Shri Amit Shah chairs a Review Meeting of Directors General of All CAPF
- Union Minister for Home Affairs, Shri Amit Shah chaired a review meeting of Directors General of All Central Armed Police Forces today. He appreciated the commendable work being done by our CAPFs in this difficult situation of COVID-19 management.
- Shri Shah said that Modi government is not only concerned over spread of COVID-19 but is making all out efforts to ensure safety, security and wellbeing of all CAPFs. The Home Minister enquired about the situation regarding the security personnel affected by COVID-19 in each of the CAPFs as well as the cases that are found to be asymptomatic.
- During the meeting, the innovative measures taken by each of the CAPFs in order to contain the disease were also discussed. The suggestions ranged from providing awareness and training about precautions; changing the arrangements in Mess and staying facilities in barracks; boosting immunity as per Ministry of AYUSH guidelines; and, ensuring proper personnel management, keeping in view the age of the security personnel and their health history.
- Acknowledging efforts of CAPFs personnel in fight against COVID-19, Shri Shah asked the Senior Officers to ensure important things like timely payment of terminal dues, including ex-gratia, insurance etc., in case of casualty; being in touch with affected personnel and their families; proper arrangements for their health check-up and treatment, including establishment of a dedicated hospital/facility for COVID-19 affected CAPF personnel and also increasing effective tracing and testing facilities.
- Both sides agreed on the assessment of the current challenges to the global energy scenario and the important role India will play as a driver of a resurgence in demand which will be pivotal in global economic revival.
- The Minister has also suggested that there should be sharing of best practices among the CAPFs and also laying down the Standard Operating Procedure for health related as well as management issues, like sanitization and ensuring the use of appropriate protective gear by the personnel etc. The meeting was attended by MoS (Home Affairs), Shri Nityanand Rai, along with DGs of CAPFs and other senior officers of the Ministry.
Government of India & AIIB sign agreement for $500 million COVID-19 support for India
- The Government of India and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) signed a US$ 500 million “COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health Systems Preparedness Project” here today to help India to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and strengthen its public health preparedness. This is the first ever health sector support from the Bank to India.
- This new support will cover all States and Union Territories across India and address the needs of infected people, at-risk populations, medical and emergency personnel and service providers, medical and testing facilities, and national and animal health agencies.
- The agreement was signed by Shri Sameer Kumar Khare, Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, on behalf of the Government of India and Mr. Rajat Mishra, Director General (Acting) on behalf of the AIIB.
- Shri Khare said that AIIB’s timely assistance will help Government in its efforts to respond to the threat posed by COVID-19 and strengthen the national health systems for preparedness in India. Responding to the urgency of the pandemic, this project was prepared in record time, underlying the efforts of the officials from the Finance and Health Ministries and the AIIB.
- The project will enable the Government of India to slow and limit as much as possible the spread of COVID-19 in India by providing immediate support to enhance disease detection capacities by scaling up procurement of PPE, oxygen delivery systems, and medicines, build resilient health systems to provide core public health, prevention, and patient management functions to manage COVID-19 and future disease outbreaks, support research on COVID-19 by Indian and other global institutions working in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research, address significant negative externalities expected in the event of a widespread COVID-19 outbreak and strengthen public structures for the coordination and management of the project.
- The primary project beneficiaries will be infected people, at-risk populations, medical and emergency personnel, service providers at medical and testing facilities (both public and private), and public and animal health agencies engaged in India’s COVID-19 response.
- Mr. D.J. Pandian, AIIB vice-president (Investment Operations), said that building a resilient health system that can effectively treat COVID-19 patients and prevent its spread is the immediate priority. This funding will address this need and strengthen India’s capacity to effectively manage future disease outbreaks.
- He further said that facing this unprecedented global challenge, AIIB will play its part and work closely with international financial institutions to help the Government of India with urgent financing they need to shore up their healthcare systems and help their economies recover as quickly as possible.
- The project will also enhance the resilience of India’s health system to provide core public health prevention and patient care to better manage COVID-19 and future disease outbreaks. It will help strengthen India’s Integrated Disease Surveillance Program, revamp infectious disease hospitals, district, civil, general and medical college hospitals, and build a network of high containment Biosafety Level 3 laboratories.
- Today, about 75 per cent of new infectious diseases begin with human-to-animal contact, including HIV/AIDS, Ebola, and SARS. The project will develop capacity and systems to detect existing and emerging zones, support biomedical research on COVID-19 by Indian institutions, and upgrade viral research and diagnostic laboratories for testing and research.
- It will also help address potential significant negative externalities in the event of a widespread COVID-19 outbreak, including comprehensive health awareness and behaviour change campaigns on hygiene practices, wearing masks, social distancing, and mental health and psychological services for vulnerable communities.
- The project is being financed by the World Bank and AIIB in the amount of $1.5 billion, of which $1.0 billion will be provided by World Bank and $500 million will be provided by AIIB.
- The project will be implemented by the National Health Mission (NHM), the National Center for Disease Control (NCDC) and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
Raksha Mantri inaugurates 80 km long road curtailing Kailash-Mansarovar pilgrimage time
- Ushering in a new era in undertaking Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra and border area connectivity, Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh at a special event inaugurated the road link from Dharchula (Uttarakhand) to Lipulekh (China Border). Shri Rajnath Singh also flagged off a convoy of vehicles from Pithoragarh to Gunji through video conferencing.
- Speaking on the occasion, Raksha Mantri said the Central Government and Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi have a special vision for the development of remote areas.
- Shri Rajnath Singh said with the completion of this crucial road link, the decades old dreams and aspirations of local people and pilgrims have been fulfilled. He expressed confidence that local trade and economic growth in the region would receive a boost with the operationalisation of this roadway.
- Recalling that pilgrimage to Kailash-Mansarovar has been sacred and revered by Hindus, Buddhists and Jains, Shri Rajnath Singh said with the completion of this road link, the yatra could be completed in one week compared to 2-3 weeks it took earlier. The road originates from Ghatiabagarh and terminates at Lipulekh Pass, the gateway to Kailash-Mansarovar. In this 80 kilometer road, the altitude rises from 6,000 to 17,060 feet. With the completion of this project, the arduous trek through treacherous high-altitude terrain can now be avoided by the pilgrims of Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra. At present, the travel to Kailash-Mansarovar takes around two to three weeks through Sikkim or Nepal routes. Lipulekh route had a trek of 90 Km through high altitude terrain and the elderly yartris faced lot of difficulties.
- The other two road ways via Sikkim and Nepal are along. They entailed approximately 20 per cent land journeys on Indian roads and 80 per cent land journeys in China. With the opening of Ghatiabagarh-Lipulekh road, this ratio has been reversed. Now Pilgrims to Mansarovar will traverse 84 per cent land journeys on Indian Roads and only 16 per cent land Journeys in China. This is truly historic, commented the Raksha Mantri.
- While congratulating the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) engineers and personnel whose dedication made this achievement possible, Raksha Mantri mourned the loss of lives during the construction of this road. He praised the contribution of BRO personnel who live in far off places, and away from their families, that too in difficult times of COVID-19.
- The Darchula – Lipulekh road is an extension of Pithoragarh-Tawaghat-Ghatiabagarh road. It originates from Ghatiabagarh and terminates at Lipulekh Pass, the gateway to Kailash Mansarovar. In this 80 Km road, the altitude rises from 6000 feet to 17,060 feet. With the completion of this project, the arduous trek through treacherous high-altitude terrain can now be avoided by the Pilgrims of Kailash Mansarovar Yatra and the period of journey will be reduced by many days.
- At present, the travel to Kailash Mansarovar takes around two to three weeks through Sikkim or Nepal routes. Lipulekh route had a trek of 90 Km through high altitude terrain and the elderly yartris faced lot of difficulties. Now, this yatra will get completed by vehicles.
- The construction of this road was hampered due to multiple problems. Constant snow fall, steep rise in altitude and extremely low temperatures restricted the working season to five months. Kailash Mansarovar Yatra took place in the working season from June to October and it coincided with move of locals and their logistics as well as movement of traders (for trade with China) thus further reducing the daily hours for construction.
CSIR approves project to develop human monoclonal antibodies
- CSIR is leading the fight against Covid-19 using multi-pronged approach and multiple models of engagement. On one hand CSIR labs themselves are developing technologies and products and are working with industry and PSU partners for deployment. On the other hand, CSIR is also supporting new ideas and projects from other academic and industries through its flagship New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI) program.
- Given the importance of deploying multiple strategies against Covid-19, CSIR through NMITLI program has approved a project towards development of human monoclonal antibodies (hmAbs) that can neutralize SARS-CoV-2 in patients. This project on generation of neutralizing human monoclonal antibodies as a therapeutic strategy will be implemented by a multi-institutional and multi-disciplinary team. The team comprises of academic institutes and industry with participants from NCCS, IIT-Indore, PredOmix Technologies Pvt. Ltd. and Bharat Biotech International Ltd (BBIL)
- The project aims to generate hmAbs to SARS-CoV-2 from convalescent phase of COVID-19 patients and select high affinity and neutralizing antibodies. The project also aims to anticipate future adaptation of the virus and generate hmAbs clones that can neutralize the mutated virus so that could be readily used for combating future SARS-CoV-2 infections. BBIL will be the commercial partner and responsible for subsequent development and commercialization of the hmAbs generated.
- DG CSIR, Dr. Shekhar C Mande commented that “As the research into SARS-CoV-2 is in early days and our understanding is evolving each day, it is critical that we need to deploy all possible strategies to combat the virus. Hence, CSIR is exploring all avenues and we are supporting new ideas which have clear deployment strategy”.
FM launches INR-USD Futures in International Exchanges at GIFT-IFSC
- Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman launched INR-USD Futures and Options contracts on the two International Exchanges, viz. BSE’s India INX and NSE’s NSE-IFSC, at GIFT International Financial Services Centre at Gandhinagar today through video conference.
- Over the last decade or so a significant market share in financial services related to India has moved to other international financial centres. Bringing this business to India is clearly beneficial in terms of economic activity and employment gains for India. The launch of INR-USD contracts at the exchanges in GIFT-IFSC is a step in this direction. This will be available 22 hours across all time zones for all global participants from GIFT IFSC.
- Given the world class business environment and competitive tax regime at GIFT-IFSC, it is expected that trading of INR-USD contracts may bring volumes to India. This would also bring larger global participation in India through IFSC and connect India’s IFSC globally.
Bharat Dynamics Limited signs MoU with IIT Kanpur to manufacture high end & affordable ventilators
COVID19 current update in India
QUIZ TIME
- CSIR has approved a project towards devl. of human monoclonal antibodies for which of the following diseases?
- SARS-CoV-2
- Dengue
- T.B.
- None of the Above
Answer: A
- Which of the following International Banks has supported the health sector of India for COVID19 pandemic with US$ 500 Million?
- World Bank
- Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
- Asian Development Bank
- None of the Above
Answer: B
- Road link from Dharchula (Uttarakhand) to Lipulekh (China Border) made recently by BRO, will connect to which pilgrimage place?
- Kailash-Mansarovar
- Vaishnodevi
- Kedarnath
- None of the Above
Answer: A
