CIVIL SNIPPETS

PM extends lockdown till May 3; tougher restrictions at hotspots #GS2

#Governance
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday announced the extension of the current nationwide
lockdown till May 3, with intensive containment measures at hotspots till April 20 in order for areas to
qualify for any relief measures and freedom of mobility, especially for hawkers and daily-wage
workers.

He added that detailed guidelines on the contours of this extended lockdown would be issued by the
government on Wednesday.

Addressing the nation via a televised broadcast, Mr. Modi said while the efforts to fight the novel
coronavirus were keeping the situation under control, it was not time to relax one’s guard, adding that
the economic cost “may appear big, but is not so when compared to the lives of our citizens”.

Inputs from States

“After speaking to all States and even based on suggestions from our citizens, the lockdown has been
extended to May 3. Till April 20, identified hotspots will see even more strict checks and only when
there is some success in dealing with the outbreak in designated hotspots will some freedom of
mobility be granted, that, too, under strict conditions,” Mr. Modi said.

“I keep in my mind our poor brothers and daily-wage workers when I speak of opening spaces, but even
if one case emerges from these hotpots, the lockdown will be back in place again,” he stressed.

He said Indians had displayed exceptional discipline and resolve during the lockdown and managed to
keep the number of cases at a level that was favourable compared to several rich countries.

“Even before our first case, we had put in place screening at airports for international travellers and
quarantine measures; when we hit 550 cases, we went in for a strong lockdown, and if you compare
where we are at with the number of our cases, our situation — with our limited resources — is still
better than other, richer countries,” he said.

Help for farmers

He mentioned that the government was making all efforts to help farmers with the ongoing rabi harvest
and procurement and said the country had adequate stocks of both food and medicines. He said he
wanted the country to follow seven steps or a new set of saptapadi (traditionally associated with a
Hindu wedding ceremony).

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Longer lockdown essential to break chain of infection: govt. #GS3 #SnT
India on Tuesday registered an increase of 1,211 COVID-19 cases and 31 deaths in the past 24 hours,
making it the largest spike in cases since January.

The total number of cases stands at 10,363, with 339 deaths. As many as 1,036 persons have been
discharged after treatment, the Union Health Ministry said.

Following the Prime Minister’s announcement of extension of the lockdown till May 3, the Ministry said
the move was essential to break the chain of transmission. “As per the World Health Organization data,
76,498 confirmed cases and 5,702 deaths were reported across the world on Monday and it is due to
our collective effort that in a large country like India, we have been able to restrict the numbers.

According to reports from the State Health Departments, the death toll rose to 390, with 11,350 cases
overall of which 9,791 are active ones. Mumbai alone reported 204 cases, taking the total number of
affected people in the city to 1,753, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation said. The death toll in the
city stood at 111 with 11 more fatalities.

More beds

“Health Ministry is continuously working with States/UTs to strengthen the health infrastructure in the
country,” Mr. Agarwal said. “As of now, a total of 602 dedicated COVID-19 hospitals with 1,06,719
isolation beds and 12,024 ICU beds have been developed,’’ he added.

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Hits to Health Ministry, ICMR websites soar #GS3 #SnT

The average daily user visits to the websites of the Health Ministry and the Indian Council of Medical
Research (ICMR) have skyrocketed from 8.04 lakh in the first week of March to 3.24 crore in the last
week of the month as people look for updated information on the COVID-19 pandemic.

“...In such challenging times, citizens look up to a source of genuine information. As the current situation
is unveiling, the traffic on the websites of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and the ICMR has
gone up significantly as people look for information about the pandemic.

During March itself, the count of visitors on these websites increased from approximately 56.3 lakh in
the entire first week of the month to 22.68 crore during the last week of the month, the official added.

Tracking portals

Additionally, the official said that various State centres of the NIC are working with the State
governments to develop “tracking and management portals to help the State and the district
administration to combat the pandemic”, similar to those already launched in Kerala and Meghalaya.
On enabling work from home for the entire government during the lockdown, the official said there
were some challenges such as configuring virtual private network (VPN) access — core to enabling
government employees to work from their homes, to large number of employees in a span of three or
four days was a herculean task.

Work from home

“Keeping in mind the safety of our own people, most of our team members at NIC were also working
from home, hence executing change at different levels was difficult with a limited manpower in the
office. Availability of laptops or a home desktop for every resource was another challenge,” the official
added.

Videoconferencing

With social distancing norms in place, NIC’s videoconferencing service was extensively used by
government officials, including President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, besides
Union Ministers, Governors and Chief Ministers.

“In the month of March, the NIC helped in facilitating over 2,300 videoconferencing sessions of over
60,000 hours across the country, held at all levels of governance,” the official said.

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Massive efforts to supply food to destitute persons #GS2 #Governance

The Congress government in Rajasthan has launched massive efforts for supplying cooked food and
dry rations to the poor and destitute, besides ensuring food security for migrant labourers stranded in
several towns after being deprived of their livelihood during the lockdown, which has been extended
till May 3. The allocations were made from a package announced at the start of lockdown.

Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot’s assurance that “no one will go to bed hungry” has prompted the
administration in several districts to devise their own strategies for extending relief to poor and
marginalised people. From ‘Jan Sambal kits’ in Udaipur and ‘Janata Rasoi Kendra’ in Bikaner to the
‘wheat bank’ in Kota, the efforts have brought two square meals a day to hungry persons.

Mr. Gehlot, who had announced a Rs. 2,000 crore package for supporting disadvantaged people on
March 23, said over a video conference with journalists here that 1 lakh food packets were being
distributed everyday in Jaipur alone. The package is expected to benefit 1.41 crore families in the State.

Residents of slum colonies in Jaipur’s Jhalana institutional area as well as labourers from Bihar, Uttar
Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal in the Sitapura and Ramchandrapura industrial areas are among the
beneficiaries. After a survey by the Labour Department found 10,000 industrial labourers in the city, the
administration started supplying 5,000 kits of dry rations to them.
Auto rickshaw driver Dhanraj Mali, 48, told The Hindu that the food assistance received from the
government was the only source of sustenance for his family of six. Labourer Afroz Alam, 35, from
Bihar’s Kaimur district, said he could not leave the city when the lockdown was enforced, and that he
was getting food from Women & Child Department’s van twice a day.

Government officials taking the trucks to different localities in Jaipur said the food packets were
arranged mostly with the help of donors and institutions. “We try to find the people not covered in the
social security schemes and give them food. This is not just a government action... We as individuals are
also involved,” an official said.

In Udaipur district, the task of providing food to everyone is performed by preparing long lists and
matching them with distress calls received at the helpline. District Supply Officer Jyoti Kakwani said
the free kits being supplied to needy families at their doorstep comprised 10 kg of wheat flour, 3 kg of
pulses, 200 ml oil and 1 kg of salt, which was sufficient for a fortnight.

The “wheat bank” established in Kota district’s Kanwas block is supported by the farmers harvesting
their rabi crops, who have contributed a portion of their produce. Sub-Divisional Officer Rajesh Daga
said 114 quintals of wheat was so far stored for five villages and the committees headed by Sarpanches
had been authorised to identify the beneficiaries.

While the P.B.M. Government Hospital’s Help Committee in Bikaner is assisting the district
administration in the preparation of nutritious food at a community kitchen, Congress leaders Subhash
Maharia in Sikar and Maqbool Mandelia in Churu have mobilised resources in their constituencies to
supplement the government’s relief efforts.

No photography

In a significant order, the State government has banned photography during the distribution of food
packets and ration among the needy. “The food supply should be treated as a service and should not be
made a medium of publicity and competition,” the order stated.

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Ban on trains, flights to stay until May 3 #GS2 #Governance

The Indian Railways on Tuesday said all passenger train services, including premium, mail, express and
suburban trains and the Kolkata metro rail, will continue to remain suspended till May 3. In addition,
advance reservation, including e-tickets, will not be allowed “till further notice”.

A Railways official said that the move will lead of the cancellation of about 39 lakh tickets booked from
April 15 to May 3.
The temporary ban on domestic and international flights on Tuesday was also extended until midnight
of May 3. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had banned international flights from March
23 and the ban on domestic flights came into effect two days later, that is, March 25.

The suspension follows the announcement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to extend the nationwide
lockdown by almost three weeks.

For all the cancelled trains, full refund will be given to the passengers. Online facility for cancellation of
tickets will remain functional. The Railways added that a full refund will also be given to those
passengers who cancel their advance bookings for trains that have not been cancelled yet “as a goodwill
measure”.

For passengers who had bookings on the cancelled trains, refunds will be automatically remitted by the
Railways online. However, for a booking done over counters, refunds can be taken up till July 31.

“Resumption of train services as may be warranted in consideration of public safety, keeping in view the
emergent situation, shall be announced in due course,” the Railways’ statement said.

“All counters for booking of rail journey tickets for reserved/unreserved travel at railway stations and
outside railway station premises shall remain closed up to 24:00 hrs of May 3, 2020,” it added. However,
to ensure the flow of essential supplies in various parts of the country, movement of goods and parcel
trains will continue.

No word on repatriation

The government is yet to announce measures for repatriation of Indians stranded around the world.
There have been demands from within the aviation sector to stop airlines from allowing advance
booking until the lockdown is lifted, so that passengers don’t get their money stuck with airlines. But the
government is yet to release any guidelines on this issue.

There is no restriction on cargo flights. The government has taken the help of passenger airlines like Air
India, IndiGo and SpiceJet, apart from BlueDart, for the transportation of essential medical supplies
within the country as well as to Shanghai, Hong Kong and Colombo.

IndiGo has announced that it would resume flights from May 4. It said it will be initially operating with a
slightly curtailed capacity, which it will increase in the subsequent months, including to international
routes.

Former Railway Board Chairman Ashwini Lohani, during a video conference of the travel and tourism
industry, said, “Railways stopped for one or two days when Gandhi ji died. After that, during the railway
strike of 1974, in some pockets, services were affected. But this is the first time [after the assassination
of Gandhi] that Railways has stopped across the country.”

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Lockdown norms can’t be diluted: NDMA #GS2 #Governance
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Tuesday issued an order under the Disaster
Management Act directing Chairman, National Executive Committee, that existing lockdown measures
be continued to be implemented in all parts of the country till May 3. Union Home Secretary Ajay
Bhalla is the chairman of the committee.

Road map soon

Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba will hold a videoconference on Wednesday with Chief Secretaries of all
States to discuss the road map in the wake of the extended lockdown.

The Ministry has issued an order to all States and UTs on the lockdown measures imposed. According to
the order, with the extension of the lockdown, all restrictions that have been imposed in various sectors,
and on various activities, will continue to remain in force.

The communication says that as per the orders issued by the MHA under the Disaster Management Act,
2005, the States and Union Territories cannot dilute restrictions imposed via the guidelines.

The first set of such guidelines to be followed by States for “containment of COVID-19 epidemic” was
issued on March 24 under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, invoked for the first time in the
country.

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U.S. approves 2 missile deals with India #GS2 #IR

The U.S. State Department has approved two potential missile deals with India, for an estimated $92
million and $63 million.

The first deal, for which Boeing is the contractor, is for 10 AGM-84L Harpoon Block II air-launched
missiles and related equipment. These missiles can be fitted onto Boeing’s P-8I (Poseidon-Eight India)
maritime patrol aircraft, and are intended to enhance India’s capability in anti-surface warfare while
defending its sea lanes.

The second deal, for $63 million and principally contracted with Raytheon Integrated Defense System,
is for 16 MK 54 All Up Round Lightweight Torpedoes (LWT); three MK 54 Exercise Torpedoes (MK 54
LWT Kit procurement required); and related equipment. Also included are MK 54 spare parts, torpedo
containers, two Recoverable Exercise Torpedoes (REXTORP) with containers and related equipment
and support from the U.S. government and contractors.

The torpedoes are expected to enhance India’s anti-submarine warfare capability and can be used with
the P-8I.
There are no known offset agreements for both deals, the State Department said, and any offset
agreement will be defined in negotiations between India and the contractors.

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification to the U.S. Congress,
notifying it of the possible sale. Under the U.S.’ Arms Export Control Act, Congress has 30 days to raise
objections to the sale in the case of India.

Delay in delivery

The Indian Navy operates eight P-8I long-range maritime patrol aircraft procured under a $2.2 billion
deal in 2009. In 2016, the Navy exercised an optional clause for four more aircraft in a deal worth over
$1 billion. The first of the four aircraft was to be delivered in May and the deal completed by January
2022. However, the initial delivery is expected to be delayed by a couple of months due to the COVID-19
pandemic.

“Boeing was to deliver the first aircraft slightly early in May, but due to the current situation it is
expected to be delivered as per the original schedule in July,” a source told The Hindu on Tuesday.

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ICMR suggests testing of pooled samples #GS3 #SnT

Stating that the number of COVID-19 cases in India is rising, the Indian Council of Medical Research
(ICMR) is now advising the feasibility of using pooled samples for molecular testing of patient samples.

The council has said that it is critical to increase the numbers of tests conducted by laboratories.

“Positivity rate in cases is still low. Hence, it may help to use the pooled samples for screening. A
pooled testing algorithm involves the PCR screening of a specimen pool comprising multiple individual
patient specimens, followed by individual testing (pool de-convolution) only if a pool screens positive.
As all individual samples in a negative pool are regarded as negative, it results in substantial cost
savings when a large proportion of pools tests negative,” it noted in a one-page advisory.

The advisory is aimed at increasing capacity of the laboratories to screen increased numbers of
samples using molecular testing for COVID-19 for the purpose of surveillance.

“But pooling of sample is not recommended in areas or population with positivity rates of >5% for
COVID-19. Preferable number of samples to be pooled is five, though more than two samples can be
pooled, but considering higher possibility of missing positive samples with low viral load, it is strongly
discouraged to pool more than five samples, except in research mode,” the advisory says.

The ICMR has noted that a feasibility study was conducted at DHR/ICMR Virus Research and Diagnostic
Laboratory (VRDL) at King George’s Medical University (KGMU), Lucknow.

Feasibility scenario
“It has been demonstrated that performing real-time PCR for COVID-19 by pooling five samples of TS/NS
(200 ul/sample) is feasible when the prevalence rates of infection are low. All individual samples in a
negative pool to be regarded as negative. De-convoluted testing is recommended if any of the pool is
positive. Pooling of more than five samples is not recommended to avoid the effect of dilution leading to
false negatives,” the advisory said.

It has now recommended sample pooling for real-time RT-PCR screening for COVID-19 (based on the
KGMU study). The study has recommended that it should be used only in areas with low prevalence of
COVID-19 (initially using proxy of low positivity of less than 2% from the existing data).

Still, a watch should be kept on increasing positivity in such areas. In areas with positivity of 2-5%,
sample pooling for PCR screening may be considered only in community survey or surveillance among
asymptomatic individuals, strictly excluding pooling samples of individuals with known contact with
confirmed cases and health care workers (in direct contact with care of COVID-19 patients). Sample
from such individuals should be directly tested without pooling.

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India to get 15 million PPE kits from China #GS2 #IR

Indian companies and government entities have placed orders for 15 million personal protective
equipment (PPE) kits and 1.5 million rapid testing kits from China, officials said on Tuesday.

The Indian government is calling on China to fulfil those orders, amid concerns over tightened
regulations on exporting such equipment by Chinese authorities following criticism from several
European countries over the quality of exports.

“We are in the process of, or have already completed, contracting for 15 million PPE kits, consisting of
gowns, masks, gloves, goggles, etc. and nearly 1.5 million rapid testing kits of all kinds, some of which
have already been delivered,” India’s Ambassador to China Vikram Misri said at an online press briefing
from Beijing.

A substantial amount of India’s national PPE supply is coming from China. These orders, both from the
government and private sectors, were placed on a commercial basis. China had separately donated
170,000 PPE coveralls, the Health Ministry said on April 6, which would add to the 387,473 PPEs
available in the country as of that date.

Test kits delivered

More than 5,00,000 testing kits from China have already been delivered to various entities, while a
further 1 to 1.5 million test kits are at different stages of procurement and production.

India has since tried to ramp up production and imports, including from China, which is a major
producer of both PPEs and testing kits.
Mr. Misri called on China to ensure that supply chains remained open and for all placed orders to be
fulfilled. While India “appreciate[d] efforts by China to ensure the quality of goods exported”, it also
called on Beijing to fulfil previously placed orders with companies that were licensed by Indian
authorities to export to the Indian market. China imposed new regulations to tighten checks on April
10, following concerns over the quality of exports expressed in several countries.

“In some cases, some of the orders placed recently were placed before regulations came into effect that
limited and restricted the number of companies from China that can export to India,” Mr. Misri said. “
Given that the products are licensed for import to India, it will be a welcome step for Chinese authorities
to expedite the registration of these products. Our expectation is that these well-established companies
will fulfil their contractual obligations.”

Mr. Misri said there were “more than half a dozen” orders in different stages of processing, and India’s
current understanding was delivery schedules remained on course.

“We have a schedule that stretches from deliveries starting tomorrow [April 15] until the end of the
month, when half a dozen consignments ordered by different entities in India will be delivered,” he said.

“Our understanding is the registration process has been initiated and we have requested the Chinese
government to expedite the registration process of companies so that export orders already processed
and ready to ship can be sent on their way to India. We hope this request can be facilitated by the
Chinese government.”

T.N. order

There have also been concerns over some orders being diverted. The Tamil Nadu government said this
week that 50,000 testing kits it had ordered from China were diverted to the U.S. “We have seen media
reports but not come across authoritative reports of supplies intended for India having been diverted,”
Mr. Misri said.

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Western U.P. farmers facing more than just COVID-19 #GS2 #Governance
Despite repeated government assurances, farmers in western Uttar Pradesh are struggling to come to
terms with the nationwide lockdown. Some are short of labour, some are waiting for the government to
buy their produce and others are grappling with “forced social distancing”.

In Rampur Moti village in Meerut, Prakushal Chaudhary has to make do with only two labourers to
harvest wheat crop spread over 12 bighas. “Usually it requires at least six labourers but this year we
have a shortage because of the fear of coronavirus. Also, Muslim labourers from nearby villages are not
being allowed because two-three people have been found infected. There is no discord, but why take a
chance,” he said, adding many farmers are cutting the crops themselves.
In Chaudhary Lakhpath Singh village near Pilakhwa town of Hapur district, Dinesh Kumar shared a
different experience. “We are getting cheap labour this year because construction workers have
returned home in large numbers and they have nothing to do. Their wives used to work on the farm, but
this year they are also helping them out. The barter has come down from 50 kg wheat for harvesting a
bigha to 35 kg to 40 kg.”

He said the concern was that many farmers in the region hadn’t received payment for their sugarcane
crop. “Three mills in the region, including the Simbhaoli sugar mill, haven’t paid the dues to farmers. It
would have helped us at this time to buy diesel and transport the wheat crop to mandis.”

MGNREGA workers

Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Dharmendra Malik said the government should allow the MGNREGA
workers to help in harvesting to overcome the paucity of labour. “The government could pay its part,
the rest could be compensated by the farmer. Also, the process should be eased out in places which are
not hotspots.

You can’t expect the farmer to access his field after taking permission from a sub-divisional magistrate.
Right now, the district administration is making big announcements but the constable on the ground is
using his own mind. The supply chain of the spare parts of combines should be maintained,” said Mr.
Malik.

In the Mathura region, the wheat crop has already been harvested and is lying at homes of farmers. “We
are waiting for the government mandis to open and start registration. What is happening is private
players are trying to buy wheat at Rs. 1,750 to Rs. 1,800 a quintal, when the government rate is Rs.
1,925 a quintal.

The delay will force farmers who need money to sell their crop at a lower price,” said Mohd. Ehtesham
from Sahar village. “We used combines to cut the crop and have to pay its rent. The administration said
the process would start from April 15 but the scenario suggests that there would be a delay,” he said.

Also, farmers in the region are waiting for the compensation of the crop they lost because of hailstorm
in February and March. “The compensation had started coming but was suddenly stopped when this
coronavirus started spreading,” he said.

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Local bodies told to give gear to sanitation workers #GS2 #Governance

The National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation (NSFDC) has asked local bodies to
ensure that all sanitation workers are provided personal protective equipment (PPE) to remain safe
during the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Union Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Thawarchand Gehlot said on Tuesday that the NSFDC,
which is a government undertaking under the Ministry, had issued an advisory to all municipalities and
panchayats for ensuring safety of sanitation workers and waste collectors.

The April 7 advisory said sanitation workers and waste collectors, including informal workers, were
among the “silent groups of people who are working tirelessly to prevent the spread of the
coronavirus”.

“When it comes to risking their lives for the protection of others, in the present times, they are at par
with doctors, healthcare workers and policemen,” the advisory said.

Mandatory orientation

All local bodies were asked to put in place a standard operating procedure for the safety of sanitation
staff. There should be mandatory orientation for sanitation workers on COVID-19, social distancing
norms and precautionary measures, it said. The local bodies were asked to provide equipment, including
masks, gloves, gumboots and jackets, as well as soaps and hand sanitisers for helping maintain hygiene.

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Ordnance Factory Board to make 1.1 lakh coveralls #GS3 #Economy

The Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) has started making coveralls, conforming to the ISO Class 3 exposure
standards, to combat COVID-19, the Defence Ministry said on Tuesday. An initial order of 1.1 lakh from
HLL Lifecare Ltd. (HLL) will be completed in 40 days.

“The manufacture of hand sanitiser is on a war footing, and more than 70,000 litres has already been
supplied to different agencies,” the Ministry said in a statement.

The OFB has also developed and started supply of special two-metre tents, made up of waterproof
fabric, mild steel and aluminium alloy. These tents can be used for medical emergency and quarantine.
Two facilities have been established in Chennai and Kanpur for blood penetration tests. The OFB is also
trying to produce face masks.

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SoI maps add heft to Arogya Setu app #GS3 #SnT

To “complement” the Arogya Setu App, a government endorsed application that helps trace the
contacts of those who may have been infected by COVID-19, the Survey of India (SoI), the country’s
apex map maker, has made public a trove of maps.
This could improve geospatial data as well as help develop maps that could be customised to a variety of
‘COVID-related applications’ such as healthcare facilities, infection clusters and disaster management,
according to officials associated with the project.

Geospatial information

“The platform is initially expected to strengthen the public health delivery system of the State and
Central governments and subsequently provide the necessary geospatial information support to citizens
and agencies dealing with the challenges related to health, socio-economic distress, and livelihood
challenges,” the Department of Science and Technology, which oversees the SoI, said in a press release.

“The mobile application has been customised to collect COVID-19 specific geospatial datasets through
community engagement to augment the response activities by government to the pandemic.”

Officials said that the maps wouldn’t be directly useful to the general public and was aimed at
government agencies which require geospatial information. “If a response team needs location specific
data on a hotspot that information can be given by Sahyog (the SoI’s mobile application),” Pankaj
Mishra, Deputy Surveyor General (Technical) told The Hindu .

In his address announcing the extension of the lockdown on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi
urged Indians to use the Arogya Setu application and “inspire others to download the app as well”.

To be effective, it requires users to keep their device’s Bluetooth and location history ‘on’ as much as
possible. Users will be alerted, without disclosing identity, if they are in the vicinity of someone who’s
tested positive. It also helps the government trace contacts of those infected to execute quarantining.

Critics say that Arogya Setu and applications like Sahyog that link to it, could infringe privacy as there
wasn’t clarity on how data would be shared between the two applications.

“If location data from Arogya Setu is transferred to the other application, then it is a problem. But if it is
a one way transfer from Sahyog to Arogya Setu, then it is more about privacy protection within the
latter application,” said Prasanth Sugathan, Legal Director, Software Freedom Law Centre, India.

Arogya Setu’s terms of use were unclear on several aspects including how long data would be stored,
what would happen to it once the pandemic ceased, who else the data was being transferred to, he
added. The government has said that data would be collected only for managing the pandemic.

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Amid lockdown, hunters eye rhino horns #GS3 #Environment

The COVID-19 lockdown has activated poachers who had been forced into lying low for more than a
year. At least six thwarted attempts have been made within a week in and around Assam’s national
parks.
Wildlife officials have not ruled out the possibility of the poachers trying to strike while the demand for
animal body parts, specifically the rhino horn, remains low due to the impact of the pandemic on the
grey market and make a killing later when it rebounds.

And the lockdown has inadvertently made it easier for the poachers by thinning the ranks of the
network of local people who had hitherto been a critical part of the anti-poaching campaign by tipping
off forest officials on any suspicious movements near the parks.

On April 11, a member of the Special Rhino Protect Force received bullet injuries during an encounter
with a group of poachers in the Biswanath division of the Kaziranga National Park (KNP). The police in
Biswanath district arrested six people for attempted poaching and assault two days later.

The police in Sonitpur district arrested five people on April 13 involved in attempted poaching at the
Nameri National Park. Officials said eight people had so far been arrested in five cases of attempted
poaching.

While two people with a track record were arrested in Golaghat district for trying to kill a rhino that had
strayed out of the KNP, the six arrested after the encounter in Biswanath district were first-timers.

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horns/article31343060.ece

World economy to contract by 3% in 2020 #GS3 #Economy

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected the global economy would shrink by 3% in 2020
amid the global coronavirus pandemic, according to a report released on Tuesday.

In its latest World Economic Outlook -- released before the annual conference of the IMF and World
Bank on Wednesday, the fund downgraded its growth forecast by 6.3 percentage points from its
previous report as isolation, lockdowns and widespread closures to contain the virus hit the economy.

"It is very likely that this year the global economy will experience its worst recession since the Great
Depression, surpassing that seen during the global financial crisis a decade ago," stressed the report.

Growth was forecasted to recover next year under the assumption that the pandemic subsides in the
second half of 2020 and containment efforts are gradually unwound.

The global economy is projected to expand by 5.8% in 2021 as economic activity normalizes, helped by
policy support, according to the report.

Pointing to the extreme uncertainty surrounding the global growth forecast, the report underlined that
many countries faced a multi-layered crisis comprising of health shocks, domestic economic disruptions,
plummeting external demand, capital flow reversals and a collapse in commodity prices.
The report also highlighted the importance of effective policies to forestall worse outcomes. Though this
would take a short-term toll on economic activity, it would be an important investment in long-term
human and economic health, it said.

Strong multilateral cooperation will be essential to overcome the effects of the pandemic, including to
help financially constrained countries facing twin health and funding shocks and for channeling aid to
nations with weak health care systems, it noted.

The report called on countries urgently to work together to slow the spread of the virus and develop a
vaccine and therapies to counter the disease.

Growth forecasts

The report predicted that advanced economies -- especially those experiencing widespread outbreaks
and deploying containment measures -- will contract this year, including the US (minus 5.9%), Japan
(minus 5.2%), U.K. (minus 6.5%), Germany (minus 7%), France (minus 7.2%), Italy (minus 9.1%) and
Spain (minus 8%).

The Eurozone's growth forecast was also reduced to minus 7.5% for 2020, while the economy in the bloc
is expected to expand by 1.4% next year.

The fund projected that emerging markets and developing economies would shrink by 1% this year. The
downward revision from 4.4% stemmed from large domestic disruptions anticipated in economic
activity due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

All countries in this group face a health crisis, severe external demand shock, dramatic tightening in
global financial conditions and a plunge in commodity prices, it underlined. Growth among emerging
markets and developing economies is projected to rebound to 6.6% in 2021.

In China, indicators such as industrial production, retail sales and fixed asset investment suggest that the
contraction in economic activity in the first quarter could have been about 8% year-on-year, the report
said. The Chinese economy is projected to grow at a subdued 1.2% in 2020 and 9.2% in 2021. The report
predicted that Turkey would contract 5% this year and grow by 5% next year.

https://nation.com.pk/15-Apr-2020/imf-world-economy-to-contract-by-3-percent-in-2020

Gold scales 7-year high on rising economic worries, Fed stimulus #GS3
#Economy

Gold prices rose to a more than seven-year high on Tuesday on rising fears of a steeper economic
downturn and amid massive liquidity measures by global central banks.

Spot gold gained 0.6% to $1,724.72 per ounce by 0804 GMT, having touched its highest since Nov. 2012
at $1,726.85 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures rose 0.6% to $1,772.20.
“The concerns about the economic outlook are particularly supportive for gold. Liquidity (from the
Federal Reserve) combined with the background of lower interest rates makes gold a much more
attractive proposition,” said Michael McCarthy, chief strategist at CMC Markets.

But he warned that in the absence of new news, there could be “modest pull backs as investors and
traders reposition themselves”.

Many countries and central banks have taken fiscal and monetary measures to prop up their economies
amid the coronavirus outbreak. The Fed last week announced a $2.3 trillion stimulus package, while
European Union finance ministers agreed on half-a-trillion euros worth of economic support.

The Fed stimulus aimed at injecting liquidity into the virus-hit U.S. economy tend to weigh on the dollar,
which makes gold relatively cheaper to buy, while lower interest rates reduce the opportunity cost of
holding non-yielding bullion.

A steep economic downturn and massive rescue spending will nearly quadruple the fiscal 2020 U.S.
budget deficit to a record $3.8 trillion, a staggering 18.7% of U.S. economic output, a Washington-based
watchdog group said on Monday.

Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund said it would provide debt relief to 25 member countries
under its Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust to allow them to focus more financial resources on
fighting the pandemic.

On the technical front, spot gold may test a resistance at $1,739 per ounce, a break above which could
lead to a gain at $1,767. Reflecting appetite for bullion, holdings in SPDR Gold Trust , the world's largest
gold-backed exchange-traded fund (ETF), rose 1.6% to 1,009.70 tonnes on Monday, the highest since
June 2013. #GS

“Gold as a safe-haven has gained traction as currencies are being devalued by massive stimulus
programs. This has also increased physical demand of gold (such as ETFs) to hedge against the
debasement of fiat currencies,” said Avtar Sandu, a senior commodities manager at Phillip Futures, in a
note.

Palladium rose 1.9% to $2,231.61 per ounce. Silver gained 0.6% to $15.54 and platinum was up 2.5% at
$766.70.

https://www.thehindu.com/business/gold-scales-7-year-high-on-rising-economic-worries-fed-
stimulus/article31342232.ece

Can an unborn baby be infected with coronavirus? #GS3 #SnT

After several months of the world believing that a pregnant woman cannot transmit
novel coronavirus infection to her unborn baby, evidence has been emerging to suggest that this can
indeed happen. Earlier this week, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) laid down the need for
healthcare workers and obstetricians to factor in the consequences of the “probable” vertical
transmission of COVID-19 (the disease caused by the novel coronavirus) and take precautions
accordingly.

What is vertical transmission?

Vertical transmission refers to the transmission of an infection from a pregnant woman to her child. It
can be antenatal (before birth), perinatal (weeks immediately prior to or after birth) or postnatal (after
birth). This is of grave concern not just because it can potentially cause a newborn to be very sick, but
also because the mechanism of how and when this happens is not always very clear.

In a 2017 review article in the journal Cell Host Microbe, scientists from the University of Pittsburgh
wrote: “Despite the devastating impact of microbial infections on the developing fetus, relatively little is
known about how pathogens associated with congenital disease breach the placental barrier to transit
vertically during human pregnancy.”

Among infections of which vertical transmission has been known to happen are HIV, Zika, rubella and
the herpes virus. In fact, one of the biggest worries about the Zika outbreak a couple of years ago was
the possibility of babies being born with birth defects.

What has ICMR said?

ICMR has issued a Guidance for Management of Pregnant Women in COVID-19 Pandemic. It says: “With
regard to vertical transmission (transmission from mother to baby antenatally or intrapartum), emerging
evidence now suggests that vertical transmission is probable, although the proportion of pregnancies
affected and the significance to the neonate has yet to be determined.”

The guidelines deal with the protocol that health workers need to follow right from notification of cases,
antenatal and postnatal care that needs to be given to the mother and baby, and the use of appropriate
personal protective equipment, so that there is no transmission of the infection from the mother to
health staff attending to her, especially during labour when chances are very high of the baby and the
staff coming in contact with her body fluids.

It also follows international norms in recommending that the baby should be isolated after birth,
highlighting the lack of enough scientific knowledge about the chances of a COVID-19-affected baby
developing complications. “It is unknown whether new-borns with COVID-19 are at increased risk for
severe complications.

Transmission after birth via contact with infectious respiratory secretions is a concern. Facilities should
consider temporarily separating (e.g. separate rooms) the mother who has confirmed COVID-19 or is a
PUI (person under investigation), from her baby until the mother’s transmission-based precautions are
discontinued,” says the ICMR document.

Incidentally on April 3, days before this document came out, India’s first baby born to a COVID-19-
positive woman had been delivered in AIIMS. He is COVID-19-negative. The baby’s father, who is a
resident doctor in AIIMS, and his mother both had tested positive for the disease.
What is the available scientific evidence on vertical transmission?

The science of whether there is vertical transmission is evolving, much like the rest of our knowledge
about the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV2). On February 12, researchers from Wuhan University looked at
nine pregnant women and came to the conclusion in an article in The Lancet: “The clinical characteristics
of COVID-19 pneumonia in pregnant women were similar to those reported for non-pregnant adult
patients who developed COVID-19 pneumonia. Findings from this small group of cases suggest that
there is currently no evidence for intrauterine infection caused by vertical transmission in women who
develop COVID-19 pneumonia in late pregnancy.”

Ten days later, something happened that changed the understanding of COVID-19 in the context of
vertical transmission.

BORN POSITIVE: Another group of researchers from the same university reported in the Journal of the
American Medical Association the case of a woman with COVID-19 who delivered a baby girl on
February 22 at Renmin Hospital, Wuhan. The baby was found positive both for the virus and antibodies
against it soon after birth. It was the presence of the latter that led researchers to believe that the
infection happened in utero. “The elevated IgM antibody level suggests that the neonate was infected in
utero. IgM antibodies are not transferred to the fetus via the placenta. The infant potentially could have
been exposed for 23 days from the time of the mother’s diagnosis of COVID-19 to delivery. The
laboratory results displaying inflammation and liver injury indirectly support the possibility of vertical
transmission,” the researchers reported.

There are other instances too. Last month a baby born to a COVID-19-positive mother at the North
Middlesex hospital in Enfield, had tested positive immediately after birth. Though doctors there were
uncertain whether the infection actually was a result of vertical transmission or whether the baby had
caught it after birth from somewhere else, NHS now says: “As this is a very new virus we are just
beginning to learn about it. There is no evidence to suggest an increased risk of miscarriage. With regard
to vertical transmission (transmission from mother to baby) the evidence now suggest that transmission
is probable, although there has only been a single case reported. The significance to the neonate is not
yet known and we will continue to assess and monitor the situation for women and babies.”

US VIEW: The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention though still does not subscribe to the
vertical transmission school. It maintains: “Mother-to-child transmission of coronavirus during
pregnancy is unlikely, but after birth a newborn is susceptible to person-to-person spread. A very small
number of babies have tested positive for the virus shortly after birth. However, it is unknown if these
babies got the virus before or after birth. The virus has not been detected in amniotic fluid, breastmilk,
or other maternal samples.”

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/can-unborn-baby-be-infected-with-coronavirus-6362845/

Cyber frauds trying new ways, it’s important to secure data, accounts #GS3
#Security
The COVID-19 outbreak presents a global challenge not just for the medical fraternity and society, but
for law enforcement agencies also. Cyber crime, like a pandemic, knows no state borders. A few people
are attempting novel ways of defrauding innocents using information and technology. Money is being
siphoned off using fake accounts and exploiting vulnerabilities of various applications.

On March 29, the DCP Cyber Crime, Delhi’s official Twitter account alerted citizens about a fake UPI
(Unified Payments Interface) ID of the PM CARES Fund, pmcare@sbi – the correct UPI ID to donate for
coronavirus victims is pmcares@sbi. The Delhi police took suo motu cognisance of the fraud, registered
an offence of cheating under sections 419 and 420 of IPC, and blocked this and a number of other
similar accounts. The number of persons cheated and amount defrauded can only be known when the
investigation is over.

Coronavirus pandemic: UPI and related frauds

UPI is a real-time payment system developed by National Payments Corporation of India for inter-bank
transactions. The interface is regulated by the Reserve Bank of India and instantly transfers funds
between two bank accounts on a mobile platform. The NPCI keeps record of all the accounts and
transactions.

It is very easy to create an account using the UPI platform. One just needs an ID that could be even one’s
mobile number or name, and a four-digit PIN. The offence highlighted by the DCP, in fact, has nothing to
do with the security of UPI as such. It is phishing, in which the offender creates a similar-looking ID to
deceive users.

Within the limits set by each bank, any amount can be exchanged instantly using such apps, and the
defrauded amount could be huge. Second, the imposter can immediately withdraw the amount and
flee, as there is no caveat on withdrawal. Also, if the bank has not done the Know Your Customer (KYC)
process thoroughly, nabbing the culprit may become difficult.

It is important to verify the destination UPI ID from authentic sources before making any transaction. If a
mobile phone with a UPI-enabled app is stolen, it must be blocked and the bank intimated before it
could be misused. Banks also must adhere to the KYC guidelines issued by the RBI, so that the address of
each customer is checked physically.

Facebook fraud

Facebook is often used for fraud. If the privacy settings are not consciously set to protect an account, it
is always susceptible to hacking. Most users don’t change the default settings and keep them ‘public’.
This makes it very easy for a cyber criminal to download a profile photo and create a fake account.
Sometimes, people also exchange their bank account details, mobile number and other sensitive
information on Facebook. Further, if the password on Facebook is weak, it can easily be cracked and the
account hacked.

Cases of fake Facebook accounts are being reported where money has been fraudulently asked for the
treatment of alleged patients by hacking their accounts. It is therefore, best, to keep the privacy settings
at ‘Only me’ or ‘Friends’ and not to share sensitive information on social media. Privacy settings can also
be changed for every post and photo.

Loss of confidentiality

The lockdown has forced many to work from home. Unless the organisation has its own infrastructure
and uses VPN (virtual private network) for accessing its resources, the use of public platforms may result
in loss of confidential data. Recently, the popular videoconferencing app Zoom, which can add up to 100
participants in a call, has come across as vulnerable. As the meeting ID can be shared through a link, on
screen and other mediums; uninvited guests can also join a meeting and gain access to sensitive
information.

The chief executive of Zoom apologised for “falling short” on security issues including sharing user data
to Facebook and wrongly claiming end-to-end encryption etc, and promised to address concerns.

When one uses Zoom, it seeks permission for accessing the user’s microphone, web-cam and data
storage. This can result in hijacking and loss of private data. Users may also experience ‘Zoomraiding’ or
‘Zoombombing’ in which hate speech, pornography or other content is suddenly flashed by disrupting a
video call on Zoom.

The Computer Emergency Response Team-India (CERT-In) circulated a ‘vulnerability note’ on February 6,
giving Zoom a ‘medium’ security rating.

Therefore, it is important to be cautious while using such free apps for confidential meetings, or to use
organisational infrastructure for such meetings. The public network can still be used for accessing critical
applications, provided authentication, access control and integrity of data are ensured through VPN or
other options.

Interpol’s advisory

In guidelines for law-enforcement agencies on March 26, Interpol warned about the emerging trend of
false or misleading advertisements about medical products, setting up of fraudulent e-commerce
platforms, phishing etc during the pandemic.

It has recommended, inter alia, that people avoid opening suspicious emails and clicking links in
unrecognised emails and attachments; back up files regularly; use strong passwords; keep software
updated; and manage social media settings and review privacy/security settings. Cyber experts also
recommend the use of ‘https’ protocol for secure financial transactions.

In case you become a victim, report it to the police immediately. These are computer-related wrongs
covered under the IT Act, 2000, liable for penalty and compensation, and criminal liability in appropriate
cases.

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data-accounts/
Coronavirus positive cases among tests: trends, and an outlier #GS3 #SnT
Among the measures for assessing the spread of an infection, one is test positivity rate — the
proportion of positive cases among all tests done. It is taken to be a useful indicator if a substantial
section of suspected cases has been tested.

From data on tests for COVID-19 and positive cases between March 18 and April 13, it emerges that the
test positivity rate in India has been between 1.1% and 4.3% (ratios based on cumulative counts until
any date). On April 9, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) said the positivity rate had not
changed substantially over the last one to two months, maintaining between 3% and 5%.

In an outlier, the rate was 4.68% on April 3. That day, The Indian Express reported the Tablighi
Jamaat congregation in Delhi accounted for one-fifth of the COVID-19 positive cases nationwide. Since
then, the rate has remained around 4% — meaning about two in every 50 tests is positive.

Over 21,000 tests were conducted on April 13, and between 16,000 and 17,000 on the five preceding
days. “If we are testing more and the positivity rate remains the same, it’s a clue that the infection is
where it was and is not expanding per se. If you see that it suddenly goes up, that’s something that
could be worrisome,” Tarun Bhatnagar, a scientist at ICMR and National Institute of Epidemiology,
Chennai, said last week.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/coronavirus-positive-cases-among-tests-trends-and-an-
outlier-6362854/