Category:

Eco/Invest/Demography

Same sex marriages not recognised by our laws society and our values Centre to HC

The submission was made before a bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Prateek Jalan by Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta during hearing of a PIL seeking a declaration that same sex marriages be recognised under the Hindu Marriage Act (HMA) and Special Marriage Act.
He said the plea to grant recognition to or permit registration of such marriages was “not permissible” for two reasons — firstly, the petition was asking the court to legislate and secondly, any relief granted “would run contrary to various statutory provisions”.

read more

Yoga, AYUSH herbs, nutritious diet: Health Ministry issues new protocol for recovered patients

The ministry acknowledged it has been observed that after acute COVID-19 illness, recovered patients may continue to report wide variety of signs and symptoms, including fatigue, body ache, cough, sore throat and difficulty in breathing, saying the recovery period is likely to be longer for patients who suffered from more severe form of the disease and those with pre-existing illness.

A holistic approach is required for follow-up care, says the protocol which is not to be used as a preventive or curative therapy.

read more

End of combustion engine moves closer with EU climate plan

Under a new climate target for 2030, European automakers would need to embrace tougher pollution standards, with new rules that could retire combustion engines to science museums. Energy will grow increasingly cleaner, with an additional 350 billion euros ($415 billion) per year required for investment in production and infrastructure. And to help cut greenhouse gases in agriculture, Europeans would be encouraged to eat less meat.

read more

With airline fleets grounded, plane recyclers bet on parts boom

In 2020, Naveo expects 2,000 aircraft will be retired, or parked and not returned to service, up from 680 in 2019. But those planes would not all be immediately dismantled, as some carriers wait in case market conditions improve, Managing Director Richard Brown says.

Indeed, UK-based Air Salvage International, which normally dismantles between 40 and 50 aircraft a year, has parked more planes without a buyer for their parts since the COVID-19 outbreak. Founder Mark Gregory expects most will eventually be dismantled.

read more

COVID-19: 58% of recovered cases coming from five states

India’s COVID-19 tally of cases mounted to 47,54,356 with 94,372 new infections being reported in a day, while the death toll climbed to 78,586 with 1,114 people succumbing to the infection in a span of 24 hours, the data updated at 8 am showed.

1,114 COVID-19 fatalities have been registered in a span of 24 hours. Maharashtra has reported the maximum number of 391 deaths followed by Karnataka with 94 deaths, whereas Tamil Nadu has reported 76 deaths.

read more

Covid treatment accounted for only 11% of health insurance claims in Apr-Aug: Study

The COVID-19 scare, it said, “has triggered everyone to prioritise health insurance like never before not only for protection against a pandemic but also against any bigger events or illnesses like lifestyle disease which will stay here forever.”

As regards the cost of treatment, the insurance aggregator said COVID-19 treatment may cost more than ₹10 lakh in case of prolonged hospitalisation.

A comprehensive health insurance policy with ₹10 lakh sum insured for a 32-year-old individual costs anywhere between ₹7,000–9,000 annually, it said.

read more

Vaccine likely in a few months, but life won’t return to normal until end of 2021:Dr. Fauci

“If you’re talking about getting back to a degree of normality which resembles where we were prior to Covid, it’s going to be well into 2021, maybe even towards the end of 2021,” he added.

Nearly 30 U.S. states are reporting downward trends in Covid-19 cases, but the pandemic will likely worsen again, said Fauci, the country’s leading infectious disease expert.

read more

Aviva sells Singapore unit for $1.98 billion as new CEO shifts focus

The British company said on Friday it will sell its majority shareholding in the business to the Singlife consortium, which includes alternative asset firm TPG, Japanese insurer Sumitomo Life and other existing Singlife shareholders.

Promising to shake up the organisation after she took over in July, new CEO Amanda Blanc pledged to reduce its operations in Asia and Europe.

Analysts have said the insurer is operating in too many countries and sectors, and its shares have lagged rivals.

read more