Avian Influenza confirmed in 9 States for poultry birds

The External Affairs Ministry has said that India will continue to supply COVID-19 vaccines to partner countries over the coming weeks and months in a phased manner. Addressing the media in New Delhi, External Affairs Ministry Spokesman Anurag Srivastava said that it will be ensured that domestic manufacturers will have adequate stocks to meet domestic requirements while supplying abroad. He said, there is interest in many countries in accessing vaccines from India which is the global hub for vaccine production.  Srivastava said that the Prime Minister has already stated that India’s vaccine production and delivery capacity would be used for the benefit of all humanity in fighting this crisis. Srivastava informed that India's grant assistance of vaccines to the neighbouring countries commenced on 20th of this month and on the first day, 1.5 lakh doses of vaccines were supplied to Bhutan and one lakh doses to Maldives as grant assistance. 

-Ministry of Road Transport and Highways and Indian Institute of Technology, IIT Roorkee signed an MoU in New Delhi for continuation of Ministry of Road Transport and Highways Professorial Chair focusing on research and development, teaching and training in the area of Development of Highway Infrastructure. The MoU was signed by Indresh Kumar Pandey, Special Secretary and Director GeneralRoad Development and Prof. Manoranjan Parida, Deputy Director and Professor of Civil Engineering, IIT Roorkee. Secretary in the Ministry Giridhar Aramane presided over the MoU signing ceremony. This collaboration of Ministry of Road Transport and Highways with IIT-Roorkee will strengthen Research and Development activities in Road Sector and the Chair professor is expected to provide leadership in conducting and coordinating research, development and teaching in the area of Development of Highway Infrastructure.

-In Madhya Pradesh, WIPRO group is all set to act as knowledge partner of the State Government. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, while holding a discussion with Azim Premji of WIPRO through video conference on Friday, informed that the company has taken initiative for establishment of a university in the State. For this purpose, the State Government will extend all possible support to the Foundation.The Wipro Group will also set up a Software Development Centre in Bhopal. The Chief Minister said, such centres will go a long way in providing more opportunities to the youth in the Information Technology sector. Azim Premji Foundation has been allotted 50 acres of land for the proposed university in Bhopal. Its First Phase will start soon. The goal is to start the university in the next 18 months. The Chief Minister said, this university will emerge as an important institution in the field of higher education in the State.

-Union Minister for Fisheries Dr. Giriraj Singh has said that the Centre has invested 27 thousand crore rupees for schemes relating to blue economy. Laying the foundation stone for the Aquatic Quarantine facility at Aquatic Animal Quarantine Centre at Padappai, the Minister said that the ornamental fish export amounts to one lakh crore rupees. He said that the government will soon be launching a pilot project of cage culture fishing facility at Rameswaram. The Minister said that fishermen could earn one lakh to one a half lakh rupee every month due to the scheme. He also said that sea-weed production will also be given a boost in the blue economy schemes launched by the government.

-Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has released the "Indian Telecom Services Performance Indicator Report" for the Quarter ending 30th September, 2020.This Report provides a broad perspective of the Telecom Services in India. It presents the key parameters and growth trends of the Telecom Services as well as Cable TV, DTH & Radio Broadcasting services in India for the period covering 1st July, 2020 to 30th September, 2020. It is compiled mainly on the basis of information furnished by the Service Providers.emes launched by the government.

-Avian Influenza have been so far confirmed in nine States for poultry birds. These States are Kerala, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. The disease has also been confirmed in 12 states for Crows, Migratory and Wild birds. Avian Influenza commonly known as Bird Flu has been confirmed in poultry samples from Almora district of Uttarakhand and Somnath district of Gujarat. Avian Influenza has been confirmed in crows in the UT of Jammu and Kashmir and in Kaliji Pheasant bird in Tehri range of Uttarakhand. However, crow samples submitted from Alwar district of Rajasthan have been found negative for Avian Influenza. The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying said Control and Containment Operations are going on in the affected epicentres of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Kerala. All the States are reporting to the Department on a daily basis regarding the control measures adopted by the states. The Department is also taking continuous efforts to generate awareness about Bird Flu through platforms including social media platforms.