Covid-19 Bulletin: Top Corona News of the Day and Do’s & Don’t of fighting the pandemic

New Delhi: The recovery rate is on an uptrend. As the numbers suggest, the recovered cases of Covid-19 have exceeded the active cases by about a lakh now.

During the last 24 hours, a total of 13,940 Covid-19 patients have been cured, taking the cumulative figure to 2,85,636. The Ministry said, the recovery rate of COVID-19 patients has reached 58.24 per cent. Presently, there are over 1,89,000 active cases and all are under active medical supervision.

Covid-19 recovery rate improves to 58.24%

The recovered cases have exceeded the active cases by 96,173.During the last 24 hours, a total of 13,940 COVID-19 patients have been cured, taking the cumulative figure to 2,85,636. This has led to the recovery rate touching 58.24% amongst COVID-19 patients. Presently, there are 1,89,463 active cases and all are under active medical supervision. In the quest to expand the COVID-19 testing labs network across the country, ICMR has inducted 11 new labs in the last 24 hours. India now has 1016 diagnostic labs dedicated to COVID-19. This includes 737 in the government sector and 279 private labs.During the past 24 hours, 2,15,446 tests have been conducted in the labs. The total number of samples tested, as on date, is 77,76,228.

Centre lends helping hand to N-E States in Covid-19 fight

The Centre has pro-actively and strongly supported strengthening of the medical care infrastructure in the NE States to fight COVID-19.The North Eastern (NE) states have a comparatively lower number of COVID-19 cases, compared to the rest of the country. As on date, while the active cases are 3731, the recoveries exceed at 5715. The death rate continues to be low, with no deaths in Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim.As a result of focused attention of the Centre through the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, the NE now has 39 testing labs in the public sector and three in the private sector.Centre has supported the NE States in stepping up the number of ICU beds, Isolation beds, Oxygen supported beds and ventilators and also helped in stepping up the availability of N95 masks, PPE kits and HCQ tablets. This has played a critical role in effective clinical management of COVID-19 cases.

PM Modi inaugurates Atmanirbhar UP Rojgar Abhiyan

Prime Minister Shri NarendraModi inaugurated ‘AatmaNirbhar Uttar Pradesh RojgarAbhiyan’ through video conferencing today. Under this, local entrepreneurship will be promoted along with providing employment opportunities to migrant workers. Speaking on the occasion, Prime Minister Shri NarendraModi said that everyone would be able to surpass the difficulties owing to the COVID-19 Pandemic. He stressed that until a vaccine is found, maintaining Do GajkiDoori, covering the face with the mask are the best precautions.PM expressed satisfaction in the manner in which Uttar Pradesh has turned the disaster into an opportunity, the way people were engaged during this pandemic. He said that other states will also get to learn a lot from ‘AatmaNirbhar Uttar Pradesh RojgarAbhiyan’ and will be inspired by it. The PM lauded the courage and wisdom shown by Uttar Pradesh, when Corona is in such a major crisis in the world. He said that the way the state succeeded and the way it handled the situation is unprecedented and is praiseworthy.The PM praised the contribution of doctors, para-medicos, sanitation staff, police, ASHAs, Anganwadi workers, banks and post offices, transport services, workers in UP.

GaribKalyanRojgarAbhiyaan web portal launched

Union Minister of Rural Development, Panchayati Raj and Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar today launched the web portal of the GaribKalyanRojgarAbhiyaan. The GaribKalyanRojgarAbhiyaan is the massive employment generation-cum-rural infrastructure creation programme of the Government of India which was inaugurated on 20th June 2020 by Prime Minister Shri NarendraModi, with the objective of providing employment to returnee migrant workers at their native places for next four months, because of the situation arising out of the Covid-19 pandemic.

NITI Aayog’s unique campaign for ‘Masks for All’

NITI Aayog, in partnership with Bill andMelinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), Centre for Social and Behavioural Change (CSBC), Ashoka University, and the Ministries of HFW and WCD, launched a behaviour change campaign called ‘Navigating the New Normal’, and its website yesterday.Focusing on Covid-safe behaviours, especially wearing masks, during the ‘Unlock’ phase of the ongoing pandemic, the campaign saw as many as 92,000 NGOs and civil society organisationsparticipating in the virtual launch. Developed under the guidance of Empowered Group 6, constituted by the Government of India and chaired by CEO, NITI Aayog, the campaign has two parts.The first is a webportal, http://www.covidthenewnormal.com/, containing resources informed by behavioural science and the use of nudge and social norms theory, related to Covid-safe behavioural norms during the ongoing Unlock phase and the second is a media campaign focused on the wearing of masks.The portal focuses on easy implementation of four key behaviours in the unlock phase: mask-wearing, socialdistancing, handhygiene and. not spitting in public.

Harsimrat Kaul calls for converting challenges into opportunities in food sector

Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Union FPI Minister chaired the second series of Food Processing Edition of Exclusive Investment Forum today. Union Minister said that the nationwide lockdown was successful due to Government’s effort to make essentials especially food available at every corner of the country since the beginning. Minister informed about the Ministry’s new scheme to be launched on 29th June 2020 to formalize the micro food processing enterprises which would support them in accessing the latest know-how, affordable credit as well as new markets. She mentioned that 74% of the total employment in food processing was in unorganized segment. 60% of the 25 lakh units that we were aware of, were in rural areas and 80% of these were family owned. This segment alone could be the future of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ and could make the initiative successful.

INS Jalashwa embarks with 687 Indian Nationals from Iran

INS Jalashwa arrived off Bandar Abbas, Iran on 24th evening and entered harbour yesterday for another mission under the Indian Navy’s Operation SamudraSetu. The ship embarked 687 Indian citizens after the mandatory medical and baggage screening. The ship also handed over two Air Evacuation Pods indigenously developed by the Indian Navy, to the Iranian authorities.

Eastern Railway supplies essential commodities among Covid outbreak

Despite the nation-wide lockdown in the wake of COVID-19 outbreak, Eastern Railway (ER) continued its freight services round the clock to maintain supply of the essential commodities as well as other inputs to different areas. ER registered a loading of 12.304 Million tonnes of freight from April 1, 2020 to June 24, 2020 surpassing the target of 11.612 Million tonnes. The coal loading alone constituted the major part of the freight traffic amounting to 7.963 million tonnes whereas the loading of other goods measured as 4.341 million tonnes during this period.