“I look out at the year 2030, for example, and I see an India that may lead the world in almost every category…the most populous nation, the most college graduates, the largest middle-class, the most cell phone and Internet users, along with the third largest military and third largest economy, all coexisting in the world’s largest democracy, with 600 million people under the age of 25,” Richard Verma said on Monday.
Category:
Pandemic
Latest
UAE lifts ban on transit flights including from India and Pakistan
India and Pakistan are important markets for Emirates, Etihad Airways and other UAE carriers flydubai and Air Arabia .
The Gulf state, a major international travel hub, had banned passengers from many South Asian and African states travelling through its airports this year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Covid: India’s ‘R’ number more than 1 in eight states, says govt
Stating that fresh Covid cases are being reported from limited areas, Agrawal said that last week Kerala reported 40.95 per cent of total caseloads in India, followed by Maharashtra (19.43 per cent) and Karnataka (5.94 per cent).
Analysing the district-wise Covid data, Agrawal said that in total, 279 districts reported over 100 cases in the first week of June. However, after one month, such districts’ numbers were confined to 107 and currently only 57 districts are reporting over 100 cases.
A total of 18 districts across the nation have showed the increasing tendency on Covid trajectory from last four weeks, he added.
Centre in SC agrees to waive compound interest on loans up to Rs 2 cr for six-months
In an affidavit filed by Union finance ministry on behalf of the Union of India, it said that the relief to all borrowers in respect of compounding of interest during the period of moratorium would be admissible to the categories specified irrespective of whether the borrowers had availed the moratorium or not.
The government, therefore, has decided that the relief on waiver of compound interest during the six-month moratorium period shall be limited to the most vulnerable category of borrowers. This category of borrowers, in whose case, the compounding of interest will be waived, would be MSME loans and personal loans of up to Rs 2 crore, it said.
Scientists identify unique patterns in COVID-19 transmission in India
According to the scientists, including Ramanan Laxminarayan from the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics, and Policy in New Delhi, the findings offer a peek into the pandemic’s trajectory in a low- and middle-income country, where most COVID-19 cases have occurred
New global lab network will compare COVID-19 vaccines head-to-head
Speaking to Reuters ahead of announcing the labs involved, Melanie Saville, director of vaccine R&D at the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), said the idea was to “compare apples with apples” as drugmakers race to develop an effective shot to help control the COVID-19 pandemic.
The faces of India’s coronavirus pandemic as deaths hit 100,000
In what is still a conservative and developing country, some of the relatives said they faced ostracism after their loved ones caught the virus. Others said they have suffered from depression and money troubles. All said more could have been done to save the people who died
Covid-sniffing robots offer testing alternative
“Our goal is to have a device that merges synthetic biology with silicon and maps all of the smells of human life on a global scale,” said Oshiorenoya Agabi, the San Rafael, California-based company’s chief executive officer and co-founder. “We should have a device in every home in America to screen for disease.”
Second sero survey indicates reduction in infections in Mumbai slums
Mumbai is one of the worst-affected COVID-19 hotspots in the country with over two lakh cases and nearly 9,000 deaths so far.
Pandemics overtakes climate change as biggest worry for insurers
COVID-19 is proving to be a major challenge for insurers, especially those that provide cover for canceled events such as sports matches and concerts. Disputes over coverage have led some policyholders to take legal action, with AXA recently losing a lawsuit against five restaurant operators. The insurer said it will appeal the ruling.
France needs new pandemic business insurance law – minister
“The state is not going to pick up the tab for businesses’ operating losses each time there’s a new pandemic,” Le Maire said in an online interview session with Le Monde newspaper.
UK regulator, insurers, brace for Supreme Court battle over COVID-19 case
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) had set a late Wednesday deadline for talks with insurers, such as QBE and RSA, to ensure eligible business interruption (BI) claims would be paid speedily, after the High Court ruled that thousands had been wrongly rejected.
COVID-19 vaccine rollout unlikely before fall 2021, experts say
“Experts in our survey offered forecasts on vaccine development that were generally less optimistic than the timeline of early 2021 offered by US public officials,” Jonathan Kimmelman, a professor at McGill University, said in a statement.
“In general they seem to believe that a publicly available vaccine next summer is the best-case scenario with the possibility that it may take until 2022,” said Kimmelman, the senior author on the paper published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.