India’s long battle against AIDS is not likely to end any time soon, if the latest figures released by the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) on Friday is any indication. The data revealed that, as of 2017, there were still around 21.40 lakh people living with HIV in India, with the prevalence among adults stood at 0.22 per cent.

There were around 87,000 new HIV infections and over 69,000 AIDS-related deaths (ARDs) in 2017. Around 22,675 mothers needed Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) for prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

“HIV Estimations 2017 corroborates the previous rounds in terms of the characteristic of the HIV epidemic in India -- national prevalence and incidence remains low, but the epidemic is high in some geographical regions and population groups. The report has noted that the rate of decline in annual new HIV infections has been relatively slower in recent years,” noted a release from the Health Ministry.

Union Health Minister JP Nadda has said that 1.5 lakh Primary Health Centres (PHCs) and sub-centres will be converted into wellness centers by 2022.

Speaking at a function in Hyderabad, he said, these centres will facilitate screening of every individual aged 30 for blood pressure, diabetes, tuberculosis, breast cancer and leprosy among others.

Mr Nadda said, Centre's flagship Ayushman Bharat - National Health Protection Mission will be started from 23rd of this month.

In national capital, Mr Nadda offered shramdaan along with senior officers of the Health Ministry and staff members at Nirman Bhawan yesterday as part of Swachhata Hi Seva Campaign.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Nadda said, sanitation is a key determinant of health and a clean and hygienic environment will contribute to preventing many diseases.

He said, the central government hospitals are also launching such fortnight activities, and senior officers from the Health Ministry will visit the central government hospitals to be part of these efforts.

He said, the Kayakalp initiative has been launched to encourage every public health facility in the country to work towards standards of excellence to help the facilities stay clean and hygienic.

The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based inflation stood at 5.09 per cent in July and 3.24 per cent in August last year. According to the government data released Friday, food articles registered deflation at 4.04 per cent in August 2018. Last month, deflation in this category was 2.16 per cent.

Deflation in vegetables was 20.18 per cent in August, as against 14.07 per cent in the previous month. Deflationary trend in food articles offset the double-digit inflation in ‘fuel and power’ basket in August.

Inflation in this category was 17.73 per cent as prices of domestic fuel increased during the month, in line with high global crude oil rates. While inflation in liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) was 46.08 per cent, in diesel and petrol it was 19.90 per cent and 16.30 per cent, respectively, during August.

Among food articles, potato inflation continued to rule high at 71.89 per cent in August, while onion and fruits witnessed deflation of 26.80 per cent and 16.40 per cent, respectively.

Deflation continued in pulses at 14.23 per cent in August. The 4.53 per ce

India and Uganda signed four MoUs in the areas of defence cooperation, visa exemption for official and diplomatic passport holders, cultural exchange programme and material testing laboratory.

The agreements were inked following delegation-level talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni in Kampala this evening.

The two leaders comprehensively reviewed all aspects of bilateral relations. India also announced two Lines of Credit worth nearly 200 million US dollars to Uganda in energy, infrastructure, agriculture and dairy sectors.

In a joint press briefing with the Ugandan President after the talks, Mr Modi said, India will continue to play a stable partner in the country's journey towards development.

He said, India will also give vehicles, ambulances and cancer therapy machine to Uganda. He said, the two countries share historic and age-old ties which is close to India's heart.

Asia Cup 2018 will witness subcontinental rivalry resume once again, but this time in the Middle East. India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Hong Kong will battle among themselves for the coveted title. India have been the most successful team with six titles including the only time it was played in the Twenty20 format, in 2016. However, the other teams in the event will be no pushovers will be looking forward to make a mark at the 13th edition of the tournament. Before the event kickstarts on Saturday, let’s take a look at all the teams

GROUP A-

India: Defending champions India boasts of a strong all-around contingent despite the absence of skipper Virat Kohli. Rohit Sharma will lead the team in his place. Sharma will be one of the key players to watch out for with an impressive record in the limited formats. Spin twins Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal will be equally crucial on the drier UAE tracks. Young Khaleel Ahmed, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar will bolster the seam attack.

India Squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Khaleel Ahmed, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal, MS Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Manish Pandey, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Ambati Rayudu, Shardul Thakur

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched ‘Swachhata Hi Seva Movement’, saying ‘Swachhata Hi Seva Movement’ aims at fulfilling Bapu’s dream of a Clean India. From today till Gandhi Jayanti, let us re-dedicate ourselves towards fulfilling Bapu’s dream of Clean India. He is interacting with people from different walks of life including Amitabh Bachchan, Sadhguru, Ratan Tata, Army personel through video conferencing.

“I look forward to interacting with those who have worked assiduously on the ground to strengthen the Swachh Bharat Mission after which Swachhata activities will begin,” he had said on Thursday while announcing about the movement. He had asked people to pay tributes to Mahatma Gandhi on his birth anniversary this year by being a part of the Clean India movement. “The ‘Swachhata Hi Seva Movement’ commences on 15th September. This is a great way to pay tributes to Bapu. Come, be a part of this movement and strengthen the efforts to create a Swachh Bharat!” tweeted Modi.

United States (US): United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Saturday said that democracy was under strain and called on people to make democracies more inclusive by bringing in both the young and the marginalised into the political system.

Speaking on International Democracy Day, Guterres said, “That is why this International Day should make us look for ways to invigorate democracy and seek answers for the systemic challenges it faces.” Guterres called on people and asked them to work together for a future that left no one behind and asked them to ponder on all pressing questions such as ‘What impact will migration or climate change have on democracy in the next generation? How do build better governance so that democracy delivers better lives and fully meets the public’s aspirations?’ among many others.

The UN chief said this meant tackling inequality, both economic and political. He added, “It means making our democracies more inclusive, by bringing the young and marginalised into the political system. It means making democracies more innovative and responsive to emerging challenges.”

Fuel prices are continuing to set an all-time high record with each passing day across the country. Today, petrol price touched Rs 81.63 per litre (up by Rs 0.35 per litre) in New Delhi, and in Mumbai people will have to shell out Rs 89.01 per litre (up by Rs 0.34/litre), according to ANI.

Diesel prices, on the other hand, registered a similar surge in both the metropolitan cities. It is retailing at Rs 73.54 per litre (increased by Rs 0.24 per litre) in the national capital and at Rs 78.07 per litre (increased by Rs 0.25 per litre) in the financial capital.

On Friday, petrol prices were Rs 81.28 per litre in New Delhi and Rs 88.67 per litre in Mumbai. While the diesel was sold at Rs 73.30 per litre and Rs 77.82 in Delhi and Mumbai, respectively.

After a day’s lull, the upward march of fuel prices resumed Thursday with petrol price being hiked by 13 paise per litre to Rs 81 per litre and diesel by 11 paise to Rs 73.08 a litre, according to a price notification of state-owned oil marketing companies.

RANCHI: Marking the beginning of e-mobility in the state, Chief Minister Raghubar Das on Wednesday flagged off electric vehicles at Jharkhand Secretariat in the presence of senior government officials. Initially, 20 vehicles were handed over to Jharkhand Bijli Vitran Nigam Limited (JBVNL), with the remaining 30 to be given in the next two weeks.

Twelve charging stations have been set up at four offices of JBVNL, including its corporate office in Ranchi, for creating a supporting infrastructure, which is crucial for the promotion of e-mobility.

"Electric mobility is an attractive, sustainable and profitable solution to mitigate climate change and the threat to public health caused by vehicular emissions. Today's event is an important milestone for ushering in an era of clean, green and future-oriented technologies in Jharkhand. We are glad to join the Government of India's mission of rapid adoption of e-mobility in the country and we would like to see our state at the forefront of this revolution," said the chief minister. This initiative is expected to help JBVNL save more than 1.20 lakh litres of fuel every year and reduce CO2 emissions by over 1,400 tonnes annually. In addition, the JBVNL will make monetary savings in maintenance as the operating cost of the electric vehicles is one-fourth of that of vehicles with an internal combustion engine.

The electric vehicles were provided to JBVNL following an agreement with Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), under the Ministry of Power, Government of India, for the deployment of 50 electric vehicles at various JBVNL offices in Ranchi.