FSSAI bans sale of junk food within 50 metres of schools

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August 9, 2020

In an attempt to promote healthy eating amongst school children, the FSSAI has banned the sale of junk food within a 50-metre radius of schools. The proposed ban on the sale, as well as advertisements for junk foods, are contained in FSSAI’s draft regulation titled Food Safety and Standards (Safe Food and healthy diets for School Children) Regulations, 2019. The Food and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has sought comments from stakeholders within 30 days on the draft rules.

These junk foods include potato wafers, soft drinks, packed foods, and so on, in the vicinity of school campuses. It includes, on a broad spectrum, those foods that are low in nutrients (such as vitamins, minerals and fibre) and high in kilojoules, saturated fat, added sugar and/or added salt. Regular consumption of junk food has been linked to an increased risk of obesity and chronic diseases like cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and some cancers.

It also prescribes regular inspection of premises to ensure that safe, healthy and hygienic food is served to students. Nutritionists, dietitians must be engaged by the school administration to assist in the preparation of menu for the children, periodically.

“We have received comments from various stakeholders and we are now compiling these suggestions. A technical committee will look into these recommendations,” said Pawan Kumar Agarwal, CEO, FSSAI. He said it would take around 1-2 months to finalize the regulations and then the same would be sent to the health ministry for the final approval.

French President Macron hosts virtual conference with world leaders to raise aid for Lebanon

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Vaibavi Jayakumar

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August 9, 2020

French President Emmanuel Macron hosted a virtual conference with US President Donald Trump and other world leaders in attendance, to raise funds for the victims of the Beirut explosion. This was following a declaration by the UN which said that Beirut would need $117 million to combat the losses caused by the blast.

“The objective today is to act quickly and effectively to coordinate our aid on the ground so that it goes as efficiently as possible to the Lebanese people,” Macron told the conference also attended by Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun, UN aid coordinator Mark Lowcock, representatives of the World Bank, the Red Cross, the IMF, the EU, the Arab League and several Middle Eastern leaders. He called for speedy international backing for disaster-struck Lebanon and urged its leaders to prevent “chaos” as he opened an emergency aid conference following Beirut’s deadly port blast.

Macron has been the frontrunner in responding to the blast and extending help to Lebanon after the explosion. He was the first world leader to visit the country and evaluate the losses. The French President repeated his call for political and economic reforms, which he said: “would allow the international community to act effectively side by side with Lebanon for the reconstruction.”

Meanwhile, the Lebanese have taken to the streets in protest of their government’s lack of response to this disaster, as chaos prevails over the country.

#BlackLivesMatter movement reignited as Instagram censors black model’s photo

By

Vaibavi Jayakumar

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August 9, 2020

Instagram took down a picture of an African American model called Nyome Nicholas-Williams, sparking widespread outrage, as netizens broke out in support of the model. The #IWantToSeeNyome hashtag became viral and garnered more than a million reshares.

A dreamy split-second candid picture of Nicholas-Williams bathed under natural light, her eyes closed and arms wrapped around her breasts had been captured by photographer Alexandra Cameron. The response on Instagram was ecstatic: “stunning … beautiful … this should be in a gallery!”. But within hours, Instagram had deleted the photo and Nicholas-Williams had been warned her account could be shut down. “Millions of pictures of very naked, skinny white women can be found on Instagram every day,” said Nicholas-Williams. “But a fat black woman celebrating her body is banned? It was shocking to me. I feel like I’m being silenced.”

Following this, hundreds of users shared the censored photograph with the hashtag #IWantToSeeNyome on Instagram and various other social media platforms, along with accusations over Instagram’s disconnect between its positive statements over Black Lives Matter and the apparent unfair targeting of its black content creators.

The platform, with over a billion users and 15,000 people working around the world to review posts and look for banned material, has been repeatedly accused of discriminating against black people.

Ex gratia announced for those killed in Vijayawada hotel fire which was used as COVID facility

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Vaibavi Jayakumar

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August 9, 2020

Ex-gratia of ₹50 lakh has been announced to the families of victims of the Vijayawada fire accident. 10 were killed and several were injured in a fire at a hotel in Vijayawada on Sunday. Notably, this had been used as a COVID facility by a private hospital. The reason is suspected to be short-circuiting.

Health Minister, Alla Kali Krishna Srinivas said, “This is a very unfortunate incident. The Chief Minister has ordered to take appropriate measures, he has ordered the ministers to visit the spot.”

“There were 43 people in the hotel, of whom 30 were COVID patients. 10 of them have lost their lives while remaining 20 have been shifted. They are safe and stable. We will review the situation at the collector’s office. Later we will give more details,” Srinivas added.

Ramesh Hospitals in Vijayawada had leased out the Swarna Palace Hotel on Eluru road to serve as a COVID-19 care facility. Around 50 patients had been admitted here, and as many as 30 patients and 15 medical and hotel staff had been present in the hotel at the time of the fire. Since the patients were already infected by coronavirus, the thick smoke that arose due to the fire further aggravated their conditions, leading to death.

Prime Minister Modi expressed his condolences over this incident and spoke with the state’s CM Jagan Mohan Reddy to do the needful.

Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal tests positive for coronavirus

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Vaibavi Jayakumar

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August 9, 2020

Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, who had recently endorsed an indigenous papad brand, that claimed to boost immunity,tested positive for coronavirus. His vitals were reported to be stable and he is said to be receiving treatment at AIIMS.

“After developing symptoms of COVID-19 I had undergone testing and was found positive in the second report. On the advice of doctors, I got admitted to AIIMS and I request all those who came in contact with me to take care of their health,” he had said.

He is a Junior Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Heavy Industries, and Public Enterprises from Bikaner, and recently made headlines after he endorsed a papad brand, called Bhabhiji Papad, claiming it fought coronavirus. In the video, Meghwal spoke about a brand called ‘Bhabhi Ji papad’ and said that it helps “develop antibodies” to fight against the virus. He had also wished the brand’s owner Sunil Bhansali on the launch of the product, saying he hopes the venture will be “successful” under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative launched by the central government.

However, the video was not released on the minister’s official social media handle and was originally circulated on WhatsApp. Notably, another MP from Rajasthan and Union Minister Kailash Chaudhary has also tested positive for coronavirus.

N-100 mask that filters 99.97% air manufactured by Indian company

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Vaibavi Jayakumar

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August 9, 2020

N-100 mask has been manufactured by an Indian company named Excel 3D Advanced Technologies. They claim that this mask filters 99.97% air and have applied for a patent. They have made it under the Make in India drive, and have named it as XD100. This has been manufactured by Mumbai based Sameet Raut, and his London-based partners Dr Rahul Gore and his associates. It had taken them four months to design and develop this mask and was tested by DRDO. They had also sent it to the US for NIOSH approval.

“There is a USA based firm which sells N-100 mask in India. This firm manufactures the mask in China and they are costlier. We focused on the best quality by using the highest standard medical materials with a long life which will result in affordability. We provide 5 filters with this reusable mask,” he added.

This is the first Indian company to manufacture this mask. There are only 9 companies all over the world that make such masks. So far, N95 masks have been mass-produced in India, but this is claimed to be safer as it filters 99.97% of 3-micron particles in the air.

Furthermore, this is washable, and its filtration capacity does not reduce with every wash. Its filter is also replaceable. It is expected that, in the post COVID era, it can be used by those working in the chemical, pharmaceutical and cement industry. This comes at a time where the government has issued an advisory saying that the usage of masks with an exhalation valve is to be avoided.

₹17,100 crores to 8.55 crore farmers released, ₹1 lakh crore worth financing facility under Agri Infra Fund launched by PM Modi

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The Commune

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August 9, 2020

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday (August 9) launched ₹1 lakh crore worth financing facility under Agriculture Infrastructure Fund for agricultural start-ups, entrepreneurs, farmer groups through video conferencing.

Through the Agricultural Infrastructure Fund, the government aims to provide medium to long to debt financing to create infrastructure for post-harvest management like cold storage chains, ripening chambers, warehouses, packaging units, e-marketing points, and also nurture farm assets through interest subvention and financial support.

₹1 lakh crore will be sanctioned under this fund in partnership with different lending institutions to agri entrepreneurs, start-ups and farmer society groups. 11 of the 12 public sector banks have already signed MoU with the Ministry of Agriculture.

Beneficiaries will be receiving credit guarantee upto ₹2 crores and interest subvention of 3%

The Union Cabinet had approved this fund as part of the ₹20 lakh crore Atmanirbhar Package last month.

Prime Minister Modi also released the sixth instalment of ₹17,100 crores to more than 8.55 crore farmers under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme that was launched in 2018. The PM-KISAN scheme provides ₹6000 in three equal instalments to marginal and small farmers through DBT.

Oscar winning Spotlight movie fame SNAP Network extends support to Loyola College sexual harassment survivor

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The Commune

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August 9, 2020

Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) that found a mention in the Academy Award winning film Spotlight, has extended its support to the All India Christian Forum (AICF) that is helping Mary get justice in the Loyola College sexual harassment case.

In a message to the founder of AICF Mr. Savio Rodrigues, who also runs the goachronicle.com, Mr. Tim Lennon, President of the SNAP Network said “Mary, a faculty member of Loyola College, seeks justice in the courts yet is blocked by inaction. We call on the court to provide a path to justice for her.”

Mary, a senior faculty member of Loyola College, Chennai was sexually harassed by Father Xavier Alphonse, the former principal of Loyola College who was also the former Director for Loyola College Alumni Association.

SNAP Network is an independent, peer network of survivors of institutional sexual abuse. It is the oldest, largest and the most active support group for women and men wounded by religious and institutional authorities (priests, ministers, bishops, deacons, nuns, coaches, teachers, and others.

Mary had revealed in her petition to the Madras High Court that the Loyola College administration had warned her against approaching the Tamil Nadu police to file a sexual harassment complaint against Father Xavier Alphonse.

In her petition Mary said that she was continuously harassed by Rev. Fr. Xavier Alphonse over telephone as well as in person at the college campus and that wheever she brought it to the attention of the college authorities she was dissuaded from pursuing any action against Father Xavier Alphonse stating that it will impact the college’s reputation. The authorities had informed Mary that action was being taken on the Father by transferring him to another location.

In addition to this, not a not a single Internal Complaints Committee was setup by the Loyola College as mandated by the Sexual Harassment Act.

Mr. Rodrigues also noted that the Loyola College administration and alumni have remained mute on this case despite the fact that the sexual harassment survivor is known to most of the senior members. He has been helping the survivor get justice by offering legal support through AICF.

Source: Goa Chronicle

Cafe-cum-gym opened in Muzaffarnagar for cops on duty

By

Vaibavi Jayakumar

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August 9, 2020

Cops on duty in Muzaffarnagar will now be able to take some time off from their rigorous duty as the police department opened a unique cafe-cum-gym. This cafe is to serve healthy food options like poha, dalia, fresh fruit juices, smoothies, and food cooked in olive oil. It also has a gym attached to it, that is open for usage by police personnel.

This cafe is also set to deliver food orders to various places in the city and will be open until 9 PM throughout the week. This centrally air-conditioned cafe was opened to cops on Friday and offers affordable meals at reasonable prices. This is a sugar-free cafe and will use jaggery as a sweetener.

This initiative is the brainchild of Muzaffarnagar’s SSP Abhishek Yadav, a fitness freak. He has been working on this project for the last six months. “Policemen need to follow a highly exhaustive schedule of duty that seldom gives them the opportunity to avail of a proper diet. Cases of hypertension, diabetes and stress are common among the UP police force. This facility is aimed at alleviating such health problems. Improper diet and lack of awareness for a healthy lifestyle were also the reasons behind opening such a unique cafe,” the SSP said.

“This unique concept will be upgraded once we start getting more feedback. It may be then introduced to other police stations as well,” the SSP added.

Amazon and Narayana Murthy’s family enterprise Catamaran Ventures help SMB go digital

By

The Commune

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August 9, 2020

Prione Business Services, a joint venture between Amazon and Catamaran Ventures, the family enterprise of Infosys co-founder N.R. Narayana Murthy is helping small and medium businesses (SMBs) go digital by helping them with strategies and creating an ecosystem of SMBs.

Prione Business Services was started in 2014 with Catamaran Ventures holding a 76% majority stake. It is also the logistics partner of Amazon India and owns Cloudtail, the single largest seller on Amazon India.

The start-up headquartered in Bengaluru envisions making India self-reliant by promoting local manufacturing and Indian brands.

Recently, it had helped a Jaipur based business named Benavji that was hurt by the pandemic and lockdown to clock more than ₹50 lakh in monthly revenue. Benavji had invested in plant and machinery to scale up its baby clothing business but the Wuhan virus pandemic hurt its capex. Prione came to the rescue that strategized its business by making them produce masks and gloves.

Prione claims to have served in 150 cities in the last 5 years and has seen ₹10,000 crore in consolidated turnovers (Prione + Cloudtail).

The startup has an authorised capital of ₹ 550 crore. As per the details available from the Registrar of Companies, it had a revenue of ₹ 7,245 crore in FY 2018, and ₹ 9,039 crore in FY 2019. The profits in FY 2019 were ₹ 9,039 crore 38 crore.

Prione trains the SMBs on digital marketing, analysing consumer behaviour, warehousing, packaging and cataloguing. It also trains smaller shops on technology through Amazon’s Local Shops programme. It has enabled 3 million sellers to transact digitally.

Sandeep Varagunti, the Managing Director of Prione is planning to on-board 40,000 SMBs by this year end and help them sell their products on Amazon.

“In the last decade, the advent of ecommerce has helped new-age brands. Consumer durables, healthcare, and consumables are going to keep growing, and SMBs will revive the economy. However, the road to recovery is a good 12 or 24 months away. But SMBs need to go digital. They are crucial to India’s economic recovery. Indian SMBs are an alternative for imports from China, and our SMBs can participate in the global supply chain. Local consumption is the key, and from this year, Prione will help SMBs go global,” Mr. Sandeep was quoted saying in an article by YourStory.

Source: YourStory

The Commune

FSSAI bans sale of junk food within 50 metres of schools

French President Macron hosts virtual conference with world leaders to raise aid for Lebanon

#BlackLivesMatter movement reignited as Instagram censors black model’s photo

Ex gratia announced for those killed in Vijayawada hotel fire which was used as COVID facility

Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal tests positive for coronavirus

N-100 mask that filters 99.97% air manufactured by Indian company

₹17,100 crores to 8.55 crore farmers released, ₹1 lakh crore worth financing facility under Agri Infra Fund launched by PM Modi

Oscar winning Spotlight movie fame SNAP Network extends support to Loyola College sexual harassment survivor

Cafe-cum-gym opened in Muzaffarnagar for cops on duty

Amazon and Narayana Murthy’s family enterprise Catamaran Ventures help SMB go digital

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