Explained: What is G4 flu virus with ‘pandemic potential’ found by Chinese researchers?

Scientists report that the new strain (G4) has descended from the H1N1 strain that was responsible for the 2009 swine flu pandemic.

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The scientists identified the virus through surveillance of influenza viruses in pigs that they carried out from 2011 to 2018 in ten provinces of China. (File/AP Photo)

In a new research, scientists from China – which has the largest population of pigs in the world – have identified a “recently emerged” strain of influenza virus that is infecting Chinese pigs and that has the potential of triggering a pandemic. Named G4, the swine flu strain has genes similar to those in the virus that caused the 2009 flu pandemic.

The study was published Monday in the US science journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PANS).

The scientists identified the virus through surveillance of influenza viruses in pigs that they carried out from 2011 to 2018 in ten provinces of China.

During this time, more than 29,000 nasal swabs were collected from slaughtered pigs and over 1,000 swabs or lung tissues were collected from farmed pigs that had signs of respiratory disease.

Out of these samples, the researchers isolated 179 swine flu viruses, the majority of which belonged to the newly identified G4 strain.

They also found that the G4 strain has the capability of binding to human-type receptors (like, the SARS-CoV-2 virus binds to ACE2 receptors in humans), was able to copy itself in human airway epithelial cells, and it showed effective infectivity and aerosol transmission in ferrets.

But why study pigs?

The scientists report that the new strain (G4) has descended from the H1N1 strain that was responsible for the 2009 flu pandemic. “Pigs are intermediate hosts for the generation of pandemic influenza virus. Thus, systematic surveillance of influenza viruses in pigs is a key measure for pre-warning the emergence of the next pandemic influenza,” states the study. It cannot be said if this new strain, if transmitted from pigs to humans, can transmit from one human to another.

The scientists suggest that controlling the prevailing G4 Eurasian-Avian like (EA) H1N1 viruses in pigs and closely monitoring human populations, especially workers in the swine industry, should be “urgently implemented”.

The 2009 swine flu pandemic

The WHO declared the outbreak of type A H1N1 influenza virus a pandemic in 2009 when there were around 30,000 cases globally. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines swine flu as, “a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza viruses that regularly cause outbreaks of influenza in pigs. Influenza viruses that commonly circulate in swine are called “swine influenza viruses” or “swine flu viruses”. Like human influenza viruses, there are different sub-types and strains of swine influenza viruses”.

Are Artworks Subjective?

In my view, it depends on the artist. There are two kinds of artworks – objective and subjective. To begin with, real art is created for the spectators and audience. On the other hand, subjective art is created out of one’s desire. Though every artwork has a touch of oneself, most of them are made for the people to see, to read, and to criticize upon. Not many artworks can be entirely personal, or in other words, subjective.
Subjective art was created to pour one’s heart out without letting other people view it. It is very personal, for example, writing a journal. Objective art is designed to make people feel, make people think, observe, and analyze the deeper meaning of the artwork. To name one artist who had mastered the subjective form of painting is none other than Picasso. His paintings were created only for himself, only to pour out his thoughts, and not to please the spectators or even, make the viewers think.
Not only in painting, but subjective art is also present in poetry. To write poetry, which would include external elements, is known as objective art. But, subjective art is mostly about what is inside the poet’s mind and about the emotions he feels. Subjective poetry is very personal, for example, a ballad or an elegy. This is precisely the opposite form of objective poetry.
Now, there is a very fine line between objective and subjective art. To create the former one, an artist has to keep an object in mind, to have a prior idea regarding the outcome of his work. On the other hand, the latter comes out of the flow. It is mostly out of the artist’s mood, or imagination, or even accidental. Mostly artworks are objective, which is made for the people to comment on. There are very few artists who create individual artworks.
To answer the main question, not all artwork is subjective, though I would love them to be. But, unfortunately, they are not. It would have been so beautiful to read poetry, which got created by accident or to look at a painting, which is just a crazy endeavor of an artist’s whimsical mind. Besides, through subjective art, one can truly understand the essence of an artist’s intention or feel the artist’s emotions.
Here, I would like to mention an epistolary novel, “The Diary of a Young Girl,” written by Anne Frank. This is an extraordinary example of subjective art. The journal, which got published posthumously, was written by Anne to keep records of her experiences of World War II. In the book, she maintains a steady conversation with “Kitty,” the name of her journal, about how her days, her family, love interests, and lifestyles after they went into hiding. An excellent example of subjective art and most epistolary novels are indeed written as to express one’s experiences or thoughts, not keeping in mind about the readers.
To conclude, subjective artworks are very personal, and hence, most artists don’t publish or execute them in public, even if they create it. Most of the artworks are found after the death of the particular artist and get published. Other than that, several of the artworks created are objective.

The Asteroid Day

Since these days, the asteroids are in the centre of attraction (as we are hearing plenty of news regarding their orbits, paths and harms etc) so I would today like to address about the asteroids as well the Asteroid Day too.

What are asteroids?

Eros asteroid. “Near-Earth asteroid 433 Eros makes its closest approach to Earth since 2012 today (15January 2019), when it comes within 19.4 million miles (31.2 million kilometers) of our planet” – by Astronomy Magazine

As you can see above, an asteroid is a small rocky object that orbits the Sun as well as is relatively smaller than a planet. Most of the asteroids are found in a region between Mars and Jupiter, which is technically known as the asteroid belt. However, they can also orbit around in other regions in the solar system, such as – some asteroids orbit the Sun in a path that takes them near Earth.

Recently, it’s been analysed that at the end of the Cretaceous period (that occured 66 million years ago) , a giant asteroid created an impact at Chicxulub off the coast of Mexico,leading to darkened skies and global cooling, killing off all the dinosaurs from the earth. Scientists believe that volcanoes were not the root cause of the extinction of dinosaurs, but a giant asteroid was.

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2020/06/volcanoes-helped-life-bounce-back-afterdinosaur-killing-asteroid/

Earlier in March and April, a rumour was spread that a giant asteroid is going to hit the earth with a greater force, clearing off the life system as a reaction.

Earlier, NASA had announced that a giant asteroid is expected to pass Earth (at a safe distance) on June 6. A Near-Earth Object (NEO), the asteroid is called 163348 (2002 NN4) and is termed as a Potentially Hazardous Asteroid (PHA) too. Last week, NASA analysed that a giant asteroid known as 441987 (2010 NY65) will pass Earth on June 24.

Scheduling of an asteroid in November 2020

Now let us understand what is the motive behind keeping a specific day for Asteroid Day.

Jne 30th has been selected as International Asteroid Day and 2020 marks the 6th anniversary of World Asteroid day.

The day is celebrated to spread awareness about the asteroid, and how it will impact planet Earth if by chance it hits the earth.

The United Nations General Assembly in December 2016 adopted a resolution A/RES/71/90 and designated 30 June as International Asteroid Day. June 30th was specifically selected for the same as it marks the anniversary of the Tunguska event.

On June 30, 1908, a ferocious impact was witnessed near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in Siberia, that destroyed a huge amount of forest trees. According to NASA, it was estimated that the asteroid entered the atmosphere of the Earth at a speed of about 33,500 miles/hour. The space rock of 220 heated the air surrounding it to 44,500 degrees Fahrenheit. The blast flattened an estimated 80 million trees over an area of 830 square miles (2,150 square km) of the forest.

Now in order to discuss about the harm that an asteroid can cause to earth if it crashed the earth, this day has been intentionally selected by the scientists, in order to take some preventive methods, in the near future, thus.

Beijing’s 1st response to ban on 59 China-linked apps talks of cooperation

China reminded New Delhi of its responsibilities towards foreign companies Reuters

China reminded New Delhi of its responsibilities towards foreign companies. (Reuters)

Beijing on Tuesday said it was “strongly concerned” about New Delhi’s decision to ban 59, mostly Chinese, mobile applications such as TikTok, UC Browser and WeChat, stressed on cooperation between the two countries and underlined that the ban would go against “India’s interests”.

The information technology ministry did not underline the Chinese links of the 59 mobile apps but government officials didn’t leave anyone in doubt. The ban was fast-tracked by Home Minister Amit Shah after the June 15 violent confrontation between soldiers of India and China at eastern Ladakh’s Galwan valley that spiralled tensions between the two neighbours

The official announcement only said the 59 applications were prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order. “This move will safeguard the interests of crores of Indian mobile and internet users,” the Indian IT ministry statement on Monday evening said.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said Beijing was strongly concerned about the order.

“China is strongly concerned about the relevant notice issued by the Indian side. We are checking on and verifying the situation,” Zhao Lijian said at the regular ministry briefing on Tuesday.

“I want to stress that the Chinese government always asks the Chinese businesses to abide by international rules, local laws and regulations in their business cooperation with foreign countries,” he said.

Zhao also went on to remind New Delhi of its responsibilities towards foreign companies.

“The Indian government has the responsibility to uphold the legitimate and legal rights of the international investors including the Chinese ones,” he said.

“The practical cooperation between China and India is actually mutually beneficial and win-win,” he said

Zhao added: “Such a pattern has been artificially undermined and it is not in the interest of the Indian side”.

The decision by New Delhi to ban Chinese apps comes days after popular Chinese social media app WeChat – also banned by India – removed updates by the Embassy of India (EoI) on the current border conflict including Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement on the clash that left 20 Indian Army soldiers dead. The reasons given for the removal of the posts include divulging state secrets and endangering national security.

The updates published on WeChat included Modi’s remarks on the India-China border situation, the phone call between the Indian and Chinese foreign ministers held earlier this month and a statement by the external affairs ministry’s (MEA) spokesperson on the border situation.

India’s decision to ban the China-linked apps and encourage people to use Indian applications is a continuing effort to reduce dependence on its neighbor’s products and hampers efforts by China’s largest corporations to expand beyond their own borders

“Can Human’s Bear the Risk of Terminating Fossil Fuel Consumption?”

Humans have been working for ages so as to find better food resources, water reserves, better places for shelter and many more.With times and hard work, everything has changed, man doesn’t need to move places in search of most of these resources which are the basic necessities in life. They are available with a minimum of efforts. Science and technologies have helped humans to find more comfort and facilities and thus has made life for most of the humans more easier. The industrial revolution brought humans to a different phase of life, by providing better jobs, product and resources to mankind. But these technologies and industry do require a better source of input to provide the best of their output as efficiency. Humans have been using most of the natural resources and reserves for ages like wood, coal petroleum, natural gas and many for so as to generate power as a fuel. The use of these natural resources and fossil fuels was a better option in earlier days when they were present in heavy amounts and their harms were also less.But as the time has passed, we see these resources getting faded away and also giving birth to various phenomena such as Global Warming and Climate Change. These changes have been recorded, and it’s side effects have been seen in various parts of the world, especially the polar areas, where most glaciers and ice mountains have just turned into liquid water. Many countries have been coming together to fight this problem and have been figuring out their best ways so as to make ourselves and our others better and safe from natural calamity due to these changes.

So what can we do? The prior and the foremost action which clicks to stop our mind is to stop the consumption of fossil fuel and natural resources and rather shift to better and cleaner fuel, which are more sustainable and pure. But is that easy and how would it affect your life if we stop the usage of these natural resources today?

Possible Results could be:

It seems to put a break in various activities around the world, since we use vehicles to travel , be it cars, trucks, ships or airplanes. All these run on liquid fuel which come from these natural resources.
Stopping the use would make our travel mostly impossible as we still fight to make most of the vehicle electric.
Also we do have electric cars, we won’t be able to use them as more than 66% of electricity is generated through burning coal, thus we wouldn’t be able to do so.
Also some of the countries do have natural power generation plants, but still many countries do lack this technology.
Most of our work won’t be possible as we would lack electricity to run our PC’s and charge our mobile phones.
Also this is more a cheap source of generating power, people have to invest much other money in buying and installing them also the installation and learning how to operate sustainable energy would also require skill, thus could take a while to do so.
Since carbon dioxide from vehicles and industries do get released in the air and is thus increasing the deterioration of our planet. Global warming and climate change are phenomena which are occurring and most of the resources which have been depleted cannot it be brought back.
Also many experts suggest that if we do stop the burning of these fossil fuels, it is still expected that earth will take time to recover as temperature will still grow due to trapped heat for several decades, thus increasing the temperature of our earth.

The facts are really not great to visualize but are true this surely opens our eyes to stop the consumption and utilization of these natural resources so as to control its ill effects. It’s high time to invest money in both sustainable energy resources as well as skilled people to operate them so as to get rid of these fossil fuel consumption forever and shift to a better and purest form of our energy which could help us in future. It’s High time to come together not only for sake of humanity but for the sake of saving our coming generation for the sake of good times and for the sake of saving our planet.

Best Beach Resorts in India

Who doesn’t like spending some quality moments at the beach with their close ones? To spend a vacation at the beach has always been one of the first choices amongst the people. You can bask in the sun while drinking coconut water, experience incredible water sports and activities at the beaches. How would you like to spend an excellent vacation at one of the beautiful beach resorts in India? Wouldn’t that be amazing to spend a few days at one of the luxury beach resorts in India, where you can wake up to the waves’ sound crashing on the shore? Hence, here is the list of ten best beach resorts in India, you can book for your next holiday destination:

What are the Ten Best Beach Resorts in India?

The beach resorts are one of the most incredible ways to relax for a couple of days and feel the serenity and calm, along with luxury. Who wouldn’t like to experience both – peace and comfort at the same time? This is precisely why beach resorts have become the most popular in recent times. So, if you wish to experience the same relaxation, fantastic food, luxury, and nature, you should stay at one of the resorts. Even if you love the mountains more than the Sea, you can try one vacation at the beach. You never know, this might change your choice for the upcoming travel destinations as well. To book for your next vacation, you can smoothly go to one of these beach resorts to experience the ultimate paradise:

Taj Exotica Resort & Spa Goa

One of the most popular luxury beach resorts in India, the Taj Exotica Resort & Spa, offers you an incredible experience in Goa. The resort is located in Benaulim on the southwest coast of Goa. It houses 34 luxury rooms, six suites, 98 villas, and 2 Presidential Villas. They have 24 hours all day diner facility for the guests. The best part of the resort is, they allow you to bring your pets along with you. Hence, you would be able to spend a lovely vacation with your pets. The price of the room starts at approximately Rs. 13,000. The resort has several exquisite amenities such as:

Wi-Fi
Badminton court
Tennis court
Pool tables
Cricket ground
Outdoor swimming pool
Jiva Spa

Sai Vishram Beach Resort

If you wish to spend a vacation with your family or partner, Sai Vishram Beach Resort is the perfect place for you. Located in Udupi, the resort offers you with various accommodations, such as Deluxe AC Cottages, Standard AC Cottages, Standard AC Rooms, Deluxe AC Rooms, and AC Tents. Along with such incredible facilities, they provide you with different sports activities like Jetski rides, Banana Boat rides, Air-Boat rides, and many others. The price of the room starts at approximately Rs. 8,500. The resort offers several other amenities like:

Coastal Cruise
Ayurvedic massage
Bonfire on the beach
Buffet system
No-Alcohol Policy
No Meat Serving

Acron Waterfront Resort

To experience a modern luxury vacation, you definitely should spend a few days at the Acron Waterfront Resort, located in Goa. The resort offers multiple fancy accommodations such as Seaside rooms, Riverside rooms, Courtyard rooms, Courtyard Suites, and Penthouse suites, for the guests to choose from. The price of the room starts at approximately Rs. 4,000. They offer you with various modern facilities such as:

Temperature controlled Jacuzzi
Infinity Pool
Gym
River Deck & Jetty
Laundry Service
Currency Exchange
Salon & Spa
The River Restaurant

Holiday Inn Resort Goa

One of the cleanliest resorts in Goa, the Holiday Inn Resort Goa, offers you the most beautiful time. It is located on the beautiful Mobor Beach in South Goa. The accommodations include Plaza and Deluxe rooms with a view of the pool, or garden, or Sea. The bedrooms have several facilities like extra bedding, dining table, closet, heater, AC, private bathroom, minibar, coffee and tea maker, TV, work desk, and many others. The price of the room starts at approximately Rs. 5,500. The other amenities offered by the resort are as follows:

Outdoor Pool
Cocktail Lounge
Gym
Spa
Foreign Currency Exchange
Laundry Valet
Daily Housekeeping

Caravela Beach Resort

Located at Varca, Goa, the Caravela Beach Resort offers you a peaceful vacation. The resort offers various accommodations such as Presidential Villa, Family Villa with ocean view, Deluxe Suite, Ocean Front View Room, Deluxe Room, Superior Room, and Garden Room. The price of the room starts at approximately Rs. 20,500. The amenities offered by the beach resort include:

Golf
Swimming Pool
Spa
Yoga
Ayurvedic Centre
Gym
Outdoor Jacuzzi
Live Band
Salon

Heritage Village Resort & Spa Goa

One of the most popular resorts in Goa, the Heritage Village Resort & Spa, offers world-class facilities. They have various accommodations with different facilities for the guests. The price of the room starts at approximately Rs. 6,000. The resort also offers several water activities such as jet-skiing, water polo, parasailing, and others. They offer various amenities like:

Garden
Swimming Pool
Bar
Kids pool
Play area
Turkish bath
Yoga
Meditation
Music
Karaoke
Disco nights
Customized private dinner
Sunset cruise
Private yacht
Candlelight dinner

ITC Grand Goa – A Luxury Collection Resort & Spa

To experience a village-style comfortable living on the beach, you definitely should spend your next holiday at the ITC Grand Goa – A Luxury Collection Resort & Spa. The resort houses multiple accommodations like Guest rooms and Suites with garden view, lagoon view, pool view, sea view, Lap Pool Suite, Luxury Suite, and Presidential Suite. The rooms have various facilities, including private balconies, outdoor rain-shower, secret gardens, Happy Hours, 24 Hours In-Room Dining, open-plan marble baths with spa, and others. The price of the room starts at approximately Rs. 8,000. The resort also offers other amenities such as:

Gym
Yoga
Swimming Pool
Jacuzzi
Volleyball field
Sauna
Games Room
Kaya Kalp – The Royal Spa

Taj Green Cove Resort & Spa Kovalam

If you wish to experience Bali in India, then Taj Green Cove Resort & Spa is the right place for you. Located at Kovalam, the resort offers you a Balinese style experience. They have multiple accommodations like Superior Cottages with Garden view and Sea view, Deluxe Suites with Sea view and Balcony, Premium Suites with Sea View and Plunge Pool, and Presidential Villa with Private Pool. The price of the room starts at approximately Rs. 10,500. The resort also offers several other amenities such as:

Jiva Spa
Gym
Romantic Lagoon Boat Ride
Business Centre
Leisure Services
Village Dwelling
Bait Moon Light Dinner
Backwater Cruise at Poovar

Novotel Goa Dona Sylvia Resort

One of the renowned beach resorts in Goa, the Novotel Goa Dona Sylvia Resort, is known for their incredible hospitality service. Located on Cavelossim Beach in South Goa, the resort offers various accommodations such as Premium Suite, Executive Villa King Room, Executive Villa Twin Room, Boutique Villa King Room, Boutique Villa Twin Room, and Premium Villa Room. The price of the room starts at approximately Rs. 6,000. The resort offers various other amenities such as:

Parking
AC
Porter
Wi-Fi
Laundry
Swimming Pool
Gym
Boat excursions
Deep-Sea Fishing
Jet skiing
Kayaking
Parasailing
Snorkeling
Badminton
Football
Volleyball
Bars
Restaurants
Room Service

Lemon Tree Amarante Beach Resort, Goa

The best resort to spend your next vacation in, the Lemon Tree Amarante Beach Resort in Goa. They offer multiple accommodations like Superior Room, Executive Room, Deluxe Room, Heritage Room, Terrace Studio, Heritage Studio, Heritage Suite, and Universally Accessible Room. All the rooms have various facilities such as Wi-Fi, daily newspaper, mineral water, coffee, and tea maker, telephones, work desk, TV, mini bar, orthopedic mattress, hairdryer, private bathroom, and others. The price of the room starts at approximately Rs. 7,000. Other amenities, provided by the resort include:

Gym
Spa
Swimming Pool
Restaurants
Foosball
PlayStation
Mini library

Nowadays, everyone deserves a little luxury and unwinding, due to the daily work pressure and busy schedule. There is no other better option than spending a weekend at one of the best beach resorts in India and feeling the essence of nature, the Sea, and the sun. Spending a few days with your family, partner, or even your pet, would cheer you up, which would lead to a fantastic start to a brighter, new week. You should book one of these resorts, and experience the Sea. Also, the change of weather and Vitamin C would work wonders on your mind and body, both. You would return from the vacation, much happier, and with beautiful tanned skin. Isn’t this amazing? All of the beach resorts have fantastic package deals as well, and you might get some discounts on them. Have a relaxing weekend getaway, far away from the city life, amidst the Sea and nature. Also, experience water activities. Trust me; they are exciting, fun, and thrilling. So, what are you waiting for? Go, book your room, and have a weekend full of spa massages, yoga, meditation, jet skiing, seafood, candlelight dinners at the beach, and most importantly, peace and relaxation.

COVID Times: New Terms Make Sound Entry

Language is intimately connected to our life. The linguists have always insisted that it is so. Now we the common people realise it amidst the pandemic. Any event with extremely powerful impact on society creates or generates some terms specific to it. These terms spread among people and become part of the lingo. At least for some time. The 2020 global pandemic has led to injection of some new terms in our everyday life. Some were already in circulation. But now they are being used with greater vigour and frequency. Some are ‘new’ in the sense that we the ordinary people have never known them before. In fact, the most frequently used term COVID-19 were invented only in February this year.

‘Epidemic’, the sudden and extensive outbreak of a disease was a known term. But not ‘pandemic’, which crosses geographical boundaries, greater possibility of infection and larger coverage of people than epidemic. ‘Lockdown’ was a known term but not to the extent it is being used now. ‘Unlockdown’ was much less known. ‘Isolation’ was a familiar term as it concerns putting affected or suspected patients of infectious diseases of any kind, and not just coronavirus. But ‘quarantine’ or ‘self-quarantine’ are relatively new items for the non-medical people. ‘Stay home’, connected to both ‘isolation’ and ‘quarantine’, has also found wide circulation as a governmental order asking us not to venture out of home except to meet essential needs like food and medicines. ‘Containment zone’ is another growingly familiar term to depict the worst affected areas or localities. It is further qualified by ‘red zone’, ‘orange zone’ and ‘green zone’, depicting various degrees of presence of the virus in the first two and the absence in the last one. There are some highly stylized but relatively less used terms like ‘covidient’— referring to one who follows the official advice and rules. Its opposite is a derogatory term, ‘covidiot’— one who does not follow any rules.

One of the most frequently used new term is ‘social distancing’. It calls for prevention of mass gathering and maintenance of the ideal six feet and at least three feet distance. ‘Work from Home’ has been a relatively known one, mainly due to its use in the IT sector. But it has definitely become more popular thanks to the pandemic. ‘Infodemic’ is a newly circulated term. It refers to excess of available information— some real and some fake, some accurate and some inaccurate— resulting in confusion. There are some specialized terms in circulation among a select group of people— policymakers, epidemiologists, doctors, health workers and informed citizens. ‘Flattening the curve’— a slow but steady strategy to reduce projected number of people who may be prone to infection within a specific time frame— is one such term. In an elite league one finds ‘Quarantini’— a cocktail of quarantine and Martini— to be strictly consumed in the confines of home during lockdown.

Some interesting points can be found about the new vocabulary. First, all these terms are mostly used in English and not in any Indian language. It may be due to the technical nature of most of the terms. Second, there are certain acronyms, such as PPE, which most people use without even knowing its full form— Personal Protective Equipment. There is no problem in being ignorant as the acronym serves the purpose. Third, there are some confusing terms like ‘social distancing’. The way with which we actually need to fight the pandemic is physical distancing. Why do we need the prefix ‘social’? ‘Social’ and ‘distancing’ are odd couples— they do not fit together. The fight back on the contrary needs social bonding, rather than distancing. As the frightening virus spares none and makes no distinction while entering human body we must also be united in our fight against it. A term like ‘social distancing’ is a misfit. Both the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UNESCO have taken note of the problematic term. Some global newspapers like The Washington Post has published articles highlighting the issue. In India Rising Kashmir has raised this issue in feature. But as of now it seems that ‘social distancing’ has gained too deep publicity to be replaced any time soon.

In any case these terms are lending our day-to-day conversation a new look, even a new style. Whether they may cause a powerful linguistic turn depends on their continuation in the post-pandemic period. We have to wait for some time to know that.

How do Social Media Platforms help to boost your Website?

Social Media Platforms are a great way to boost your Website. With the help of social media platforms, you can quickly increase the traffic on your Website. But, to learn how social media networking platforms can help to make your Website a success, you need to have a decent idea about how it works. Hence, here is a detailed list of the benefits of using social media sites to boost your Website.

Benefits of using Social Media Sites to Promote your Website

Several social media sites will help boost your Website if you know the correct way to do it. Now, you might think about the benefits of using social media sites to promote your Website. So, here are some points which would help you to understand the benefits:

You can create a productive relationship with your clients on social media platforms. This will make the bond more durable, and your Website would become successful.
You would be able to interact with the clients through social media platforms. More interaction would lead to more client satisfaction.
Advertising your Website on social media websites is much more affordable than using print media or broadcast media. You can quickly post pictures or articles on various social media platforms like Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram for free and promote your Website.
Your Website will become more widespread through social media platforms. You will be able to aware more people around, which will end up in more clients, and the chain continues.
You will be able to get feedback from your clients almost instantly. Once they like your Website, they would share them on their social media platforms, which would be a bonus for you.

How to Boost Online Sales?

Once you are aware of the benefits of using social media sites for your Website, it is essential to know how you can boost online sales. Here is a list of few steps you can follow to increase online sales of your Website:

You have to keep on promoting your products on social media platforms. More advertisements would lead to more customer awareness.
You have to post pictures of the products you are selling on your Website. This will help you to get the particular customers who would be interested in buying those products.
You have to frequently post about your Website and your products on every social media platform you have. Every day, you would have to make a post regarding your online Website.
Always interact with people on social media sites. Always be available to check on the comments and queries. Try to answer each one of them.

If you want to boost your Website and reach a more significant number of audiences, all you need to do is make people aware of your Website through social media networking platforms. You will be able to reach several people, and that’s how it will be much convenient for you to promote your Website as well as boost online sales of the products on your Website.

Impact of COVID-19 on Film Industry across the World

The impact of COVID-19 has been massive in the film industry around the whole world. All the film industries across the globe are facing the consequences of COVID-19 hugely. The film industry has faced billions and billions of financial losses. All the multiplexes and cinema halls have been locked down, and there has been no profit in the market sector. The film festivals had to be canceled. Many of the dates of the film festivals have been delayed. All the films which were supposed to release in this timeframe have extended the time of release. The complete lockdown of the entertainment industry, due to COVID-19 has majorly affected the box office profit. The places to face severe financial losses at the box office are North America, China, India, South Korea, Italy, Japan, Middle East, U.K., and many others.

Present Scenario at the Box Office

Most parts of the world that have been severely affected have entirely shut off the entertainment industry. They have closed down the shopping malls and movie complexes. Hence, it has changed the box office tremendously. China, America, Italy have been facing significant drawbacks in their box office estimations. Though the box office had already calculated substantial financial loss as soon as COVID-19 started spreading in China, it hardly estimated the significant loss it would suffer across the world.

Italy, China, the USA, Qatar, Thailand, Australia, U.K., Malaysia, and New Zealand have closed down all the movie theatres, and there have been no film releases since then. Afterward, France and Ireland decided on reducing the seating capacity at every movie theatre to half of its original percentage. Japan has closed down over 200 movie theatres after the spread of COVID-19.

Box Office has faced significant financial loss from the beginning of the year. As they have estimated, they have suffered around 30% loss in Taiwan, 35% loss in the Philippines, Hong Kong, Singapore, 60% loss in South Korea, and about 72% loss in Italy. In March, the box office faced higher financial losses. Though China had reopened their cinema halls and movie theatres at that time, the government had to close them down again, to stop the spread of COVID-19.

The Chinese film industry has suffered a significant loss due to the outbreak of COVID-19. They had strictly closed down all the movie theatres and cinema halls. The primary reason behind their massive decline in the Chinese film industry is the Lunar New Year. Every year, at the time of Lunar New Year, the Chinese box office made a huge success. But, this year, they suffered a significant loss, which was unprecedented for them. They have closed down film studios like Xiangshan Global Studios and Hengdian World Studios. Hence no production work is going on at the moment. The film releases have been postponed, and there has been no work progress since.

Due to the outbreak of COVID-19, Japan has entirely locked down all the movie theatres and cinema halls. Many film festivals have been canceled like the Osaka Asian Film Festival. They have canceled the festival and have arranged to give refunds to the tickets which were bought by the people, in advance. Other small festivals like Kitakan Film Festival, the AnimeJapan Festival, and many others were canceled. The only film to have released during this pandemic is Fukushima 50, and it has not able to cross the 1 billion mark at the box office yet though Japan has been planning out various strategies to release films for the people and arrange a way for them to get some peace amidst this crazy pandemonium.

Things have gone pretty rough for the Hollywood film industry as well. After the impact of COVID-19, multiple blockbuster projects got delayed, and all the movie theatres have been closed. Many films that were about to get released like No Time To Die, Mulan and others have been postponed to November. Disney has entirely locked down all the production works of films such as The Little Mermaid, Jurassic World: Dominion, and others. This had hugely affected the pillars of the Hollywood Industry in that many are afraid that Hollywood might not go back to the stage where it stood before COVID-19 took place.

Many film releases have been postponed, and all the movie theatres around India have been locked down. Most of the technicians working in the film industry have no income source. COVID-19 has surely broken down the pillars of the Indian Film Industry. Several Bollywood film releases got postponed like Sooryavanshi, which was expected to make hundreds of crores. Rohit Shetty has to postpone the dates of his film release. Many production houses such as Yash Raj Films, Dharma Productions closed down all the ongoing activities and also, any work which was going on in their films. Even the most delayed film of 2020, Brahmastra, got even more delayed due to the pandemic. Some film releases took place at the beginning months of the year. But, things have come to a halt since March. The major film releases as 83, Radhe, and others got postponed. Even Salman Khan had to postpone his film Radhe, which was supposed to release on Eid. Every Indian wait for Salman Khan’s Eid release, but this year, no movies got released. The Indian Film Industry has faced huge losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The major film industries around the world have faced similar consequences of the pandemic. The scenario has been identified across the globe. Every part of the world, may it be in the United States or Canada or France or South Korea or Germany or Australia or Mexico, all have faced the impacts of COVID-19 thoroughly. The productions of significant films have halted, and the technicians have lost work across the world. The box office is facing financial losses in billions. Massive projects have been postponed. Many celebrities have lost their lives, which have inevitably affected the film industry. Like Terrence McNally, Lucia Bose, Mark Blum, Patricia Bosworth, Allen Garfield, and Hilary Heath, many others have lost their lives fighting with coronavirus, which has hugely affected the film industry. The entertainment industry is one of the most popular sectors across the world. People everywhere wait eagerly for the film releases, and the film industry is the one single business sector that never goes without work. Though many films might face failures at the box office, the blockbuster successes always compensate for those. Apart from the film industry, even the television industries across the world have been going through the same loss of money and work.

The Film Industries as One

Most of the award show and the film festivals got canceled due to the impact of COVID-19. To cope with the present scenario, twenty film industries worldwide have come together to project movies on YouTube for free. This is a worldwide film festival that has united the film industries together. The “We Are One: A Global Film Festival” has been arranged for ten days by film festivals worldwide. The online global film festival is streaming documentaries, comedy shows, music, and films. This is the best step that has been taken by the film industries across the world so that they keep entertaining the people around the globe. The complete lockdown of the entertainment industry has also left a reduced effect on the people. Hence, this is a way to help all of us from the traumatic news we’ve been hearing for months now.

All the film industries are trying to work together to bring smiles on the faces of people. Though they have faced significant losses for the last few months, they are still trying to arrange online festivals and shows for the viewers to stay engaged.

Why investing in Real Estate is profitable, especially now?

Amidst the recent worldwide pandemic, which has resulted in massive financial loss, for not only start-ups but also leading business companies, here is one correct way to gain profit. That is by investing in real estate. Yes, you heard it right! Real estate is one of the safest investment options during the horrible pandemic situation. In this present scenario, the prices of real estate and loan interest rates have fallen rapidly. As the rates have decreased, don’t you think this would be the exact time to invest in properties? Moreover, it has become immensely convenient to get a loan at the present moment.

With the sudden change of scenario, due to COVID-19, the rate of interest on home loans has decreased considerably. Along with the cheaper interest rates, investing in real estate would inevitably bring security to the owner. Nowadays, it is best to own a house rather than rent a place. Also, the best part of investing in real estate is gaining a property of one’s own. With security, one increases stability, and hence, buying a property would inevitably bring balance in your life. Once you invest in real estate, with time, the value of property increases. If you plan on starting up your own business or even become a landlord, here is only profit for you. One-time investment, that too in less amount, can turn out to be very profitable.

Now, you might think, why is this the ideal time to invest in real estate? Though real estate has always been profitable. But, recently, mortgage rates have decreased, which has led to an increase in investors. Now, once you plan on investing, you will find an impressive percentage of good deals available in the market. With the pandemic’s presence, property choices have increased a great deal, so this is the exact time for you to choose the property you wish to invest in to gain profit.

There are many leading agencies that look after the client’s needs and brings an excellent deal to the investors once the loan is approved. The present market scenario offers many choices to the client, a unique opportunity if you plan on investing. Therefore, if you invest in real estate now, you would have to pay a much lesser amount compared to earlier times. Along with it, you would get high returns once you sell the property in the future. Besides, if you are planning on putting the property on rent, that would turn out to be as profitable as selling it. Once you rent the property, this becomes one of the simplest ways to earn a considerable amount of money every month.

To conclude, real estate is a long-term investment. Even if you are investing at a time of crisis, this is going to become profitable even in the post-pandemic situation. You would experience a steady flow of income throughout. Hence, less investment today can bring high returns tomorrow. So, you should take a step toward investing in real estate.

Indian Cuisine: The culmination of many Cultures

Indian cuisine is a culmination of different cultures, each region has to offer a diversity of dishes, the variety of dishes available in the Indian cuisine are just too many in number to be matched by any other country and this is the reason behind the extravagant quality which the Indian cuisine holds.

If we go back around 6,000 years we will see the different influences which have created a plethora of dishes. Each region has its own way of cooking its regional dishes and the ingredients which are majorly available in that region become a base for the dishes. eg- In south India most of the dishes have rice as a base in it as a rice is one of the major crops which is grown in that region. Be it dosas, uttapams, appe, iddiyapam, idlis or even mendu vadas they all have rice in it as a base in some or the other form.

If you go towards Eastern India one can see the influence of the Chinese in eastern food of Indian cuisine, be it noodles, soups or even lip smacking momos and spring rolls, they definitely top our list of favourite food items and we have tried our hand on them in our own kitchens as well.

OUR INSPIRATION • Maya Kaimal Foods — (Maya Kaimal)

All four regions of India that is North, South, East and West have distinct dishes which represent the rich culture and also they represent the variety of crops which are grown in this colourful continent. Based on the settlers who had come and settled in India 6,000 years ago-they have left their mark behind on the Indian cuisine.

The roti, bhakri or chapatti we eat has originated from the afghan naan according to many experts when Afghani tribes had settled in the western provinces, and even the Moghuls contributed to the inclusion of naans which has changed overtime into rotis and bhakris. The Mughal empire which had gripped itself over India has given rise to rich gravies made out of nuts and other dry fruits in Northern India and many other provinces. The Persians who had come and settle in India left a huge mark behind not only on the Indian cuisine but also left behind a versatile Parsi Cuisine. Eg- the famous Irani chai with maska bun is an unforgettable combination. In western India specifically in Gujarat one could see the dominance of Parsi and Jain food, both cuisines being extreme opposites ad Parsis are pure non-vegetarians and other hand one could see Jains who were pure vegetarians who consumed certain selective vegetables and their dishes are truly commendable as creating extravagant recipes by excluding certain major ingredients is not easy. Indian food also has the influence of Mughal culture in the western belt of India. The Parsi community who came all the way from Iran has passed on the use of saffron and dry fruits in sweet and savoury delicacies in Mahrashtra and Gujarat.

Trading via sea ports also gave rise to the addition of many ingredients which are now an important part of Indian cuisine. Goan food is influenced greatly by the Portuguese settlers , there are many meat dishes which have been brought in by the Portuguese eg- “carne de vinha de alhos”, which is a meat dish which is made out of marinated pork that includes garlic and wine. Many of the Goan dishes which have vine as a major ingredient in them be it cakes or curries have also been influenced by Portuguese cuisine. Goa also houses some of the best sweet delicacies especially tea cakes, milk cakes and pastries which have been brought in by the French and the Portuguese.

This whole concept of hight tea or afternoon tea has come from the british, as britishers follow the tradition of having cakes and many other sweet and savoury snacks in the afternoon or evening along with a cup of tea.

We also do have influence on Indian food from Middle East, certain recipes of samosas, biryani, chick pea flour and chick pea curries have been passed on from Persian and Mughal tribes.

In today’s times we can cook many international cuisines and they are served in restaurants as well, but these are indianised versions of these international cuisines and hence one can even call them fusion or Indo western cuisines, be it Indian-American food like burgers, pizzas or fries or even Indo-chinese food which is given an Indian touch to it or even Indo-mexican food ,All of these fusion cuisines which have been in trend lately are creating a big wave in the Indian Food Industry and will soon become a part of it.

Government of India banned 59 Chinese apps

The Ministry of Information Technology, on June 29, banned 59 mobile apps, saying they are engaged in activities which are “prejudicial to the sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order.

The list of apps included TikTok, Weibo and others.

the IT ministry said that it has received many complaints from various sources including several reports about misuse of some mobile apps available on Android and iOS platforms for stealing and surreptitiously transmitting users’ data in an unauthorized manner to servers which have locations outside India.

“The compilation of these data, its mining and profiling by elements hostile to national security and defence of India, which ultimately impinges upon the sovereignty and integrity of India, is a matter of very deep and immediate concern which requires emergency measures,” the ministry further said in a statement.

The Confederation of All India Traders ( CAIT) welcomed the move saying, “This huge unprecedented step will go a long way in strengthening the ‘Boycott China’ campaign of CAIT.”

Among the apps, Tik Tok, Club Factory, Xiaomi, Cam Scanner, UC Browser are expected to be the worst-hit because of high user volume.

Sreedhar Prasad, independent e-commerce analyst, told Moneycontrol, “Most of these apps have huge adoption and usage across India. This is a massive move considering the globalised nature of today’s digital world.”

“However, we need to note that China was ahead of every country in setting their internal ground rules by banning many international social media apps, thereby ring fencing their digital ecosystem. India could be having the largest user base outside China for many of these apps and, if some of the other countries follow suit, this could lead to a very strong move of rejection across the world. This is a great opportunity for local alternatives across the world to grab these customers as the usage habit has been created by these Chinese apps.

Here is a list of apps that have been banned by the Centre:

1. TikTok
2. Shareit
3. Kwai
4. UC Browser
5. Baidu map
6. Shein
7.Clash of Kings
8. DU battery saver
9. Helo
10. Likee
11. YouCam makeup
12. Mi Community
13. CM Browser
14. Virus Cleaner
15. APUS Browser
16. ROMWE
17. Club Factory
18. Newsdog
19. Beauty Plus
20. WeChat
21. UC News
22. QQ Mail
23. Weibo
24. Xender
25. QQ Music
26. QQ Newsfeed
27. Bigo Live
28. SelfieCity
29. Mail Master
30. Parallel Space
31. Mi Video Call – Xiaomi
32. WeSync
33. ES File Explorer
34. Viva Video – QU Video Inc
35. Meitu
36. Vigo Video
37. New Video Status
38. DU Recorder
39. Vault- Hide
40. Cache Cleaner DU App studio
41. DU Cleaner
42. DU Browser
43. Hago Play With New Friends
44. Cam Scanner
45. Clean Master – Cheetah Mobile
46. Wonder Camera
47. Photo Wonder
48. QQ Player
49. We Meet
50. Sweet Selfie
51. Baidu Translate
52. Vmate
53. QQ International
54. QQ Security Center
55. QQ Launcher
56. U Video
57. V fly Status Video
58. Mobile Legends
59. DU Privacy

DGCI gives approval for human clinical trials of COVAXIN, first potential COVID-19 Vaccine developed in the country

The Central Drug Standard Control Organisation, the National regulatory body for Indian Pharmaceuticals and medical devices, has granted approval to Bharat Biotech India to conduct human clinical trials for Corona Vaccine called ‘Covaxin’. The company in a statement said it is the first indigenous COVID-19 vaccine to receive the approval. The Covaxin has been developed in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune. Bharat Biotech Chairman and Managing Director of Bharat Biotech Dr Krishna Ella informed that these trials are scheduled to start across the country during the month of July. According to the company, the Drug Controller General of India approved Bharat Biotech’s application to conduct phase I and II clinical trials for Covaxin.

Dr Krishna further said the permission was granted after the company submitted results from pre-clinical studies of the vaccine that demonstrated its safety and immune response. The SARS-CoV-2 strain was isolated in NIV, Pune and transferred to Bharat Biotech. The indigenous, inactivated vaccine developed and manufactured at the Bio-safety level 3 lab of the Bharat Biotech located in Genome Valley in Hyderabad.

INDIA & CHINA: things you need to know!

HISTORY

In the 1st century CE, Buddhism was pass on to China from India. There were some contact before the transmission of Buddhism. There are some instance of China in Indian Epic Mahabharata, it is about Qin state which later became Qin dynasty. The Prime Minister of Maurya Empire, Chanakya, he referred Chinese Silk as “Cinamsuka”; the Chinese dress silk, and “Cinapatta”; the Chinese silk bundle.

The records of the Grand Historian, Zhang Quin and Sima Qina contain information about “Shendu”, which is somewhere linked with Indus Valley, known as “Sindhu” in Sanskrit.

INDO-CHINA WAR

Also known as Sino-Indian War, the war between India and China, held in 20 October 1962. The main reason behind this war was the Himalayan Border dispute. China’s People Liberation Army seized India in Ladakh, that time India was not so sure about the war and sent only two army troops in the place of conflict, but, China had three troops there. China cut the telephone lines of India, so that, India could not contact with the headquarters. The Chinese troops attacked on the first day and caused loss in the Indian troops which made Indian troops to escape. 22 October, the day full of confusion as Chinese burnt the bushes and 400 Troops attacked India. For answering the Chinese troops, Indian troops opened fire with mortars and machine guns which killed over 200 Chinese.

POPULATION AND MILITARY STRENGTH

POPULATION: India- 1,380,004,385 China- 1,439,085,892

MILITARY STRENGTH: India- Active personnel 1,444,500; Reserve personnel 2,100,000 China- Active personnel 163,000; Reserve personnel 1,657,000

15 JUNE 2020!

On the night of 15th June 2020, at Galwan Valley at height of 4,300 feet, clash started between the Indian troops and People’s Liberation Army. This war injured 76 Indian soldiers and killed 20. There were no firearms in the fight as in 1996, one agreement was made between India and China that, guns and explosives were banned in that area.

INDIA BANNED 59 CHINESE APPS!

On Monday, 29 June 2020 India banned 59 apps which were somewhere correlated with China. The reason behind this big step is the harmful and detrimental effects of those apps, those were not secure. The most popular apps like, TikTok, UC Browser, Likee, Vigo Video, Club Factory, Shein were banned.

TikTok, Likee, Vigo Video were the video creating apps.

Club Factory and Shein were very popular e-commerce platforms.

WeChat is the messaging app, or in other words, social media app.

CamScanner is a app which scans pictures.

SHAREit and Xender are the sharing apps, which could share images, videos, songs, and other media.

PM Modi announces extension of ‘PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojna’ till November end

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today announced free food grains to 80 crore people across the country for five more months.

The Prime Minister Gareeb Kalyan Anna Yojana has been extended till the end of November this year.

Under the scheme announced in the wake of COVID- 19 pandemic, 5 kg free wheat or rice along with 1 kg whole chana will be provided to each member of a family per month.

Its extension will cost over Rs. 90 thousand crore.

Addressing the nation Tuesday evening, Mr. Modi noted that in the last three months, Rs. 31 thousand crore have been transferred to the Jan Dhan accounts of almost 20 crore poor families, Rs. 18 thousand crore have been transferred to the bank accounts of more than 9 crore farmers and Rs. 50 thousand crore are being spent on PM Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyaan, which has been started to provide employment opportunities.

He stressed that the country is moving towards the institution of ‘one nation, one ration card’, which will be of immense benefit to the poor who travel to other states in search of work.

Mr. Modi said, if one looks at the death rate due to corona, India is still in a very stable situation as compared to other countries.

The Prime Minister added that timely measures like lockdown have saved many lives. Mr. Modi, however, said ever since unlock one started, people have shown negligence.

He urged them to take all necessary precautions for fighting novel Coronavirus.

He also said, regulations need to be followed with the same seriousness as during Lockdown, especially in the Containment Zones.

The Prime Minister added that people must maintain discipline and those not following the rules, need to be stopped and made aware. He warned that nobody is above the rule.

Mr. Modi also hailed farmers and honest tax payers for their contribution in making the welfare scheme successful.

The Prime Minister said that in the coming times, the government will continue to take further steps to empower the poor and the needy. Economic activities will also be enhanced, with due precautions in place.

He reiterated the pledge to work towards Atmanirbhar Bharat and to be vocal for local, while also asking people to be careful, use mask and face cover and continue following the mantra of maintaining do gaz doori.

Mr. Modi said, the country is entering in Unlock 2 and the season of cough, fever and cold is also about to start and in such a situation the countrymen should take care of themselves.

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Present Scenario at the Box Office

The Film Industries as One

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