Lockdown in Himachal’s industrial hub till Tuesday morning

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As the coronavirus cases spike in its industrial hub of Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh in Himachal Pradesh, the local administration has announced compete for lockdown for two days from Saturday midnight to curb the spread.

An order by the District Magistrate says the movement of people would be completely restricted till 6 a.m. on July 28.

The local authorities have been directed to make arrangements to enforce the lockdown and maintain law and order.

At least 384 cases have been reported from the Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh belt in Solan district to date.

Currently, the state has 781 cases and 1,145 have been cured so far.

Indian couple sues USCIS for work permit delays

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Indian couple sues USCIS for work permit delays

An Indian couple waiting in a years-long backlog for a green card has initiated a lawsuit against the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) over delays in sending approved printed work permits, a media report said.

Filed in Ohio federal court on Wednesday, the lawsuit on behalf of Ranjitha Subramanya, claims that the USCIS is arbitrarily refusing to print work permit cards after approving them, leaving visa-holders unable to show their American employers that they are authorized to work in the US, the American Bazaar said in the report on Friday.

Subramanya, an Indian citizen came to the US on an H-1B specialty occupation visa to work at Nationwide Insurance.

She later changed her status to an H-4 visa, reserved for spouses of H-1B holders, through her husband’s H-1B visa, which is valid through June 2023, according to the lawsuit.

According to Subramanya’s lawyer, Robert H. Cohen, her husband, also an Indian citizen, has an approved green card petition, but the couple is stuck in a green card backlog.

Subramanya applied to extend her H-4 work permit in December 2019, and USCIS approved the request in April. Typically, the printed card is issued within a few days of the approval, the suit says.

However, despite multiple calls and requests to the agency, Subramanya still didn’t have her printed card by June, when her previous work permit expired, the American Bazaar report quoted the lawsuit as saying.

She was forced to leave her job then, and her employer has told her that she will be terminated permanently if she does not have her work permit by August.

Cohen told the media that the lawsuit was “born out of extreme frustration”.

“We’ve made every effort that we could, but USCIS is not a user-friendly agency anymore,” he was quoted as saying.

“We had just reached the end of what we could do short of filing a lawsuit.”

The suit also argues that USCIS is depriving foreign workers of the work permits they are legally owed in violation of their constitutional rights, and alleges that the agency is sitting on a backlog of at least 75,000 unprinted employment authorization documents, or EADs.

The current production backlog is roughly 115,000 green cards and employment authorization documents, CNN reported citing a USCIS spokesperson, with the oldest pending card order in the queue from July 6.

Covid collateral damage hits Agra’s developmental projects

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Covid collateral damage hits Agra’s developmental projects

Gloom is writ large on the industrial canvas of Agra. The industries in the Taj Trapezium Zone which were earlier hit by the anti-pollution campaign, are now feeling the heat due to Covid-19.

Agra’s local industries including the tourism sector have taken a big hit as the Covid-19 pandemic shows no signs of relenting. The mood is despondent, as the city observes the 55-hour long lockdown again from Saturday.

The district administration is clearly alarmed as in the past 24 hours 23 cases were reported. The June daily average was below ten. in July it has gone up to between 15-20 daily. As testing facilities have increased more people are coming forward. The home quarantine facility has also come as a relief to those who can afford it. The private hospitals are now open to admitting patients for treatment. Health officials said the district was fully prepared with more than a thousand beds.

With the 97th death on Friday, the total number of Covid-19 cases in Agra stands at 1,604. The number of active cases is 206. So far 1,301 have recovered and discharged. The number of samples tested till Friday is 38,869. The administration has opened 18 centers in the rural areas and ten in the urban areas for the rapid antigen tests.

The MP border has been sealed for three days. Hundreds of vehicles were refused permission to enter Gwalior from the Agra side.

The chief worry of the locals is the huge setback to the small and cottage industries in Agra. For almost four months now, the conditions have remained critical threatening the existence of this sector which employs lakhs of people. Tourism and the leather shoe industry have also been hit hard. “To date, there is no clarity when conditions would normalize. The Taj Mahal remains closed. The hundreds of big and small hotels dependent on the historical monuments are shut, though some big ones are planning to open from August 1.”

The shoe industry that provides work to over three lakh people, is in peril, though a handful of exporters have been able to begin their operations to meet pending demands and export obligations. But new orders are rare. The cottage industries, which mostly run from homes, see no future, for the time being, till restrictions on mobility are fully removed. Festivals are opportunities for big sales, but the pandemic has forced restrictions of all kinds, says a small shoe industry owner of Joni Mandi.

Badly hit by Covid-19 is the famous Agra Petha industry, in the small industry sector. As visitors are not coming to Agra, petha sales have been badly hit. The sale at railway stations has also come down as there are fewer trains now.

Agra being a hub of small scale industries is now feeling the heat, as unemployment stares and cripples the hopes of lakhs of people here. The iron foundries, the generator-sets manufacturers, the handicrafts industry, are facing an uncertain future. The Firozabad glass industry is equally in the doldrums. Glass bangles which used to be supplied all over India ahead of the festivals, Teej and Raksha Bandhan, find fewer buyers, due to the pandemic. In Mathura, the sale of sweets, Peda and shringar samigri of Sri Krishna, which was exported before Sri Krishna Janamashtmi, has been badly hit.

The industrialists in Agra have approached the state government, for relief in taxes, cut in power consumption bills, and some reliefs on interests from banks for loans. “Though the state and the union governments have announced so many schemes as part of the bailout packages, no one is showing any interest in taking a loan. No startups or new units have come up and the existing units are facing a grim crisis. If you walk through the Nunihai and the Foundry Nagar industrial estates you will observe the thick dark clouds of gloom,” said a factory owner.

Industries in the whole Taj Trapezium Zone, including districts of Firozabad, Mathura, and Agra, are in the thick of trouble, with no early respite in sight. “The government Babus are holding meetings for opening new units, but no one is concerned about the old and the existing industries that are facing closure, for a variety of reasons. The migration of workers to the rural hinterland is a temporary phase, but sooner or later they will all return as there is no work in the villages. How will such a large human resource be utilized gainfully,” asked an industrialist running an iron foundry?

The drop in sale of properties and suspension of construction activities has deprived a large number of people of work and means of livelihood. Builders are reluctant to start new projects as they do not see any early revival of the economy to boost the purchasing capacity of the people, according to a contractor of the city, Hari Dutt Sharma.

The state government has already shelved some big developmental projects. The Agra Development Authority (ADA) is not taking up any new projects and is busy disposing of its unused properties at cost price. A major chunk of the earning of the ADA is from the toll collected from the historical monuments in Agra. “Now that there are no visitors or domestic tourists coming to Agra, the ADA is on the backfoot and refusing to undertake any developmental projects.”

Similar is the fate of a large number of public schools and the elite institutions that thrived on fat fees. Now the parents are protesting and demanding major cuts in fees. The school managements have not relented but the prospect of schools reopening any time before Dussehra holidays seem remote. The online classes run by many schools have created many new problems.

Hima Das dedicates upgraded gold medal to COVID-19 warriors

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Hima Das dedicates upgraded gold medal to COVID-19 warriors

Ace sprinter Hima Das has dedicated the upgraded gold medal of the mixed relay event at the 2018 Asian Games to the coronavirus warriors, including the police officers and doctors, who are working selflessly amid the pandemic.

“I would like to dedicate my upgraded gold medal of 4×400 mixed relay event of Asian Games 2018 to police, doctors, and all other coronawarriors who are working selflessly in these difficult times of COVID-19 to ensure our safety and good health. Respect for all corona warriors,” Das said in a tweet.

According to the latest data available on the website of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of COVID-19 cases in India has reached 13,36,861 of which 31,388 people have lost their lives while 8,49,432 have recovered. The total number of active cases is 4,56,071 cases. The ministry stated that the recovery rate is 63.53 percent.

On Thursday, the silver medal that the Indian 4×400 mixed relay quartet of Mohammed Anas, M.R. Poovamma, Das, and Arokia Rajiv had won in Jakarta was upgraded to gold. This happened after the Bahrain squad, which finished first in the final, was disqualified with Kemi Adekoya of Bahrain being handed a four-year ban by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) for failing a dope test.

India’s initial tally of 69 medals at the 2018 Asian Games has thus now improved to 70. The new breakdown of medals for India is now 16 gold, 23 silver, and 31 bronze.

Any pilot targeted will be compensated through contribution: ICPA

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Any pilot targeted will be compensated through contribution: ICPA

Guarding against penal action by the Air India management against the pilots, the Indian Commercial Pilots’ Association (ICPA) on Friday passed a resolution that if any pilot is targeted by the management, he will be compensated through contribution.

“It has been hereby resolved by the CEC of the ICPA that if any pilot/s, irrespective of the grade, is targeted by the management, the affected pilot/s will be financially compensated by way of equal contribution,” the ICPA resolution said.

“The said compensation will be either the last drawn pay or immediate senior’s pay, whichever is higher. The compensation payout will continue till such time the affected pilot/s are reinstated or employed as a pilot. Legal expenses, if any, will also be covered by the ICPA. This resolution will be in force for a period of five years with immediate effect,” the ICPA said.

The ICPA has been raising several issues with the Air India management on the pay cut issue.

Air India pilots have told the management that while austerity measures are heaped on the pilots, the senior officials and management are enjoying lavish perks like free club memberships, scores of leased cars, and hundreds of liters of free fuel every month, and there has been no cutback.

In a letter to Rajiv Bansal, Chairman and Managing Director, Air India, the pilots’ associations said, “It is not only unprincipled for the senior officials to exclude their perks, eligibilities, and entitlements from the austerity measures, but also irrefutable proof that the intent of the management’s cost-cutting measures is to further the agenda of abusing employees under the guise of this epidemic.”

In a letter, the Indian Commercial Pilots’ Association and the Indian Pilots’ Guild said that for the past few months, it is being said that Air India’s finances are in dire straits, there is no money coming in from the government and drastic cost-cutting is required else the airline will have to shut down.

“However, this doomsaying seems to be reserved for pilots alone. To date, the management is yet to come up with a meaningful austerity measure that even dents the perks and privileges being enjoyed by the senior Air India officials,” the letter said.

The pilots said that the factors of redundancy and efficiency as per the compulsory leave without pay scheme should first apply to the officials of the senior management from 2016, who are directly responsible for the bungled decision making that has seen Air India’s losses mount year after year.

MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan tests positive for Covid-19

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MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan tests positive for Covid-19

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has tested positive for Covid-19. This information was shared by himself on his Twitter handle.

In the tweet, Chouhan wrote, “My dear people, I was having symptoms of #COVID19, after the test my report has come positive. I appeal to all my colleagues that whoever has come in contact with me, get corona test done. People close to me must move to quarantine.”

In another tweet, Chouhan said, “I am following all the guidelines of #COVID19. I will quarantine myself according to the doctor’s advice. I appeal to the people of my state to be careful, just a little carelessness invites coronavirus. I made every effort to avoid it, but people used to come and meet me for various reasons.”

Shivraj Singh Chouhan said in his absence Ministers Narottam Mishra, Bhupendra Singh, Vishwas Sarang will hold meetings adding that, “I myself will continue to make every effort to control #COVID19 during treatment.”

Earlier, State Cooperative Minister Arvind Bhadoria had also found to be coronavirus positive. He continues to be under treatment.

Galaxy S20 will soon replace physical ID for German citizens

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Galaxy S20 will soon replace physical ID for German citizens

Samsung has partnered with the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI), Bundesdruckerei (bdr), and Deutsche Telekom Security GmbH to allow its Galaxy S20 series to become the first smartphones capable of serving as official ID in the European nation.

To enable this e-identification process in Germany, the German government and Samsung are developing an app that will be available on the Play Store, utilizing the framework created by the manufacturer to store IDs securely.

“We are incredibly proud that our Galaxy S20 series was the first line of mobile devices to meet such high-security standards set out by the BSI. We always strive to offer the highest level of protection possible for our users,” Daniel Ahn, Corporate SVP and Head of Security Team at Mobile Communications Business, Samsung Electronics, said in a statement.

“As we continue to move towards digitization, our goal is to ensure that mobile users around the world can enjoy these new services with true peace of mind, knowing that we will keep them safe,” Ahn added.

The eID service will only be offered in countries that issue ID cards with NFC support.

The Samsung Galaxy S20 lineup, including the Galaxy S20, Galaxy S20+ and Galaxy S20 Ultra, will be the first smartphone to comply with the BSI’s eID security framework for sovereign use.

According to the company, security-wise, the Galaxy S20 family has embedded Secure Element (eSE) that stores all the sensitive data on a separate processor inside the phone with proper isolation and protection against hardware attacks.

Meanwhile, Apple is also planning to upgrade iPhones with technology that would replace physical documents such as library cards, driver’s licenses, passports, and other documents used for verification.

There have been a series of various patent applications that have been submitted, all with the name Providing Verified Claims of User Identity.

Pesticides ban unlikely to dent agrochem revenues much: Report

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Pesticides ban unlikely to dent agrochem revenues much: Report

The government’s proposal to ban 27 pesticides, accounting for 15-20 percent of the Rs 45,000 crore organized agrochemical sector revenue, is unlikely to impact manufacturers materially due to a troika of reasons, rating agency CRISIL said.

First, the ban is unlikely to be implemented in the current fiscal due to the COVID pandemic and as seen in the past, such bans are implemented in a phased manner. Second, manufacturers are getting ready with substitutes, given that ban on some of these products was anticipated, And third, exports of these products (40 percent of revenues) are being permitted on a case to case basis, the agency said in its report on the sector.

An analysis of 31 CRISIL-rated agrochemicals firms, accounting for 87 percent of the organized agrochemicals sector revenue in fiscal 2020, shows as many as 25 of them generate less than 15 percent of their revenue from the pesticides proposed to be banned. The balance six have 15-50 percent exposure, and of these, many also have a high share of exports.

The government issued a draft ban order in May 2020, citing the high toxicity level of these 27 pesticides, and their impact on soil health. These products were initially identified based on the recommendations of the Verma committee made in 2015.

The government has sought responses from stakeholders by mid-August 2020.

Given the pandemic-induced challenges faced by both, farmers and agricultural input suppliers, the government is likely to implement the final ban only from the next fiscal, that too in a phased manner, the analysis said.

Besides, over 50 percent of annual sales of these products will be completed in the ongoing Kharif season of fiscal 2021.

According to Sameer Charania, Director, CRISIL Ratings, “Anticipating the ban, most firms had already begun to diversify their product basket and geographical reach in recent years. That, along with the expected phased implementation of the final order, will allow firms to realign their product portfolio through generic substitutes and co-marketing opportunities, and soften the blow on revenues.”

Additionally, the government is permitting exports, which account for 40 percent of revenue for these products, on a case-to-case basis. Notably, 20 of these 27 pesticides are exported to regions such as Latin America, the United States, Asia Pacific, and European Union, where there is no ban on their usage. In the past, too, the government allowed exports of banned products where firms had contractual obligations.

Net-net, therefore, there will be only a modest impact on revenues.

“Considering the ban will be implemented in phases in the domestic market, we expect revenue growth for the CRISIL sample set to moderate by 200-400 basis points (bps) over the medium term, compared with healthy 10-12 percent growth anticipated for fiscal 2021. Also, operating profitability, which stood at 16-17 percent in fiscal 2020, could moderate 100-150 bps, given that the banned products enjoy healthy margins,” said Rajeswari Karthigeyan, Associate Director, CRISIL Ratings.

The ban is unlikely to impact the credit profiles of agrochemical firms, which have strengthened over time due to steady demand and profitability as well as prudent capital spending and working capital management. The estimated median gearing and interest cover of the sample set stood at an estimated 0.47 times and 6 times, respectively, at the end of fiscal 2020, providing for sufficient loss absorption capacity.

That said, 10 percent of the sample set with a high share of these 27 products (25-50 percent of revenue) and limited alternative products will be vulnerable to the ban.

Singaporean pleads guilty to spying for China in US

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Singaporean pleads guilty to spying for China in US

A Singaporean man pleaded guilty to acting under the direction of Chinese intelligence officials to obtain sensitive information from Americans, the US Justice Department said.

Yeo Jun Wei pleaded guilty on Friday in a federal court in Washington D.C. to one count of acting within the US as an illegal foreign agent, the Singapore-based Straits Times quoted the Department as saying.

Court documents said that he used his political consultancy in the US as a front to collect information for Chinese intelligence, targeting American military and government employees with security clearances on professional networking social media sites.

Yeo would pay them to write reports which he said were meant for clients in Asia, but which were in reality sent to the Chinese government without their knowledge.

He was recruited in 2015 by China intelligence operatives during a visit to Beijing, where he gave a presentation on the political situation in South-east Asia, according to the documents.

In a ” statement of facts” submitted to the court and signed by Yeo, he admitted he was fully aware he was working for Chinese intelligence, meeting agents dozens of times, and being given special treatment when he traveled to China, the Straits Times reported.

He received over 400 resumes, 90 per cent of which were from US military and government personnel with security clearances, and passed resumes of interest on to a Chinese intelligence operative.

Yeo eventually moved to Washington D.C. from January to July 2019, where he attended multiple events at think-tanks to network and recruit more people to write reports.

He was arrested when he returned to the US in November that year to try and get a US army officer working at the Pentagon to provide more confidential information.

Researchers identify 21 existing drugs that could treat Covid-19

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Researchers identify 21 existing drugs that could treat Covid-19

A global team of scientists has identified 21 existing drugs that stop the replication of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

Notably, four of these compounds were found to work synergistically with redeliver, a current standard-of-care treatment for Covid-19, said the study published in the journal Nature.

“Remdesivir has proven successful at shortening the recovery time for patients in the hospital, but the drug doesn’t work for everyone who receives it. That’s not good enough,” said senior author of the study Sumit Chanda, Professor at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute in California, US.

“As infection rates continue to rise in America and around the world, the urgency remains to find affordable, effective, and readily available drugs that can complement the use of remdesivir, as well as drugs that could be given prophylactically or at the first sign of infection on an outpatient basis.”

In the study, the research team performed extensive testing and validation studies, including evaluating the drugs on human lung biopsies that were infected with the virus.

They also evaluated the drugs for synergies with redelivering and established dose-response relationships between the drugs and antiviral activity.

Of the 21 drugs that were effective at blocking viral replication, the scientists found 13 have previously entered clinical trials for other indications and are effective at concentrations, or doses, that could potentially be safely achieved in Covid-19 patients.

Two are already approved by the US Food and Drug Administration: astemizole (allergies), clofazimine (leprosy), and redeliver has received emergency use authorization from the agency (Covid-19).

Four worked synergistically with redeliver, including the chloroquine derivative hanfangchin A (tetrandrine), an antimalarial drug that has reached Phase 3 clinical trials.

“This study significantly expands the possible therapeutic options for Covid-19 patients, especially since many of the molecules already have clinical safety data in humans,” said Chanda.

“This report provides the scientific community with a larger arsenal of potential weapons that may help bring the ongoing global pandemic to heel.”

The researchers are currently testing all 21 compounds in small animal models and “mini lungs,” or lung organoids, that mimic human tissue.

If these studies are favorable, the team will approach the US FDA to discuss clinical trials evaluating the drugs as treatments for Covid-19.

“Based on our current analysis, clofazimine, hanfangchin A, applied, and ONO 5334 represent the best near-term options for an effective Covid-19 treatment,” said Chanda.

“While some of these drugs are currently in clinical trials for Covid-19, we believe it’s important to pursue additional drug candidates so we have multiple therapeutic options if SARS-CoV-2 becomes drug-resistant.”

The drugs were first identified by high-throughput screening of more than 12,000 drugs from the ReFRAME drug repurposing collection — the most comprehensive drug repurposing collection of compounds that have been approved by the FDA for other diseases or that have been tested extensively for human safety.

8-yr-old boy abducted from UP’s Gonda rescued; 5 held

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8-yr-old boy abducted from UP’s Gonda rescued; 5 held

After the failure in the Kanpur botched up kidnapping case of a lab technician, Uttar Pradesh Police on Saturday heaved a sigh of relief as they managed to save an 8-year-old boy who was abducted from Gonda. The STF team after a brief encounter with the kidnappers early on Saturday recovered the child and arrested five kidnappers, including a woman.

The abduction was reported on Friday afternoon. Following which the kidnappers asked for a Rs 4 crore ransom and even dared the family against reporting the case to the police. Telephone conversation made public showed the woman reminding the family that nexus with police does not pay off as they must have seen in the Vikas Dubey case.

During the encounter, two kidnappers were shot in the leg.

ADG Law and Order Prashant Kumar told the media that several police teams were deployed after the FIR of the kidnapping were lodged.

He said the encounter took place on Saturday morning on the information of an informer in the Para village of Gonda district. The kidnappers were taking the boy to another place by car, he added.

Two kidnappers who were shot in the leg have been identified as Umesh Yadav and Deepu Kashyap. The other persons who have been arrested include Suraj Pandey, his wife Chitra Pandey and his younger brother Raj Pandey.

The injured kidnappers have been admitted in a hospital for treatment. A car, one pistol and two country-made weapons have been recovered from them.

Prashant Kumar said that a reward of Rs 1 lakh each has been announced by the government to STF and local police. The matter is being investigated and more people involved in the case are being traced to the information of those arrested.

The incident of kidnapping took place on Friday afternoon around 1.30 p.m. at the Karnailganj area of Gonda district. The kidnappers approached the house of a local businessman Hari Gupta who is a grocery store owner.

The kidnappers identified themselves as volunteers distributing masks and sanitizers and grabbed the child, who is the grandson of Gupta.

This comes just a day after a daring attempt was made in the national capital by two men to snatch away a 4-year-old child from his mother right from their doorstep. Spirited fight by the mother saved the boy as neighbors chased the culprits, who were later nabbed by the police.

The family came to know about the kidnapping when the miscreants called up the child’s father and Gupta’s son. The kidnappers asked him to arrange for Rs 4 crore as ransom.

RR COO hopes new documentary will excite fans ahead of IPL 13

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RR COO hopes new documentary will excite fans ahead of IPL 13

Inside Story, A Season with Rajasthan Royals uncovers the journey of the franchise through the 2019 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Produced by Red Bull Media House, the three-part documentary series available exclusively on Jio TV, Jio Cinemas, and Jio Tv+ includes interviews and never-before-seen footage from the Royals camp.

Featuring stars like skipper Steve Smith, Ben Stokes, Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag, the documentary brings fans the journey of the season that wasn’t one of the best for the team.

The documentary has been in works since March 2019 when Rajasthan Royals agreed to let a film crew follow them through the season.

Speaking on the release of the documentary series, Rajasthan Royals’ COO Jake Lush McCrum said, “We are delighted to launch this documentary to entertain both Royals fans and sports lovers around the world during this challenging time. We hope this will increase the excitement and anticipation of the 800 million IPL fans.”

“We are proud, as a brand and franchise, to be launching this documentary after bringing together two of our major partners, and world leaders, in Jio and Red Bull. The documentary is an extension of our plans to keep our fans engaged 365 days of the year, bringing them ever closer to the franchise,” added McCrum.

The BCCI is planning to stage IPL 13 from September 19 to November 8 in UAE.

India adds nearly 1L more cases within 48 hours (Ld)

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India adds nearly 1L more cases within 48 hours (Ld)

Even as India races to develop a cure for the Covid-19 virus, and despite all safety protocols in place for the last four months to contain the pandemic outbreak, the number of infectees is increasing drastically each day. A total of 48,916 fresh cases were reported on Saturday after 49,310 on Friday taking the total to 98,226 — touching almost a lakh in less than two days.

In the last 24 hours, 787 people succumbed to the deadly virus, as there is a huge surge in cases in the hinterlands.

According to the latest data available on the website of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of cases in India reached 13,36,861 of which 31,388 people have lost their lives while 8,49,432 have recovered. The total number of active cases is 4,56,071 cases. The ministry stated that the recovery rate is 63.53 percent.

The highest spike in cases was reported from Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, and Andhra Pradesh.

Maharashtra has recorded 3,57,117 COVID cases out of which 13,132 people have lost their lives, followed by Tamil Nadu with total 1,99,749 cases, and 3,320 deaths.

Delhi has registered 1,28,389 cases out of which 3,777 people have lost their lives.

Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Sikkim, Manipur, and Mizoram administrations have effectively implemented that safety protocol for the last four months. These places have reported zero deaths so far and the recovery rate is more than 60 percent.

Ladakh has reported two deaths due to Covid-19 so far, there are 209 active cases. A total of 1,035 people have recovered from the deadly virus. Nagaland has recorded one death, the active Covid-19 cases in the state are 701 and 537 people have recovered.

The government is making all efforts to come up with a vaccine against the novel coronavirus so that human lives can be saved. The authorities have started human trials of indigenous vaccines in six cities.

Covid-19: Odisha reports 10 deaths, 1,320 new cases

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Covid-19: Odisha reports 10 deaths, 1,320 new cases

Odisha reported 10 more Covid-19 deaths, highest in a single day, taking the state’s total death toll to 130, informed the health department on Saturday.

The deaths have been reported from Ganjam (3), Balasore (2), Sundergarh (2), Rayagada (1), Jharsuguda (1), and Gajapati (1) districts.

The positive tally also mounted to 24,013 with a huge spike of 1,320 new cases in the last 24 hours.

While 887 cases have been reported from different hotspot areas, the remaining 433 are local contacts, said the department.

Hotspot Ganjam district recorded 560 cases followed by Khordha (174), Gajapati (90), Puri (90), and Rayagada (65).

The number of active cases in the state rose to 8,650 while 15,200 patients have recovered so far.

2 terrorists gunned down in Kashmir encounter

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2 terrorists gunned down in Kashmir encounter

Two terrorists have been killed in an encounter with the security forces at Ranbirgarh Panzinara on the outskirts of Srinagar on Saturday, officials said.

IG Police Vijay Kumar told IANS that two terrorists have been killed in the encounter.

The identity of the killed terrorists has not been ascertained yet.

Earlier, the security forces launched the operation on the basis of specific intelligence input.

As a joint party of the Police, CRPF and the Army zeroed in on the spot where the terrorists were hiding, they came under a heavy volume of fire that triggered the encounter.

Arms and ammunition have been recovered from the slain terrorists.

Lili Reinhart on battling anxiety amid Covid pandemic

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Lili Reinhart on battling anxiety amid Covid pandemic

Actress Lili Reinhart has been dealing with anxiety issues amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

In a conversation with author Sylvester McNutt on Instagram, Lili spoke about how the pandemic has affected her mental health, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

“I stress myself out all the time. Going to the post office … I really don’t want to drive to the post office. It gives me anxiety because I don’t want to leave my dog, I don’t want to have to deal with going out in public. I don’t want to deal with the mask thing, I would (wear a mask), but I don’t want to put myself in a stressful environment. I get myself hyped up about very dumb things,” she said.

The “Riverdale” fame actress revealed that she has been struggling with anxiety since she was in school.

“I really struggled during school. Obviously, I couldn’t escape that situation, I didn’t have a choice. I started getting panic attacks when I was in 8th grade so I think I was thirteen and every day in my 8th grade year I would cry in the morning,” she revealed.

Honor partners Flipkart to enter laptop segment in India

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Honor partners Flipkart to enter laptop segment in India

Chinese smartphone maker Honor on Saturday announced its partnership with Flipkart to enter the laptop segment with MagicBook 15 device in the country.

The company is geared up to enter the laptop market with the MagicBook 15 notebook launch on July 31.

“Our partnership with Flipkart goes a long way and we are delighted to mark our foray into the Indian laptop industry with our first flagship laptop – Honor MagicBook 15,” Charles Peng, President, Honor India said in a statement.

Honor aims to take its commitment of strengthening the brand’s all-scenario, 1+8+N IoT strategy forward, and the latest Honor MagicBook 15 is a step further to expand the portfolio for consumers, said the company.

Honor sells several laptops under MagicBook branding, including MagicBook 14, MagicBook 15, and MacBook Pro.

In addition, the company is looking forward to launching Honor 9A and Honor 9S smartphones in India next week for under Rs 10,000.

The smartphones will come pre-installed with the latest AppGallery and are expected to run on Honor’s flagship – Magic UI 3.1 based on Android 10.

In 48 hours, India reports around 1L Covid cases

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In 48 hours, India reports around 1L Covid cases

Despite a strict safety protocol being followed for the last four months to contain the Covid-19 outbreak, the number of infectees is increasing drastically every day. A total of 48,916 fresh coronavirus cases were reported on Saturday while 49,310 were reported on Friday taking the total number of infectees to 98,226 — touching almost a lakh in less than two.

In the last 24 hours, 787 people succumbed to the deadly virus. The government is making all efforts to come up with a vaccine against the novel coronavirus so that human lives can be saved. The authorities have started human trials of indigenous vaccines in six cities.

According to the latest data available on the website of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of cases in India reached 13,36,861 of which 31,388 people have lost their lives while 8,49,432 have recovered. The total number of active cases is 4,56,071 cases.

The ministry stated that the recovery rate is 63.53 percent.

Helly Shah: TV actors don’t get fair chance in Bollywood

TB Team
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Helly Shah: TV actors don’t get fair chance in Bollywood

Television actress Helly Shah agrees with TV star Hina Khan that actors of the small screen are deprived of a fair chance in the Hindi film industry.

“I completely agree with what Hina said recently. TV actors don’t get a fair chance in Bollywood. I have experienced this myself. I have been to auditions a couple of times and I have seen that they don’t see us as they see other people,” said Helly.

She adds that TV actors are considered incapable. “They think that we are not capable enough to pull that off. I feel we should get a fair chance to prove ourselves. Give us a chance and we will prove it. We are also actors and we also do good work. It’s sad that we are not given a fair chance,” she said.

Helly, who is currently shooting for the second season of “Ishq Mein Marjawan”, says small screen actors get “a different kind of treatment”.

“I don’t understand why that is, but they sometimes treat TV actors as (if) we are nothing. But I really hope this changes and we all get a fair chance in Bollywood,” she added.

Earlier this month, Hina told IANS: “What we lack is equality. Nepotism exists everywhere and it does exist in our industry, too. If you are a star and you want to launch your kid, it’s absolutely okay. But, it is not fair when you don’t give an equal chance to outsiders. TV actors hardly make it big in Bollywood, just because we don’t get a fair chance. At least, give us a chance to prove ourselves.”

Pope seems to have modeled his batting on Bell: Tendulkar

TB Team
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Pope seems to have modeled his batting on Bell: Tendulkar

Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar believes the batting style of England batsman Ollie Pope and Ian Bell are quite similar.

“Been watching the 3rd Test, Ollie Pope seems to have modeled his batting on Ian Bell. His stance and footwork look exactly the same to me,” Tendulkar said in a tweet.

Bell featured in 118 Tests for England and scored 7,727 runs including 22 centuries. He is also among three Englishmen who were part of three Ashes-winning teams. Bell also featured in 161 ODIs before calling time on his career in the fifty-over format in 2015.

The comments from Tendulkar came after Pope rescued England on the first day of the ongoing third and final Test between England and West Indies at the Old Trafford.

Put into bat, England at one stage seemed to be struggling after losing four wickets for 122. However, it was then that Pope along with Jos Buttler stitched an unbeaten 136-run stand to not only take the hosts out of troubled waters but also put them in a commanding position at the end of the day’s play on Friday.

At Stumps on Day One, England was 258/4 with Pope and Buttler at the crease on 91* and 56* respectively.

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