Gujarat’s Covid toll crosses 3K, cases rise above 95K

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Gujarat’s Covid toll crosses 3K, cases rise above 95K

Gujarat’s death toll due to coronavirus crossed the 3,000 mark with 17 more deaths on Sunday to reach 3,008, while the state recorded 1,272 more cases to take its tally to 95,155.

During August so far, the state has seen 33,722 cases, at a daily average of over 1,100.

Meanwhile, 1,095 patients were discharged on Sunday, taking the total cured to 76,757.

The state currently has 15,390 active cases, out of which 84 critical patients are still on a ventilator.

Of the new cases on Sunday, Surat led with 257, Ahmedabad followed with 169 and Vadodara was third with 128.

Rajkot saw 119 fresh cases, Jamnagar 107, Bhavnagar 68, Gandhinagar 49, Panchmahals 35, Junagadh and Bharuch 30 each, Kutch 26, Morbi 23, Amreli 21, Banaskantha and Surendranagar 18 each, Dahod and Mehsana 17 each, Patan 15, Devbhumi Dwarka 14, Gir-Somnath 13, Kheda 12, Anand, Navsari and Aravalli 11 each, Sabarkantha 10, Chhota Udepur and Mahisagar eight each, Botad seven, Valsad six, Narmada five, Dang and Tapi four each and Porbandar two.

Five more died in Surat, four in Ahmedabad, two each in Vadodara and Bhavnagar and one each in Amreli, Banaskantha, Sabarkantha and Jamnagar.

Ahmedabad accounts for the maximum deaths, at 1,717, followed by 626 in Surat, 130 in Vadodara, 86 in Rajkot, 50 in Gandhinagar, 41 in Bhavnagar, 36 in Patan, 27 in Mehsana, 24 in Aravalli, 17 each in Panchmahals and Banaskantha, 16 in Anand, 15 in Kheda and 11 in Bharuch.

However, Gujarat’s mortality rate is coming down and is 3.16 per cent presently.

Health authorities have so far conducted 22,65,473 RT-PCR tests, while 4,99,903 people are under quarantine – 4,99,432 at home and 471 in government facilities.

Chinese mainland reports no new locally-transmitted Covid-19 cases

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Chinese mainland reports no new locally-transmitted Covid-19 cases

No new locally-transmitted Covid-19 case was reported on Sunday across the Chinese mainland, the National Health Commission said on Monday.

Seventeen confirmed cases arriving from outside the mainland were reported on Sunday, the commission said in its daily report, Xinhua reported.

No new suspected cases or deaths related to the disease were reported on Sunday, the commission said.

Of the imported cases, six were reported in Shanghai, five in Tianjin, two in Fujian, and one each in Shanxi, Zhejiang, Guangdong, and Shaanxi, the commission said.

On Sunday, a total of 24 Covid-19 patients were discharged from hospitals after recovery, the commission said.

By the end of Sunday, a total of 2,499 imported cases had been reported on the mainland. Of them, 2,311 had been discharged from hospitals after recovery, and 188 remained hospitalized, with four in severe condition. No deaths from the imported cases had been reported.

As of Sunday, the total number of confirmed Covid-19 cases on the mainland had reached 85,048, including 237 patients who were still being treated, with four in severe condition.

Altogether 80,177 people had been discharged after recovery, and 4,634 had died of the disease on the mainland, the commission said.

There were no suspected Covid-19 cases on the mainland, it added.

According to the commission, 7,190 close contacts were still under medical observation after 814 were discharged on Sunday.

Also on Sunday, 19 new asymptomatic cases, all from outside the mainland, were reported, and no asymptomatic cases were re-categorized as confirmed ones.

The commission said 340 asymptomatic cases, including 312 from outside the mainland, were still under medical observation.

By Sunday, 4,801 confirmed cases including 88 deaths had been reported in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), together with 46 confirmed cases in the Macao SAR and 488 cases including seven deaths in Taiwan.

A total of 4,320 Covid-19 patients in the Hong Kong SAR, 46 in the Macao SAR, and 462 in Taiwan had been discharged from hospitals after recovery.

Taiwanese pop star Eric Chou on performing amid 10,000 fans in pandemic era

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Taiwanese pop star Eric Chou on performing amid 10,000 fans in pandemic era

Mandopop star Eric Chou recently put up a concert with an over-10,000 audience in the midst of the pandemic in Taiwan, the first artiste to do so. He is set to hit the stage again next month as the world gradually adjusts to the new normal in the pandemic era.

“Being first is very exciting for us. Of course, it’s not easy to do. To be the first, a lot of preparation was necessary. It’s a must for everyone to wear a mask to enter the concert, for hands to be sanitized. To purchase a ticket, you have to use your own name, your ID number, and phone number,” Eric, who had performed on August 8 and 9 at the Taipei Arena, told IANS.

He continued: “We prepared masks for over 10,000 people so they had one in hand — even if they forget to bring it — to wear during the concert, ensuring that it was a safe environment to be in. We hold (our audience) accountable for the concert. It’s actually one of the most difficult concerts to pull off, but we did it, thankfully.”

The concert was an amazing experience for him. “It was one of the most special concerts I think I will ever experience, just 10,000 people wearing masks. Not seeing their faces, but hearing them screaming and singing your songs. That’s pretty special,” he shared.

He will be back on the stage on September 5 and 6, this time at the Kaohsiung Arena, Taiwan.

“Doing a concert is something I look forward to the most, being a singer. It’s something that I share with the audience. Nothing else in the world can compare. The direct response of people enjoying your singing comes in a split second – you can hear, you can feel, and just know if they’re enjoying it or not. For me, of course, I’m nervous. But I feel more excitement than nervousness. I’m very happy,” said the young singer, who primarily performs in Mandarin.

Eric has built an impressive fanbase in India, too. The nation ranks at number 13 worldwide in terms of his Instagram following.

Asked if he has any plans of holding concerts in other cities or countries, Eric said: “As of now, we do not have any plans to do any other cities. Taipei and Kaohsiung are two of the biggest in Taiwan, so we’re very lucky to be able to do these concerts.”

Eric has released several music videos, including one for the English track “In the works”, as well as a collaboration with Mandopop star G.E.M. titled “Don’t force it”.

Earlier this year, he had released his album “When We Were Young”.

He has continued to write more new music. However, he intends to take a break from releasing new songs for now.

“We’re letting my fans digest this new album because there are 20 songs to listen to. We also shot 13-14 music videos, so there’s been plenty, I think. At the same time, I’ve had more time to think about what music I want to put out in my next album and the kind of message I want to tell my fans,” said Eric.

Jio, Airtel rule Covid-time war for India’s smartphone, TV public square

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Jio, Airtel rule Covid-time war for India’s smartphone, TV public square

Sushant Singh Rajput wasn’t a big star until June 14 when he died. Certainly no Amitabh Bachchan of India’s audiences that he seems today if we just returned from the moon.

Credit SSR’s acting, propelled by the tailwinds of controversy. His “Dil Bechara”, unveiled 6 weeks later by Disney Plus and Hotstar on July 24, sits in the same slot as Amazon Prime Video’s “Gulabo Sitabo” anchored by the great Bachchan in the immediately preceding period.

The review of a 67-page deck by Nielsen and Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) in its 10th edition, mapped with an 81-page edition No.11 presented by BARC chief Sunil Lulla on August 27, shows that Bachchan’s “Gulabo…” and Rajput’s “Dil Bechara” were the respective numero uno of direct-to-digital movies of the lockdown period between June 6-July 3 and July 1-August 20.

Framed against these shifting audience preferences, has Covid-19 given us the answer to who is winning between smartphone and TV – the twin screens dominating our quarantined homes?

Nielsen-BARC would politely demur and bat for both mediums. But the trend line is clear. India watched 4 hours 17 minutes of TV in week 33, they tell us in edition no.11. This adds up to 36 minutes a day. Now consider the daily time spent on smartphones during Unlock Phase 3: 3 hours 14 minutes. That’s 194 minutes, almost 5.2x of TV.

The delta, in the coming months, will leave spenders betting very differently on smartphones than they do now or even until Jio lit up on September 5, 2016, and 4G was no longer an elitist game where linear TV ruled.

Coexisting with 5.2x minutes spent on smartphones, there are clear spill-overs across mediums. For example, if you just watched “Dil Bechara” for the fear of missing out, are you likely to stop by for the hollering in news TV about the police investigation? Probably yes.

And what if you saw the hullabaloo the family was savoring on news TV first? Even higher chances of signing up for Disney Plus and Hotstar.

So it isn’t yet a smartphone versus TV. “And” is the operative word.

Which brings us to the moans and groans for “news” and “balance” from purists (read incumbent TV anchormen, barring one). These rating nay-sayers are rattled by the double screen whammy. Here, Indians aren’t just sampling TV as a group or on their phones. We are reacting. We are tweeting. And certainly WhatsApping. All at the same time.

A slice and dice of our 194 minutes of daily smartphone consumption confirm this. In Nielsen-BARC edition no.11, our traditional act of calling has been just 10 percent of our time spent. Chat and voice over internet protocol-VoIP have added up to 20 percent. Social networking has been 10 percent. Browsing, offline media, e-commerce, trading, and trading put together are 15 percent. Utility and phone features soaked in 19 percent, leaving 22 percent of all our minutes per day for smartphone video streaming and games.

That’s 40 minutes-plus of daily gorging. Distracted no doubt, but ten cents more than 36 minutes that Nielsen-BARC says we spent on TV in an entire week — the creamy layer being whipped off by smartphones every passing quarter.

Clearly, a two-screenplay isn’t easy for content creators. The platform owner and/or the owner of the pipe have the keys to the vault. Only some content gambles are paying off. Most are losing bets. Only the house is winning each time.

While Amazon Prime rode on “Gulabo Sitabo” during one edition, and Disney Plus Hotstar via “Dil Bechara” won our hearts the next time, folks at India’s two leading telcos, Airtel and Jio, seem to have won both times.

A simple juxtaposition of Nielsen-BARC numbers with Q1 commentaries by the teams of Sunil Mittal and Mukesh Ambani confirms this. (Relevant financials of Facebook and Alphabet are not in the public domain).

A humongous 14.2 exabytes of data passed through Jio pipes during Q1 of FY 2020-21. That’s 1,420 crores GBs in three months or 4,700-4,800 GBs a month. On Jio alone. At around 398 million customers this meant 12.1 GB per capita per month – up from 11.3 GB per capita per month in the corresponding quarter.

Notwithstanding their worries in the Supreme Court over annual gross revenue calculations, Mittal’s Airtel has an equally compelling narrative: 138 million folks use his 4G, up 45 percent since last time. They use 16.3 GBs of per capita. That’s a massive 74.09 petabytes of daily data flow in Airtel’s pipe versus 42.90 PB/day in just the corresponding quarter.

As content producers scram and more often than not fail to predict audience preferences, the pipe owner’s job seems simpler – and agnostic to platforms like Disney Plus, Hotstar, Amazon Prime, Zee5, or Voot.

Jio’s task primarily is to offer convenience and network effects that migrate 8,000 crore voice minutes (994 minutes/subscriber/month) the company reported in Q1 and convert them into data usage. Likewise for Mittal within his 4G pipe.

On their part, Sundar Pichai of Google and Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook are getting content for free, a situation more and more untenable with every passing week.

So, discount Facebook and Google, for now, factor the state of fading media Moghul Subhash Chandra of Zee, only Ambani and Mittal own a casino showing Kaun Banega Badshah of India’s digital public square.

24 Covid-19 patients discharged in Chinese mainland

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24 Covid-19 patients discharged in Chinese mainland

The National Health Commission on Monday said 24 Covid-19 patients were discharged from hospitals after recovery in the Chinese mainland on Sunday.

There were 237 patients still being treated, including four in severe conditions, the commission said in its daily report, Xinhua reported.

Altogether 80,177 patients had been cured and discharged from hospitals by Sunday, the report said.

As of Sunday, a total of 85,048 confirmed Covid-19 cases had been reported in the mainland, among whom 4,634 died of the disease.

Brazil reports 366 new deaths from Covid-19

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Brazil reports 366 new deaths from Covid-19

The Brazilian government said on Sunday that 366 deaths were reported over the past 24 hours, bringing to 120,828 the national death toll of Covid-19.

The Health Ministry said that a total of 3,862,311 cases have been reported, up by 16,158 cases from the previous day.

In recent days, Brazil managed to slightly reduce the average daily deaths caused by the pandemic, although the number of infections increased considerably, Xinhua reported.

Brazil is one of the countries hardest hit by the Covid-19, second only to the United States in terms of cases and deaths.

Brazil’s most populated state, Sao Paulo has recorded 803,404 Covid-19 cases and 29,978 deaths, the highest in the country, followed by Rio de Janeiro, with 223,302 cases and 16,027 deaths, and Ceara, with 214,457 cases and 8,384 deaths.

TV star Nia Sharma wins Khatron Ke Khiladi: Made In India

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TV star Nia Sharma wins Khatron Ke Khiladi: Made In India

TV star Nia Sharma has won Khatron Ke Khiladi: Made In India, beating Jasmin Bhasin and Karan Wahi in the final. The contest was a special edition of the reality TV adventure game show and it was launched earlier this month after season 10 of Khatron Ke Khiladi concluded.

The Rohit Shetty-hosted Made In India edition of Khatron Ke Khiladi featured champions of past seasons such as Jay Bhanushali, Rithvik Dhanjani, Bharti Singh, Haarsh Limbachiyaa, Aly Goni and Karan Patel. Dhanjani had to quit the contest midway because of commitments.

“Khatron Ke Khiladi: Made In India started off as a fun special edition, but it quickly became my sole agenda to win the season. I gave my all to every stunt that I performed on the show,” said Nia, who has earlier contested in Khatron Ke Khiladi season eight.

The season witnessed the host and action filmmaker Rohit Shetty design some incredible stunts for the contestants. Nia overcame challenges that involved conquering heights, negotiating explosions, swimming through mud, and, in one round, surviving a watery coffin. She also made a mark on the Colors channel show with her camaraderie with co-contestants, especially comedian Harsh Limbachiyaa.

“The team always showed immense faith in me and encouraged me to go and give my best. I did not want to let go of the second opportunity that Colors gave me. I wanted to win and I would not have been at ease with any other result. Winning the season brought a sense of happiness and satisfaction. It was also my answer to those people who thought Nia was only about makeup and styling. No, she’s not. She is a winner and she has proven it with this win!” Nia added.

The grand finale on Sunday had a Bollywood-style red carpet laid out for the contestants. The finale stunts involved pythons, spinning stunts at towering heights, and a three-part heist designed specially by Rohit Shetty, where the contestants had to hunt down a necklace to win, amidst explosions, shattered glass, and electric shock.

Manisha Sharma, Chief Content Officer, Hindi Mass Entertainment, Viacom18, said: “Given the fact that we were shooting for Khatron Ke Khiladi in India, we got a great opportunity to incorporate various Bollywood elements to the stunts while making it more entertaining.”

Abhishek Rege, CEO, Endemol added: “I would like to congratulate Nia Sharma for her win and for giving such an amazing and spirited performance. To create such an impactful show with the constraints we faced due to the pandemic speaks of the creativity and ingenuity of the entire Khatron Ke Khiladi: Made In India team, and we look forward to the next season.”

Israel reports 555 new Covid-19 cases; 114,020 in total

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Israel reports 555 new Covid-19 cases; 114,020 in total

The Israeli Ministry of Health reported 555 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday, bringing the total to 114,020.

The number of death cases rose to 919, with 13 new deaths, while the number of patients in serious condition increased from 438 to 444, out of 897 patients currently hospitalized, Xinhua reported.

The number of recoveries reached 92,796, with 692 new recoveries, while the number of active cases dropped to 20,305.

Earlier on Sunday, Israel’s laboratory workers went on strike, claiming they have to deal with low wages and high workloads.

Esther Admon, chairwoman of the Israel Association of Biochemists, Microbiologists, and Laboratory Workers, told Xinhua that the strike included 2,000 workers in 400 labs across Israel.

She noted that the staff will run only life-saving urgent tests, such as tests for critically ill patients, cancer and heart patients, as well as coronavirus tests.

However, the strikers only give positive results to coronavirus tests, while those who are found negative will not receive the results.

Thus, passengers planning to go abroad will have to stay in Israel without the medical document on the negative result of the coronavirus test.

362 new Covid-19 cases reported in UAE; 69,690 in total

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362 new Covid-19 cases reported in UAE; 69,690 in total

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Sunday announced 362 new Covid-19 cases, bringing the total confirmed cases in the country to 69,690.

At the same time, 398 more patients have recovered from the virus, taking the tally of recoveries in the UAE to 60,600, the UAE’s Ministry of Health and Prevention said, Xinhua reported.

It also confirmed three more deaths, pushing the country’s death toll to 382.

The UAE was the first among the Gulf countries to report Covid-19 cases.

Chennai hospital performs Asia’s 1st Covid positive’s lung transplant

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Chennai hospital performs Asia’s 1st Covid positive’s lung transplant

Severely damaged lungs of a 48-year-old Coronavirus positive male patient were successfully replaced by doctors at a Chennai hospital who carried out a critical bilateral lung transplant, the private hospital said.

This is Asia’s first known lung transplant on a Covid-19 positive patient and the second lung transplant in the hospital since the lockdown began, the statement claimed.

In a statement issued here, the hospital said the patient from Delhi was suffering from severe lung infection with Covid-19. His lungs were severely damaged due to COVID-19-related fibrosis in one and a half month after he was infected by the virus.

According to MGH Healthcare, the patient tested positive for coronavirus on July 8, and only a small portion of the lungs was left functional.

As he became breathless and oxygen saturation came down he was put on ventilator support on June 20. His condition continued to worsen in spite of ventilator support. He was airlifted to MGM Healthcare from Ghaziabad on July 20.

“His lung condition continued to worsen in spite of maximum ventilatory supportive care, and he was put on ECMO support on July 25 for more than one month. Such patients are difficult to manage even in well-equipped ICUs (intensive care units),” MGM Healthcare said.

The doctors decided to go for the transplant, and it was performed on August 27. The transplant was led by Dr. K. R. Balakrishnan, Chairman & Director of Cardiac Sciences and Director of the Heart and Lung Transplant Programme and his team. “Post the transplant, the patient is doing fine in the transplant ICU,” MGM Healthcare said.

“As the patient’s transplanted lungs were working well, we removed the ECMO support. Now his clinical condition is stable,” Suresh Rao, Co-Director, Institute of Heart & Lung Transplant and Mechanical Circulatory Support said.

“Those select patients suffering from COVID pneumonia where all medications and mechanical ventilators fail to show positive results, early initiation of ECMO support may be a lifesaving modality,” said Apart Jindal, Clinical Director & Consultant, Lung Transplant, Interventional Pulmonology & Chest Medicine.

“Over time, progression can determine whether the patient improves spontaneously or may be offered the option of a lung transplant. A lung transplant may well be the answer to many of the COVID survivors whose lungs are healing with fibrosis and making them a chronic respiratory cripple,” Jindal added.

Sleep restriction may amplify anger, frustration: Study

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Sleep restriction may amplify anger, frustration: Study

Feeling angry these days? Sleep deprivation might be the reason, which according to researchers amplifies anger and frustration.

For the study, published in the journal SLEEP, the research team analyzed daily diary entries from 202 college students, who tracked their sleep, daily stressors, and anger over one month.

Preliminary results show that individuals reported experiencing more anger on days following less sleep than usual for them.

“The results are important because they provide strong causal evidence that sleep restriction increases anger and increases frustration over time,” said study author Zlatan Krizan, a Professor at the Iowa State University in the US.

“Moreover, the results from the daily diary study suggest such effects translate to everyday life, as young adults reported more anger in the afternoon on days they slept less,” Krizan added.

The research team also conducted a lab experiment involving 147 community residents.

Participants were randomly assigned either to maintain their regular sleep schedule or to restrict their sleep at home by about five hours across two nights.

Following this manipulation, anger was assessed during exposure to irritating noise, the researchers said.

The experiment found that individuals who slept well adapted to noise and reported less anger after two days.

In contrast, sleep-restricted individuals exhibited higher and increased anger in response to aversive noise, suggesting that losing sleep undermined emotional adaptation to frustrating circumstances.

According to the study, subjective sleepiness accounted for most of the experimental effect of sleep loss on anger.

A related experiment in which individuals reported anger following an online competitive game found similar results.

“Together, these results provide compelling evidence that lost sleep amplifies anger in both the laboratory and everyday life,” the study authors wrote.

The authors noted that the findings highlight the importance of considering specific emotional reactions such as anger and their regulation in the context of sleep disruption.

NASA, Boeing set for Dec flight before flying astronauts in 2021

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NASA, Boeing set for Dec flight before flying astronauts in 2021

NASA and Boeing have announced that test flights of the company’s CST-100 Starliner commercial crew vehicle would begin operational missions to the International Space Station (ISS) at the end of 2021.

NASA said that before that happens, it has scheduled a second uncrewed test flight, known as Orbital Flight Test (OFT) 2, for no earlier than December this year.

Teams from Boeing are well into the final assembly of the crew and service modules that will fly OFT-2 to the space station.

OFT-2 will fly a new, reusable Starliner crew module providing an additional on-orbit experience for the operational teams prior to flying missions with astronauts.

For Boeing’s Commercial Crew missions, the Starliner spacecraft will launch atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, the US space agency said on Friday.

“Boeing also remains focused on incorporating the recommendations from the joint NASA-Boeing Independent Review Team with almost 75 percent of the 80 proposed actions implemented,” it said.

The independent team was formed to review anomalies experienced during OFT, which led to Starliner not reaching its planned orbit or docking to the station as planned and to provide recommendations to ensure a robust design for future missions.

Following a successful OFT-2, Boeing will focus full attention on preparations for its final flight test with astronauts and is already completing work on the Crew Flight Test spacecraft in parallel.

The CFT crew members are Boeing astronaut Chris Ferguson and NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Nicole Mann.

NASA astronauts Sunita Williams, Josh Cassada, and Jeanette Epps are crew members of the Starliner-1 mission.

Cassada and Williams were both selected for the mission in August 2018, and NASA announced Epps’ assignment on August 25.

No action against Armenia for walking out of Chess Olympiad quarters vs India

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No action against Armenia for walking out of Chess Olympiad quarters vs India

World chess body FIDE will not take any action against the Armenian team that walked out of the Online Olympiad quarter-finals against India in a non-sportive manner as its appeal against the victory of Indian Nihal Sarin over Haik M Martirosyan was dismissed, said an official.

India advanced to the semi-finals and will play Poland.

“I can confirm that no further disciplinary actions are being considered at this point,” FIDE’s Chief Communications Officer David Llada told IANS. He said a quarter-final is a knockout event, so the withdrawal does not impact other teams.

The quarter-finals consist of a knockout duel of two matches and an Armageddon game.

During the first quarter-final match, Sarin was pitted against Martirosyan. When the Armenian was to make his 69th move, it seems he lost internet connectivity and thus lost out on time.

The Armenian team then appealed, saying that the net connectivity was good and it was the problem with the Chess.com server.

“As a leader of a 3-time Olympic champion, I feel very dissatisfied with FIDE’s decision to reject our just appeal. In our match against India, Haik Martirosyan lost on time due to disconnection from http://chess.com. We proved that our connection was stable (sic),” tweeted Armenian player Levon Aronian.

“It was a problem with access to http://chess.com, not on our side. All we asked for was to continue that game from the same position and same time. Is it too much to ask?” he wondered.

Chess players had said continuing the game from the same position and the same time could not be allowed as the players would have analyzed the position in-depth with the help of computers.

One option was to start afresh game.

FIDE had laid down strong rules for players, including a ban from playing in the next round even if their internet connectivity is lost for two minutes or less.

“We understand the frustration experienced by the Armenian players, but we have followed the same criteria we followed in previous rounds — like when Vidit (Santosh Gujrathi) and Koneru (Humpy) lost their games in their match against Mongolia,” Llada added.

Apart from these two Indian players, Divya Deshmukh too lost a game as she was disconnected from www.chess.com server.

Deciding on Armenian’s team’s appeal, the FIDE’s appeals committee discussed the event regulations in detail with the team captains. As per the regulations, the quality and stability of the internet connection is the sole responsibility of the players.

“In their appeal, the Armenian team pointed out that the specified player was connected to the zoom call during the whole incident, and the video call was not interrupted. In their opinion, this confirms the normal operation of the internet connection in the game room, and proves that the technical problems were limited to the chess.com website,” the appeals committee said.

The committee also pointed out that India had lost two games owing to disruption in internet connectivity against Mongolia.

“No other reliable evidence of problems on the game server was presented to the Appeals Committee, in addition to the general conclusion provided by the Armenian team,” the committee said.

According to the committee, Armenian player Martirosyan had about 50 seconds to restore the connection, which turned out to be insufficient.

“In the current situation, any other decision would be inconsistent with the tournament regulations, creating a precedent that could lead to further conflicting situations. The Appeals Committee also finds that any other decision would be unfair to the opposing team,” the committee decided.

Meanwhile, the Indian team has beefed up its power and internet connectivity backup systems.

The team now has a channel bonding system for uninterrupted net connectivity. In simple terms, if one net connection fails, the next one takes over within a second so that there is no loss of precious time in this fast game.

Telangana BJP MLA advised by police to use bullet-proof car

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Telangana BJP MLA advised by police to use bullet-proof car

In view of a grave security threat, the Hyderabad police have advised T. Raja Singh, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) lone member of the Telangana Legislative Assembly, not to move around on a two-wheeler and travel by a bullet-proof car allotted to him by the government.

In a letter to Raja Singh, Hyderabad Police Commissioner Anjani Kumar said that providing proper security to him was a priority.

“It is to inform you that due to your threat perception, enhanced security has been provided to you, and security personnel is also being alerted and checked from time to time. Special training has been organized for all your PSOs periodically,” said the letter dated August 28.

The police chief wrote that on occasions, the MLA is seen moving around on a motorcycle.

“This poses a grave security threat to you. Therefore, your kind cooperation is solicited to ensure proper security. That you kindly completely avoid moving on a motorcycle and travel by the bullet-proof car allotted. The government has provided this car only for your security,” it added.

Raja Singh, who is known for making controversial statements and was also booked by the police on various occasions, represents the Goshamahal Assembly constituency in Hyderabad.

He was recently at the center of a controversy that erupted after a report in the Wall Street Journal that Facebook’s content policies favored the BJP.

The MLA however, claimed that he never posted any inflammatory content on social media.

He added that his official Facebook account was hacked and blocked in 2018.

The US newspaper quoted unnamed Facebook insiders that one of the India policy executives intervened in an internal communication to stop a permanent ban on Raja Singh after he allegedly posted communal, divisive content.

Playing a journalist was challenging: Asha Negi

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Playing a journalist was challenging: Asha Negi

Actress Asha Negi loved tackling the challenges of playing a journalist recently.

Asha essays the role in the web series “Abhay 2”, and she says her fans are curious to know more about her mysterious character.

“I have never played a journalist and it does need an understanding of the vigor needed to be an anchor. The character has nuances, so the challenging part was to layer the transition. I have had messages coming from all over the world asking about the mystery behind my character — if I am playing good or evil. I am extremely excited for the rest of the season to be out soon, and cannot wait to see the audiences’ reaction,” said Asha.

‘Abhay 2’ features Kunal Kemmu, Chunky Panday, Bidita Bag, Raghav Juval, Indraneil Sengupta, and Asheema Vardhan among others. The show streams on Zee5.

JGU commences academic year 2020-21 with 50% increase in admissions

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JGU commences academic year 2020-21 with 50% increase in admissions

O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU) announced the commencement of the new academic session 2020-21 for the first-year students on September 1 with a record number of new admissions.

JGU said 2,500 new students join JGU in the new academic year with an overall 50 percent rise in admissions this year.

This is an unprecedented moment as the education sector has been severely disrupted by the Covid-19 global pandemic. It has been JGU’s endeavor to ensure uninterrupted learning for its students who have joined the university during the pandemic, a statement said.

Earlier, JGU had already begun the new academic session for its existing students on August 17 and classes are underway in the online mode.

JGU said it is committed to ensuring quality and continuity across all its academic programs while ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of all its students, faculty, and staff.

This year, JGU has launched several new undergraduate and postgraduate programs across its nine schools with options for pursuing Humanities fellowships to undergraduate and postgraduate programs in Legal Studies, Environmental Studies, Design, Political Science, Economics, and Social Policy.

Over 600 faculty members to teach online using the latest tech platforms and students from nearly all the states and union territories of India have joined JGU.

International students from several countries including, Ireland, Malaysia, Nepal, Qatar, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, United Arab Emirates, and the United States of America have taken admission to JGU this year.

C. Raj Kumar, Founding Vice-Chancellor of O.P. Jindal Global University, said, “We have been deeply concerned about the future of our students and the associated safety and health concerns during this COVID-19 global pandemic. These are extraordinary times when the world of higher education and universities have been challenged by the pandemic. I am delighted to share with you that the admissions process of all the schools of JGU was completed smoothly and successfully in an Online and Remote-Proctored entrance exam format.”

“This has only proved that our early decision to go fully online, completely eliminating any face-to-face interaction in the entrance examination process, was the best and indeed the safest option. We were conscious of the inherent safety, security, and well-being of the students, their family members, and their concerns relating to health became paramount in our decision to implement the AI-Enabled, Remote-Proctored entrance exams. We began the new academic session for our existing students on 17th August and are commencing the classes for the new students on 1st September and look forward to welcoming the best talent to our classrooms,” he said.

Researchers develop fast, accurate, low-cost Covid-19 test

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Researchers develop fast, accurate, low-cost Covid-19 test

Chinese researchers have developed a new low-cost diagnostic test for Covid-19 which quickly delivers accurate results without the need for sophisticated equipment.

“In this study, we developed an isothermal, CRISPR-based diagnostic for Covid-19 with near single-copy sensitivity,” the study authors from Xuzhou Medical University in China, wrote in a paper published in the journal PLOS Pathogens.

“We demonstrated a CRISPR-based assay for Covid-19 that offered shorter turn-around time and great diagnostic value, even in under-resourced settings without the need for thermal cyclers,” they added.

The surging demand for rapid screening and identification of Covid-19 poses great diagnostic challenges.

Metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) and reverse-transcription PCR (RT-PCR) have been the most commonly used molecular methods for diagnosing Covid-19, but each has its own limitations.

For example, sequencing is costly and has a turnaround time of nearly one day, while RT-PCR requires specialized equipment and is difficult to deploy at a large scale.

According to the researchers, a lack of rapid and accurate molecular diagnostic tools has hampered efficient public health responses to the viral threat.

In the new study, the researchers developed an alternative Covid-19 test by leveraging CRISPR-based technology, which has been widely used in recent years for gene editing.

The assay, named CRISPR-COVID, enables high-throughput detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) – the virus that causes Covid-19.

CRISPR-COVID delivers comparable sensitivity and specificity as mNGS within as short as 40 minutes, the researchers said.

When produced at a large scale, the material cost of a CRISPR-COVID test could be less than 70 cents, suggesting that CRISPR-COVID is a competitive alternative not only technologically but also financially, the team noted.

NYC museums begin gradual reopening

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NYC museums begin gradual reopening

Museums in New York City have gradually started reopening after they were closed in March due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Museum of Modern Art in New York City reopened to the general public on Thursday, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art also allowed members to enter the same day, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art will start allowing all visitors from Saturday and The Met Cloisters will fully reopen on September 12.

Under new regulations, the museums have implemented a series of precautions including temperature checks prior to entering the buildings, the installation of hand sanitizer dispensers, mandating masks, limiting attendance to a quarter of capacity, and closing food courts.

New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo announced last week that museums could reopen as soon as August 24, at 25 percent capacity, and with timed ticketing in place.

Face coverings will be mandatory and museum authorities will be required to control the flow of movement of people.

The American Museum of Natural History plans to reopen to the public on September 9, and the Whitney Museum of American Art on September 3.

New York was once the epicenter of the pandemic in the US, though it has recently witnessed a significant reduction in infection rates and has also been gradually reopening its economy.

Other cultural institutions in the city, including Broadway theatres, the Metropolitan Opera House, and New York Philharmonic, have ruled out reopening until at least the end of the year.

Trump hits campaign trail after accepting renomination

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Trump hits campaign trail after accepting renomination

US President Donald Trump has hit the campaign trail after accepting the Republican Party’s renomination for a second term in office.

Speaking to supporters at an airport in Londonderry, New Hampshire, Trump on Friday lashed out at the nationwide demonstrations calling for social justice that have at times turned chaotic and violent, reports Xinhua news agency.

“They are not protesters. Those are anarchists, agitators, rioters, looters,” Trump said.

“It has nothing to do with George Floyd. They have no idea who he is. If you ask them ‘Who’s George Floyd?’ they say ‘I don’t know’.”

Floyd, a 46-year-old unarmed African-American, died from asphyxiation after a white police officer kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 25.

“No one will be safe in (Joe) Biden’s America,” the President added.

Trump also launched an attack on Democratic vice-presidential candidate Kamala Harris, saying: “You know I want to see the first woman president also, but I don’t want to see a woman president get into that position the way she’d do it, and she’s not competent.”

He suggested his own daughter, White House senior adviser, Ivanka Trump, as a more suitable occupant for the Oval Office.

Approximately 1,400 people attended the rally on Friday night, and many did not wear masks, according to CBS News.

In 2016, Trump lost New Hampshire, also known as the Granite State, to then-Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton by fewer than 3,000 votes.

His campaign has identified the state as a flip opportunity for him as it faces limited options to expand the electoral map.

Vice President Mike Pence also made campaign stops in the states of Minnesota and Michigan on Friday afternoon.

Meanwhile, Trump’s main rival, Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden said on Thursday that he will begin traveling to the battleground states after Labor Day, including Wisconsin, Minnesota, Arizona, and Pennsylvania.

Biden, in a statement on Friday, accused Trump of “bringing his message of division, lies, and chaos to New Hampshire”.

Indian hockey is moving in right direction: Khel Ratna Rani

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Indian hockey is moving in right direction: Khel Ratna Rani

Indian women’s hockey captain Rani Rampal, who was on Saturday conferred with the prestigious Khel Ratna Award, has said that she feels overwhelmed that women’s hockey in the country is getting equal importance as that of the men.

Rani has become the first Indian women’s hockey player to receive the prestigious Khel Ratna award. She is only the third hockey player after Dhanraj Pillay and Sardar Singh to receive the highest award for sporting excellence.

“Over the past one week, since my name was officially announced for the Khel Ratna Award, I have been reflecting back on my journey so far and it makes me feel overwhelmed that women’s hockey gets equal importance as the men’s team and a women’s player being recognized with the highest award definitely goes to show the sport is moving in the right direction,” said Rani.

She further said that a lot has changed over the past decade in Indian hockey.

“From when I started to now, many things have changed for the good in women’s hockey. Back when I began playing, women’s team played very few tournaments,” said the Indian captain.

“We mostly played major events like Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games but now the scenario has changed so much. Hockey India and the management ensure we play tournaments around the year which has contributed tremendously towards our performance improvement over the years and has also helped popularise women’s hockey,” she added.

While Rani was conferred with the Khel Ratna Award, Akashdeep Singh received the Arjuna Award in a virtual ceremony. Both are currently part of the on-going national coaching camp at the SAI Bengaluru campus.

“I thank everyone who has been part of my journey so far. I have been very fortunate to play for my country along with some of the greatest players in the sport. I also thank Hockey India and SAI for their support and ensuring we are provided with the best facilities to train,” said Akashdeep.

Congratulating the winners, Gyanendro Ningombam, Hockey India Officiating President said, “On behalf of Hockey India, I congratulate Romesh Pathania for winning the Dronacharya award (lifetime achievement), Rani for winning the Khel Ratna Award, Akashdeep Singh and Deepika Thakur for winning the Arjuna award. I also congratulate Jude Felix for winning the Dronacharya award and Ajit Singh for winning the Dhyan Chand lifetime achievement award.”

Hockey India Secretary General Rajinder Singh too congratulated the awardees. “I am very happy that a women’s player has been recognized with the Khel Ratna award for the very first time in the history of the sport. I am confident this recognition will motivate an entirely new generation of women to take up the sport professionally.”

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