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China confirms coronavirus can be spread by humans

Representational image

New Delhi (NVI): Officials in China are racing to contain the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), that has left many people dead and sickened more than 440 people, after it was confirmed the infection can be passed between humans.

The virus can be transmitted between humans, a Chinese government-appointed expert has said, fueling fears about the possibility of a deadly epidemic as millions prepare to travel for the Lunar New Year holiday.

Sun Weidong, Chinese Ambassador to India, tweeted, “China will continue to deepen international cooperation and work in concert with the international community to deal with the epidemic and safeguard regional and global health security.”

Weidong also added, “Upon invitation from WHO, China will join other affected countries at an International Health Regulations Emergency Committee meeting on January 22. Relevant countries, WHO & experts will share information & come up with a science-based evaluation.”

President Xi Jinping has ordered resolute efforts to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus that caused cases of pneumonia. Instructing on the work related to the pneumonia situation, Xi, stressed putting people’s safety and health as the top priority.

Coronavirus cases confirmed worldwide

Around a month after the virus was first identified in Wuhan, it has already spread well beyond mainland China.

In Asia, cases have been detected in Taiwan, South Korea, Thailand and Japan, while authorities in the US confirmed their first case on Tuesday and there have been reports of potential cases in Australia.

Despite initial reports that the virus was unlikely to spread between humans, Chinese health authorities have now said there is “definitely human-to-human transmission.” One patient is believed to have infected as many as 14 medical staff in one hospital, suggesting the disease can be spread far more easily than previously thought.

Army pays homage to soldier killed in Kashmir encounter

(Image Source: @ChinarcorpsIA)

Srinagar (NVI): The Army today paid homage to Sepoy Rahul Rainswal who was killed in an encounter with militants in Awantipora in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district yesterday.

25-year-old Rahul, who hailed from Champawat in Uttarakhand, was killed in action against militants in Khrew area of Awantipora. He was posted with Rashtriya Rifles.

A J&K Special Police Officer (SPO), identified as Shabaaz Ahmad of Rajouri, was also killed in the gun battle yesterday.

A wreath-laying ceremony with full honours was organised at Srinagar’s Badami Bagh Cantonment.

“#ChinarCorpsCdr & all ranks paid homage to Sepoy Rahul Rainswal in a solemn ceremony at BB Cantt, Srinagar. The gallant soldier made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty in Pulwama. Deepest condolences to the bereaved family” said a tweet by Srinagar-based Chinar Corps.

Both had suffered injuries during the encounter and later succumbed to their injuries, according to reports.

J&K Police said that security forces launched a cordon and search operation in Khrew area of Awantipora yesterday, following information about the presence of militants in the area. The hiding militants fired upon forces leading to the encounter.

Centre’s outreach prog: Ravi Shankar Prasad to visit Kashmir today

Mubashir Bukhari

Srinagar (NVI): As part of Centre’s outreach programme, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad will reach Srinagar today for a three day visit.

Around 36 Union Ministers will visit the Union Territory between January 18-24 to spread awareness on the Central Government’s development schemes in the Valley after the abrogation of Article 370 in August, last year.

The Union Law Minister, who will reach this afternnon, is going to innuagrate all women post office and parcel hub, besides launching landline voice plan of BSNL at GPO Srinagar.

On Thursday, the Union Minister will head to Baramulla, where he is going to inaugurate Indoor Sports stadium at Degree College Baramulla.

Later, he will interact with public, municipal councillors and other delegations at Dak Bungalow.

After a night stay at Baramulla, Prasad will head to Sopore on Friday.

He will visit Fruit Mandi, Sopore and NAFED centre.

The Union Minister will also e-inaugrurate ‘back to village’ programme at Degree College Sopore.

Later, he will interact with different delegations there.

Temperature dips in Delhi again 

New Delhi (NVI): Minimum temperature in Delhi today dropped to 7.1 degree celsius from 9.2 degree celsius recorded yesterday.

The maximum temperature today is expected to be around 20.0 degrees celsius, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

The weatherman stated that the temperature is expected to dip further over the next few days.

Meanwhile, the overall air quality in the national capital today remained in the “very poor” category.

According to System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR),the Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national capital stood at  344 which falls in the  “very poor” category.

The worst affected areas are Dhirpur, Delhi University, Chandni Chowk, Pusa, Lodhi Road, Mathura Road, IGI Terminal 3 and the neighbouring Noida.

Commerce Min to showcase ‘Startup India’ tableau at Republic Day Parade

(File)

New Delhi (NVI): A tableau on ‘Startup India’ theme is going to be one of the main attractions on the Republic Day Parade at Rajpath which will be showcased by Commerce and Industry Ministry. The tableau aims to promote innovation and entrepreneurship in the country.

‘Startups: Reach for the Sky’ tableau will showcase stages of the life-cycle of a startup and the all-round support provided by the government in this journey. The tableau will depict how ideas come to life and how the innovations that emerge positively affect the lives of the citizens of India.

The front of the tableau depicts a creative mind, full of ideas to solve real-world problems. The Startup India Tree, in the middle, represents the different kinds of support given to startups.

The staircase denotes the stages of growth – proving a concept, creating a prototype, preparing a business plan, building a team, launching into markets and eventually scaling up. The wheel at the rear depicts sectors of the economy where Indian entities have driven economic growth and created employment opportunities on a large scale.

The map of India represents the spread of the startup movement, steadily reaching the semi-urban and rural areas. The wheel and the map together depict the width and the depth of the Startup India movement in the country.

Startup India is a flagship initiative of the Government of India, intended to build a strong ecosystem to nurture innovation, drive sustainable economic growth and generate large scale employment opportunities.

Jitendra Singh inaugurates India’s first global Mega Science Exhibition in Delhi

New Delhi (NVI): India’s first-ever global Mega-Science Exhibition, ‘Vigyan Samagam’, finally reaches Delhi after its roaring success in Mumbai, Bengaluru and Kolkata. Jitendra Singh, Minister of State for PMO, inaugurated the final edition of the event at National Science Centre today in Delhi.

The exhibition attracts science and technology enthusiasts with a path-breaking contribution in India.

This prestigious science exhibition ‘Vigyan Samagam’ is being jointly organised under the aegis of Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the National Council of Science Museums (NCSM).

These three organisations will be hosting some of the world’s biggest science projects under one roof. The capital will be marking the completion of this caravan event.

The Exhibition is expected to ignite the minds of students, academia and industry to look for opportunities to pursue fundamental science and research as a strong career option. These projects will help our scientist to work and contribute to international collaborations on fundamental science and research.

The Exhibition has themed galleries consisting of infographics, working models and exhibits, informative audio-visual content, electronic displays and interactive kiosks for each of the Mega Science Projects.

Speaking on the occasion, Jitendra Singh said, “I congratulate all the departments for organising this mega science exhibition. With over 5.50 lakhs visitors at Vigyan Samagam in Mumbai, Bangalore and Kolkata, it is in New Delhi now. It will provide students, academia and industry a great opportunity for cross-fertilisation of ideas. Exposure about different aspects of these projects will help students to choose science as a career option and deriving innovative results.”

Singh also reiterated the importance of Science & Technology in country’s development at ground level and its overall progress in the country.

The inaugural function was also attended by R Chidambaram, Former Principal Scientific Adviser to Government of India (GoI), KN Vyas, Chairman, AEC and Secretary, DAE, Ashutosh Sharma, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology (DST), Paul Ho, Director General, East Asian Observatory, Hawaii, USA and several other dignitaries and luminaries.

Grass-root level outreach programs across the city in schools and colleges to promote this exhibition will also be an integral part of the event. For tech-savvy people, regular updates will be shared across all digital and social media platforms of ‘Vigyan Samagam’.

The exhibition will be open to the public till 20th March 2020.

India wants Bangladesh to be more vibrant: President Kovind

New Delhi (NVI): Welcoming Dhaka’s newly appointed envoy to India, President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday said that India wants to see Bangladesh become more vibrant in social and economic development.
“India has a special relation with Bangladesh and it attaches highest priority in making that relationship stronger,” he said as the newly appointed ambassador Muhammad Imran presented his credentials to President Kovind.
The president said that he looks forward to stronger and deeper cooperation between India and Bangladesh in all aspects, especially in security, connectivity and people-to-people contact.
The event took place at a colourful ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi yesterday.
The envoy was accompanied by his wife Dr ZakiaHasnat Imran and senior officers of the mission.
A career diplomat, Imran succeeds late Ambassador Syed Muazzem Ali, whose five-year tenure as Bangladesh high commissioner to India expired last month.

J&K to celebrate first R-Day post-Art 370 in a unique manner

Mubashir Bukhari

Srinagar (NVI): In a unique move, the Jammu and Kashmir government has invited police contingents from various states to participate in the upcoming Republic Day celebrations in Srinagar, the Union Territory’s first since the abolition of Article 370 and bifurcation of the erstwhile state in August.

The move is aimed at displaying ‘national unity’, an official said.

“These contingents (from various states) will march with the Jammu and Kashmir police in the parade. Later, they will display their unique acts of valour,” a senior police official said.

“It will mark unity and integrity of India,” he added.

Additional Director General of Police (Security, Law and Order) Munir Ahmad Khan said it was yet to be seen which states participate in the parade.

This is the first Republic Day function since THE abolition of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and reorganisation of the state into two Union Territories – Jammu and Kashmir UT and Ladakh UT.

The parade here will be held at Sher-i-Kashmir International Cricket Stadium and the Lt Governor’s Advisor Farooq Ahmad Khan is likely to unfurl the tricolour and take salute amid intense security measures.

A senior police official said heavy security blanket has been thrown in and around the venue to ensure incident-free Republic Day function. All roads leading to the venue will be sealed until the function is over. Later in the day, traffic shall be allowed.

Drones and helicopters will be pressed into service to keep surveillance in and around the venue.

“Nakas (security pickets) will be established at various intersections to avert any untoward incident. The deployment will be almost similar to that of the previous year. People from various areas will be participating in the function,” the official said.

This year, the administration has lined up a number of programmes to mark the Republic Day.

A source said students from various schools of Kashmir and Jammu region will present cultural programme.

Among the list of VIPs and VVIPs are Panchayat members, Councillors and Chairpersons of Block Development Councils, an official at Srinagar Deputy Commissioner’s office said.

Delhi: 15 Child labourers rescued

(Image for representational purpose only)

New Delhi (NVI): As many as 15 child labourers were rescued from various eateries, bakeries and garages in Aman Vihar area of North West Delhi today.

The 15 rescued children were all boys. 14 of them hailed from Uttar Pradesh and one was from Jharkhand.

The raid and rescue operation was conducted by a joint team of labour department, Delhi police officials and activists of Bachpan Bachao Andolan. The raid was led by Rohini tehsildar.

Following the raids, nine establishments which employed these children as labourer were sealed in the presence of the local tehsildar on the authorisation of the sub-divisional magistrate (SDM).

Some of the children were working at these place since last five months and were paid around Rs 1,500 per month as wages. It was found that two of the children were not paid any wages at all.

The children were produced at the Avantika child welfare committee after the rescue and were sent to shelter homes before they are repatriated with their native villages.

Quitting smoking can lower post-surgical complications

New Delhi (NVI): Patients who quit smoking tobacco approximately 4 weeks or more before surgery are less likely to experience complications with anaesthesia when compared to regular smokers, says a WHO report.

Tobacco smokers are at significantly higher risk than non-smokers for post-surgical complications including impaired heart and lung functions, infections and delayed or impaired wound healing, the report says.

Smokers who quit smoking before surgery have a lower risk of complication and better results 6 months afterwards, says a joint study by the World Health Organization (WHO), the University of Newcastle, Australia and the World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists (WFSA).

The study indicates that every tobacco-free week after 4 weeks improves health outcomes by 19%, due to improved blood flow throughout the body to essential organs.

“The report provides evidence that there are advantages to postponing minor or non-emergency surgery to give patients the opportunity to quit smoking, resulting in a better health outcome,” said Dr Vinayak Prasad, Head of Unit, No Tobacco, World Health Organization.

Smokers are at risk of heart-related complications after surgery as the Nicotine and carbon monoxide, both present in cigarettes, can decrease oxygen levels

Smoking tobacco also damages the lungs making it difficult for the proper amount of air to flow through, increasing the risk of post-surgical complications to the lungs, the report finds.

Apart from this, smoking distorts a patient’s immune system and can delay healing, increasing the risk of infection at the wound site. Smoking just one cigarette decreases the body’s ability to deliver necessary nutrients for healing after surgery, says the study.

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