'CPM will launch door-to-door campaign to explain link b/w CAA-NPR-NRC'

United Nations, Jul 10: India is a "good example" as solar auctions have seen popularity amidst the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, UN chief Antonio Guterres said on Thursday, underlining that renewable energy is the only energy source expected to grow in 2020 and offers more jobs than the fossil fuel industry.

In his remarks to the International Energy Agency "Clean Energy Transition Summit'', UN Secretary-General Guterres urged the international community to commit to further usage of coal and to end all external financing of coal in the developing world.

"Coal has no place in COVID-19 recovery plans. Nations must commit to net-zero emissions by 2050 and submit more ambitious national climate plans before COP-26 next year," he said.

"The seeds of change are there. Renewable energy is the only energy source expected to grow in 2020. Solar auctions have seen popularity amidst the height of the pandemic. India serves as a good example. Renewables offer three times more jobs than the fossil fuel industry," Mr Guterres said.

Last month, Adani Green Energy said it has bagged the first of its kind manufacturing-linked solar contract worth Rs 45,000 crore from the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) to develop 8 GW electricity generation capacity and 2 GW equipment manufacturing facility in the country.

Mr Guterres said he has asked all countries to consider six climate positive actions as they rescue, rebuild and reset their economies.

"We need to make our societies more resilient. We need green jobs and sustainable growth," he said, adding that bailout support to sectors such as industry, aviation and shipping should be conditioned on alignment with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Countries also need to stop wasting money on fossil fuel subsidies and place a price on carbon, he said, noting that countries need to consider climate risk in their decision making.

"Every financial decision must take account of environmental and social impacts. Overall, we need to work together," he said.

Beijing, Feb 2: India on Sunday temporarily suspended e-visa facility for Chinese travellers and foreigners residing in China in view of the virulent coronavirus that has killed more than 300 people, infected 14,562 others and spread to 25 countries, including India, the US and the UK.

“Due to certain current developments, travel to India on e-visas stands temporarily suspended with immediate effect," the Indian Embassy announced.

“This applies to holders of Chinese passports and applicants of other nationalities residing in the People's Republic of China. Holders of already issued e-visas may note that these are no longer valid," the announcement said.

“All those who have a compelling reason to visit India may contact the Embassy of India in Beijing or the Indian consulates in Shanghai or Guangzhou, as well as the Indian Visa Application Centres in these cities," it said.

On Sunday, India airlifted a second batch of 323 stranded Indians and seven Maldivian citizens from coronavirus-hit Wuhan city, taking the total number of people evacuated to 654.

Air India's jumbo B747 made two flights to Wuhan city - the ground zero of the coronavirus epidemic. In the first flight on early Saturday, 324 Indians were evacuated and on Sunday another 323 Indians and seven Maldivian citizens were flown back.

New Delhi, Jul 19: India's Covid-19 case fatality rate is "progressively falling" and is currently at 2.49 per cent, which is one of the lowest in the world, the Union Health Ministry said on Sunday, crediting efficient clinical management of hospitalised cases for it.

There are 29 states and union territories with a case fatality rate (CFR) lower than India's average, with five of them having a CFR of zero and 14 having fatality rate of less than 1 per cent.

The focused efforts of the Centre and state and UT governments on efficient clinical management of hospitalised cases have ensured that India's case fatality rate has fallen below 2.5 per cent, the ministry said.

With effective containment strategy, aggressive testing and standardized clinical management protocols based on holistic standard of care approach, the CFR has significantly dipped, it said.

"The CFR is progressively falling and currently, it is 2.49 per cent. India has one of the lowest fatality rates in the world," the ministry said.

From 2.82 per cent over a month earlier, India's Covid-19 case fatality rate declined to 2.72 per cent on July 10 and has further reduced to 2.49 per cent presently.

Under the guidance of the Centre, the state and UT governments have ramped up testing and hospital infrastructure by combining public and private sector efforts, the ministry said.

Many states have conducted the population surveys to map and identify the vulnerable population like the elderly, pregnant women and those with co-morbidities.

This, with the help of technological solutions like mobile apps, has ensured keeping the high-risk population under continuous observation, thus aiding early identification, timely clinical treatment and reducing fatalities, the ministry said.

"At the ground level, frontline health workers like ASHAs (Accredited Social Health Activists) and ANMs (Auxiliary Nursing Midwives) have done a commendable job of managing the migrant population and to enhance awareness at the community level.

"As a result, there are 29 States and UTs with CFR lower than India's average. This shows commendable work done by public health apparatus of the country," the ministry said.

Manipur, Nagaland, Sikkim, Mizoram, Andaman and Nicobar Islands have zero case fatality rate.

States and UTs having a CFR below the national average include Tripura (0.19 pc),  Assam (0.23 pc), Kerala (0.34 pc), Odisha (0.51 pc), Goa (0.60 pc), Himachal Pradesh (0.75 pc), Bihar (0.83 pc), Telangana (0.93 pc), Andhra Pradesh (1.31 pc), Tamil Nadu (1.45 pc), Chandigarh (1.71 pc), Rajasthan (1.94 pc), Karnataka (2.08 pc) and Uttar Pradesh (2.36 pc).

India saw a record single-day jump of 38,902 Covid-19 cases pushing its tally to 10,77,618 on Sunday, while the total number of recoveries increased to 6,77,422.

A total of 23, 672 patients have recuperated in the past 24 hours, the highest so far in a day, according to the health ministry data updated at 8 AM.

According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), a cumulative total of 1,37,91,869 samples have been tested up to July 18 with 3,58,127 samples being tested on Saturday.