India Narrative

 As Covid-19 brings about drastic changes in individual lives across the globe, researchers say the Covid-19 pandemic will unleash a global tsunami of mental health problems. In less than one year, the deadly infection that spread from Wuhan, China, has brought misery to billions affecting almost all countries in all continents. Even as the medical fraternity grapples with the virus, it is causing unforeseen problems, including aggravating mental health issues among people.   Professor Vikram Patel of Harvard Medical School, U.S. says that the pandemic will worsen the social determinants of mental health, fuelling a crisis. “Mental health problems were already a leading cause of suffering and the most neglected health issue globally before the pandemic,” Patel added. The study, scheduled to be presented at the ESCMID Conference on Coronavirus Disease (ECCVID) in the US, revealed that pressures on mental health, that already existed in abundance before this global pandemic, ar...

  Despite threats due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, at least 22,000 Nepalis have left for India in the last four weeks via the Nepalgunj border point for work in the neigbouring country, according to a media report. SI Bishnu Giri at Jamunaha Area Police Office, Nepalgunj, said the workers left for India as the prolonged lockdown and Covid-19 fears had made it difficult for them to sustain their livelihood, The Himalayan Times reported on Sunday. According to SI Giri, a total of 76,048 migrant workers had returned to Nepal via the Nepalgunj border point till September 15. Around 40,000 Indian nationals returned home during the same time via the border point. Giri said that Nepalis holding ration cards had started going back to India. He said they had been allowed to enter and exit the country via the border for treatment, medicine procurement and for meeting patients. “We have allowed people’s movement on the Nepal-India border on the basis of recommendation letter and ident...

  With a view to boosting the sagging economy, India Inc is re-setting its business models to align with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Atmanirbhar Bharat scheme. In May the government announced a Rs 20 lakh crore stimulus package under the scheme to boost Indian entrepreneurship and manufacturing. Organizations across sectors such as manufacturing, healthcare, technology among others are working towards adapting and re-adjusting their business models not just keeping in mind the new contours under the Atmanirbhar Bharat scheme but also to combat the impact of the pandemic. Modi and his men have underlined the need to boost manufacturing while focusing on ‘Make for World’ as the mantra of self-reliance gains momentum. Sharad Malhotra, President (Automotive Refinishes and Wood Coatings) at Nippon Paint India is looking at make in India initiatives to successfully expand the brand’s presence beyond its current 23 markets in India. According to Malhotra: “Aatmanirbharta is core t...

  The India Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA) has written to the Finance Minister seeking postponement of the implementation of the Tax Collected at Source (TCS) to April 1, 2021. TCS is scheduled to come into effect on October 1. In its letter to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman , the industry body has cited likely cash flow implications, clashing with the TCS implementation with the roll out of the mandatory GST e-invoicing norms among others. “ICEA on behalf of the ESDM (Electronics System Design & Manufacturing) sector requests your kind self to consider postponing the implementation of proposed TCS to next financial year starting from 1st April, 2021,” it said. The letter written by ICEA Chairman Pankaj Mohindroo noted that financial year 2020-21 is more or less fully affected by the Covid-19 related fallout in terms of a sharp drop in revenues and excess cost of operations due to strict implementation of health-related safety measures and social distancing in...

Refusing to self-isolate when asked to has become illegal in England starting from today onwards and those who violate will be fined up to 10,000 pounds ($12,852). From today, it will be a punishable offense not to comply with an official instruction to self-isolate, with fines starting at 1,000 pounds and rising to 10,000 pounds for repeat offenders or serious breaches, the BBC reported. The law applies to people who have tested positive for coronavirus, or who have been told by NHS Test and Trace to self-isolate because they have been in close contact with someone with the virus. And if someone tests positive, it is illegal to knowingly give false information about their close contacts to NHS Test and Trace. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said the NHS Test and Trace App, which launched on September 24, had been downloaded by 10 million people yesterday. While Home Secretary Priti Patel said the new fines were “a clear sign that we will not allow those who break the ...

  With demand for Indian animated content growing among global audiences, especially with children who are a significant consumer group for animations like cartoon shows, a home-grown animation brand Cosmos Maya, the creator of popular children’s show ‘Motu Patlu’, shares that it is an exciting time to be in the animation business. The animation studio and Arbaaz Khan Productions have recently come together to adapt the blockbuster franchise ‘Dabangg’ into an animated series. This news comes right in line with the tenth anniversary celebration of the film franchise that introduced the character of Chulbul ‘Robin Hood’ Pandey for the first time in 2010. The show will feature animated avatars of all of the franchise’s characters. Targeted at kids and family audiences, Season 1 will be launching in summer 2021. Anish Mehta, the CEO of Cosmos Maya – whose content is airing or streaming in over 150 countries on major OTT or TV platforms in 18 languages, speaks to IANSlife about Indian ...

  The Centre today informed the Supreme Court that a decision on the issue of waiver of interest on interest on deferred EMIs during the moratorium is at an advanced stage and likely to be taken within two or three days. A bench headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan noted that Solicitor General Tushar Mehta has informed the court that the issues are under active consideration by the government, and it is likely that a decision may be taken within two or three days. Mehta submitted before the top court that he will endeavour to circulate affidavit by Thursday and the matter can be heard on Monday. The bench said till the next hearing the interim orders to continue. Senior advocate Rajiv Dutta, representing the petitioner, contended before the bench that the case should be heard as early as possible, and did not object to Centre’s submission seeking time to file the affidavit in the matter. Mehta, seeking some more time to get back on the matter, said that the issue is bit complex and sev...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today paid tributes to revolutionary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh on his birth anniversary, saying his valor will inspire people for ages. “Tributes to the immortal martyr Bhagat Singh on his birth anniversary. His saga of bravery and valor will inspire the countrymen for ages,” the Prime Minister tweeted. Yesterday also, Modi remembered the freedom fighter in his 69th Mann ki Baat. “I join countrymen in bowing before Shaheed Bhagat Singh, the symbol of bravery and courage,” Modi said. “I want to transport you to a period from our past. It is a tale of 101 years ago. The year was 1919. The British rulers had slaughtered innocent civilians at Jallianwala Bagh. Post the massacre, a 12-year-old boy visited the spot. A happy and agile boy but what he saw at Jallianwala Bagh was beyond his imagination. He was left stunned at how one could be so merciless. This innocent boy had started to burn in the fire of anger. At Jallianwala Bagh, he took a vow to fight Bri...

  The country’s micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) continue to reel under a liquidity crunch coupled with lacklustre demand, even as the second quarter of the current financial year draws to a close. Not just that. The procedural issues plague these enterprises the most. In a recent note to the Niti Aayog , MSMEs have pointed out that in many cases banks, especially the private sector ones, have been attaching penal or additional charges for shifting of accounts from one lender to the other. Besides, often loan instalments are not collected or deducted on time by banks, thus resulting in temporary classification of special mention account (SMA)—which essentially means that the account has the potential to become a non-performing asset, a loan account that fetches no return for banks. Once an account is classified as SMA, it becomes even more difficult for the company to get additional loans, often required as working capital. Meanwhile only about 60 per cent of the Rs 3-la...

  CNG and piped natural gas prices could face an increase this festive season if the government implements a new floor price mechanism for gas produced from domestic fields by companies such as Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC). Sources said the petroleum ministry is considering a proposal under which domestic gas will have a floor pricing that would prevent fuel prices from crashing below an identified threshold in the current subdued market conditions and insulate oil and gas explorers like ONGC from a tariff crash. Talks are on to link gas prices with price Japan-Korea Marker, a benchmark index used to determine LNG tariff in North Asia with a discount. With JKM prices hovering over $ 5 million British thermal units (mmBtu) even with day $ 1 mmBtu discount, the Indian gas floor price under this formula will be close to $ 4 mmBtu. This is much higher than the government administered price of $ 2.39 mmBtu for the April-October, 2020 period. And if implemented, it could incr...