China to implement extension of G-20 led Debt relief initiative

Chinese Foreign Ministry said that China will work with other G-20 countries to implement the extension of the G-20 led Debt relief initiative and the subsequent debt processing work. Earlier, Chinese Finance Minister has said that the country has extended debt relief to developing countries worth a combined 2.1 billion US Dollars under the G20 framework, the highest among the G-20 members in terms of the amount deferred. However, this is a very small fraction compared with the debt developing countries owe to China.As per a World Bank study, China accounts for more than 60 percent of the poorest countries’ official bilateral debt to G20 countries. It is also not yet fully clear how much relief has actually come into effect or whether it’s a work in progress.

-Science and Technology Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan has said that multilateral cooperation is the key to overcoming global challenges such as COVID-19. Speaking at the First Virtual Shanghai Cooperation Organization- SCO Young Scientist Conclave, in New Delhi, Dr Vardhan called upon these young scientists to come forward and join hands for developing solutions for common societal challenges including current Corona pandemic. He informed that the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) - is involved in the trial of COVID-19 vaccines’ executions and India is also hosting clinical trials for all the major vaccine contenders. He said, about 30 vaccines are in different stages of development in the country and two of them are in the most advanced stage of development.

-Nearly 11 lakh COVID samples were tested in the country in last 24 hours. With this, the cumulative testing figure has reached nearly 13 crore 37 lakh mark.The Central Government and ICMR have scaled up the testing infrastructure in a calibrated manner. India's testing capacity has touched 15 lakh per day ensuring easily accessible COVID19 tests for all. Health Ministry has said that very high levels of testing lead to early identification, prompt isolation and effective treatment of COVID-19 cases. It said, this also leads to low Fatality Rate.Starting from just one testing lab at National Institute of Virology, Pune, in January this year, the country today has two thousand 134 labs for testing Covid samples which includes one thousand 166 government and 968 private labs.

-A group art-exhibition was inaugurated in Dhaka on Tuesday to pay tribute to the Bangladesh Father of Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.The exhibition organised by the Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre of the High Commission of India in association with the Bangladesh Shilpa Kala Academy was inaugurated by the Education Minister Dipu Moni as Chief Guest of the function. The exhibition is curated by eminent curator Ripon Saha. It features artwork by 12 well known Bangladeshi painters  like Abdul Mannan, Md. Muniruzzaman, Syeda Mahbuba Karim Mimi, Quader Bhuyan and others working in different media. Paying tribute to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman during the inaugural ceremony, High Commissioner of India Vikram Doraiswami called him as one of the greatest sons of south Asia and among the greatest statesmen of the last century. The High Commissioner also felicitated the artists whose works have been displayed at the group art-exhibition. The art-exhibition has been organised on the occasion of the ongoing 'Mujib-Borsho', birth centenary celebration of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. The exhibition will also be mounted in four other cities of Bangladesh namely Rajshahi, Sylhet, Jashore and Chattogram starting from 4th December.

-Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Tuesday unveiled Sahakar Pragya. The 45 new training modules of Sahakar Pragya of the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) will impart training to primary cooperative societies in rural areas of the country along with Lakshmanrao Inamdar National Cooperative Research and Development Academy.On this occasion, Mr. Tomar called upon the cooperative sector to play a role in making the village-poor-farmers Atma Nirbhar. He said, today, India boasts a huge network of over 8.50 lakh cooperative societies with about 290 million members and around 94 per cent of the farmers are member of at least one cooperative society.He said that cooperatives have a major role in Atma Nirbhar Bharat and they lend strength to farmers to minimize risks in agriculture and allied sectors and act as shield against exploitation by unscrupulous trader.