The DRDO has established a COVID-19 testing facility at the Defence Institute of High Altitude Research (DIHAR) in Leh to augment the existing capacity for identification of coronavirus cases in the union territory of Ladakh, according to an official statement.

The testing facility, which was inaugurated by Ladakh Lieutenant Governor R K Mathur on Wednesday, is capable of screening 50 samples per day, said the statement by the Defence Ministry.

"The facility can also be utilised for training manpower for COVID-19 testing and will be of great help to address future bio-threats and carrying out R&D (research and development) activities pertinent to agro-animals diseases," the ministry noted.

All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Nagpur in collaboration with IIT Jodhpur and IIT Nagpur has indigenously designed and developed a model for effective tracking and monitoring of COVID positive and suspect patients.

This device is in the form of a smart wristband that is designed to overcome the limitations of any existing online mobile apps for tracking and monitoring.

The existing apps depend on the continuous use of mobile phones by the quarantined person and the availability of stable internet connections.

Additionally, the existing mobile apps use GPS or cell tower triangulation methods for tracking location with an accuracy that may vary sometimes up to a radius of 1.5 to 2 kilometres.

Home Minister Amit Shah will launch Vriksharopan Abhiyan in New Delhi tomorrow in the presence of Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi. During the launch event, Mr Shah will inaugurate and lay the Foundation stone of 6 Ecoparks and Tourism sites. The event will take place through Video Conferencing across more than 130 locations spread in 38 Districts of 10 coal and lignite bearing States.

Vriksharopan Abhiyan will be organized by the Ministry of Coal involving all Coal and Lignite PSUs tomorrow during which large scale plantations would be carried out in mines, colonies, offices and other suitable areas of Coal and Lignite PSUs. Seedlings will be distributed in the nearby areas for promoting plantation by the society.

The eco-parks and tourism sites would provide avenues for recreation, adventure, water sport, bird watching etc. for the people residing in nearby areas and may also be integrated to form part of the tourism circuit. These sites are being planned to generate revenue for self-sustenance and to create employment potential for local people.

India will be represented on the high table of global rail transport policy making as Arun Kumar, Director General of the Railway Protection Force (RPF), has been nominated to be the vice-chairman of the Security Platform of the Paris-based Union Internationale Des Chemins/International Union of Railways (UIC).

Kumar, who is a 1985-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, will be working at the prestigious global body, some of whose members are China, Japan, Russia and the European countries among others, for two years, starting 2020.

The UIC is the global platform for railway systems working on inter-operability, developing common technical standards for railways across the world and strengthening what is called “rail diplomacy”.

China successfully launched an unmanned probe to Mars on Thursday in its first independent mission to another planet, a bid for global leadership in space and a display of its technological prowess and ambition. China’s largest carrier rocket, the Long March 5 Y-4, blasted off with the probe at 12:41 p.m. (0441 GMT) from Wenchang Space Launch Centre on the southern island of Hainan. The probe is expected to reach Mars in February where it will attempt to deploy a rover to explore the planet for 90 days.

If successful, the Tianwen-1, or “Questions to Heaven”, which is the name of a poem written two millennia ago, will make China the first country to orbit, land and deploy a rover in its inaugural mission.

There will be challenges ahead as the craft nears Mars, Liu Tongjie, spokesman for the mission, told reporters ahead of the launch. “When arriving in the vicinity of Mars, it is very critical to decelerate,” he said. “If the deceleration process is not right, or if flight precision is not sufficient, the probe would not be captured by Mars,” he said, referring to gravity on Mars taking the craft down to the surface.

In Manipur, the State government has announced 14 days complete lockdown in the entire area of the State starting from 2 pm on Thursday after some local persons who does not have travel histories have found positive of COVID-19 in two districts of Manipur.

The decision to implement total lockdown and curfew was taken during an emergency State Cabinet Meeting held this late evening at CM Secretariat Imphal. The meeting discussed the prevailing situation of COVID-19 in the State and decided to enforce total lockdown as a preventive measure.

Later briefing the media persons at Imphal, Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh said that the opinion of health experts who are members of the State Consultative Committee on COVID-19 were taken before the decision to enforce lockdown was finalized.

Considering the outbreak of COVID-19 mainly in the Thoubal area, where people who do not have travel histories were confirmed positive, the Cabinet meeting decided to enforce the lockdown from 2 pm tomorrow for 14 days. The case confirmed in the Thoubal district area is suspected of local transmission.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation Stone for Manipur Water Supply Project on on Thursday through video conferencing.

The Governor, Chief Minister of Manipur and his cabinet colleagues, MPs and MLAs are expected to join the program from Imphal.

Government of India initiated the Jal Jeevan Mission to provide safe and adequate quantity drinking water to every rural household of the country by 2024 with the motto “Har Ghar Jal”. The programme also implement source sustainability measures as mandatory elements, such as recharge and reuse through grey water management, water conservation, rain water harvesting.

The Jal Jeevan Mission is based on a community approach to water and has extensive Information, Education and Communication as a key components of the mission. It looks to create a Jan Andolan for water, thereby making it everyone’s priority.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will deliver the keynote address at the India Ideas Summit today. The two-day Summit which began yesterday is being hosted by the US-India Business Council. This year marks the 45th anniversary of the formation of the Council. The theme for this year’s India Ideas Summit is ‘Building a Better Future'.  
AIR correspondent reports, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will provide perspective on how the US-India Partnership can shape the post-COVID world.

The virtual Summit will witness discussions on areas including India-US cooperation and future of the relation between the two countries in a post pandemic world. It will feature high-level presence from Indian and US government policymakers, state-level officials, and thought leaders from business and society.

Madhya Pradesh Governor Lalji Tandon passed away this morning. His son Ashutosh Tandon informed him about his father's demise on twitter. Mr Lalji Tandon was admitted to a hospital in Lucknow last month. A veteran BJP leader, Lalji Tandon was a former MP from Lucknow and former Cabinet Minister in the state government.

His son and Cabinet Minister in Uttar Pradesh Government Ashutosh Tandon said that his last rites will be performed while following the Covid Guidelines in Lucknow  this evening. He requested everyone to pay homage to the leader while remaining at home.

Uttar Pradesh Government has  announced three day state mourning. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath expressed heartfelt condolences over the demise of Lalji Tandon.

President Ram Nath Kovind today said the nation has lost a legendary leader in the passing away of Madhya Pradesh Governor Lal Ji Tandon. In a tweet, the President said Tandon combined cultural sophistication of Lucknow and acumen of a national stalwart. Stating that he deeply mourns the death, Mr Kovind extended condolences to his family and friends.

Union Human Resource Development Minister, Ramesh Pokhriyal will  launch the Manodarpan initiative of the HRD Ministry today. The initiative under Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, aims to provide psychosocial support to students for their mental health and well-being.

Minister of State for HRD, Secretaries of the Department of Higher Education and the School Education and Literacy, and senior officials of the ministry will also be present on the occasion.

Through a video tweet, Mr. Pokhriyal informed that  during the COVID pandemic, the HRD Ministry felt the need to focus on continuing education on the academic front and the mental well-being of the students. He further informed that the Ministry has, therefore, taken up an initiative, named, ‘MANODARPAN’ covering a wide range of activities to provide Psychosocial Support to students for their Mental Health & Well-being during the COVID outbreak and beyond.