New Delhi: Twelve suspected cases of Omicron variant have been admitted to Delhi government-run Lok Nayak Hospital till Friday evening, a top official said.

Hospital Director Suresh Kumar informed that of the 12 suspects who arrived in India from various regions that have reported Omicron cases, eight have tested positive for Covid-19.

“Eight cases have tested positive while results of rest of the four are awaited,” he said.

“The samples of positive patients have been sent for whole-genome sequencing. We are awaiting its results as well,” he added.

Kumar further said that the hospital is expected to receive the results of genome sequencing in a day or two.

He also added that the symptoms of all the positive cases are mild in nature so far. We are constantly monitoring their symptoms, he said.

According to officials, four of the 12 passengers arrived at Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) from the UK, four from France, two from the Netherlands and the remaining two travelled from the US.

So far, two individuals have been detected with the Omicron variant of Covid-19 in the country.

The cases include a South African national and a doctor who were found infected with the Omicron or B.1.1.529 variant of SARS-CoV-2 in Bengaluru.

The individuals, both male, aged 66 and 46 have recently travelled to South Africa where the majority of the cases for the new variant have been reported from. (UNI)

By: Jahangeer Ganaie

Srinagar: Reacting to the new Covid variant, the administration on Friday said that it is fully prepared to tackle any situation and that the public support is must to tackle any eventuality.

Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, P K Pole said that the public has to play a pivotal role in keeping the new Covid variant, ‘Omicron’ at bay. He said that in order to tackle the threat of the new Covid variant, the active support of the public is a must.

He said that if people follow Covid Appropriate Behavior in letter and spirit, the government will be able to defeat the new variant easily. He appealed to people to wear face masks, maintain physical distance, wash hands regularly, avoid unnecessary travel and maintain hygiene.

Pole said that the government was ready to tackle any situation as it is fully prepared for any situation and there was no need to worry but the public must follow the government’s directions and adhere to Covid Appropriate Behavior. (KNO)

Participates in BSF’s 57th Raising Day celebrations

Says won’t forgive those trying to disrupt peace

Jammu: Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha Friday said that eliminating militancy and its sympathizers is government’s priority.

Sinha participated in the 57th Raising Day celebrations of Border Security Force at the Frontier Officers Institute, in Paloura, Jammu.

Extending his warm wishes to all BSF personnel, officers, veterans, and their families on BSF’s Raising Day, the Lt Governor lauded the commitment and exemplary courage displayed by the BSF men while discharging their duties.

The Lt Governor also joined the BSF officers, their families and veterans for dinner, on the occasion.

“The country is indebted to our security forces for dismantling the eco-system of militancy, militant funding and eliminating anti-national elements to establish a secured and safe environment for the people, said the Lt Governor.

“I bow to all the martyrs of the BSF and their families who have made supreme sacrifice in service of the nation”, the Lt Governor observed.

The Lt Governor said that we will never forget and never forgive those trying to disrupt peace and inflicting wounds on our social fabric.

“Eliminating militancy and its sympathizers is our priority. Today, if every citizen of J&K is contributing fearlessly to UT’s journey of progress and development, it is all because of the sacrifice and valor of our security forces”, the Lt Governor observed.

The Lt Governor noted that whether it is peaceful conduct of DDC elections in the UT, public service programs in the border villages, assistance during the Covid pandemic, or preventing cross-border infiltration and smuggling of drugs, the BSF has successfully fulfilled all its responsibilities and has made unprecedented contributions to maintaining peace in Jammu and Kashmir.

BSF, nurtured by the blood, sweat, and sacrifice of our brave-hearts, has always lived up to its motto of  “Jeevan Paryant Kartaya -Duty for Life”, enriching the 57 years of inspiring tradition of dedication, valor, and love for the motherland, said the Lt Governor.

We shall always remember our valiant BSF personnel who maintain an eternal vigil to safeguard our frontiers in difficult terrains and adverse conditions, combating emergent situations and making supreme sacrifices while safeguarding India’s territorial integrity, the Lt Governor observed.

Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar, Advisor to the Lt Governor; D K Boora, IG BSF Jammu frontier; Dr Raghav Langer, Divisional Commissioner Jammu; Anshul Garg, DC Jammu, besides senior officers of BSF, Police and Civil Administration were present on the occasion.

Says fully digital banks to become commonplace soon

New Delhi: Stating that India has proved to the world that it was second to none when it came to adopting technology or innovating around it, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said fully digital banks, without any physical branch offices, were already a reality and might become commonplace in less than a decade.

“As humans evolved, so did the form of our transactions. From barter system to metals, from coins to notes, from cheques to cards, today we have reached here,” he said while inaugurating InFinity Forum, a thought leadership Forum on FinTech through video conference. The forum has participation from over 70 countries.

Modi said the history of currency has shown tremendous evolution. In this connection, he pointed out that last year, in India, mobile payments exceeded ATM cash withdrawals for the first time. Transformational initiatives under Digital India, he noted, have opened doors for innovative Fintech solutions to be applied in governance.

The PM emphasised that now it was time to convert these Fintech initiatives into a Fintech revolution. “A revolution that helps to achieve financial empowerment of every single citizen of the country”, he said.

Explaining how technology has also catalyzed financial inclusion, Modi pointed out that from less than 50 per cent of Indians having bank accounts in 2014, India has almost universalised it with 430 million Jan Dhan accounts in the last seven years.

He also listed initiatives like 690 million RuPay cards clocking  1.3 billion transactions last year; UPI  processing around 4.2 billion transactions in just last month; almost 300 million invoices were uploaded on the GST portal every month; despite the pandemic, about 1.5 million railway tickets were getting booked online every day; last year, FASTag processed  1.3 billion seamless transactions; PM Svanidhi enabled access to credit for small vendors across the country;  e-RUPI enabled targeted delivery of specified services without leakages.

The PM stressed that financial inclusion was the driver of the Fintech Revolution. Explaining further, he said, Fintech was resting on 4 pillars: income, investments, insurance and institutional credit. “When income grows, investment becomes possible. Insurance coverage enables greater risk-taking ability and investments. Institutional credit gives wings for expansion. And we have worked on each of these pillars. When all these factors come together, you suddenly find so many more people participating in the financial sector,” he elaborated.

Modi stressed the importance of trust in Fintech in the light of the wide acceptance of these innovations among the masses. The common Indian has shown immense trust in the Fintech ecosystem by embracing digital payments and such technologies. “This trust is a responsibility. Trust means that you need to ensure that the interests of people are secured. Fintech innovation will be incomplete without Fintech security innovation”, he said.

The Prime Minister commented on the wider applicability of India’s experience in the Fintech area. He stressed India’s tendency to share experiences and expertise with the world and learn from them as well. “Our Digital Public Infrastructure solutions can improve the lives of citizens around the world,” he added.

Chairs joint security meeting in Kashmir

Srinagar: Director General of Police (DGP) Dilbag Singh on Friday reviewed security scenario in Kashmir Valley at a joint security meeting here and asked the officers to foil ill designs of the militants, Over Ground Workers (OGW) network and handlers.

The meeting was attended by ADGP Armed J&K SJM Gillani, IG (KOS) CRPF Deepak Rattan, IGP Kashmir Vijay Kumar, IG (SOS) CRPF Ms Charu Sinha, DIG CKR Srinagar Sujit Kumar, BGS Ops 15 Corps P K Mishra, DIG CRPF North Srinagar Dr Randeep Kumar Rana, DIG CRPF South Srinagar Mathew A John, DIG BSF Ops Srinagar Arvinder Singh, SSP APCR Srinagar Shahid Mehraj Rather, SSP Srinagar Sandeep Choudhary, SSP PCR Kashmir Zubair Ahmed Khan and SP PC Srinagar Iftikar Talib.

Special DGP CID J&K, R. R. Swain attended the meeting through video conferencing from Jammu, a police spokesperson said.

Speaking to the officers the DGP expressed satisfaction over the synergy existing between the officers and formations of forces. He expressed hope that together security forces will continue to work harder for greater peace. DGP stressed upon the officers not to let the peaceful atmosphere be disturbed by the elements inimical to it by effectively and sincerely handling the lawful duties and commitments.

The DGP said that the action against militants and their OGW networks and handlers should be continued unabated and all such elements should be kept under check so as to foil their “ill designs that are aimed at disrupting normal lives of the people.”

He said that security grids need to be kept fully geared up at all levels with joint efforts of all security forces and agencies. He directed officers to review the security strategies more often so as to check for any loopholes if ignored. The DGP also took a review of the winter preparedness.

He appreciated the forces for the recent successes against militancy but stressed for continued pressure on militants and OGWs to consolidate the peace, the spokesperson said.

He directed the officers to stay focused and to maintain surveillance on the support system of (militants). He said that Pakistani agents and their handlers here are always looking for soft targets to foment trouble in the much better prevailing security scenario in J&K.

Officers from CRPF, Army, and BSF shared their views and assessments in the meeting.

Earlier, the DGP chaired a Police Establishment Board (PEB) during which various agenda points pertaining to capacity building and welfare of the police personnel were discussed.

“All the agenda points were taken one by one and discussed threadbare and appropriate decisions taken on each.”

The DGP said that various wings of police need to rationally review their deployments and see that persons posted at a particular location for very long are transferred out and replaced with suitable persons. This he said will enhance the capabilities of these units.

He also said that unauthorised attachments and localised arrangements should be done away with and cases be reviewed and recommendations must be justified while giving emphasis on encouraging the deserving personnel.

He said that the recommendations must be performance based and due weightage must be given to the circumstances, topography, and difficulty faced besides the perseverance and operational acumen displayed by the personnel must be taken as the touch stone for recommendations.

The DGP further stated that only those personnel should be rewarded who contributed to the professional work.

Pertinent to mention that during the year 2020 upto July 2021 out of turn promotions were given to four ASIs, forty HCs, 160 SgCts, 475 Cts and four Followers for their outstanding contribution and 393 SPOs were also absorbed in the department as constables for their outstanding duties.

New Delhi: Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar on Thursday said India is maintaining a close vigil on Chinese asset deployments in the Indian Ocean region, and that during the peak of tension at the India-China border naval assets were kept battleready.

Admiral Hari Kumar, who recently took over as the 25th Chief of Naval Staff, was asked about the situation when tension was at its peak along the India-China border.

“When the problem at the northern borders was there, our ships that were deployed on missions were forward deployed, and other ships were ready.

“We had kept their ships under close surveillance, which we continue to do even now. We maintain good domain awareness in our area of responsibility,” the Navy chief said.

A military standoff between India and China has been continuing in the Ladakh sector since May last year after China launched aggression in an attempt to alter the Line of Actual Control in that sector, creating an eyeball-to-eyeball situation.

Talking about the Indo-Pacific region, the Navy chief said the region has great importance for India, with over $200 billion dollar trade passing through the area.

Asked about the number of ships and submarines in the Indian Navy, compared to the Chinese Navy, the Admiral said India is not developing its capabilities vis a vis any particular country, and it’s based on India’s own assessment of its requirements.

“We have evolved from a 33-ships Navy to a potent, well balanced, capable force. We don’t look at capability development against any particular country, we develop capability depending on our maritime interests,” the Admiral said.

“There are capability development plans in place, since creation of CDS and DMA we have worked out a system called integrated capability development system which is intended to develop plans. It is a scientific process,” he said.

Asked about the formation of maritime theater command, the Navy chief said “We are looking at establishment of theater commands. Details are being worked out and will be finalised by the mid of next year.”

The Navy Chief also said despite complicated security situation and impact of Covid, the Indian Navy maintained its tempo and ensured India’s maritime interest. “We remain combat ready all the time,” he said. (UNI)