Richa Chadha: Need of hour is systemic shift in how we perceive nature

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Richa Chadha: Need of hour is systemic shift in how we perceive nature

Actress Richa Chadha believes that little acts of kindness go a long way. She feels the need of the hour is a systemic shift in how people perceive nature.

Last month, the actress and her fiance Ali sent out 1000s of PPE masks to frontline workers. Now, and environmentalist, Dr R.K Nair, has planted 650 saplings in the names of Richa and Ali at Pulwama Shahid Vann, Umbergaon Gujarat, as a thank you gesture for their charity gesture.

“To say that we need to step up to protect the environment in the face of the pandemic is truly underplaying it. Dr Nair’s gesture touched our hearts because he gave us hope that each of us are capable of creating great changes. The need of the hour is a systemic shift in how we perceive nature,” said Richa.

“There’s a pre-existent symbiotic equation that must be respected. The capability of being a hero is in each of us and Dr Nair’s gestures makes us want to be better people and do more for the world around us,” she added.

Ali pointed out that he doesn’t like talking about achievements but “Dr R.K. Nair’s thank you message to Richa and me truly melted my heart”.

“I know the number is not a huge pathbreaking number of trees but for me, it’s a big step forward personally because during this lockdown, I have realised the power of good and the power of reach. And without ignoring the power of hunger and helplessness. The solution for all lies in our own hands, fortunately and unfortunately,” he added.

Lung transported from Pune to Hyderabad in one hour saves life

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Lung transported from Pune to Hyderabad in one hour saves life

A patient at a hospital in Hyderabad received a lung from a brain dead donor in Pune, as different authorities came together to ensure the organ’s transportation within one hour.

A Green corridor was arranged by different departments in both cities for faster transport of the organ on Sunday. A patient suffering from terminal lung disease and undergoing treatment at KIMS Heart and Lung Transplant Institute here was the recipient of the organ. He had registered his name under the Jeevandan scheme of the Telangana government.

The family of a young person, who was declared brain dead at a private hospital on Sunday, came forward to donate the organ while Zonal Transplant Coordination Center (ZTCC) Pune ensured that the organ reached Hyderabad in time for the transplant.

Dr. Swarnalatha, who is In-charge of Jeevandan, Telangana guided and supported the cause, while Arthi Gokhle, Central Coordinator ZTCC Pune ensured that it happened without any obstacles.

The lung was brought by a chartered flight from Pune to Hyderabad. Traffic police of both the cities arranged the green corridor and the Airports Authority of India also came forward to help this noble cause.

Finally, KIMS Heart and Lung Transplant Institute, Hyderabad received the lung by the evening without any delay from the city which is 560 km away, within one hour, and transplanted the same to the needy patient.

At a time when even smaller health issues are a big deal in Covid-19 pandemic times, the authorities showed that even though things like lung transplantation can happen if there is a strong will.

Before the transportation and transplant, the authorities took all precautions. Doctors at KIMS said the transplant was done after the donor tested negative for Coronavirus.

28 new corona cases in Agra, situation in Mathura ‘grim’

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28 new corona cases in Agra, situation in Mathura ‘grim’

Despite the weekend lockdown and safety measures by the district administration, 28 fresh Covid-19 cases have been reported in Agra in the last 24 hours.

The district health department has reported 103 deaths so far. The COVID tally now stands at 2,318, with 323 active cases and 1,892 recoveries. There are 155 containment zones in the district.

Health department officials explain the spurt due to a higher number of samples being tested on a daily basis. However, people do not seem satisfied with this explanation.

“But they are unable to explain why the containment zones are going up and why despite all kinds of restrictions, the infection spread is not being checked,” said Shravan Kumar Singh, a local resident.

Despite measures being taken to contain Covid-19, doctors in Agra say there is no early relief in sight. “The only long-term strategy is to learn to live with the enemy observing the rules of the games,” said activist Naresh Paras.

In neighboring Mathura, in the past 48 hours, around 100 cases have been reported. Locals said the situation was grim, as a large number of cases were not being reported.

“Due to fear and social stigma, people are hiding and resorting to self-treatment,” said a local, who did not wish to be named. Meanwhile, some patients were discharged after recovering from the deadly virus.

Meanwhile, Mainpuri reported 45 cases in the past 24 hours followed by Firozabad (34), Utah (19), and Kasganj (10).

Samsung Galaxy Watch3 gets ECG functionality in the US

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Samsung Galaxy Watch3 gets ECG functionality in the US

Samsung has activated the ECG (electrocardiogram) functionality on the newly-launched Galaxy Watch3 in the US.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the requested ECG certification and the news was shared directly to the users with a firmware update.

Along with the ECG monitoring, the new update will also bring the VO2 Max measurement feature.

Through this functionality, one can find out the maximum amount of oxygen consumption during training or resting, reports GSMArena.

Users need to download and install the Samsung Health Monitor app on the watch and the paired smartphone to use ECG.

The ECG feature uses advanced sensor technology on the Galaxy Watch3, and will enable users to measure and analyze their heart rhythm for irregularities indicating Atrial Fibrillation (AFib).

To measure the ECG, a user just needs to open the app and place his smartwatch arm on a flat surface, and then place his fingertip of the other hand on the top button of the smartwatch for about 30 seconds.

Taking on Apple Watch that is currently the best health wearable in the market, the newly-launched Samsung Galaxy Watch3 offers blood oxygen (SpO2) and fall detection tools and would include blood pressure (BP) monitoring and ECG readings in markets where these features have been authorized.

The blood oxygen feature would measure and track oxygen saturation over time, for fitness and wellness purposes.

The Galaxy Watch3 by Samsung runs on Tizen-based Wearable OS 5.5.

It features a 1.2-inch (360×360 pixels) circular Super AMOLED display on the 41mm variant and a 1.4-inch display on the 45mm variant with the same resolution that is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass DX.

The smartwatch is powered by the dual-core Exynos 9110 CPU, Mali-T720 GPU, and packs 1GB of RAM and 8GB of storage.

Australia’s news media bargaining code will hurt users: Google

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Australia’s news media bargaining code will hurt users: Google

In a scathing attack on the Australian government’s move to increase the bargaining power of media organizations overpayment for the inclusion of news in its services, Google on Monday termed the proposed changes unfair, while warning users that the new regulation will affect Google Search and YouTube.

Google even warned Australians that the proposed “News Media Bargaining Code” could even lead to their data being handed over to big news businesses.

“The proposed changes are not fair and they mean that Google Search results and YouTube will be worse for you,” Google Australia Managing Director Mel Silva said in an “Open letter to Australians”.

Google alleged that “the law is set up to give big media companies special treatment and to encourage them to make enormous and unreasonable demands” that would put the company’s free services at risk.

On April 20, the Australian Government announced it had directed the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to develop a mandatory code of conduct to address bargaining power imbalances between Australian news media businesses and each of Google and Facebook.

The ACCC released a draft code for public consultation on 31.

The draft code would allow news media businesses to bargain individually or collectively with Google and Facebook overpayment for the inclusion of news on their services.

“The law would force us to give an unfair advantage to one group of businesses — news media businesses — over everyone else who has a website, YouTube channel or small business,” Silva said in the open letter.

“News media businesses alone would be given information that would help them artificially inflate their ranking over everyone else, even when someone else provides a better result,” she added.

Google said it is going to do everything it possibly can to get this proposal changed.

Liquor outlets to be opened in Chennai from Tuesday

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Liquor outlets to be opened in Chennai from Tuesday

The Tamil Nadu state government has decided to reopen retail liquor shops in Chennai from Tuesday onwards after a gap of several months.

Liquor retail is a state monopoly run by the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation or popularly known as Tasmac.

According to the government, the liquor shops will function between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. and only 500 tokens will be issued daily.

Customers will have to wear masks and maintain social distance.

Liquor shops had reopened across the state, except Chennai, on May 7 after 45 days.

The shops in Chennai remained closed as the city had the highest per day coronavirus infection rate.

But over a period of time, the per day infection rate has come down to about 1,000-1,200.

There are over 5,300 Tasmac liquor outlets in the state contributing about Rs 30,000 crore of tax revenue to the state exchequer.

Major opposition parties in the state have strongly criticized the government’s decision to open the liquor outlets.

During the May 7 exercise, however, the social distance was not maintained and there was a large crowd before the shops risking the spread of coronavirus.

The Madras High Court on May 8 ordered closure of the shops as its conditions for opening up of the shops were not followed but allowed online sales.

On May 15, the Supreme Court stayed the High Court’s order.

Later in June, the apex court said it cannot lay down norms as to the liquor sale modalities to Tasmac like door delivery and online sale.

The court allowed the state government to devise its own norms for liquor sales.

Equity market turns choppy after initial gains

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Equity market turns choppy after initial gains

Amid volatility, the key Indian equity indices faltered after opening in the green on Monday, with the BSE Sensex trading with minor gains.

At 10.22 a.m., the BSE Sensex was trading at 37,938.44, lower by 61.10 points or 0.16 percent from the previous close of 37,877.34.

It even fell below the previous close during the intra-day trade to touch an intra-day low of 37,734.14 points. It opened at 38,062.07 and has so far touched an intra-day high of 38,119.38.

The Nifty50 on the National Stock Exchange was trading at 11,206.95, higher by 28.55 points or 0.26 percent from its previous close.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bajaj Auto, NTPC and Tata Steel, while the major losers were the State Bank of India, Reliance Industries and Axis Bank.

2 CRPF men, 1 SPO killed in Kashmir terror attack

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2 CRPF men, 1 SPO killed in Kashmir terror attack

Two CRPF personnel and a Special Police Officer (SPO) of the Jammu and Kashmir Police were killed after terrorists attacked a patrol party in North Kashmir’s Baramulla district.

According to the details, a joint patrol party of the police and the CRPF was targetted by the terrorists who were hiding in an orchard in the Kreeri area of Baramulla.

Director-General of Police Dilbag Singh told IANS that terrorists fired from the orchards, taking advantage of the thick foliage.

Additional forces have reached the spot and the area has been cordoned off.

An operation has been started to nab the attackers.

Indian scientists ‘make’ space bricks for lunar habitation

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Indian scientists ‘make’ space bricks for lunar habitation

Research scientists from the premier Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and the state-run Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have developed a process to make bricks on the moon for habitation.

“The process involves extracting lunar soil and using bacteria and guar beans to harden it (soil) into brick-like structures for habitation on the moon in the future,” a researcher of the city-based science institute told IANS on Monday.

The Indian space agency launched two unmanned missions to the moon in 2008 and 2019 as part of its inter-planetary exploration to study the earth’s natural satellite, though it failed to land on the lunar surface.

The making of space bricks brings biology and mechanical engineering together and using them to assemble structure for habitation on the moon’s surface.

With the earth’s resources dwindling, scientists have intensified efforts to inhabit the moon and other planets, thanks to exponential space exploration since the 20th century.

“As the cost of sending 1 pound of material to outer space is currently Rs 7.5 lakh, the process our scientists developed reduced it (cost) as urea, sourced from human urine and lunar soil will be used as raw materials for the construction on the moon’s surface,” said the institute’s assistant professor in mechanical engineering Aloke Kumar.

As guar gum is used instead of cement for structures, space bricks will also lower carbon footprint in the lunar atmosphere.

Since micro-organisms produce minerals through metabolism, one bacterium called ‘sporosarcina pasteurii’ can be used to form calcium carbonate crystals through a metabolic pathway called the ureolytic cycle.

“Living organisms have been involved in such mineral precipitation since the dawn of the Cambrian period and modern science has found a use for them,” Kumar said in a statement.

Space scientists Arjun Dey and I. Venugopal joined the Institute’s team to develop the process for making the space bricks.

The team mixed the bacteria with a simulant of lunar soil and added urea and calcium with gum extracted from guar beans to increase the strength of the material for carbonate precipitation. The product after a few days of incubation was strong and resilient.

“Our material can be fabricated into any free form or shape, using a lathe. It is also recommended as it circumvents the need for specialised molds, a common problem when trying to make a variety of shapes by casting,” said another professor Koushik Viswanathan.

The expertise can also be used to make interlocking structures for construction on the moon without an additional fastening mechanism.

The scientists believe the process is a significant step towards constructing buildings in space.

“Though we have quite a distance to go before we look at extra-terrestrial habitats, our next step is to make larger bricks with the more automated and parallel production process,” Kumar added.

The scientists also plan to enhance the strength of the bricks and test them under varied loading conditions like impacts and possibly moonquakes.

Clinic visits not tied to high risk of getting Covid-19: Study

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Clinic visits not tied to high risk of getting Covid-19: Study

A US study of pregnant patients during the pandemic has found that in-person health care visits were not an important risk factor for contracting the Covid-19 infection and necessary in-person care was safely performed in the hospitals.

In an analysis of the data collected, a team of investigators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital found no association between the number of in-person health care visits and the risk of infection with SARS-CoV-2 in Massachusetts.

“One major concern in obstetrics, but also in general medicine, is that patients are avoiding necessary medical care because of fear of contracting Covid-19 in a health care setting, but there was no indication that in-person health care affects the risk of infection,” said Sharon Reale from the Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine.

While some patients could benefit from virtual visits via telemedicine during the spring, pregnant patients are a unique population.

Many require multiple, in-person visits for measurements, exams, and lab tests to ensure the health of both mother and baby or babies.

To conduct their study, Reale and colleagues used a case-control approach in which patients who tested positive (cases) were matched to those who tested negative (controls) based on gestational age, race/ethnicity, insurance type, and the rate of Covid-19 in the patients’ zip code.

The team also adjusted for age, body mass index, and essential worker occupation.

Of close to 3,000 women who delivered during the study period, 111 patients tested positive.

On average, patients who tested positive attended 3.1 visits in person (with a range of 0 to 10 visits); patients who tested negative attended an average of 3.3 visits in person (with a range of 0 to 16 visits).

The authors said in the study published in the journal JAMA, that there was no meaningful association between in-person visits and infection among the patients studied.

“Future studies will be needed to confirm if the findings extend to other patients.

“Results will need to be replicated outside of obstetrics, but this should be reassuring and indicate that necessary and important care should be done and can be done safely,” said Reale.

The study provides important evidence that we can do in-person visits safely.

“Our findings should be reassuring for our obstetrical patients that when they come to the hospital for appointments, they are not increasing their risk of infection,” the authors wrote.

UP MLA sent to 14-day judicial custody

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UP MLA sent to 14-day judicial custody

The Bhadohi MLA, Vijay Mishra, who was arrested in Madhya Pradesh on Friday and brought to here on Sunday night, was sent to 14-day judicial custody.

Bhadohi Superintendent of Police Ram Badan Singh said the MLA was presented before the court of Judicial Magistrate Alok Kumar on Sunday night and sent to the Naini Central Jail.

The SP said the jailor of the district jail, Ashok Kumar Gautam, had informed that the MLA ‘was not safe’ there, following which he was taken to the Naini Central Jail. The District Magistrate has issued orders to shift the MLA to the Central jail, he said.

Mishra, a Nishad Party MLA, was arrested in a case of criminal intimidation and wrongful confinement lodged by his relative against him, his wife Ramlali Mishra, a member of the state Legislative Council, and son Vishnu Mishra. The wife and the son are absconding.

Their relative, Krishna Mohan Tiwari, had accused them of land grab after threatening him.

Vijay Mishra was detained by the Madhya Pradesh Police on Friday while he was on his way to Kota in Rajasthan via Ujjain.

The SP said after arresting the MLA, the Uttar Pradesh Police team led by DSP Kalu Singh produced him in a court at Madhya Pradesh’s Agar Malwa and brought him to Bhadohi on a transit remand.

The MLA currently has 73 cases registered against him and has been booked under the Goonda Act and the stringent National Security Act in the past.

Kei Nishikori tests positive for COVID-19 ahead of US Open

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Kei Nishikori tests positive for COVID-19 ahead of US Open

Japanese tennis player Kei Nishikori has tested positive for coronavirus and has withdrawn from the Western & Southern Open which starts next week.

“This morning while still in Florida, I got tested for COVID-19 and tested positive,” said Nishikori in a statement on Sunday as per BBC Sport.

“I will have to pull out of the Cincinnati tournament at this time. I and my team will get tested again on Friday at which point I will have another update,” he added.

The 30-year-old further said he is “feeling well” but will now isolate and get tested again on Friday.

According to America’s public health authority, those who test positive for coronavirus must isolate themselves for 10 days. Under those rules, Nishikori’s isolation would end on August 26, five days before the US Open begins in New York.

Defending champions Rafael Nadal and Bianca Andreescu have already withdrawn from this year’s US Open — slated to begin from August 31 — due to COVID-19. World number one Novak Djokovic has confirmed he will play at the major.

Women’s world number one Ashleigh Barty, Elina Svitolina, Kiki Bertens, and Nick Kyrgios have also withdrawn from the tournament, while Andy Murray is expected to compete after being granted a wildcard.

Ankit Tiwari sings his first devotional track

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Ankit Tiwari sings his first devotional track

Ankit Tiwari has carved his niche as one of the most popular romantic voices in new-age Bollywood, but the singer-composer has gone for a whole new makeover now. He has recorded his first devotional song.

The hitmaker who scored “Teri galliyan” and “Katra Katra, has sung “Jai Ganesh deva art”.

“This is my first-ever devotional track and as all good things start with Lord Ganesha, I am happy that this is my first song as a singer in the devotional genre,” Ankit said.

The song is part of a new album, “Raja Ganpati”, which has 10 tracks by popular singers and composers like Vishal-Shekhar, Shankar Mahadevan, and Neeti Mohan.

“This year we will all be celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi in our homes and these aartis and songs recreated by Dipesh Varma will add that touch of magic that we all might miss this year. It felt great to collaborate on a track that is an expression of the devotion of millions, after such a long time,” said Vishal and Shekhar.

Shankar Mahadevan said: “While all festivals will be celebrated differently this year, I find myself extremely lucky to be celebrating this with my family. Singing and recording this devotional track with my sons Siddharth and Shivam was an enriching experience. From my family to yours, here’s wishing you a very Happy Ganesh Chaturthi.”

Veteran actress Hema Malini, and her daughters Esha Deol and Ahana Deol Vohra have also sung together for the first time.

Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G: Love at first sight

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Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G: Love at first sight

Love at first sight with the Mystic Bronze will not be a superlative, so to say. The color is just an excuse, an outward experience while real love lies in the heart of the phablet that offers pleasure, joy, productivity, and more.

The color gives a soft neutral tone that transcends changing trends with a brand new, textured haze effect that cuts down on fingerprints and smudges.

Here are the first impressions.

For the first time in the Note series, The 6.9-inch Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G offers a vivid and bright Dynamic AMOLED 2X display and 120Hz refresh rate, delivering buttery smooth visuals on our best screen yet, which automatically adjusts to the content being viewed to optimize battery life

Sporting an all-day intelligent battery and super-fast charging capabilities can get more than 50 percent charge in just 30 minutes.

Another first on the device is the ‘Nearby Share’ feature for quick and easy sharing on Galaxy Note20 Ultra.

By simply pointing Galaxy Note20 Ultra to other Ultra-Wideband (UWB) equipped Galaxy devices, Nearby Share will automatically list the people you’re facing on to the top of your sharing panel.

Future UWB functionality will also help find things more accurately with AR technology and unlock your home as a digital key.

The enhanced S Pen which is a favorite among Note loyalists and multitaskers offers ultimate writing experience this time.

The S Pen’s five new ‘Anywhere’ actions make touchless navigation of your device – like returning to the home screen or taking a screenshot – as simple as a flick of the wrist.

On the device, Microsoft’s Your Phone app with Link to Windows integration will now enable the users to easily access mobile apps directly from Windows 10 PC without disrupting the flow.

With 21:9 aspect ratio and 24fps recording, the device’s 8K camera now gives you access to ultra-high resolution and a professional quality video experience.

Use powerful Pro Video mode with pro-grade focus, audio, exposure, zoom speed control, and 120 fps video at FHD for cinematic-style videos.

You can also control audio sources on the Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G, adjusting gain and selecting between onboard mics or external sources, so the sound you want comes through clearly.

Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G comes with Corning Gorilla Glass 7, which is the toughest-ever glass on a smartphone.

It supports eSIM by Airtel and Jio and the service is coming soon on Vodafone.

For Rs 104,999, you will get to ride a Ferrari in the world of smartphones!

Wikipedia locks Musk’s page after he asks Twitterati to ‘trash’ him

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Wikipedia locks Musk’s page after he asks Twitterati to ‘trash’ him

Multi-billionaire tech mogul Elon Musks Wikipedia page has been locked for editing after Tesla CEO encouraged people to “trash” him on the site.

“History is written by the victors… except on Wikipedia,” Musk tweeted on Sunday.

In a follow-up tweet, he told his followers to “trash” him on the site, which typically allows anyone to edit its pages.

“Please trash me on Wikipedia, I’m begging you,” Musk said.

The Tesla and SpaceX CEO responded to many of his followers who took up the challenge and shared their edits.

“All major wars, diseases and financial disasters of the last century can be directly attributed to Mr. Musk or one of his companies,” one user edited the page to say, before sending the update straight to Musk, who signaled his approval.

Musk also approved of a suggestion to edit his page to describe him as a “business magnet” instead of a “business magnate.”

Due to the overwhelming traffic on Musk’s Wikipedia page, Musk’s Wikipedia page was quickly locked by the company, which limited changes to only editors approved by the site itself.

This is not the first time Musk has mentioned Wikipedia on Twitter. Earlier, he expressed disappointment with the site and its accuracy, especially regarding him.

“Just looked at my wiki for 1st time in years. It’s insane! Btw, can someone please delete ‘investor.’ I do basically zero investing,” Musk tweeted last year.

Another Vikas Dubey aide arrested

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Another Vikas Dubey aide arrested

Rajendra Mishra, another aide of gangster Vikas Dubey and father of slain Prabhat Mishra, who was carrying a reward of Rs 50,000, has been arrested from near a factory in Shivrajpur area.

Superintendent of Police (Rural) Brajesh Srivastava said Mishra was wanted under sections 147, 148, 149, 302, 307, 394, 120b, 7 Criminal Law Amendment Act (CLA) and 3/25 Arms Act in connection with Bikru shootout on July 3 in which eight policemen were killed.”

The SP said that Mishra was caught near a factory on Sunday while he was going to the place of an acquaintance to seek help for his surrender before the court.

“During questioning, Mishra broke down and confessed that he and his son had opened fire from a pistol at the police party on July 3.

Mishra’s son Prabhat, who was named in the case, was arrested from Haryana’s Faridabad a week after the massacre and was gunned down by police when he tried to flee.

Srivastava further said, the accused, who had confessed to his crime, besides his son, also gave names of his other co-accused, including gangster Vikas Dubey, Amar Dubey, Atul Dubey, Prem Kumar, Prabhat Mishra, Bauwan, Heeru, Shivam, Ziledar, Ram Singh, Ramesh Chandra, Gopal Saini, Akhilesh Mishra, Vipul, Shyamu Bajpai, Rajendra Mishra, Bal Govind and Daya Shankar.

Most of the above mentioned have either been killed in encounters or have been arrested.

The police official said that now police will try to find where the weapons used in the ambush were hidden or disposed of.

Bhumi Pednekar urges all to opt for eco-friendly Ganpati idols

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Bhumi Pednekar urges all to opt for eco-friendly Ganpati idols

Actress Bhumi Pednekar says there are sustainable ways to celebrate the Ganpati festival and urged everyone to choose eco-friendly idols.

“This is my favorite festival and we have been celebrating Ganpati for years in my family. Since I have been on this journey of climate conservation, I have realized that there are better ways of celebrating this festival, more sustainable ways. Nature is God, God is nature. We have to find better alternatives,” said Bhumi, who is also an environmental activist.

Bhumi has joined hands with sculptor and environment activist Dattadri from Maharashtra to spread the message. Dattadri specializes in making tree Ganpati idols with seeds planted inside the idol. The idol can be immersed in clay pots once the festivities are over.

She will also upload several Do-It-Yourself (DIY) ways of making Ganpati idols at home that are eco-friendly.

“I really hope that concepts like these are adopted by citizens, to spread the message of ecological conservation to the next generations. I hope people are inspired to act and choose environment-friendly alternatives like this, which are revolutionary ideas to protect our country,” she said.

Bhumi added: “We have to work to change the mindset of people and try and make them realize that you can celebrate festivals with gusto but in the most environmentally conscious way too.”

Germany launches new antitrust probe into Amazon: Report

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Germany launches new antitrust probe into Amazon: Report

Germany’s competition watchdog has begun a fresh investigation into whether the eCommerce giant Amazon is abusing its dominant market position in the country.

In an interview with the German media outlet Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), the President of the Federal Cartel Office, Andreas Mundt, said the country is probing Amazon’s relationship with the third-party sellers on its website.

“Amazon must not be a price controller. We are investigating whether and how Amazon influences how traders set prices on the marketplace,” Mundt was quoted as saying.

Amazon was yet to react to the report.

“Price fixing is not tolerated even in the (coronavirus) crisis,” Mundt said.

Amazon is also facing a similar antitrust probe in the European Union (EU).

The European Commission announced the antitrust investigation to assess whether Amazon’s use of sensitive data from independent retailers who sell on its marketplace is in breach of EU competition rules.

Testifying before a US panel last month, Amazon Founder and CEO Jeff Bezos said that he cannot guarantee the company employees have not accessed third party seller data.

His response came during an antitrust hearing by a US Congress panel amid criticism that the workers of the online retail giant look into data of independent sellers on its platform to curate its own competing products.

Amazon said it does not access sales data from independent sellers to help develop its own products.

For years, Amazon has been dogged by allegations that it uses its dominance to identify and enter into new product categories using its unique lens into inside information on third party seller data.

Jennifer Brady clinches 1st WTA title at Top Seed Open

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Jennifer Brady clinches 1st WTA title at Top Seed Open

America’s Jennifer Brady clinched her first WTA title after defeating Switzerland’s Jil Teichmann in the summit clash of the Top Seed Open.

Brady didn’t have to break much sweat as she defeated Teichmann 6-3, 6-4 in a match which lasted one hour and 42 minutes on Sunday.

“It feels great to win my first title,” she said after the match as per the WTA website. “There’s only one winner each week, so walking away with the trophy for the first time, at home in America, I’m really happy.”

“I’ve always wanted to win a WTA title, and everything I ever imagined turned out to be a reality,” she added.

The 25-year-old began 2020 with a big win over former World No.1 Maria Sharapova en route to the Brisbane International quarterfinals as a qualifier. She followed that up at the Dubai Duty-Free Tennis Championships, again battling through qualifiers before shocking both Elina Svitolina and two-time Grand Slam champion Garbine Muguruza to make the semi-finals of the tournament.

Meanwhile, in doubles, Haley Carter and Luisa Stefani won their second title as a team in Lexington as they ousted Marie Bouzkova, who paired with Teichmann 6-1, 7-5 in the final match.

Corona death toll surges past 50K, India’s tally crosses 26L

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Corona death toll surges past 50K, India’s tally crosses 26L

India’s novel coronavirus tally crossed the 26-lakh mark on Monday with 57,981 new cases in 24 hours, while the death toll climbed to 50,921 with 941 more fatalities, said the Health Ministry.

Out of the total 2,647,663 cases, recoveries have surged to 1,751,555 with a record 57,584 more people recuperating in the past 24 hours, taking the recovery rate to nearly 72.51 percent. The actual caseload of the country is the active cases, which currently stand at 6,76,900.

The country had touched the two-million mark on August 7 and added more than six lakh cases in ten days. The silver lining, however, is that the gap between recoveries and active cases is growing every day. Currently, recoveries are over 12 lakh more than the active cases.

As far as the death toll is concerned, the country had registered its first death on March 13 and crossed the 25,000-mark on July 17. The next 25,000 deaths were logged in the span of a month.

Notably, the case fatality rate, which is the proportion of people who die from the disease among individuals diagnosed, has dropped to 1.93 percent, the ministry said.

As many as 7,31,697 samples were tested on Sunday, taking the total to 3,00,41,400 samples being tested to date, according to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).

Maharashtra remained the worst-hit state with a total of 5,95,865 cases and 20,037 deaths; followed by Tamil Nadu with 3,38,055 cases and 5,766 deaths. The southern state is followed by Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh.

At the global front, the overall number of global coronavirus cases has topped 21.5 million, while the deaths were nearing 774,000, according to Johns Hopkins University.

As of Monday morning, the total number of cases stood at 21,598,893 and the fatalities rose to 773,934, the University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed in its latest update.

The US accounted for the world’s highest number of infections and fatalities at 5,403,213 and 170,052, respectively, according to the CSSE. Brazil came in second place with 3,340,197 infections and 107,852 deaths.

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