Rabi crops: Govt procures 1.3 LT pulses, 30K tonne oilseeds in ongoing marketing season so far

The government has so far purchased around 1.34 lakh tonnes of pulses and nearly 30,000 tonnes of oilseeds from farmers worth Rs 785 crore during the ongoing marketing season of rabi (winter) crops.

State-owned Food Corporation of India (FCI) and cooperative NAFED procured pulses and oilseeds at the minimum support price (MSP), on behalf of the government.

'As on 16th April 2020, a quantity of 1,33,987.65 tonnes of pulses and 29,264.17 tonnes of oilseeds was procured by NAFED/FCI valued at Rs 784.77 crores through which 1,14,338 farmers have been benefited,' an official statement said.

During the lockdown period 97,337.35 tonnes of rabi pulses and oilseeds have been procured under the price support scheme (PSS).

'Procurement of notified commodities at minimum support price (MSP) from the farmers in several states in the rabi 2020-21 (marketing season) has started. Farmers are being given timely marketing support in the time of lockdown,' the statement said.

The procurement of rabi pulses and oilseeds from farmers under the PSS scheme is currently in progress in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.

The death toll due to Covid-19 rose to 488 and the number of cases climbed to 14,792 in the country on Saturday, registering an increase of 36 deaths and 957 cases since Friday evening, according to the Union Health Ministry.

The number of active Covid-19 cases stood at 12,289 while 2,014 people have been cured and discharged, and one had migrated, it said.

The total number of cases includes 76 foreign nationals.

Thirty-six deaths have been reported since Friday evening -- 12 from Madhya Pradesh, 10 from Gujarat, seven from Maharashtra, four from Delhi and one each from Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Jammu and Kashmir.

Of the 488 deaths, Maharashtra tops the list with 201 fatalities, followed by Madhya Pradesh at 69, Gujarat at 48 and Delhi at 42 and Telangana at 18.

Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh have reported 15 deaths each while Uttar Pradesh has reported 14 fatalities.

Punjab and Karnataka have reported 13 deaths each.

Rajasthan has registered 11 deaths while West Bengal has reported 10 fatalities.

Five people have lost their lives in Jammu and Kashmir while Kerala and Haryana have recorded three deaths each. Jharkhand and Bihar have reported two deaths each.

Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha and Assam reported one fatality each, according to the health ministry data.

However, a PTI tally of the figures reported by various states as on Saturday showed at least 14,848 confirmed cases and 503 deaths.

There has been a lag in the Union Health Ministry figures, compared to the number of deaths announced by different states, which officials attribute to procedural delays in assigning the cases to individual states.

According to the ministry's data updated in the evening, the highest number of confirmed cases in the country are from Maharashtra at 3,323 followed by Delhi at 1,707, Madhya Pradesh at 1,355 and Tamil Nadu at 1,323.

Covid-19 cases have gone up to 1,272 in Gujarat, 1,229 in Rajasthan and 969 in Uttar Pradesh.

Telangana has 791 cases, followed by Andhra Pradesh at 603 and Kerala at 396.

The number of novel coronavirus cases has risen to 371 in Karanataka, 328 in Jammu and Kashmir, 287 in West Bengal, 225 in Haryana and 202 in Punjab.

Bihar has reported 85 infection cases, while Odisha has 60 coronavirus cases.

Forty-two people were infected with the virus in Uttarakhand, while Himachal Pradesh has 38 cases. Chhattisgarh has 36 cases and Assam has registered 35 cases each.

Jharkhand has 33 cases, Chandigarh has 21 cases and Ladakh has 18, while 12 cases have been reported from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Meghalaya has reported 11 cases while Goa and Puducherry have reported seven Covid-19 infections each. Manipur and Tripura have two cases each, while Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh have reported a case each.

'State-wise distribution is subject to further verification and reconciliation,' the ministry said on its website. The website also mentions that the patient from Nagaland has been shifted to Assam.

IIT-KGP builds disinfection tunnel for campus visitors in Covid-19 time

The Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur has set up a disinfection tunnel for sanitizing visitors to the campus during the ongoing lockdown triggered by the coronavirus outbreak, an official said on Saturday.

The tunnel has been installed at the sole entry point of the campus for essential services staff such those involved in cleaning operations and once the lockdown is lifted, it can be of use to screen visitors until the threat of Covid-19 is gone, he said.

While passing through the tunnel, a visitor is sprayed with a disinfectant solution coming out of a high-pressure air compressor.

The system to automate the process of disinfecting visitors was developed by Prof Mihir Sarangi, Associate Professor Mechanical Engineering, along with faculty and staff members from various departments.

'The output material is like mist and highly effective as it covers a larger surface area unlike liquid disinfectant.

Also, it does not need any drainage,' Sarangi said,

This mechanism is, however, a supplement for hand washing or the need to wear face masks in public. Hand wash stations have been placed just outside the disinfection tunnel, he said.

The product prototype has been built indigenously at the IIT Kharagpur in less than a week while the campus is under lockdown.

BCCI creates 'Team Mask Force'; video features messages from Kohli, Tendulkar

Featuring India's most revered cricketers such as Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar, the BCCI has created a new video to promote wearing masks in public places and help the country battle the Covid-19 pandemic.

The 'Team Mask Force' has been created to spread awareness about wearing masks in public places.

'TeamIndia is now #TeamMaskForce! Join #IndiaFightsCorona and download @mygovindia's @SetuAarogya mobile application Mobile phone,' the BCCI tweeted.

Remaining I-League matches cancelled in view of lockdown, Mohun Bagan to be crowned champions

The remaining 28 matches of the I-League will be cancelled due to the coronavirus-forced lockdown and Mohun Bagan will be officially declared as the champions, the committee running the league decided on Saturday.

The I-League panel, which met via a video conference, made the recommendation to the All India Football Federation's executive committee not to resume the I-League in view of the nationwide lockdown, which will remain in force till May 3.

It will now just be a formality for the AIFF executive committee to endorse the recommendation of the I-League committee.

'The committee recommended that the 2019-20 season be deemed to be concluded. That Mohun Bagan be declared as the Hero I-League champion for the 2019-20 season as they stand atop current standings in the Hero I-League until the point of suspension on March 14, 2020,' the AIFF said in a statement.

Mohun Bagan have already clinched the title with four rounds left to be played with 39 points from 16 matches before the AIFF suspended the I-League on March 14 on the directives of the government.

There was a three-way race among East Bengal, Minerva Punjab (both on 23 points from 16 matches) and Real Kashmir (22 points from 15 matches) for the runners-up slot before the I-League was suspended.

Plea in SC for allowing migrant workers return to hometowns after Covid-19 tests

A plea has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking direction to authorities to allow migrant workers across the country to return home after conducting necessary Covid-19 tests and also arrange their safe travel by providing necessary transportation.

The plea said that in wake of the extension of the nationwide lockdown, the migrant workers who are among the worst affected category of people must be allowed to go back to their homes after being tested for Covid-19.

The plea filed by Jagdeep S Chhokar, former director in-charge of Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, and Gaurav Jain, a lawyer, said those migrant workers who test negative for Covid-19 must not be forcefully kept in shelters or away from their homes and families against their wishes.

'In view of the facts and circumstances, it is submitted by the petitioners herein that, now, when the second period of nationwide lockdown has been announced for a period of April 15 to May 3, the state authorities must arrange for the safe travel of those migrant workers who wish to go back to their native villages and hometowns in other states,' the plea said.

The petition, settled by advocate Prashant Bhushan, said there is a large number of migrant workers who wish to go back to their native villages, and this was evident from the sudden rush in the wake of the initial 21-days national lockdown announced on March 24, that led to uncontrollable chaos at various bus terminals.

Three lakh more Rapid Antibody Test kits sent to India from China: Envoy

China has dispatched three lakh more Rapid Antibody Test kits being used for quick detection of the Covid-19 to India, the Indian envoy said on Saturday.

About three lakh Rapid Antibody Test kits were airlifted to Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu from the Chinese city of Guangzhou, Indian Ambassador to China Vikram Misri said.

Nearly 3 Lakh Rapid Antibody Tests have just been airlifted by @airindiain from #Guangzhou | Supplies are headed to Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu. Great work on ground by our team at @cgiguangzhou Misri tweeted.

This is in addition to 6.50 lakh Antibody Tests and RNA Extraction Kits sent from here.

India is procuring the medical supplies from China in recent weeks to ensure availability of adequate supplies.

People stand in painted circled maintaining social distancing to collect ration at a store during a nationwide lockdown in the wake of coronavirus pandemic, at Pelhar village of Palghar in Mumbai, Saturday, April 18, 2020. PTI

Mohun Bagan AC ground. Wikimedia Commons

HC seeks Centre, Delhi govt stand on plea to safeguard domestic violence victims during lockdown

The Delhi High Court on Saturday sought responses of the Centre and the Delhi government on a plea seeking measures to safeguard victims of domestic violence and child abuse amidst the Covid-19 lockdown.

A bench of justices J R Midha and Jyoti Singh issued a notice to the ministries of Women and Child Development, Health and Information and Broadcasting, as well as the Delhi government and the women commissions here, seeking their stand on the petition by an NGO.

The lawyers who appeared for both sides in the proceedings held via video-conferencing said the notice was issued in the matter to the Centre, the Delhi government and the women commissions.

However, the detailed order is yet to be made available on the high court website.

The NGO, All India Council of Human Rights, Liberties and Social Justice (AICHLS), has claimed that there were an increasing number of domestic violence incidents since the nation was put under lockdown and sought an urgent intervention by the court.

The bench, in its order, also directed the setting up of a high-level committee to look into the issues raised in the NGO's petition and submit a report by April 24, the next date of hearing.

On Friday, the Delhi government and the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) had told the court that there are sufficient measures in place to safeguard the victims of domestic violence and child abuse amidst the Covid-19 lockdown in the country.

The Women and Child Development department, represented by Delhi government additional standing counsel Sanjoy Ghose and advocate Urvi Mohan, told the court that sufficient facilities were available to house victims of domestic violence and children in need of care and protection.

The department had also said there were 24x7 helplines in place and when a complaint was received, rescue of the victim(s) was carried out immediately.

A medic collects swab sample of a man from a new swab testing cabin at Podar hospital in Worli during a nationwide lockdown in the wake of coronavirus pandemic, in Mumbai, Saturday, April 18, 2020. PTI

A disinfectant tunnel set up at the entrance of a jail during the nationwide lockdown imposed to curb the spread of coronavirus, in Greater Noida, Monday, April 13, 2020. PTI

'Being a part of India team is a matter of great pride. But today we are going to create a bigger team, Team Mask Force,' Indian captain Kohli said in the video.

Doing his bit, Tendulkar said, 'Come on India, make masks and become part of mask force. And remember to wash hands for 20 seconds and maintain social distancing.'

The video has messages from BCCI President Sourav Ganguly, Smriti Mandhana, Rohit Sharma, Harbhajan Singh, Harmanpreet Kaur, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid and Mithali Raj, all of them speaking about the importance of wearing masks and following the directives of the government in this fight.