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Punjab CM wants urgent evacuation of Sikhs from Afghanistan

New Delhi (NVI): Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today requested the central government to evacuate from Afghanistan a “large number” of Sikh families, who want to leave the country at the earliest.

“Dear Dr S. Jaishankar, there are a large number of Sikh families who want to be flown out of Afghanistan. Request you to get them airlifted at the earliest. In this moment of crisis, it’s our bounden duty to help them,” Singh said in a tweet addressed to the External Affairs Minister.

He did not elaborate on the identity of those wanting to leave Afghanistan.

However, it comes against the backdrop of a terror attack on a Sikh shrine in Kabul on March 28, in which 25 people were killed.

The next day, terrorists detonated a bomb near a crematorium in Kabul where the last rites of the victims of the shrine attack were to be performed.

The Punjab Chief Minister had strongly condemned the attack on the Gurdwara in Kabul.

J&K Resident Commission establishes helpline for stranded residents

Representational image

New Delhi (NVI): Jammu and Kashmir Resident Commission in Delhi has established a Helpline Centre which will be operational 24×7 to address issues faced by the residents of the valley stranded in the national capital and other parts of the country due to the COVID-19 lockdown.

With the spread of novel coronavirus, there is a sense of panic and uncertainty among the masses, as many are not sure what measures to take to safeguard themselves and their family. In this regard, three helpline numbers have been dedicated for the purpose.

The residents can call on the following helpline numbers 24611210, 24611108, 24615475, to sort assistance or help, which are functional 24×7.

Additional Secretary Rimpy Ohri is supervising the overall functioning of the Centre. 

An official spokesperson said that J&K residents facing any issue due to coronavirus lockdown may contact these helpline numbers.

Hundreds of students from across the country have already been facilitated by the commission to return to their home districts while several have been facilitated to stay at various dedicated hotels in Delhi, the official spokesperson added.

So far, 20 positive cases of COVID-19 have been reported in Jammu and Kashmir, whereas nationwide a total of 873 cases have been recorded with 19 fatalities, according to the Health Ministry data.  

Hundreds of Indian students in Ukraine want to return home

Mubashir Bukhari

Srinagar (NVI): Hundreds of Indian students in Ukraine are feeling unsafe there in view of the coronavirus pandemic and want to return home.

Ukraine has enforced a lockdown till April 24 and suspended all international commercial passenger services to and from the country till that date, according to the advisory of the Indian Embassy in Ukraine.

According to an estimate, there are over 10,000 Indian students, including 200 from Kashmir, in different parts of Ukraine and they are living in constant fear of getting infected by the virus there because of the conditions they are in.

A student from Kashmir, who is among 500 Indians studying in Sumi State University of Ukraine, told NVI that they are facing shortage of masks, sanitizers and other protective gears.

The Indian students are living in congested hostels and chances of getting affected is more, said Mohammad Aasif Tariq, who is studying medicine at Sumi State University.

He said more than 200 have tested positive there and one among them has died. “We fear for our lives, we want to return home,” Tariq said.

“We don’t have proper medical facilities here. We are living in constant fear. We request the Government of India to either evacuate us from here or ask the local government to provide the necessary facilities,” the student said.

On March 17, the Indian government suspended entry of passengers from COVID-19-affected countries as a precautionary measure to prevent the spread of the virus.

The Embassy of India in Ukraine said it is in touch with the Indian authorities and the government to procure emergency medical resources to combat the pandemic in Ukraine.

In an advisory, it has asked all Indian citizens to avoid any unnecessary travel and observe social distancing.

“It is also requested to follow the advisories issued by the local authorities in Ukraine, World Health Organization, and Government of India from time to time,” it said.

The students said that till the travel ban is lifted, the University authorities should take care of them and provide them the necessary medical help.

“We tried to contact the Embassy, but it’s shut from last few days and we didn’t get any response from them,” a student said.

J&K cop booked, disengaged from service for using abusive language

Terrorist arrested
Representational image

Mubashir Bukhari

Srinagar (NVI): A Jammu and Kashmir Policeman has been disengaged from service and a case has been filed against him after a video went viral, showing him purportedly using abusive language while asking people to stay indoors during the lockdown.

Police officials said that the cop was seen in the video making announcement in Sopore area of north Kashmir.

The video was apparently shot at an isolated place and he was not seen as being a part of any announcement-making team of the police, the officials said.

However, he has been disengaged from service and an FIR has been lodged against him, the Sopore police said in a tweet.

Jammu and Kashmir police have booked more than 200 people in Kashmir for violating lockdown orders till now.

Govt says its response to COVID-19 has been proactive

New Delhi (NVI): In the wake of questions over its handling of coronavirus crisis, the central government today said it has been proactive, pre-emptive and graded in its response to the challenge.

The government said it took swift action to put in a place a comprehensive and robust system of screening, quarantine and surveillance as part of its response to the public health crisis right quite early. This covered every traveller, Indians returning after business, or tourism, students as well as foreigners.

The government assertion came amidst allegations that the 21-day nationwide lockdown, announced on March 24 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to contain coronavirus, was without prior planning.

These allegations gained momentum as lakhs of migrant labourers remain stranded without food and supplies in several cities due to the lockdown.

The government countered criticism that its response system was lenient towards foreign travellers. The allegations that ‘prosperous Indians’ were allowed to return without screening, is preposterous, it said.

The Centre released a timeline of its actions since the breakout of the coronavirus pandemic to buttress its point.

The government said, India acted much before WHO declared COVID-19 as a public health emergency of international concern on January 30, to put in place a “comprehensive response system” at its borders.

Screening of incoming air passengers was followed by suspension of visas and and ban on international flights was much ahead of any other country.

The government said Italy and Spain, which are devastated by COVID-19, started screening of travellers after 25 days and 39 days, respectively, of the first reported case.

Though the first case of coronavirus was detected in India on January 30, India started the thermal screening of incoming international passengers coming from China and Hong Kong on January 18 itself.

Meanwhile, screening of passengers at 30 a12 major and 65 minor ports and at land borders covered over 36 lakh passengers, the Centre said.

It had also started intensive coordination with the States. “A meticulous system has enabled States to track down individuals who tried to avoid surveillance or who did not not follow quarantine,” the government said, adding that 20 video conferences by Union Health Secretary with State Governments and six by the Cabinet Secretary with the State Chief Secretaries have been held to review the preparedness.

2 million items of protective gear shipped to 74 countries: WHO chief

COVAX
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus

New Delhi (NVI): The World Health Organization (WHO) has shipped almost two million pieces of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to 74 countries and is preparing to send a similar amount to a further 60 countries.

In a virtual news conference in Geneva, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, “One of the most pressing challenges was the lack of protective gear for the healthcare workers. The chronic, global shortage of PPE is one of the most urgent threats to our collective ability to save lives.”

This issue of lack of protective gears was addressed in a meeting earlier attended by WHO chief in which Health Ministers of 50 countries, including China and Singapore, took part and addressed the issues faced by the countries in eliminating and fighting the pandemic.

Tedros said that the issues addressed also included the need for early detection and isolation of confirmed case, the need for identification., follow-up and quarantining of contacts, as well as the need to optimize care, build trust and engage communities in the fight.

“A dire lack of protective gear for health workers battling the COVID-19 pandemic is one of the most pressing threats in the fight to prevent deaths. When health workers are at risk, we’re all at risk,” Tedros further added.

WHO chief said, “This problem can only be solved with international cooperation and solidarity.”

He concluded the press briefing by quoting a line that Singapore’s Health Minister said during the meeting that, “We are only at the beginning of this fight. We need to stay calm, stay united and work together.”

Air quality gets better in India after COVID-19 lockdown

New Delhi (NVI): The Pollution levels in country have been steadily improving due to nationwide lockdown and weather changes to be seen in India’s metro cities.

The entire country has been put under a 21-day lockdown as a measure to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

With very few vehicles on the streets, and even fewer factories running, air quality got better in just first 4 days of lockdown. People in some of the world’s biggest cities appear to be breathing air with relatively safer levels of pollutants.

The System of Air Quality Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) report said, Delhi’s smog makes the news every winter but a “satisfactory” air quality rating was seen on Saturday morning – just like Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Pune.
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Stations in Chennai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Kolkata reported similar or better air quality, according to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data.

Apart from that, pollution levels in Delhi-NCR have been steadily improving due to country wide lockdown.

According to the Air Bulletin issued by the Central Pollution Control Board, Delhi’s air index was recorded at just 69 on Friday. Among NCR cities, 75 in Faridabad, 72 in Ghaziabad, 93 in Greater Noida, 42 in Gurugram and 60 in Noida were recorded.

Meanwhile, in Delhi, the minimum temperature today was recorded at 16 degrees Celsius, according to IMD.

However, winds of all places were recorded in good range.

Coronavirus cases in US reach 1,04,686

Coronavirus

New Delhi (NVI): The number of positive cases due to coronavirus pandemic in the United States has reached 1,04,686 today, with the total number of fatalities surpassing 1,700, according to John Hopkins University data.

With this, the global death toll has also surged past 27,000 with over 177 countries being affected due to the contagion worldwide.

Meanwhile, the death toll in Italy and Spain is rapidly increasing with Italy reporting around 900 new deaths and taking the total death toll to 9,134. On the other hand, Spain also reported 796 deaths taking the total to 5,138 deaths in the country, according to the media reports.

In another development, UK’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson has tested positive for coronavirus and is self-isolating himself in Downing Street.

In a video on twitter, the PM said that he had experienced mild symptoms over the past 24 hours, including a temperature and cough, but would continue to lead the government.

In China, although the number of cases coming from abroad continue to rise, but there were no new cases reported domestically.

Globally, the cases have reached more than 5,97,000, of which around 1,31,000 cases have recovered.

COVID-19 death toll goes up to 19 in India, total cases rise to 918

(Updating earlier copy)

New Delhi (NVI): The total number of coronavirus cases in India rose to 918 today and 19 people have died from the pandemic, according to the Health Ministry.

In these updated figures, the ministry stated two new deaths.

So far, deaths have been reported from states are Maharashtra (4) ,Gujarat(3) Karnataka (2) and one each from Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Punjab, Delhi, West Bengal, Jammu and Kasmir and Himachal Pradesh.

At present, there are 819 active cases, 78 cured or discharged and 1 migrated COVID-19 patient.

World economy has entered recession worse than 2009: IMF

New Delhi (NVI): Coronavirus has forced the global economy into recession which might be worse than the one witnessed in 2009, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said today.

It, however, added that the world can rebound next year if the pandemic is contained and liquidity issues are addressed.

As per IMF’s current estimation, the finance needs of emerging markets is $2.5 trillion, a lower-end estimate for which their own reserves and domestic resources would not be sufficient.

”We have reassessed the prospect for growth for 2020 and 2021. It is now clear that we have entered a recession as bad as or (even) worse than in 2009,” the IMF’s Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said at a press briefing following a conference call of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC).

”We project a rebound in 2021, but only if we contain the virus and prevent liquidity problems from becoming a solvency issue,” she said.

Many of the emerging markets will experience a contraction as necessary containment measures take their toll, and are shocked by reduced global demand for their exports – tourism, commodities, and manufactured goods that provide critical streams of foreign exchange, she said.

The IMF has launched policy actions tracker for 186 countries to see who is doing what, Georgieva said.

”We will be updating this information regularly and will provide country-specific analysis in line with our surveillance mandate,” she added.

She also said that G20 yesterday reported fiscal measures totalling some 5 trillion dollars or over 6 % of global GDP.

A key concern about a long-lasting impact of the sudden stop of the world economy is the risk of a wave of bankruptcies and layoffs that not only can undermine the recovery but can erode the fabric of our societies, she said.

She further suggested, ”To avoid this happening, many countries have taken far-reaching measures to address the health crisis and to cushion its impact on the economy – both on the monetary and on the fiscal side.”

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