Friday, March 20, 2026
Home Blog Page 1372

Temperature soars in north India

New Delhi (NVI): Winter is on its way out in North Indian plains, with mercury rising substantially across the country.

Amritsar in Punjab is the coldest city in the plains where the minimum temperature was recorded at 8.4 degrees  Celsius, according to Skymet weather.

In Rajasthan’s Churu and Pilani, the minimum temperature was recorded at 9.8 and 10.0 degrees Celsius respectively.

Rewa in Madhya Pradesh and Sikar in Rajasthan both recorded minimum temperature at 10 degree Celsius.

Bhilwara in Rajasthan and Hisar in Haryana recorded minimum temperature at 10.2 and 10.3 degrees Celsius.

The minimum in Chittorgarh in Rajasthan and Raisen in Madhya Pradesh was 10.5 degrees Celsius.

Karnal in Haryana recorded a minimum temperature of 10.8 degrees Celsius.

According to the Skymet weather, temperatures were significantly above normal by 4-5 degrees, which is little too early for the season. However, wind speed has picked up pace and is blowing at 25-30 kmph.

“Although day temperatures have risen sharply with bright sunshine,high velocity winds are keeping cold factor alive,” it added.

Delhi and NCR region also saw a slight increase in minimum temperature to 13.7 degrees Celsius from 12.3 degrees Celsius recorded yesterday.

The maximum temperature today is expected to be around 26 degrees Celsius, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The overall air quality in the national capital today is in “moderate” category.

According to System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR), the Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national capital stood at 142 which falls in the “moderate” category.

The IMD said that some isolated rain and snow is expected in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Meghalaya, Nagaland,Manipur and Sikkim during next few days.

The weatherman has forecast that in Northwest India there will be a fall in temperature by 2 to 4 degrees Celsius in next 24 hours and in East India there will be a gradual rise in temperature by 2 to 3 degrees Celsius during next two to three days.

“In northern parts of Maharashtra there will be a fall in minimum temperature by 2 to 4 degrees Celsius during the next two to three days,” weatherman said.

“No significant change temperature is expected in rest of the country,” it added.

Industry should use waterways for transportation: Gadkari

New Delhi (NVI): Industry should use waterways as a mode of transportation for reduced cost of goods and become competitive in the export market, Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin  Gadkari today emphasised today.
Speaking at a conference on ‘Developing A Roadmap for Low Carbon & Sustainable Mobility in India’, Gadkari said, “this is the appropriate time. We have the best technology, economic viability and we need public private investments. To support these, we have government policies.”
He said the government has already started the process of introducing broad gauge metro in railways using the already existing railway network.
He also invited the private sector to explore and invest in this sector.
“This model can be given to private sector to run these metros,” he said.
“The most economically viable transport is water transport and public transport on electricity,” he added.
Gadkari said the Delhi-Mumbai express highway, part of the 22 green highway projects, will be completed in next 3 years and will reduce travel distance by 280 kms.
“In long term, LNG should be used in trucks which will reduce the cost by 40 percent as compared to diesel and CNG for city buses,” he added.
He also invited the private sector to come forward to invest in conversion of CNG from stubble and solid waste.
“Government is also working on adopting bio-aviation fuel as fuel option which will be cheaper than petroleum aviation fuel,” he said.
He urged FICCI to develop a policy for next 25 years focusing on cost-effective, pollution free, best technology options, ecology and environment.
Highlighting the potential of E-vehicles in India,  Gadkari said the government is planning to introduce 10,000 electric buses and government will support the e-vehicle sector.
“By using the world’s best technology, we can see a reduction of 10 percent in the logistics cost and will also help in reducing pollution, creation of new jobs and overall development of the economy,”he added.
He also emphasised on different options such as conversion of waste and sewage into biofuels, utilisation of wasteland for Jatropha, promotion hydrogen fuel cells, alternative fuels in rural sector to contribute towards livelihood generation and waterways as a long-term solution.

4 OGWs arrested in south Kashmir

J-K Police
Representational image

Mubashir Bukhari

Srinagar(NVI): Jammu and Kashmir police on Thursday claimed to have arrested four over ground workers (OGWs) from south Kashmir.

Police in an official statement said that, in Anantnag district they have arrested three militant associates linked to HM.

They have been identified as Adil Ahmad Dar alias Adil Gadhanji, Aqib Fayaz Makroo residents of Arwani Bijbehara and Ajaz Ahmad Sofi resident of Gund Chahal.

“As per police records they were involved in assisting the active militants of proscribed outfit HM operating in the areas of Anantnag. As per the investigations, they were providing logistic support and shelter to the active terrorists of HM. They were also involved in motivating and instigating the youth of area to join militancy,” police said in a statement.

Besides in Awantipora, Police have arrested an OGW linked to proscribed outfit JeM. He has been identified as Tawfeeq Ahmad Bhat resident of Mongahama, Tral.

“As per police records he was involved in assisting the active militants of proscribed outfit JeM operating in the areas of Tral. As per the investigations, he was providing logistic support and shelter to the active militants of JeM operating in the areas of Tral,” police said.

They said that they have recovered incriminating materials from their possession. “Cases under relevant sections of law have been registered and further investigation is in progress,” police said.

India keen to promote capacity building in Vietnam: President

New Delhi (NVI): Vice President of Vietnam Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh, who is on a three-day visit in India, today called on President Ram Nath Kovind who spoke about India’s keenness to promote greater capacity building in Vietnam through its flagship Technical and Economic Cooperation programme.”

The President said India and Vietnam are bound by a rich history of civilizational and cultural links.

Today, India-Vietnam relations are characterized as Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, he noted.

“India is privileged to share a strong development cooperation partnership with Vietnam,” Kovind said.

The President also said that Vietnam is pivotal to India’s Act East Policy and its Indo-Pacific vision.  Vietnam is also an invaluable link in India’s engagement with ASEAN.

He congratulated Vietnam for assuming the Chairmanship of ASEAN as well as for becoming a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.

Coronavirus threat: South Kashmir youth quarantined at SKIMS

Representational image

Mubashir Bukhari

Srinagar(NVI) : A south Kashmir youth who has returned from virus-affected China was Thursday quarantined at SKIMS Soura in wake of outbreak of Coronavirus across the world.

The youth as per the doctors examining him, has been pursuing his Phd in China and stayed in the country during the period when coronavirus outbroke in China.

Medical Superintendent SKIMS, Dr Farooq Jan said that the youth has been “immediately” quarantined as a precautionary measure.

“He has not been detected with virus infection and investigations are still on. There is nothing to worry about as he is stable,” he said.

Dr Jan said the south Kashmir boy who is in his late 20’s, will be discharged only after his investigation are over. “We will wait still examining him and he will be discharged in two to three days,” he said.

Sources said a girl who was pursuing engineering in China was also taken to SKIMS for diagnosis. “They were brought here in an ambulance. The girl’s tests were negative and she was discharged later,” they said.

The news regarding quarantining of china-returned south Kashmir youth in SKIMS created panic within the hospital especially after he tried to escape from there.

Sources said Director Health also arrived at SKIMS with a team of officials to look into the matter.

“The ambulance in which the alleged patient was brought into the hospital has been seized by the hospital authorities as a precautionary measure,” they said.

Sources said that the south Kashmir youth had arrived in Kokatta airport where he was also investigated and declared as “unaffected”.

Director Health Services Kashmir Dr Sameer Matoo said that they have sent the samples of the youth to All India Institute of Medical Sciences New Delhi.

“He is stables and we are sure that he is safe. As a precautionary measure we collected his samples and sent to AIIMS New Delhi since we don’t have such facilities here,” he said.

The Government of India has issued an advisory for people returning from China who are being tested at various airports of India.

India has zero tolerance policy towards narcotics: Shah 

New Delhi (NVI): India has adopted zero tolerance policy towards narcotics and the government will not allow any drugs to enter the country from the world nor will allow it to go out of the country, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said today.

Speaking while inaugurating the two-day conference on ‘Combating Drug Trafficking’ for Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) partner nations here, Shah said India would not allow illicit narcotics and psychotropic substances trade to happen within its boundaries.

He called illicit drug trade a global menace and said that it is a burning global issue that plagues every nation, especially the Bay of Bengal littoral States.

“It is very important for all countries to engage with each other to exchange ideas, policies and best practices in order to combat drug trafficking,” he said.

The Home Minister talked about Prime Minister, Narendra Modi’s vision to end the global drug menace and recalled the 2018 Kathmandu BIMSTEC conference where PM invited the partner nations to India, while announcing the current conference on drug trafficking.

Shah quoted the PM and said that there is no nation in the world that is not affected by global terrorism, transnational crimes and illicit drug trafficking.

He expressed confidence and hope that this conference would open new avenues and generate new solutions to combat the menace of drug trafficking in the region.

“Government has devised a well laid out strategy to ensure inter agency coordination and revamp the prosecution mechanism to end the menace of drug trafficking,” he said.

Talking about the zero tolerance policy followed by India against narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances trade, Shah talked about various steps taken by India on national as well as international levels, including those at UN, INTERPOL, to combat this menace.

“India taking the lead in organising this BIMSTEC conference would act as the harbinger of new avenues within the region that will help bringing other Nations on such similar platforms to find solutions to tackle drug trafficking,” he said.

He also termed the Bay of Bengal littoral States as the focus of India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ and ‘Act East’ policies and India being the largest country in the region will not shy away from its responsibilities in fighting drug trafficking and terrorism.

Talking about the seriousness of the drug trafficking issue, Shah quoted the UN’s World Drug Report and said that over 5% of the global population between 15-64 years of age is addicted to narcotics and use of illicit drugs.

The Home Minister expressed concern that the rate of addiction is showing a fast increase i.e. a 30% rise in the last 10 years.

He termed drug addiction as a curse for mankind as it not only kills the addict but also destroys families as well as the society, besides fuelling the evil of global terrorism and transnational crimes through its dirty money.

He cited an estimate of over $ 400 billion of yearly illicit drug trade happening globally, giving an idea of the size of the mammoth issue facing humanity.

The Home Minister laid emphasis on the need for all Nations to join hands and supplement each other’s efforts in fighting this menace, as this global scourge cannot be fought by any country individually.

He also laid emphasis that Nations of the BIMSTEC are especially affected by illicit drug trade, transnational crimes and terrorism, making it all the more important to use platforms like this conference to devise coordinated strategies in ending the evil from its roots.

He described how Indian security agencies have worked brilliantly to cease over 2 metric tonnes of illicit heroine till September 2019 as compared to 1.2 metric tonnes in 2018.

“Manipur and Mizoram having borders with Myanmar and other coastal States are sensitive and may become a gateway for illicit drugs entering India, which needs to be prevented,” he added.

Talking about the steps taken by government in combating the drug trafficking Shah said that the union government has laid down a well thought out strategy to increase coordination among the agencies of the Centre as well as States and the Home Ministry has established a joint coordination committee to increase surveillance over drug trafficking.

“The Ministry has also started an e-portal for digitalisation of drug data that may be utilized by various drug enforcement agencies,” he said.

“In the last 5 years, Over 1.89 lakh Narcotics cases have been registered in India, in which over 2.31 lakh drug smugglers have been arrested by the agencies including over 1500 foreign nationals,” he added.

He also informed that the ministry is about to establish a training centre for NCB officials regarding enforcement of drug laws, at Bhopal.

“To fight this global menace, India has so far signed 26 bilateral agreements, 15 MoUs and 2 security pacts with other countries. India has devised a strategy to increase awareness to dissuade the use of internet and social media in illicit drug trade,” he said.

“Government has issued notification regarding the registration of B2B companies in order to prevent the online sale of narcotics and illicit drugs,” he added.

Home Minister also released the administrative and operational manuals of NCB on this occasion.

Sport can join youth to normalcy: Kashmir Football Club owner

Sandeep Chattoo speaking at the round table conference.

Srinagar (NVI): Football is in the blood of Kashmiris and the sport can bring about a change, which will be for generations to see.

This is the assessment of Sandeep Chattoo, co-owner of Real Kashmir Football Club (RKFC), which he conveyed to a group of foreign envoys visiting Kashmir to assess the situation here arising from the abolition of Article 370.

During a roundtable with the diplomats, Chattoo gave a broad outline of the journey of RKFC and the way it had engaged with the youth in the valley.

“While many speakers ahead of me have talked about many issues, I have a different narrative. The first and foremost is to get to interact and engage with the youth of the valley. And for that, I believe that sports is an umbilical cord which joins youth to normalcy. I am proud to be the pioneer of such a club which ended the stalemate after August 5, 2019 developments,” he said.

Chattoo said there were concerns in the security establishment whether a football match should be permitted to be played but eventually managed to get the permission and the rest is history.

He requested the government to step in and help every club which is involved in promoting sports among the youth in Kashmir.

“Though there are many kind of sports but I firmly believe that football is in the blood of Kashmiris. I am sure football can bring around a change and that change will be for generations to see,” Chattoo added.

He also had a separate interaction with Walter J Linder, Ambassador of Germany, Grahame Morton, Charge d’Affaires of New Zealand High Commission and Emmanuel Lenain, Ambassador of France.

MEA’s tribute to late minister Sushma Swaraj

Sushma Swaraj

New Delhi (NVI): The Ministry of External Affairs today decided to rename the Pravasi Bhartiya Kendra in New Delhi as Sushma Swaraj Bhawan and Foreign Service Institute as Sushma Swaraj Institute of Foreign Service.

This is a solemn tribute to the to the invaluable contribution of former External Affairs Minister and stalwart Sushma Swaraj to the Indian diplomacy, the cause of the Indian diaspora and the ethos of public service.

The announcement is made on the occasion of her birth anniversary on February 14 in honour of the legacy and decades of public service she has done for the country.

J&K have been allocated two AIIMS hospitals: Jitendra Singh

Jammu (NVI): Jammu and Kashmir is the only union territory in India to have been allocated two AIIMS hospitals, one in Jammu and other in Kashmir, MoS for PMO Jitendra Singh said today.

Speaking on the “Bhoomi Poojan” ceremony of the AIIMS building in Jammu, Jitendra Singh today said that nine medical colleges have also been sanctioned in Jammu and Kashmir in addition to the two AIIMS.

He also thanked the Prime Minister for his focus on development in the Union Territory on the same lines as that of the development and success story of the North Eastern States.

“New work culture of the government working for welfare of the people beyond vote bank politics has greatly benefitted the people,” he said.

“The government had approved the proposal for establishment of AIIMS at Jammu at Vijaypur, District Samba under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY) in January 2019,” he informed.

“The foundation stone of AIIMS, Jammu was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 3 last year,” he said.

“It is estimated to be built at a cost of Rs. 1661 crores, the project is being executed by CPWD. It is projected to be completed in 30 months by August, 2022. It has a total build up area of 22,315 sqm,” he said.

“Once completed, AIIMS Jammu would be a 750 bed hospital with super specialty Departments.It shall also have a medical college and a nursing college,” he added.

“The AIIMS will be a green building incorporating the state of the art equipment and technology, he further added.

WHO to accelerate research and innovation for COVID-19

Representative image

New Delhi (NVI): The COVID-19 outbreak is a test of solidarity — political, financial and scientific, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said as it convened a global research and innovation forum to mobilize international action in response to the new coronavirus outbreak.

“Harnessing the power of science is critical for bringing this outbreak under control,” WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

“There are questions we need answers to, and the tools we need to develop as quickly as possible. WHO is playing an important coordinating role by bringing the scientific community together to identify research priorities and accelerate progress,” he said.

The meeting, hosted in collaboration with GloPID-R (the Global Research Collaboration for Infectious Disease Preparedness) brought together major research funders and over 300 scientists and researchers from a large variety of disciplines. They discussed all aspects of the outbreak and ways to control it.

Participants discussed several areas of research, including identifying the source of the virus as well as sharing of biological samples and genetic sequences.

Experts built on existing SARS and MERS believe that coronavirus research and identify knowledge gaps and research priorities in order to accelerate scientific information and medical products most needed to minimize the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak.

The meeting is expected to produce a global research agenda for the new coronavirus, setting priorities and frameworks that can guide which projects are undertaken first.

“Understanding the disease, its reservoirs, transmission and clinical severity and then developing effective counter-measures is critical for the control of the outbreak, to reduce deaths and minimize the economic impact,” Soumya Swaminathan, WHO Chief Scientist said.

This will also fast-track the development and evaluation of effective diagnostic tests, vaccines and medicines, while establishing mechanisms for affordable access to vulnerable populations and facilitating community engagement.

“The WHO R&D Blueprint is a global strategy and preparedness platform that drives coordinated development of drugs and vaccines before epidemics, and allows the rapid activation of R&D activities during epidemics. It speeds up the availability of the diagnostics, vaccines and treatments and technologies that ultimately save lives,” added Michael Ryan, Executive Director, WHO Health Emergencies Programme.

Setting clear global research priorities for the novel coronavirus should lead to more efficient investments, high-quality research and synergies among global researchers.

1...1,3711,3721,373...1,546Page 1,372 of 1,546

MUST READ