ప్లే బటన్ మీద క్లిక్ చేసి న్యూస్ ప్లే చేయండి. సరి గా ప్లే అవ్వాలి అంటే ఫైర్ ఫాక్స్ లేదా మొబైల్ ఇన్ బిల్ట్ బ్రౌజర్ ని ఉపయోగించండి (క్రోమ్ లో ప్లే అవ్వక పోవచ్చు). కొంచెం క్రిందకు స్క్రోల్ చేసి చదివే న్యూస్ ను టెక్స్ట్ రూపం లో చూడండి. టెక్స్ట్ ను చూస్తూ వినండి. మీ ఇంగ్లీష్ భాషా ప్రావీణ్యం మరింత పెరుగుతుంది.
THE HEADLINES:
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi to launch world’s largest COVID-19 vaccination program this morning.
- Corona recovery rate improves to 96.53 per cent in the country.
- Prime Minister to address Startup India International Summit – Prarambh this evening.
- Centre notifies 3,566 posts in Central Government suitable for persons with disabilities.
- 51st International Film Festival of India to begin today in Goa.
- And in Cricket, India bowl out Australia for 369 in their first innings in Fourth and Final Test at Brisbane.
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As the nation fights the
COVID-19 pandemic, we begin with a message of precaution to stay safe
and protected by following these three simple steps —
· Wear a face mask.
· Maintain Do Gaz Ki Doori for social distancing.
· Focus on hand and face hygiene.
Now, the news:
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Prime Minister Narendra
Modi will launch the world’s largest COVID-19 vaccination program,
through video conferencing at 10.30 AM today. This pan India rollout of
COVID-19 vaccination drive will cover the entire length and breadth of
the country.
A total of three thousand
six session sites across all States and Union Territories will be
virtually connected during the launch. Around 100 beneficiaries will be
vaccinated at each session site on the inaugural day.
This vaccination programme
is based on the principles of priority groups to be vaccinated. Health
Care workers, both in government and private sectors including
Integrated Child Development Services-ICDS workers will receive the
vaccine during this phase.
The vaccination programme
will use Co-WIN, an online digital platform developed by Ministry of
Health and Family Welfare, which will facilitate real time information
of vaccine stocks, storage temperature and individualized tracking of
beneficiaries for COVID-19 vaccine. This digital platform will assist
programme managers across all levels while conducting vaccination
sessions.
A dedicated 24×7 call
centre, 1075 has also been established for addressing the queries
related to COVID-19 pandemic, vaccine rollout and the Co-WIN software. More details from our correspondent.
“India’s exercise
to vaccinate its population against COVID19 will be the largest
immunization drive of the world. COVID-19 vaccine priority will be given
to the healthcare workers and frontline workers who are estimated to be
around 3 Crores, followed by those above 50 years of age and the
under-50 population groups with co-morbidities numbering around 27
Crores. The two indigenously manufactured vaccines, COVISHIELD and
COVAXIN, have proven safety and immunogenicity records and are the most
important tools to contain the pandemic. Adequate doses of both
COVISHIELD and COVAXIN have already been delivered to all States with
the active support of the Ministry of Civil Aviation. These have been
further delivered by the State and UT governments to the districts. All
preparations are in place to initiate the programme on the principles of
Jan Bhagidari.The cost of vaccination of healthcare and frontline
workers will be borne by the Centre. Anand Kumar, AIR News, Delhi”.
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NITI Aayog Member, Health
and the Chairman of the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration
of COVID-19, Dr V. K. Paul has said that the two Made in India
vaccines-Covishield and Covaxin are safe and both have the capacity to
develop an immune response system in the body. Talking exclusively to
AIR News, Dr Paul said that both the vaccines have been given emergency
use authorisation by the drug regulator and experts of the country and
people should have trust in them.
Dr Paul also advised people not to pay heed to false information related to the vaccines.
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In the national capital,
Delhi government has received 2 lakh 74 thousand vaccine doses from the
Central government, which will cater to around 1.2 lakh healthcare
workers in the first phase. A total of 81 sites have been finalized
across Delhi, and around 100 people will be vaccinated in a single day
at each site. Around 8000 healthcare workers will be vaccinated across
Delhi on a single day initially. The vaccine will be administered four
days a week, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. The remaining days
have been spared for the routine vaccination process.
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In Uttar Pradesh, around
31,700 health workers will be vaccinated across 75 districts in the
first phase. More from our Lucknow correspondent:
“Health Minister
of state Jai Pratap Singh said that after the launch of vaccination
drive from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the vaccination will start in
the state at all 311 centres where 317 sessions of immunization will be
held in the first phase. He said that all security arrangements are in
place and every protocol will be followed during the vaccination drive.
Health Minister said that cctv cameras have been installed at all 1,298
cold chain points and the session of vaccination will also be put under
CCTV surveillance. Additional chief secretary home health Amit Mohan
Prasad informed that at every centre hundred people will be vaccinated
and details of all persons who will be vaccinated today is online. In
state capital Lucknow 1200 persons will be vaccinated today at 12
centres in which 9 are in city areas and 3 are in rural areas. District
magistrate of Lucknow Abhishek Prakash said that the whole drive will
be monitored live at the control and command centre. SUSHIL CHANDRA
TIWARI, AIR NEWS, LUCKNOW”.
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In Bihar, Covid -19
vaccination programme will begin at 300 centres across the state today.
The vaccine will be given first to cleanliness workers and ambulance
staff at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Science, Patna. Chief
Minister Nitish Kumar will be present on this occasion.Thirty thousand
people will be vaccinated today. Web casting of vaccination process will
be done at 50 centres. Health Minister Mangal Pandey said 4 lakh 65
thousand 160 health workers will be vaccinated during the first phase.
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In Maharashtra, Mumbai
will have 9 centres where 4000 people will be administered the vaccine
daily. More from our Mumbai Correspondent:
“Brihanmumbai
Municipal Corporation has received 1 lakh 39 thousand and 500 doses of
Covishield vaccine from the Serum Institute of India and 1 lakh 30
thousand beneficiaries have been registered for the vaccination. 7000
personnel have been imparted training for this vaccination drive. There
are 9 centres with total 40 booths where average 4000 beneficiaries will
be vaccinated daily. According to the Centre’s guidelines the
vaccination drive will be carried out in three phases. As, the third
phase is expected to see a large number of turnout of beneficiaries, 63
more centres will be added to the existing 9 centres in Mumbai. This
will augment the capacity of administering the vaccine doses to almost
50,000 beneficiaries every day. Shailesh Patil, Air News, Mumbai”.
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In Gujarat, the COVID-19
vaccination drive will start for healthcare workers from 161 centers
today along with nationwide vaccination drive. AIR Ahmedabad
correspondent reports that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to
interact with some of the beneficiaries at Ahmedabad Civil Hospital
through video conferencing from New Delhi. More details from our
Ahmedabad correspondent:
“Gujarat Chief
Minister Vijay Rupani and Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel will remain
present at Ahmedabad civil hospital where Prime Minister Narendra Modi
is expected to interact with some beneficiaries. According to state
immunization officer Dr. Nayan Jani, the Gujarat Health Department has
identified 4 lakh 31 thousand healthcare workers such as doctors and
nurses for vaccination during the first phase. After healthcare
professionals, 6 lakh 93 thousand front-line workers, more than 1 crore
people above the age of 50 and 2 lakh 75 thousand people below 50 years
but with comorbidity will be covered under the vaccine drive. Dr. Jani
said that a vaccine will be given to 100 health workers per center every
day. Beneficiaries will get an SMS through CoWIN application about
address of the center and other instructions. Yogesh Pandya, AIR News,
Ahmedabad”.
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In Madhya Pradesh, all
arrangements have been made for smooth rollout of the vaccination drive.
More from our Bhopal correspondent:
“Around 4 lakh
heathcare workers to get vaccination in the first phase. Chief Minister
Shivraj Singh Chouhan will participate in vaccination mega drive from
the Trauma Centre at Singrauli district. Haridev, a security guard
posted at JP Hospital in Bhopal, will be the first person in the state
to receive the vaccine and will also get a chance to speak to Prime
Minister Narendra Modi. He said that he is happy to get the first dose
and this happiness will double once he will speak to PrimeMinister.
Meanwhile, in Madhya Pradesh 574 patients recovered yesterday. With 6
patients succumbing to the infection, the death toll rose to 3 thousand
746. Pooja P. Vardhan, AIR News, Bhopal”.
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In Telangana, over 4
thousand health and sanitation workers will be administered vaccine
today. A report from our Hyderabad Correspondent:
“Telangana state
is fully geared up to begin vaccination against COVID-19 when the
country takes up the biggest vaccination drive in the world. 140
vaccination centres have been set up in all 33 districts of the state
and 30 persons at each centre will be vaccinated on the first day today.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi may interact with the beneficiaries from 2
centre. State Health Minister Etala Rajendra will be taking the vaccine
to demonstrate that vaccine against COVID is safe. Public
representatives are taking part in the drive at all 140 centres. The
authorities have kept 57 hospitals with 10 beds each across the state to
meet if there is any emergency. Lakshmi, airnews, Hyderabad”.
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In Karnataka 24,300 health workers will be vaccinated at 243 vaccination sites today. Detail from our Bengaluru correspondent:
“In Karnataka all
vaccination centers including ten in Bengaluru are ready and equipped
for the launch of the first phase of inoculation. As on date 7,17,439
health warriors will be vaccinated in the initial phase. 8,14,500 doses
of vaccine are kept ready for the vaccination. A group D sanitaion
worker will be the first person to receive the vaccine today. State
level control rooms will be involved in day-to-day planning, especially
mobilization of human and other resources like transport, inter-sectoral
coordination, implementation and monitoring of activities during
vaccination rollout. A total of 31 control rooms have been established
including one in Bengaluru. Each control room will have a 24×7
helpline. R.MURTHY, AIR NEWS BENGALURU”.
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In Chhattisgarh, vaccines
have been distributed to all the districts ahead of vaccination drive.
More from our Raipur correspondent:
“In Chhattisgarh,
the Covid vaccination will start today from 97 centers identified by
the state health department. On the first day about 5 thousand Heath
workers will be vaccinated. More than seven thousand personnel have
been identified and trained for the vaccination work. The Adverse Event
Failing Immunization management system has been strengthened from the
state level to the vaccination sites to deal with any adverse or
emergency situation after vaccination. All vaccination centers have been
linked to the nearest AEFI management system such as medical colleges,
district hospitals and community health centers. Appropriate
arrangements have also been made for the management of biomedical wastes
during and after vaccination. Vikalp Shukla, AIR News, Raipur”.
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In Rajasthan, all arrangements for the vaccination have been made. More from our Jaipur correspondent:
“Health Minister
Dr. Raghu told that vaccination work will be done at 167 session sites
in the state. Interactive sessions will be held at SMS Hospital in
Jaipur and JLN Medical College Hospital in Ajmer. He told that
vaccination work is scheduled 4 days in a week so that other health
services are not affected. The data of more than six lakh beneficiaries
from the state has been uploaded on the COVIN software. Meanwhile, the
number of active cases of corona in the state has been reduced to less
than 6 thousand. Just 310 new cases of infection have been reported
yesterday. Jitendra Dwivedi, AIR News, Jaipur”.
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India continues to leap
ahead in its fight against COVID-19 with over one crore one lakh 62
thousand recoveries so far. With this, the national recovery rate has
further improved to 96.53 per cent. The number of daily infection also
continues to remain below 20 thousand with only 15 thousand 590 cases
being reported in the past 24 hours. During the same period nearly 16
thousand people have recovered from the pandemic.
The gap between the
recovered patients and active cases in the country has further widened
and the number of recovered patients stands at nearly 48 times the
number of current active cases.
The active caseload in the
country comprises nearly two lakh 13 thousand people and stands at 2.02
per cent. Out of these nearly 60 per cent are under home isolation and
have mild to very mild symptoms.
The Health Ministry
further said that this has also led to a commensurate dip in the
fatality rate which stands at 1.44 per cent.
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Ministry of Fisheries,
Animal Husbandry and Dairying has said that 11 states in the country
have been affected by Avian Influenza- AI. The Ministry said, steps are
being taken to make the general public aware about the disease and
remove misinformation. It said, in pursuance of the Video Conferencing
meeting with the Animal Husbandry Departments of the States and Union
Territories, Secretary , Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying has
written to the Chief Secretaries, Administrators of states and Union
Territories that AI is not new to the country but has been reported
every year since 2006. The country has been effectively controlling the
disease. It was reiterated that the virus gets destroyed easily at 70
degrees Centigrade and therefore, properly cooked poultry and poultry
products are safe for human consumption. The Ministry said, States have
been requested to instruct the authorities concerned not to impose ban
and allow selling of poultry and poultry products sourced from Avian
Influenza free areas and States.
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Prime Minister Narendra
Modi will interact with startups and address ‘Prarambh: Startup India
International Summit’ through video conferencing this evening. The
two-day Summit is being organized by the Department for Promotion of
Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry. It is
being organised as a follow up of the announcement made by the Prime
Minister at the fourth Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral
Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Summit held in Kathmandu in
August 2018 wherein India committed to host the BIMSTEC Startup
Conclave. More from our correspondent:
“The virtual
summit will bring together speakers from around the world and India,
facilitate discussions on technologies, innovation, robust policies, and
initiatives, enable government and international organisations to share
their views and set on fire the minds of young Indian entrepreneurs,
driving them to solve the problems and challenges that matter, not just
for India but also for the entire world. The Summit marks the fifth
anniversary of the Startup India initiative, launched by the Prime
Minister on 16th January, 2016. With participation from over 25
countries and more than 200 global speakers, the summit will be the
largest startup confluence organised by the Government of India since
the launch of the Startup India initiative. In addition to deliberating
on good practices from best of the ecosystems across the world, the
sessions of the Summit are designed to showcase the spread and depth of
entrepreneurship based on innovation in India. Anupam Mishra, AIR News,
Delhi”.
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The Centre has notified 3
thousand 566 posts in the Central Government establishments as suitable
for persons with benchmark disabilities under the Rights of Persons
with Disabilities Act, 2016. These posts include one thousand 46 in
Group A, 515 in Group B, one thousand 724 in Group C and 281 in Group D
posts. Posts have also been identified suitable for new categories of
persons with disabilities such as dwarfism, acid attack victims,
muscular dystrophy, autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disability,
specific learning disability, mental illness and multiple disability
have been added. This list is not an exhaustive one and Central
Ministries, Departments, Autonomous Bodies and Public Sector
Undertakings may further supplement. This notification will broaden the
scope for employment for persons with benchmark disabilities in
Government establishments.
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The ninth round of talks between the Central Government and farmer unions was held in the National Capital yesterday.
Speaking to media after
the talks, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said, no conclusive
decision was taken in the meeting and the next round of talks will be
held on the 19th of January. Saying that the talks were held in a
cordial atmosphere, Mr Tomar hoped that a consensus will be arrived at
soon. He added that the government suggested to farmer unions to form
informal group to finalise concrete proposals that can be discussed
further at formal talks. He also expressed concern at the farmers
protesting in the cold conditions. Mr Tomar said, all the three farm
legislations were discussed in detail.
The Minister added that
the Centre has identified the concerns of the farmers and is trying to
allay these concerns. Replying to a query, the Minister said, Centre
will present its side before the Committee constituted by the Supreme
Court when asked.
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The Election Commission of
India, ECI has said that State and Union Territory governments will
need its prior approval, if any disciplinary action is initiated against
the Chief Electoral Officers and other officers up to Joint Chief
Electoral Officer during their tenure and also up to one year from the
expiry of last election conducted by them. The ECI said this in a letter
marked to the Cabinet Secretary, Chief Secretaries of States, Secretary
of Department of Personnel and Training and Chief Electoral Officers of
all the States. The ECI also said that many instances have come to its
notice wherein Chief Electoral Officers and some other officials working
directly in the office of Chief Electoral Officers have been victimised
after the elections are over.
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Home Minister Amit Shah is
on a two-day visit to Karnataka beginning today. He will lay the
foundation stone for a Rapid Action Force Centre new battalion in
Bhadravati and address a public gathering. In the evening, the Home
Minister will flag off Emergency Response Support System vehicles in
Bengaluru. He will inaugurate virtually the police residential
quarters in Bengaluru and Vijayapura and address senior police officers.
Mr Amit Shah will also
hold a BJP core committee meeting in the state capital. He is scheduled
to leave for Belagavi tomorrow to take part in the public gathering. He
will be visiting the family of late Suresh Angadi, the minister of
state for railways who passed away recently. The Home Minister will also
inaugurate the advanced simulation centre of KLE hospital in Belagavi
and the ethanol project in Bagalkote.
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The 51st International
Film Festival of India (IFFI) will begin today in Goa. The opening
ceremony will be held in the presence of Information and Broadcasting
Minister Prakash Javadekar and Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant at
Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Stadium at 3 PM. More details from our Panaji
Correspondent:
“Like every year
city of Panaji is celebrating 51st edition of IFFI.All preparations are
done for IFFI which is Asia’s first international film festival.This
year IFFI is being organised in hybrid manner because of Covid19
pandemic.Delegates will have an option to participate in physical as
well as virtual mode. More than 200 films are lined up. Italian
cinematographer Mr Vittorio Storaro will be honoured with lifetime
achievement award.For this year Bangladesh will be country of focus.
Tushar Jadhav for AIR News, from Panaji, Goa”.
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India, with an
inexperienced bowling attack, bowled out Australia for 369 on Day 2 of
the ongoing fourth Test at the Gabba this morning. The hosts put in a
strong start, carrying on with their momentum from Day 1, with Tim Paine
scoring a half-century. Paine slammed 50 runs off 104 balls before
edging one to Rohit Sharma off Shardul Thakur. Test debutants T
Natarajan and Washington Sundar added to their tally on Day 2,
registering crucial wickets for India. Sundar took the wickets of
Cameron Green and Nathan Lyon. Natarajan cleaned up Josh Hazlewood to
end Australia’s innings. Natarajan, Sundar and Thakur all picked up
three wickets apiece while Mohammed Siraj accounted for one wicket.
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The government has
approved the appointment of Belarussian coach Nikolai Snesarev as the
middle- and long-distance coach of the Indian athletics team. The
72-year-old has been appointed till the end of September, a period which
will coincide with the Tokyo Olympics scheduled to take place in
July-August. Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in a statement said
that he will be coaching 3000 meter steeplechaser Avinash Sable, who
has already qualified for the Olympics, and other middle- and
long-distance runners, as they aim to qualify for the Olympic Games.
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Now, let us take a look at the weather forecast for today.
The National Capital had dense fog this morning. The minimum temperature was four degree Celsius and the maximum will be around 20 degrees.
Mumbai will have
partly cloudy sky. The minimum temperature was around 18 degree Celsius
while the mamimum is expected to be around 30 degrees.
Chennai had fog in the morning and will have partly cloudy sky later. The temperature will vary between 24 and 30 degree Celsius.
Kolkata witnessed
fog in the morning and will have clear sky later. The minimum
temperature was 14 degree Celsius and the maximum will be 24 degrees.
Srinagar will have mainly clear skies. The temperature will hover between minus seven and six degree Celsius.
Jammu had fog in
the morning. The city will have mainly clear sky later. The minimum
temperature was around seven degree Celsius while the maximum will be
around 16 degrees.
Leh will have
partly clear sky. The minimum temperature was around minus 13 degree
Celsius while the maximum will be around zero degree.
Gilgit will have mainly clear skies. The temperature will hover between minus four and 11 degree Celsius.
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NEWSPAPERS HEADLINE
-
The big story in most of
the papers today is that of the mega exercise of vaccination. “India set
to begin world’s biggest vaccination drive.” writes The Asian Age. The Pioneer quoting the Union Health Minister states “It is begining of the end of coronavirus pandemic.” -
The Statesman quoting the Army Chief, General Naravane headlines, “No one should test India’s patience.”
-
On deteriorating air quality the Hindustan Times writes, “Delhi air in toxic zone, could get worse today.”
-
The Hindu quoting
the Delhi Traffic police states “Car passengers in back seat must wear
seat belts; Two-wheelers must have rear- view mirrors.” -
And finally, The Times of India takes note of the launch of a state-of-the-art simulator that can facilitate training of Metro staff in troubleshooting.
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In some more news;
The sixth meeting of the
India-Nepal Joint Commission was co-chaired by External Affairs Minister
Dr. S. Jaishankar and Nepal Foreign Minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali in
New Delhi yesterday. The Joint Commission comprehensively reviewed all
aspects of multi-faceted cooperation between the two countries and
explored ways to further strengthen the traditionally close and friendly
ties.
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