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World Food Safety Day: 2020 theme and significance amid the Covid-19 pandemic

New Delhi (NVI): The World Food Safety Day is being observed today amid the Covid-19 pandemic when food security has become an utmost concern across the globe, with the third world countries including those in Africa the most vulnerable during the current situation.

This WFSD is being celebrated to draw attention and inspire action to help prevent, detect and manage foodborne risks, contributing to food security, human health, economic prosperity, agriculture, market access, tourism and sustainable development, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).


Word Food Safety Day is observed on June 7, and this is the second celebration, the first was in 2019. This year, the day calls for strengthening commitment to scale up food safety made by the Addis Ababa Conference and the Geneva Forum in 2019 under the umbrella of “The Future of Food Safety”, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said in a statement today.

“WHO, in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is pleased to facilitate Member States efforts to celebrate the World Food Safety Day,” the global health body said.

The theme for this year’s WFSD is “Food safety, everyone’s business”, under which the action-oriented campaign will promote global food safety awareness and call upon countries and decision-makers, the private sector, civil society, UN organizations and the general public to take action.

Food safety is a shared responsibility between governments, producers and consumers, WHO said, adding that everybody has a role to play from farm to table to ensure the food we consume is safe and will not cause damages to our health.

“Through the World Food Safety Day, WHO pursues its efforts to mainstream food safety in the public agenda and reduce the burden of foodborne diseases globally,” it said.

WHO calls for action with the following recommendations:

  • Ensure it’s safe – Government must ensure safe and nutritious food for all
  • Grow it safe – Agriculture and food producers need to adopt good practices
  • Keep it safe – Business operators must make sure food is safe
  • Eat it safe: All consumers have a right to safe, healthy and nutritious food
  • Team up for safety – Food Safety is a shared responsibility

With over 2.46 lakh Covid cases, India now 5th worst hit, overtakes Spain

New Delhi (NVI): India has now become the fifth worst-hit country by Covid-19 in the world while surpassing Spain with over 2.46 lakh cases. The tally of Covid-19 cases in the country now stands at 2,46,628 and the death toll nears the 7,000 mark at 6,929.

India is now only behind the US, Brazil, Russia and the UK. According to the latest data with the Ministry of health, there are 1,20,406 active cases in India while 1,19,292 have been cured or discharged.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra, Delhi, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh have the highest number of cases in the country. Total confirmed cases in Maharashtra are 82,968, Gujarat 19,592, Tamil Nadu 30152, Uttar Pradesh 9,733 and Delhi 27,654.

While Maharashtra has recorded maximum 2969 deaths, it has 42,609 active cases so far; Delhi has recorded 761 deaths and has 16,229 active cases, Rajasthan has seen 231 deaths and has 2,599 active cases, Tamil Nadu has 251 deaths and 13,506 cases, UP has recorded 257 deaths and has 3,828 active cases, Gujarat has recorded 1219 deaths and has 5057 active cases so far.

There has been a spike in the daily corona cases in the country. From around 6,500 cases a week ago, India is now recording close to 10,000 cases daily.

India registered a record single-day spike of 9,887 cases and 294 deaths by Saturday 8 am, pushing the tally to 2,36,657, according to the Union Health Ministry. The country has registered over 9,000 cases for the third day in a row.

Civilian shot dead by suspected militants in J&K’s Baramulla

Representational Picture

Abid Bashir

Srinagar (NVI): A civilian was shot dead outside his home today at Bomai village of Sopore in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, police said.

A police official said that the civilian identified as Danish Manzoor, son of Manzoor Ahmed, was shot dead outside his home by armed men.

“Two armed men barged into Danish’s house and opened fire at him outside his home. He was in found in a pool of blood. Locals and other family members shifted him to nearby Sub-District Hospital Sopore, where he was declared brought dead.”

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Sopore, Javaid Iqbal, said that a civilian was killed by suspected militants outside his home in Bomai, Sopore. “He died on the way to the hospital,” he said.

Police have registered a case and a massive manhunt has been started to nab the attackers. An alert was sounded at all exit and entry points across Sopore to nab the attackers.

Coronavirus tally in J&K climbs to 3,467

Abid Bashir

Srinagar (NVI): Jammu and Kashmir today recorded 143 new Covid positive cases taking the total number of cases in the Union Territory to 3,467.

Officials said that among the 143 new cases that were tested positive in the J&K today, 50 were reported from SKIMS, 4 from JVC Bemina, 13 from Army’s command hospital Udhampur and rest from other hospitals and private labs.

Among 143 new cases, 100 belong to Kashmir division while 43 are from Jammu division, officials said. They said that the total number of positive cases in Kashmir division have reached to 2,615 including 935 recoveries and 35 deaths while total number of positive cases in Jammu division has reached 852 including 191 recoveries and 5 deaths.

The officials further added that the total number of active cases in Jammu and Kashmir have reached 2,302 including 1,646 from Kashmir division and 656 from Jammu division.

Cases tested positive in J&K include 3 from Kulgam, 3 from Srinagar, 3 from Anantnag, 4 from Budgam, 64 from Shopian, 9 from Baramulla and 14 from Bandipora in Kashmir division while 43 from Jammu include 10 from Jammu, 4 from Ramban, 11 from Kuthua, 6 from Udhampur, 2, from Samba district, 3 from Poonch, 4 from Rajouri, 2 from Reasi and one from Doda.

As per the official figures in Kashmir division, 385 positive cases including five deaths and 163 recoveries are from Anantnag, 370 including nine deaths and 143 recoveries are from Srinagar, 366 including four deaths and 51 recoveries are from Kulgam, 331 including 95 recoveries and one death are from Kupwara, 317 including 105 recoveries and seven deaths are from Baramulla, 194 including 136 recoveries and three deaths are from Shopian, 180 including 136 recoveries and one death is from Bandipora, 142 including 70 recoveries and two deaths are from Budgam, 122 including 13 recoveries are from Pulwama and 42 including 26 recoveries are from Ganderbal.

In Jammu division, 200 including 67 recoveries and three deaths are from Jammu district, 168 including 20 recoveries are from Ramban, 129 including 29 recoveries and one death os from Udhampur, 105 including 36 recoveries are from Kathua, 68 including 03 recoveries from Poonch, 57 including 23 recoveries and two are from Samba, 52 including 05 recoveries are from Rajouri, 36 including one death and 01 recovery is from Doda, 20 including 03 recoveries and one death are from Reasi and 17 including 04 recoveries are from Kishtwar.

According to the daily information bulletin, 2,08,605 people in Jammu and Kashmir are under observation while 42,003 persons have been kept under home quarantine. 2,302 people are in hospital isolation while 53 people are under hospital quarantine.

According to the bulletin, 1,07,208 people have completed the surveillance period and 57,045 people are under home surveillance besides that so far results of 2,12,880 samples have been made available.

Out of the total 2,12,880 samples, the number of samples tested negative stands at 2,08,413 while 3,467 have been tested positive, among them 2302 are active and 1126 persons have recovered and 40 persons have died.

Global warming is turning Antarctica snow green

New Delhi (NVI): The Antarctic Peninsula, one of the fastest-warming places on Earth, is seeing so-called snow algae turning the snow green.

Warming temperatures due to climate change are helping the formation and spread of “green snow” and it is becoming so prolific in places that it is even visible from space, according to a new research.

Notably, green snow algae are some of Antarctica’s smallest living organisms, delicate enough to examine by microscope. But when they grow together in clumps they become a rich, green stain on the surface of the white snow.

A large network of algal blooms have been cropping up every summer across the peninsula of Antarctica and the nearby islands that dot the Southern Ocean.

Furthermore, these blooms likely play an important role in the coastal ecosystem. Algae are typically a fundamental part of coastal food webs and help to sustain other larger forms of life.

These ‘snow algae’ are sometimes also known as ‘watermelon snow’, because they can produce shades of pink, red or green.

About two-thirds of the algal blooms studied occurred on the area’s islands, which have been even more affected by regional temperature rises than the Peninsula itself.

For the algae to thrive, the conditions need to be just right: water needs to be just above freezing point to give the snow the right degree of slushiness. And that’s happening with increasing frequency on the Peninsula during the Antarctic summer, from November to February.

2 out of every 5 jobs lost during pandemic may not come back: Report

New Delhi (NVI): Two out of every five jobs lost during the coronavirus outbreak will not come back. In addition to this, the pandemic will have a profound, long-term consequence for the reallocation of jobs, workers, and capital across firms and locations, according to research by University of Chicago.

According to Bureau of Labor Statistics, the US had 14.7 per cent unemployment rate for the month of April.

“We estimate that 42 per cent of recent pandemic-induced layoffs will result in permanent job loss,” said Steven J. Davis of the University of Chicago Booth, School of Business, a leading expert on hiring practices, job loss and the effects of economic uncertainty.

“If the economic shutdown lingers for many months or if serious pandemics become a recurring phenomenon, there will be profound, long-term consequences for the reallocation of jobs, workers, and capital across firms and locations,” Davis added.

The researchers constructed a novel, forward-looking measure of expected job reallocation across the US firms, pairing anecdotal evidence from news reports and other sources, along with the rich dataset provided by the Survey of Business Uncertainty (SBU).

Fielded by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta in cooperation with Chicago Booth and Stanford University, a monthly panel survey was also developed which allows the calculation of a firm’s expected growth rate over the next year and its degree of uncertainty about its expectations.

In addition, two special staffing-related questions in the SBU reveal that pandemic-related developments caused near-term layoffs equal to 12.8 per cent of March 1 employment and new hires equal to 3.8 per cent or roughly three new hires per 10 layoffs.

The authors mention numerous sources that report large-scale hiring by certain retailers, grocers and food-delivery firms.

Furthermore, they find that some companies are becoming creative in managing their labor needs.

“Some companies are forming partnerships that exploit the re-allocative nature of the COVID-19 shock to speed hiring,” said Davis.

He also said that, “Grocery chains are creating labor exchanges with hotels and retail stores are pairing with gig companies, among other creative solutions to move workers to where they are needed.”

Similarly, researchers from the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México and Stanford also contributed to the work.

Bangladesh COVID-19 tally exceeds 63,000; 846 dead

(Image source: United News of Bangladesh)

New Delhi (NVI): Bangladesh reported spike in coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours with the detection of 2,635 new cases, taking the total number of confirmed cases to 63,026.

The country also recorded a total of 35 death due to the novel coronavirus during this period, raising the death tally to 846, according to United News of Bangladesh.

So far, a total of 13,325 people have recovered from the deadly contagion, after 521 more patients made recovery.

The detection rate of new patients on Saturday has been recorded at 21.10 per cent.

In addition to this, against the total number of detected cases, the recovery rate is 21.14 per cent and the mortality rate is 1.34 per cent in the country.

582 new COVID cases in Afghanistan; tally hits 19,551

New Delhi (NVI): Afghanistan witnessed a rise in coronavirus cases with 582 new cases, taking the overall tally to 19,551 across the country, according to Afghan media reports.

In the past 24 hours, 18 patients have died due to COVID-19 virus in the country.

Among the fresh cases, Herat was on the top of the list with 193 new positive cases followed by Kabul (161), Nimroz (107), Balkh (46), Nangarhar (23), Laghman (15), Ghor (14).

Likewise, seven cases were reported in Kandahar, six in Uruzgan, five in Kunar, two in Nuristan, two in Helmand and one in Paktia.

Apart from this, among total deaths reported in last 24 hours, seven were in Kunar, five in Herat, 4 in Kabul, one each in Nimroz and Helmand provinces.

The Ministry of Public Health said 1,830 people have recovered while 327 died from the respiratory disease in Afghanistan.

So far, 45,900 people have been tested for COVID-19 in the country, as per media reports.

Meanwhile, the Office of the Second Vice President released new guidelines for the lockdown in Afghanistan which included a three month-ban on gatherings of more than 10 people and mandatory wearing of face masks and social distancing.

Nepal COVID-19 tally reaches 3,235 with 323 new cases

Representational image

New Delhi (NVI): 323 new positive coronavirus cases have been reported from Nepal, taking the toll in the Himalayan nation to 3,235, according to local media reports.

The country’s Ministry of Health and Population said, “Of the total infected, 3,003 are males and 232 are females.”

In the last 24 hours, 286 males and 37 females from Sunsari, Saptari, Nawalparasi, Banke, Bardiya, Syangja, Baglung, Bajhang, Kanchanpur, Dhangadhi, Dadeldhura, Dailekh, Dolpa, Jajarkot, Salyan, Argakhachi, Kapilvastu, Rupandehi, Bhaktapur, Kathmandu, Mahottari, Rautahat and Sarlahi have tested positive for the virus.

At present, 70 of the 77 districts and all the Provinces have witnessed the transmission of COVID-19 virus, as per media reports.

As many as 249 cases have been detected in 12 districts of Province 1; 1,077 cases have been seen in eight districts of Province 2; and 90 cases in 12 districts of Bagmati Province.

Likewise, 73 cases have been reported in nine districts of Gandaki Province; 1,061 cases in 11 districts of Province 5; 579 cases in nine districts of Karnali Province; and 106 cases in nine districts of Sudurpaschim Province.

Apart from this, 23 people have been discharged following recovery, which means the total recovery cases stand at 365 across the country.

Meanwhile, Nepal has recorded two more coronavirus related deaths today, which has taken the national COVID-19 death toll to 13 across the country.

Coronavirus cases surpass 95,000 in Pakistan; death toll at 1,954

COVID-19: Pakistan imposes mini-lockdown in Islamabad

New Delhi (NVI): Pakistan have now surpassed China in the total number of coronavirus cases, the first epicentre of the disease, recording around 5,000 new cases in the last 24 hours, taking the overall tally to 95,458 with at least 1,954 fatalities.

Looking at the breakdown of cases, Sindh province has reported 36,364 coronavirus cases, highest among all the provinces, while Punjab has 35,308 positive cases.

On the other hand, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa has recorded 12,459 cases, Balochistan is at 5,776, Gilgit-Baltistan at 897, Islamabad at 4,323 and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir is at 331 cases so far, according to Geo News.

So far, 31,198 people have fully recovered from the deadly contagion in the country.

Reportedly, this is the fourth consecutive day when a record number of cases were reported in Pakistan after the Eid holidays and easing of lockdown restrictions at the end of May.

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