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Biden restricts travel to US from India

A variant strain of the virus, known as B.1.617, is also circulating in India, along with other variant strains, including B.1.1.7, first detected in the United Kingdom, and B.1.351, first detected in the Republic of South Africa.

“The CDC advises, based on work by public health and scientific experts, that these variants have characteristics of concern, which may make them more easily transmitted and have the potential for reduced protection afforded by some vaccines,” said the proclamation.

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1 in 4 global Covid-19 deaths occurred in Americas: Pan American Health Organization

“One in four Covid deaths reported worldwide last week took place right here, in the Americas. Nearly every country in Central America is reporting a rise in infections,” said Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Director Carissa Etienne..

For the first time, Canada’s infection rates have surpassed the US Covid-19 infection rates, the PAHO director informed.

The surge of infections is being led by new Covid-19 variants, which slow vaccination rollouts, due to lack of vaccine availability, are also providing major setbacks for a number of countries in the Americas.

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India will need 5 lakh ICU beds, 3.5 lakh medical staff in next few weeks, says Dr Devi Shetty

While most of the newspaper headlines and prime time television coverage has been over the lack of oxygen for the patients in ICUs, “I am having sleepless nights for the next headline, which is going to be that patients are dying in ICUs because there are no nurses and doctors to take care of the patients. And this is going to happen. I do not doubt it now,” said Dr Devi Prasad Shetty, the chairman and founder of Narayana Health, a chain of 21 medical centres in India, in his online address at the Symbiosis Golden Jubilee Lecture Series in Pune recently.
At present, India has only 75,000 to 90,000 ICU beds and almost all are already occupied – when the second wave of the pandemic hasn’t even reached its peak yet, he said. India is reporting about 3.5 lakh cases a day, and some experts say the number could go up to 5 lakh cases daily at its peak.

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IRDAI panel makes various suggestions on retail engineering insurance products

On sum insured definition for retail segment for engineering products, it said: “Considering a near unanimous view from all stakeholders, the panel suggests Sum Insured limit of up to Rs 50 crores is recommended for retail segment”.

The group, as per the report, opined that the retail products with standard wordings with uniform coverage of a good range of essential covers are needed to give a comprehensive protection boost to the SME and MSME sector entities and units.

The products should be offered by all Indian insurers without any changes or modifications, it said.

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Levels of air pollutants on rise in Indian cities, says study

“We were surprised to see the increase in formaldehyde above Delhi, Kanpur and London” a clue that emissions of other volatile organic compounds may be changing, potentially driven by economic development and changes in domestic behaviour. Our results emphasise the need to monitor our air for the unexpected, and the importance of ongoing enforcement of measures for cleaner air, the study’s co-author Professor William Bloss, also from the University of Birmingham, said.

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Tackling climate change through emerging hydrogen industry: Managing complex risks

Driven by climate change, the possibilities of energy storage, use as a fuel and the long-term intention to replace reliance on coal and oil, hydrogen has the potential to morph from a niche power source into big business.
New bulletin from Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) highlights operational risks that need to be addressed in hydrogen projects, including fire and explosion hazards, impact of embrittlement and business interruption exposures.
AGCS sees increasing demand for insurance coverage for hydrogen solutions in future.

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