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  • Transport sector badly hit by COVID-19 lockdown in Kashmir

    Srinagar: Amid COVID-19 lock down, the transport sector in Kashmir has been badly hit with people associated with this sector finding it hard to feed their families.

    Transportation sector has been one of the primary victims of COVID-19. From rickshaw pullers, sumo drivers, all have been affected economically by the pandemic in Kashmir.

    “We don’t have money even to buy medicines. We (transporters) have not earned a single penny for last three months. Unlike transporters, other sectors like shopkeepers are at least making some earning by opening their shops in the morning and evening hours. Nobody is concerned about us. We have been left at the mercy of God,” said Tahir Ahmad, a sumo driver.

    Chairman Rekipora Kupwara Sumo Stand Drivers Association, Mumtaz Ahmad said transporters are facing immence problems due to lockdown.

    “ The transporter sector has been totally ignored. There are 1300 sumos plying in Kupwara and nobody is bothered about us how we feed our families,” he told news agency KINS.
    He appealed the Lieutenant Governor administration to pay attention towards the transporter sector.

    “Various sectors have been given some package but we have been totally ignored. We are being forced to come to the streets,” he added.

    Jammu and Kashmir administration has announced a Rs 350-crore package to mitigate hardships of people, particularly labourers and the destitute, during the coronavirus-triggered lockdown.
    “This lockdown has put a driver like me in deep trouble. It is very difficult for us to feed our families,” said Mohammad Subhan, a sumo driver. These days he is sitting idle at home. “I debited Rs 1000 from one of relatives that have been exhausted,” he added.

    Divisional Commissioner Kashmir P K Pole when contacted told KINS that the government was aware of the problems faced by the people associated with transport sector.

    “Government is taking measures for people from across the country. The government has announced a package and will see whether some amount can be provided to transport sector,” Pole said. (KINS)

  • India registers biggest single-day spike of 8,392 COVID-19 cases; total rises to 1,90,535: Govt

    PTI

    New Delhi: The death toll due to COVID-19 rose to 5,394?and the number of cases climbed to 1,90,535 in the country, which registered biggest single-day spikes of 230 deaths and 8,392 cases till Monday?8 am, according to the Union Health Ministry

    India is the seventh worst-hit nation by the novel coronavirus pandemic

    The number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 93,322 while 91,818 people have recovered and one patient has migrated, the ministry said.??

    “Thus, around 48.19 per cent patients have recovered so far,” a senior health ministry official said

    The total number of confirmed cases includes foreigners

    Of the 230 deaths reported since Sunday morning, 89 are in Maharashtra, 57 in Delhi, 31 in Gujarat, 13 in Tamil Nadu, 12 in Uttar Pradesh, eight in West Bengal, seven in Madhya Pradesh, five in Telangana, three in Karnataka, two in Andhra Pradesh and one each in Bihar, Punjab and Rajasthan

    Out of the total 5,394 fatalities, Maharashtra tops tally with 2,286 deaths followed by Gujarat with 1,038 deaths, Delhi with 473, Madhya Pradesh with 350, West Bengal with 317, Uttar Pradesh with 213, Rajasthan with 194,Tamil Nadu with 173, Telangana with 82 and Andhra Pradesh with 62 deaths

    The death toll has reached 51 in Karnataka and 45 in Punjab

    Jammu and Kashmir has reported 28 fatalities due to the disease, Bihar has 21, Haryana has 20 deaths, Kerala has nine while Odisha has reported seven deaths so far

    ?

    Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand and Uttarakhand have registered five COVID-19 fatalities each while Chandigarh and Assam have recorded four deaths each so far

    Meghalaya? and Chhattisgarh have reported one COVID-19 fatality each, according to the ministry’s data.?

    More than 70 per cent of the deaths are due to comorbidities, according to the health ministry website.

  • Depression in Arabian Sea to intensify into severe cyclonic storm; will impact Mumbai

    PTI

    New Delhi: The depression in the Arabian Sea is likely to intensify into a severe cyclone and cross the north Maharashtra and south Gujarat coasts on June 3, and will have an impact on Mumbai, the India Meteorological Department said on Monday.

    The depression will intensify into a deep depression — the third and fourth stage of any cyclone formation — by this evening.

    It will intensify into a cyclonic storm by June 2, the Cyclone Warning Division of the IMD said.

    “It (the storm) is very likely to move nearly northwards initially till June 2 morning and then recurve north-northeastwards and cross north Maharashtra and south Gujarat coasts between Harihareshwar (Raigad, Maharashtra) and Daman during evening/night of June 3,” the Cyclone Warning Division said.

    The nearly 260 km patch between Raigad and Daman has one of the highest population densities in the country. Apart from Mumbai, it also has satellites cities like Thane, Navi-Mumbai, Panvel, Kalyan-Dombivli, Mira-Bhayander, Vasai-Virar, Ulhasnagar, Badlapur and Ambernath.

    “It will have an impact on Mumbai,” IMD director general Mrutyunjay Mohapatra told PTI.

    When it crosses the coast on the evening of June 3, it will have a speed of 105-110 kmph, the IMD said.

    Heavy rains are also expected in south Gujarat and coastal Maharashtra.

  • Fire breaks out at two commercial properties in Noida

    PTI

    Noida: Fire broke out at two commercial properties in different areas of Noida early on Monday, officials said.

    Around 2 am, a fire was reported at a mattress-manufacturing firm’s four-storey building in Phase 3 area of the city, a police official said.

    Fire in the lower half of the building has been contained, while fire-fighting is underway in the upper half of the building. Fire tenders are at work, the official told PTI around 9:45 am.

    The other incident was reported around 2.30 am from a sanitiser-making company’s office in Phase 2 area of the city, another police official said.

    The fire was caused by a short circuit, the official said.

    Fire tenders were at work at the site and the blaze has almost been doused, the official added.

    Further details were awaited in both the cases.

  • We need an alternative to saliva: Bumrah

    New Delhi: Premier India pacer Jasprit Bumrah won’t miss the hugs and high-fives as part of a wicket celebration but he will certainly miss applying saliva on the ball and feels an alternative should be provided to maintain the red cherry.

    The ICC Cricket Committee, led by former India captain Anil Kumble, recommended a ban on using saliva on the ball as an interim measure to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the Committee did not allow the use of artificial substances as a substitute move.

    The new rule makes life tougher for the bowlers and Bumrah, like many former and current fast bowlers, feels there ought to be an alternative.

    “I was not much of a hugger anyway and not a high-five person as well, so that doesn’t trouble me a lot. The only thing that interests me is the saliva bit,” said Bumrah in a chat with Ian Bishop and Shaun Pollock on ICC’s video series ‘Inside Out’.

    “I don’t know what guidelines we’ll have to follow when we come back, but I feel there should be an alternative,” he added.

    Bumrah said not being able to use saliva makes the game more batsman-friendly.

    “If the ball is not well maintained, it’s difficult for the bowlers. The grounds are getting shorter and shorter, the wickets are becoming flatter and flatter.

    “So we need something, some alternative for the bowlers to maintain the ball so that it can do something – maybe reverse in the end or conventional swing.”

    When former West Indian pacer Bishop pointed out that the conditions have been favourable to the fast bowlers over the last couple of years, Bumrah nodded in agreement.

    “In Test match cricket, yes. That is why it’s my favourite format, because we have something over there. But in one-day cricket and T20 cricket one-day cricket there are two new balls, so it hardly reverses at the end.

    “We played in New Zealand, the ground (boundary) was 50 metres. So even if you are not looking to hit a six, it will go for six. In Test matches I have no problem, I’m very happy with the way things are going.”

    He finds it amusing that the batsmen keep complaining about the swinging ball.

    “Whenever you play, I’ve heard the batsmen – not in our team, everywhere – complaining the ball is swinging. But the ball is supposed to swing! The ball is supposed to do something! We are not here just to give throwdowns, isn’t it? (laughter)

    “This is what I tell batsmen all the time. In one-day cricket, when did the ball reverse last, I don’t know. Nowadays the new ball doesn’t swing a lot as well. So whenever I see batsmen say the ball is swinging or seaming and that is why I got out – the ball is supposed to do that.

    “Because it doesn’t happen so much in the other formats, it’s a new thing for the batsmen when the ball is swinging or seaming,” said the 26-year-old.

    The Ahmedabad-born pacer finds himself in an unusual position as he has not bowled for over two months due to the lockdown imposed in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

    When India will play next is not clear yet and Bumrah said he is not sure about how his body will hold up when he returns to action.

    “I really don’t know how your body reacts when you don’t bowl for two months, three months. I’m trying to keep up with training so that as soon as the grounds open up, the body is in decent shape.

    “I’ve been training almost six days a week but I’ve not bowled for a long period of time so I don’t know how the body will react when I bowl the first ball.

    “I’m looking at it as a way to renew your own body. We’ll never get such a break again, so even if you have a small niggle here and there, you can be a refreshed person when you come back. You can prolong your career,” he said.

    Bumrah has risen rapidly in international cricket despite experts having reservations about his longevity due to his unorthodox action.

    The gritty fast bowler sees similarities in his career graph to Swedish football star Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

    “Our personalities are a different. But the story I could relate to is that not many people thought he would make it big. There was a similar case with me growing up as well.

    “Wherever I went, it was the general feedback from people that ‘this guy would not do anything, he would not be a top-rated bowler, he won’t be able to play for a long period of time with this kind of action’.

    “So, having the self-belief is important and the only validation that is required is your own validation. I saw that in his (Ibrahimovic’s) story, so that’s the thing I could relate to,” added Bumrah.

  • DG BSF reviews border domination plan along IB in Jammu

    PTI

    Jammu: Director General of Border Security Force (BSF) S S Deswal visited forward areas along the International Border (IB) in Jammu frontier and reviewed the border domination plan, the border guarding force said on Monday.

    Deswal, who arrived here on May 30 on a two-day visit, also reviewed the prevailing COVID-19 situation and advised the troops to indulge in physical activities for improved immunity to deal with the pandemic, a spokesperson of the BSF said.

    Accompanied by Additional DG, S Panwar and Inspector General, Jammu frontier, N S Jamwal, he said the DG BSF visited the critical areas of the entire border stretch and held discussions with various sector and unit commanders besides police officers regarding border domination and other security measures being adopted.

    The IG BSF briefed the chief about the complexities of management of Jammu border under prevailing security scenario, while the field commanders apprised him about the various ongoing construction works on the border and constraints being faced during their implementation, the spokesperson said.

    He said the DG BSF also reviewed the border domination plan.

    Interacting with jawans and patiently attending to their issues, the spokesperson said the DG BSF stressed about the importance of physical fitness and exhorted the troops to engage themselves in regular fitness exercises and games.

    He also planted various tree saplings in the Border Out Posts to give it a look of ‘green border’, the spokesperson said.

    He said Deswal stressed upon the idea of cultivation of land ahead of fencing with the help of BSF who can provide security to the farmers.

  • Gujarat braces for cyclone, deploys 10 NDRF teams

    PTI

    Ahmedabad: In anticipation of a cyclonic storm making landfall on the Gujarat coast on June 3, the state government on Monday ordered evacuation of people living in low-lying areas and deployed 10 teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) in over half a dozen districts.

    The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Monday said the low-pressure area formed over the Arabian Sea has intensified into a depression and it will further intensify into a cyclonic storm in the next 36 hours.

    It warned that the cyclonic storm will cross north Maharashtra and south Gujarat coasts late in the evening on June 3, bringing in its wake heavy rains.

    “The (low-pressure) system is around 900km away from Surat at present. We expect the cyclonic storm to hit the southern Gujarat coast near Daman on June 3 evening with a wind speed of 90 to 100 km per hour.

    “It will bring heavy rainfall in the south Gujarat region on June 3 and 4. It may have some impact in Bhavnagar and Amreli districts of the Saurashtra region as well,” said Director of MET Centre here, Jayanta Sarkar.

    Ahead of the storm, the weather of Bhavnagar suddenly changed on Monday as strong winds coupled with rain lashed the city in the morning.

    Sudden thunderstorm uprooted trees as well as solar panels at some places in the district, said officials.

    In view of the cyclonic activity over the Arabian Sea, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Monday chaired a high-level meet in Gandhinagar to assess the preparedness of the state machinery to tackle all eventualities.

    Following the meeting, Rupani said 10 teams of the NDRF have already taken position in five districts of south Gujarat and Bhavnagar and Amreli districts of Saurashtra to deal with any situation arising out of the cyclone.

    These five districts of south Gujarat are Surat, Bharuch, Navsari, Valsad and Dang.

    “These five districts along with Bhavnagar and Amreli have been put on high alert while other districts have been asked to remain alert.

    “While 10 teams of the NDRF have already taken their position, five teams of the SDRF have been put on a stand-by.

    I urge people of these areas to remain indoors on June 3 and 4,” Rupani told reporters.

    Rupani said while all fishermen of south Gujarat and Saurashtra have been called back from the sea, salt-pan workers of these regions have been shifted to safer locations.

    “District collectors have been asked to shift people from low-lying areas to safer places. The collectors have been also asked to make sure electricity supply to COVID-19 hospitals in their respective areas does not get affected.

    “A control room has been activated in Gandhinagar to monitor the situation,” the CM said.

  • Ten more militants killed along LoC, toll 13: Army

    Poonch: Ten more militants were killed along LoC in Jammu division, taking the toll to 13.

    An army official told GNS that in an ongoing counter-infiltration operation which started on 28th may, alert troops of Indian Army eliminated an infiltration bid along the LoC in Mendhar sector and killed atleast ten militants. The officer said searches are underway in the villages of Poonch district.

    Earleir in the day army in a statement said that three militants were killed in Naushera. (GNS)

  • Violent protests engulf US, thousands arrested and nearly 40 cities under curfew

    PTI

    Washington: The US remained a tinderbox of anger and emotion as violent protests erupted for a sixth day across the country over the custodial killing of African-American George Floyd, resulting in the death of at least five people, the arrest of thousands and placing of curfew in nearly 40 cities, while forcing President Donald Trump to take shelter in a White House bunker.

    Considered to be the worst ever civil unrest in the US in decades, the violent protests have engulfed at least 140 cities across America in the days following the death of Floyd, a 46-year-old man who was pinned to the ground in Minneapolis on Monday by a white police officer who kneeled on his neck as he gasped for breath.

    Some of the protests have turned violent, prompting the activation of the National Guard in at least 20 states.

    “At least five people were killed in violence that flared as demonstrations in parts of the country devolved into mayhem,” The Washington Post reported.

    Police have arrested at least 2,564 people in two dozen US cities over the weekend. Nearly a fifth of those arrests were in Los Angeles, it said.

    The unrest initially began in Minneapolis in Minnesota but has now spread across the country, with reports of violence coming in from across major cities including Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Houston, Philadelphia and Washington DC.

    “The United States remained a tinderbox of emotion, anger and continued violence on Sunday, the sixth day of nationwide unrest since the death of yet another black man at the hands of the police,” The New York Times reported.

    In Birmingham, protesters started to tear down a Confederate monument that the city had previously covered with a tarp amid a lawsuit between the state attorney general and the city.

    In Boston, a police SUV was set ablaze near the State House, sending up a column of black smoke after a large group of protesters had mostly dispersed.

    In Philadelphia, police officers in riot gear and an armoured vehicle used pepper spray to try to repel rioters and looters.

    In New York, demonstrators marched across the Brooklyn and Williamsburg Bridges, snarling traffic. The Manhattan Bridge was briefly shut down to car traffic. Chaos erupted in Union Square, with flames leaping up two stories from trash cans and piles of street debris, the Times said.

    “It is the first time so many local leaders have simultaneously issued such orders in the face of civic unrest since 1968, after the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr,” the report said.

    The police fired tear gas near the White House on Sunday night to dissuade protesters who had smashed the windows of prominent buildings, overturned cars and set fires, with smoke seen rising from near the Washington Monument, it said.

    For the past few days, thousands of protestors have gathered outside the White House raising slogans against President Trump.

    According to CNN, President Trump was briefly taken to the underground bunker for some time during the protest outside the White House, while First Lady Melania Trump and their son Barron were also taken to the bunker.

    President Trump made no public appearances on Sunday, but in a series of tweets he blamed the media for fomenting hatred and anarchy in the country.

    “The Lamestream Media is doing everything within their power to foment hatred and anarchy. As long as everybody understands what they are doing, that they are FAKE NEWS and truly bad people with a sick agenda, we can easily work through them to GREATNESS!” he said.

    Earlier in the day, he announced that his administration will be designating ANTIFA as a Terrorist Organization. ANTIFA is regarded as a militant, left-wing, anti-fascist political activist movement in the US. It comprises autonomous activist groups that aim to achieve their political objectives through the use of direct action rather than through policy reform.

    US Attorney General William Barr said that the violence instigated and carried out by the organisation and other similar groups in connection with the rioting is domestic terrorism and will be treated accordingly.

    The Trump administration alleges that it appears the violence is planned, organised, and driven by anarchistic and far left extremists, using ANTIFA-like tactics, many of whom travel from out of state to promote the violence.

    Former Vice President Joe Biden, who is the presumptive presidential nominee of the Democratic party, visited a protest site in Delaware on Sunday.

    “We are a nation in pain, but we must not allow this pain to destroy us. We are a nation enraged, but we cannot allow our rage to consume us. We are a nation exhausted, but we will not allow our exhaustion to defeat us,” Biden wrote on social media postings on Sunday.

    “The only way to bear this pain is to turn all that anguish to purpose. And as President, I will help lead this conversation and more importantly, I will listen, just as I did today visiting the site of last night’s protests in Wilmington,” he said.

    The Committee to Protect Journalists, in a late night statement said that several dozen covering the protests have been harassment, as well as arrested by law enforcement agencies.

  • No increase in risk of Covid with blood pressure medicines: DAK

    Srinagar: Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) on Monday said blood pressure medicines do not increase the risk of infection, serious illness or death from the novel coronavirus.

    “It is perfectly safe to continue your blood pressure medication during the Covid pandemic,” said DAK President Dr Nisar ul Hassan.

    “People have apprehensions that ACE inhibitors and ARBs, two classes of drugs that are widely prescribed for high blood pressure increase the risk of Covid infection and the likelihood of severe illness among those infected with the novel virus,” he said.

    “ACE inhibitors include enalapril, lisinopril, captopril and other drugs with generic names ending in –pril; ARBs include Losartan, telmisartan, olmesartan and other generic drugs ending in –sartan,” he added.

    Dr Nisar said speculations about worse outcomes among patients on these medications during the Covid pandemic have caused widespread anxiety among patients and their care providers.

    Quoting three studies published in New England Journal of Medicine, Dr Nisar said no link was found between the use of blood pressure drugs and coronavirus infection.

    “It was also revealed that patients on these drugs faced no increase in risk of becoming severely ill with Covid infection,” he added.

    Dr Nisar said the articles showed no association between use of the two classes of blood pressure drugs of concern and dying from Covid-19.

    “In fact, some studies suggest that these drugs might reduce lung injury in people infected with the novel virus,” he said.

    Dr Nisar said it is vitally important to keep your blood pressure well controlled and take medication as advised.

    “Having high blood pressure has been associated with higher rate of dying from Covid-19,” he said.

    “People should stick with their blood pressure medication because high blood pressure is a risk factor for heart attack, stroke and kidney failure,” said Dr Nisar.