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Micro quakes preventing large-scale event in India but country prepared for any eventuality: Experts
According to the Ministry of Earth Sciences, 59 per cent of India's...
Turkey, Syria deadly earthquake could cost $4 billion in economic losses,Insured losses expected much lower $1 billion: Fitch
Insured losses will be much lower, possibly around $1 billion, due...
Mortality rates drop sharply in parts of India, bucking coronavirus trend
But emergency room doctors, officials, and crematoriums noted that strict lockdowns had cut the number of road traffic accidents and deaths on India’s packed railways, and may also be deterring relatives from reporting a family death.
All over the world, mortality rates are being scrutinised to determine the true impact of the coronavirus, which emerged in China late last year and is known to have infected more than 2.7 million people globally, with nearly 190,000 deaths.
Aarogya Setu app crosses 75 million downloads
Minister of State for Electronics and IT Sanjay Dhotre has asked the services of common service centres for providing telemedicine services, especially in remote parts, during this moment of crisis, as it will bring a much-needed relief to people who are finding difficulty in accessing medical services during this lockdown.
India battles supply snags in race to build affordable ventilators
Before the pandemic, hospitals invested less in ventilators as they are expensive and the devices were available mainly in some hospitals in bigger Indian cities, Bhowmick added.
But companies are now pushing to make affordable devices.
Dynamatic Technologies is making a $33 ventilator that does not need electricity to function, while AgVa is aiming to make 10,000 ventilators by mid-May, priced under $2,000.
AgVa is collaborating with automaker Maruti Suzuki and state-run Bharat Electronics to make parts.
Lockdown In India impacted 40 million internal migrants: World Bank
The Bank said governments would do well to consider short, medium and long-term interventions to support stranded migrants, remittance infrastructure, loss of subsistence income for families back home, and access to health, housing, education, and jobs for migrant workers in host/transit countries and their families back home.
More calibrated monetary, fiscal stimulus on the anvil, says Principal Economic Adviser
International passenger travel would remain shut for a long time, not for weeks but for months, he said citing examples of sectors which will continue to be non-functional.
COVID-19 claims so far likely to be manageable; reinsurers de-risking:Willis Re Report
Reinsurers have showed that the systemic shock of COVID-19 is manageable so far, but the future strength of the sector depends on the severity of the pandemic’s continuing impact on health and economies. The industry retains sufficient capital buffer for extreme events, but the extent to which reinsurers can withstand continued asset-side volatility and increased claims emergence remains to be seen.
Reinsurers have started to de-risk their balance sheets by holding cash, which will have a significant impact on investment returns. Willis Re currently estimates a 5% hit to the global reinsurance capital base, roughly US$30 billion pre-tax.
‘Virus will be with us for a long time’, WHO chief warns
“Most countries are still in the early stages of their epidemics and some that were affected early in the pandemic are starting to see a resurgence in cases,” Tedros told Geneva journalists in a virtual briefing.
“Make no mistake we have a long way to go. This virus will be with us for a long time,” he said, while noting that epidemics in Western Europe appear to be stabilising or declining.
Robots are playing many roles in the coronavirus crisis – and offering lessons for future disasters
Research laboratories and startups are creating new robots, including one designed to allow health care workers to remotely take blood samples and perform mouth swabs. These prototypes are unlikely to make a difference now. However, the robots under development could make a difference in future disasters if momentum for robotics research continues.
Insurers Hiscox and Beazley expect COVID-19 claims of up to $345 million
Hiscox said it expected to pay up to $175 million to settle claims if disruption from the COVID-19 pandemic that has put billions of people on lockdown lasts more than six months.That sum would decrease to up to $150 million if the disruption lasted six months or less.
U.S. unemployment waves keep hitting with millions more claims
The massive government stimulus package provides an extra $600 per week in unemployment benefits and expanded coverage to self-employed and other “gig” workers, presenting additional challenges for the states. Providing the additional aid has been wrought with technical issues and increased the number of applications flowing in.