Atal Tunnel is being constructed in the Pir Panjal ranges of Himachal Pradesh. It is in the critical stage of construction wherein road surface works, installation of electro-mechanic fittings including lighting, ventilation and Intelligent Traffic Control Systems are being executed. The work halted for 10 days due to the COVID 19 pandemic outbreak, now commences.

Atal Tunnel is being constructed in the Pir Panjal ranges of Himachal Pradesh since Manali-Sarchu-Leh road remains closed for six months in a year due to Rohtang Pass being completely snow bound between Nov and May. It will connect Manali to Lahaul Valley throughout the year and will reduce the road length of Manali-Rohtang Pass-Sarchu-Leh road by 46 Kms. Besides connecting the people of Lahual to rest of India through the year the tunnel will aid the forward connectivity offering the security forces a major strategic advantage.

On the issue of charging of train fare, the Health Ministry official said that permission has been given to run special trains for movement of stranded people, based on request of State governments. He said the Central Government has not ever talked of charging train fare for workers.

He said, 85 per cent of fare is borne by Indian Railways and 15 per cent by the respective State government.

The Railways is not selling any tickets to migrants and is only boarding passengers based on lists provided by States," said sources from the Ministry of Railways.

The Railways is running Shramik special trains keeping berths empty in each coach to maintain social distancing, the trains are returning empty from destinations under lock and key.

Pradhan Mantri Bharatiya Janaushadhi Kendras are accepting orders for medicines on WhatsApp and e-mail amid lockdown. Medicines are delivered at the doorsteps of the patients on the basis of uploaded preions. This novel move is ensuring use of technology for facilitating easier procurement of medicines by the users.
 
Complimenting this initiative, Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers Sadananda Gowda said, it is heartening that many Janaushadhi Kendras are using modern communication tools to provide essential medicines to the needy.
 
At present, there are over 6,300 such Kendras functioning in 726 districts at affordable prices. These medicine are cheaper by about 50 to 90 per cent on an average.

Rural Development Minister Narendra Singh Tomar has launched the Saras collection on Government e Marketplace (GeM) portal in New Delhi. The Saras collection showcases daily utility products made by rural self-help groups. It aims to provide market in rural areas with access to Central and State Government buyers.
 
AIR correspondent reports that under the initiative, sellers from Self Help Group will be able to list their products in five product categories. These five categories are handicrafts, handloom and textiles, office accessories, grocery and pantry and personal care and hygiene.
 
In the first phase, 913 Self Help Groups from 11 States have already registered as sellers and 442 products have been listed. GeM will provide dashboards for functionaries at the national, state, district and block level to provide them real time information about the product, value and volume of the orders.

Department of Agriculture Kashmir has been granted Certificate of Registration by Registrar of Geographical Indication, Chennai, Government of India in respect of Kashmir Saffron. The Registered Proprietor of the G.I Kashmir Saffron is Director Agriculture, Kashmir, facilitated by SKUAST (K) and Saffron Research Station Dusso Pampore J&K.

Highlighting the achievement, Director Agriculture, Kashmir, Altaf Aijaz Andrabi said that GI is a sign on products that have a specific geographical origin and the product may have special quality or reputation, an official handout said.

New Delhi: The Defence Institute of Advanced Technology, Pune, a deemed university supported by Defence Research and Development Organisation has developed a microwave sterilizer named as ‘ATULYA’ to disintegrate COVID-19.

The virus gets disintegrated by differential heating in the range of 560 to 600 Celsius temperatures.

The product is cost-effective solution, which can be operated in portable or fixed installations. This system was tested for human/operator safety and has been found to be safe.

Denis Goldberg, the South African anti-apartheid campaigner who worked closely with Nelson Mandela, has died aged 87.

Goldberg was jailed in 1964 on treason charges and spent 22 years in a Pretoria prison.

His niece, Joy Noero, told the press he “died peacefully” in his home in Hout Bay, near Cape Town, after suffering from lung cancer.

Born in 1933 to a Jewish family who had emigrated from the UK, he faced antisemitic attacks at school and later said: "I understood that what was happening in South Africa with its racism was like the racism in Nazi Germany that we were supposed to be fighting against.

"You have to be involved one way or another. That's what I grew up with."

He was a lifelong supporter of the African National Congress and became a member of the armed wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe, when it was formed in 1961.

• The former banker Sharma will be a mentor at Google’s digital payment initiative – Google Pay.
• Sharma is now an independent director at four companies-- Tech Mahindra, Dr. Reddy’s Labs, Tata Global Beverages (which operates Starbucks chain in India) and Ambuja Cement.
• In 2018, the RBI had asked the country’s third-largest private bank Axis Bank to ‘reconsider’ extending their then CEO Shikha Sharma’s tenure.

Former Axis Bank CEO Shikha Sharma has been appointed as an advisor to Google Pay.

Former India football captain Chuni Goswami, 82, passed away in Kolkata on Thursday after a prolonged illness. The captain of the 1962 Asian Games gold-medal winning team, Goswami had also represented Bengal in first-class cricket tournaments.

For the last few months, Goswami was suffering from underlying ailments with sugar, prostate, and nerve problems. His family confirmed that Goswami was admitted to a city hospital earlier in the day and breathed his last at 5 pm after cardiac arrest.

Under his captaincy, the Indian football team won gold at the 1962 Asian Games, finished runner-up at the Asian Cup in 1964, and narrowly lost to Burma in Merdeka football six months later. In club football, Goswami always played for Mohun Bagan. In his college days, he captained Calcutta University in both football and cricket in the same year.

The Japanese government has conferred the ‘Order of Rising Sun’ award on a Manipur physician for promoting a better understanding of Japan in India and deepening ties between the two countries.

The ‘Order of the Rising Sun’ is conferred on persons with achievements in international relations, promotion of Japanese culture, environmental preservation, welfare or achievements in their fields

The award was constituted by Japanese Emperor Meiji in 1875.

Thangjam Dhabali Singh, a doctor by profession and founder of the Manipur Tourism Forum (MTF), was conferred the ‘Order of Rising Sun – Gold and Silver Rays’ by the Japanese government on Wednesday, said a statement.