tourism, aviation and hospitality sectors have lost jobs while businesses and startups in countries like the US have faced the heat of the pandemic.
New Delhi (NVI): More than 3,25,000 people are using “Janaushadhi Sugam” Mobile App to access Janaushadhi kendras amid Covid-19 lockdown, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers said today.
“Janaushadhi Sugam Mobile App is helping people in a big way to locate their nearest Pradhan Mantri Bharatiya Janaushadhi Kendra (PMJAK) and availability of affordable generic medicine with its price,” the ministry said in a statement.
In order to make use of digital technology for easing the life of consumers, Jan Aushashi Sugam service was announced by the Government with the Bureau of Pharma PSUs of India (BPPI) in the form of a website and standalone app for both Android as well as iOS platforms.
The Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Kendras (PMJAK) are delivering quality generic medicines at affordable prices to the common citizens of the country.
Presently, more than 6300 PMJAKs are functioning across the country, covering 726 districts.
In the fight against COVID-19, the government is revolutionizing the face of healthcare system through notable schemes like PMBJP.
This scheme which provides over 900 quality generic-medicines and 154 surgical equipments and consumables at affordable prices for every citizen of the nation.
However, in the lockdown period, PMBJP is also generating awareness through informational posts on their social media platforms to help people protect themselves from novel coronavirus.
