Colombo: Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Sunday urged IT experts in the island nation to promote Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, taking India and Sri Lanka as models.
He directed formation of a presidential task force comprising AI experts and prepare a concept paper to promote AI usage as done in the two Asian nations.
“When it comes to artificial intelligence, we should consider Singapore and India as role models. It is true that east Asia…. South Korea, Japan, and China are making progress in artificial intelligence, but no country in West Asia has reached that stage yet,” Wickremesinghe said.
The Sri Lankan President said the country is aiming to create a digital economy and to meet the demands of the digital age, aiming to produce 10,000 engineers annually instead of present number 2, 500. He also highlighted the potential of AI in various fields, including agriculture, education, health, fisheries, and industry.
“We have identified the modernisation of agriculture and fisheries, tourism, and improvement of supply centres as urgent areas for development in our economic reforms. Additionally, we have placed a greater focus on the technology industry.”
The President noted that the current annual contribution to Sri Lanka’s gross national income through computer and information technology is around $1.9 billion, with no known amount from AI technology. He instructed officials to develop a system to track AI contributions and stressed the importance of taking prompt action to increase AI’s contribution to the gross domestic product in the coming years.
He invited the private sector to join in the effort and said that the government plans to allocate Rs one billion for AI technology next year.
The decision, climate experts and advocates said, felt “like a dam breaking” after years of legal delays to the growing wave of climate lawsuits facing major oil companies.
Without weighing in on the merits of the cases, the supreme court on Monday rebuffed an appeal by major oil companies that want to face the litigation in federal courts, rather than in state courts, which are seen as more favorable to plaintiffs.
ExxonMobil Corp, Suncor Energy Inc and Chevron Corp had asked for the change of venue in lawsuits by the state of Rhode Island and municipalities in Colorado, Maryland, California and Hawaii.
Six years have passed since the first climate cases were filed in the US, and courts have not yet heard the merits of the cases as fossil fuel companies have succeeded in delaying them. In March, the Biden administration had argued that the cases belonged in state court, marking a reversal of the position taken by the Trump administration when the supreme court last considered the issue.
The Rhode Island attorney general, Peter Neronha, said his state was now finally preparing for trial after “nearly half a decade of delay tactics” by the industry. A joint statement from the California cities of Santa Cruz, San Mateo and Richmond and Marin county said the oil companies knew the dangers of fossil fuels but “deceived and failed to warn consumers about it even as they carried on pocketing trillions of dollars in profits”.
The cases have been compared to tobacco lawsuits in the 1990s that resulted in a settlement of more than $200bn and changed how cigarettes are advertised and sold in the US.
“It was a really amazing feeling to see that the supreme court was ruling in a very logical way by continuing with the unanimous decisions that have been made in the previous courts to not [grant petitions for review] and to allow these cases to move forward,” said Delta Merner, lead scientist at the Science Hub for Climate Litigation.
“It removes this dam that industry has been building to prevent these cases from being heard on their merits,” she said. “We can finally have the real conversations about what the industry knew and what their actions were despite that knowledge.”
She hopes communities will have the chance to speak in court about the climate emergencies they are experiencing as a result of the industry’s actions.
As jurisdictional battles have dragged on, climate emergencies have added up.
The Suncor oil refinery in Commerce City, Colorado. Photograph: Ted Wood/The Guardian
The Colorado case was filed in 2018. In 2021, the state saw the Marshall fire, the most destructive wildfire in its history, which killed two people, destroyed nearly 1,000 homes and businesses, contaminated drinking water and amounted to billions in damages.
“There’s real impacts that are happening now, and that’s why it’s so important for these cases to have the opportunity to be heard, and have a chance for justice,” Merner said.
The cases allege fossil fuel companies exacerbated climate change by concealing and misrepresenting the dangers associated with burning fossil fuels. The lawsuits say the companies created a public and private nuisance and violated state consumer protection laws by producing and selling fossil fuels despite knowing the products would cause devastating climate emergencies, including melting ice caps, dramatic sea level rise, and extreme precipitation and drought. Local governments are seeking damages for the billions of dollars they have paid for climate mitigation and adaptation.
The oil companies have denied the allegations.
Financial accountability
“We were all pretty excited. It feels like justice might be possible,” Richard Wiles, president of the Center for Climate Integrity, said after reading the decision on Monday.
“There’s clearly trillions of dollars of damages in the US alone from climate change that has to be dealt with.”
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The plaintiffs aren’t suing the companies to put them out of business, but the cases could ultimately affect the industry’s bottom line.
If the lawsuits are successful, they could limit the fossil fuel industry’s ability to greenwash and lie to consumers, Merner said. Rulings against the companies could also reinforce banking industry concerns that fossil fuels are a risky investment.
In state court, fossil fuel companies will attempt to have the cases dismissed.
The Chevron attorney Theodore Boutrous said in a statement he was confident the cases would be dismissed, arguing that climate change requires a coordinated federal response, “not a disjointed patchwork” of actions from numerous state courts. “These wasteful lawsuits in state courts will do nothing to advance global climate solutions, nothing to reduce emissions and nothing to address climate-related impacts,” he said.
“I don’t think there’s any reason for that confidence yet,” said Korey Silverman-Roati, climate law fellow at the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, in response to Boutrous.
It’s unclear what will happen in state courts, but Silverman-Roati pointed to the Hawaii case, in which a state court denied the industry’s motion to dismiss.
If plaintiffs clear motions to dismiss, the cases move to discovery. The plaintiffs will use the process to try to gather more evidence of what the companies knew and when they knew it. Internal company documents will probably become public when the trials get under way.
Recent studies have shown that Exxon accurately predicted that its products would cause climate change.
Attribution science will play a key role in connecting local climate disasters to the industry’s responsibility. “Studies can explain how much hotter a heatwave is, or how much greater the intensity of a downpour is during a hurricane event due to climate change. And they can look to see where those emissions came from, and what percentage of those emissions tie into those direct climate impacts,” Merner said.
With each decision in favor of plaintiffs, the cases are snowballing and more local governments are filing new cases. “There’s a growing number of lawsuits. And I imagine after today, that will continue,” Merner said.
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( With inputs from : www.theguardian.com )
Bengaluru: The incidence of head and neck cancers is increasing in the city, according to medical experts.
Nevertheless, the city has many world-class hospitals and medical facilities that are equipped to handle the diagnosis, treatment, and management of these cancers. With advanced technologies such as robotic surgery becoming more prevalent, Bangalore is emerging as a hub for cutting-edge treatments and therapies for the patients, Dr Sandeep Nayak P, Director – Department of Surgical Oncology and Robotic and Laparoscopic Surgery, Fortis said.
It is crucial for individuals to stay informed about the risk factors and symptoms of head and neck cancers and to seek medical attention promptly if they suspect they may be affected. “With this in mind, I have developed a revolutionary technique for robotic surgery, known as RIA-MIND. This technique not only eliminates the need for an incision in the neck but also reduces the risk of complications associated with such wounds, promotes faster healing, and provides vastly superior cosmetic results,” he explained.
Dr Vishal Rao, Group Director for Head & Neck Surgical Oncology and Robotic Surgery, HCG Cancer Centre, said, “Surgeons have small eyes and big hands, but robots have small hands and big eyes, which help the surgeon probe deeper into hitherto inaccessible areas with racoon-like vision and precision. Technology has thus made the representation of reality way more interesting than the reality itself. Robots have taken site location, visualisation, and human error mitigation to a whole new level. The haptic sensory feedback has made minimally invasive head and neck surgery an experience as intimate as the conventional one; it hardly appears like a remote mechanism.
Underlining that robotic surgery has become increasingly popular, Dr Avinash Chaitanya S, Consultant Head and Neck Surgical Oncology, CARE Hospitals, says it has several advantages over traditional surgical techniques.
In India, head and neck cancers account for about 30 per cent of all cancer cases. Robotic surgery has emerged as a new approach for treating these cancers because of its precision, minimally invasive approach, reduced risk of complications, better visualization, and increased patient safety, he said.
New Delhi: The NCERT consulted 25 external experts and 16 CBSE teachers to carry out its syllabus rationalisation exercise as part of which portions on the Mughals, Mahatma Gandhi, his assassin Nathuram Godse, reference to Hindu extremists and the 2002 Gujarat riots among others were dropped from school textbooks, according to the Education Ministry.
Dropping several topics and portions from the NCERT textbooks has triggered a controversy with the Opposition blaming the Centre of “whitewashing with vengeance”.
At the heart of the row is the fact that while the changes made as part of the rationalisation exercise were notified, some of these controversial deletions weren’t mentioned in them. This has led to allegations about a bid to delete these portions surreptitiously.
The NCERT has described the omissions as a possible oversight but refused to undo the deletions, saying they were based on the recommendations of experts. It has also said the textbooks are anyway headed for revision in 2024 when the National Curriculum Framework kicks in.
“Aside from NCERT in-house experts, NCERT sought the expertise of subject experts from Universities/Organisations and practising teachers in all its activities related to Research, Development, Training and Extension for wider consultation,” the ministry had said in response to a written question in Lok Sabha.
Among the most contested deletions are from history and political science textbooks for which the NCERT consulted five and two external experts respectively.
“One round of consultation each was held with the experts, ” the Ministry had said in its response.
For History, the five experts who were consulted are Umesh Kadam, a professor of History at the Jawaharlal Nehru University and a member secretary at the Indian Council for Historical Research, Hind College associate professor (History) Dr Archana Verma, Delhi Public School (RK Puram) teachers (Head of Department of History) Shruti Mishra, and two Delhi-based Kendriya Vidyalaya teachers Krishna Ranjan and Sunil Kumar.
For the political science textbook, the NCERT held two rounds of consultation with four experts. They were Vanthangpui Khobung, an assistant professor of political science at the NCERT’s Regional Institute of Education in Bhopal; Maneesha Pandey who teaches the subject at Hindu College and school teachers Kavita Jain and Sunita Kathuria.
SRINAGAR: In view of the wet spell forecast from 17th of April, the experts have advised orchardists to spray fungicide before rains to avoid scab-like diseases.
Quoting experts, KNO reported that it is usually best to apply a fungicide before it rains, because rain causes leaf surfaces to be wet, a requirement for most foliar diseases, and rain may splash spores from leaf to leaf and from plant to plant.
Therefore, if one is able to coat plants with fungicides prior to a rain, the plant is better protected from disease, they said.
“Periods of wet weather are when a plant is most vulnerable to foliar disease. Fungicides, properly applied, may help to prevent or slow the initiation of disease and the spread of disease which commonly occurs during or shortly after a rain,” they added.
Dr Tariq Rasool, a senior scientist at SKUAST (Sher-i-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology) said that as rains are predicted from Sunday, growers must spray fungicide before rains to avoid scab.
“Orchards where over 50 to 60 percent petals have fallen must be sprayed with any SKUAST recommended fungicide to avoid any disease in future,” he said.
Those Orchardists who have sprayed in around last week of March and apple flowers are in full, they too can go far fungicides, as research has been found it safe to spray fungicide in bloom without any effect on the fruit, he said.
He advised farmers that they must use mist spray not full speed spray so that it won’t damage the petals and fruits and mist spray must be used always and the practice of bathing the whole tree must be avoided.
“Best time for spray is morning and this is the critical stage of the scab so people must avoid mixing more pesticides and insecticides and focus on fungicide only this time,” he said.
He added that even if it rains, a few hours after spraying fungicide, it will still provide protection to the fruit and keep diseases at bay.
SRINAGAR: In a meeting, health experts on Tuesday assured Chief Secretary, Dr Arun Kumar Mehta that there is no need to panic in view of little spike in Covid-19 cases reported across the UT recently.
The meeting was attended by the Secretary, Health; Director SKIMS; Principals of Medical Colleges and Heads of Medicine and Microbiology of Medical Colleges; Directors of Health Services Kashmir/Jammu besides other experts from the Medical field.
Dr Mehta enjoined upon all these health experts to take all the necessary measures to tackle any issues that may arise full, an official spokesman in a statement said.
Mehta asked them to perform the precautionary testing of individuals as per the set protocols and not to resort to either under testing or over testing in the health facilities. He impressed upon them to create ample awareness among public so that no unnecessary scare was created among them.
The Chief Secretary also emphasised on taking stock of medicines and other paraphernalia beforehand so that people are served better. He asked the department to give booster doses to the vulnerable groups like elderly and persons with comorbidity. He also directed them for encouraging people to observe the Covid appropriate behavior for safety of all.
On the occasion the Chief Secretary directed for constituting a three member committee under Director SKIMS with Principals of Government Medical Colleges of Jammu and Srinagar as members for working out a standard protocol for treatment of patients across the health facilities of J&K for various ailments.
He also urged the committee to look into the reasons of high rate of C-section births in the UT and advised them to suggest the corrective measures to address this issue.
He further asked them to frame a mechanism in consonance with the hospitals in other regions regarding a policy for taking off days in lieu of night duty and working of medics. He also asked the Department to ensure that various wings in all hospitals must follow an inclusive approach with respect to all doctors working in the wing for ensuring equitable opportunities and due process of consultations in management of patients.
The Secretary Health informed the meeting that currently there is no ICU bed occupancy related to covid in the health facilities of the UT. He made out that the testing capacity of J&K has been augmented by many folds. He made out that the full Genome Sequencing facility has been started at SKIMS recently and other at GMC Jammu shall be started soon. He also revealed that every sample of a positive person is sent for its genome analysis as per the GoI guidelines.
The Secretary apprised the meeting that Mock Drills were conducted in 162 health facilities across the UT on 10th April to ensure Operational Readiness for management of COVID at all identified dedicated facilities including GMCs/ DHs and CHCs with specific focus on Oxygen Plants (LMO/ PSA/ Manifold), Ventilators, Logistics & Human Resources.
He said that the covid vaccination doses given in the age groups of 18 years & Above, 15-17 years and 12-14 years in the UT are above that of the National Average which was quiet encouraging. He ascertained that there is no reason to worry and only caution can evade its possible implications.
Moreover the health experts also gave their suggestions regarding the current scenario and preparedness of J&K UT. They informed that the virus is not so lethal this time although the spread may be faster. They advised people to only take precautions so that they keep themselves safe as well as others.
It was revealed that J&K has identified around 3000 Covid beds, 1966 isolation beds, and 330 ICU beds in its hospitals. It has a capacity to generate 1,14,366 LPM of oxygen from its 154 plants. The UT also has 4 CBNAAT, 15 TRUENAT labs in its hospitals to generate tests more accurately and expeditiously.
Srinagar, Apr 08: Most of the studies conducted across the world suggested that individuals who fast experience improvements in their symptoms of depression, anxiety and even stress, said mental health experts.
Dr Yasir Hassan Rather, Professor in Department of Psychiatry, IMHANS, GMC Srinagar told news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that research has found that fasting during Ramadan can have a positive psychological effect on individuals due to the feeling of connection with the community and spiritual wellbeing.
“Studies have also shown that fasting can increase feelings of self discipline, self-control, empathy and compassion,” he said.
Additionally, fasting has been linked with improved mental health due to increased gratitude, mindfulness, and improved concentration, Dr Yasir said.
Dr Neelofer Jan Senior Resident at Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences-Kashmir told KNO that several studies have shown that fasting can have positive effects on mental health. It can reduce stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms and also can help improve and decrease progression of various neurodegenerative diseases like dementia, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia.
“Fasting causes the human body to deplete its glucose stores. With no available glucose, the body converts stored fats into ketones. These ketones work as a fresh fuel to power-up the brain’s processes. Therefore, after the initial “brain fog” experienced during initial days of fasting, mind becomes much clearer and ability to focus is sharper. The neurons in the brain use this new fuel to enter a growth phase and create new synapses, which result in improved learning and memory,” she said.
A study published in Current Neuropharmacology in 2015 found that the short-term calorie restriction from fasting can boost anti-depressant chemicals in the brain. Dr Nelofar said that after a few days of fasting, the body adapts to starvation and starts to release high amounts of happy hormones including endorphins, norepinephrine and dopamine into the brain.
“Some studies have also demonstrated improved sleep patterns in patients with insomnia compared to pre-fasting levels and a possible decrease in migraine due to serotonin levels going up. Depending on the length of the fast, there is also an improvement in chronic inflammation,” she said.
“Chronic inflammation increases the risk of developing illnesses, like cardiovasculardiseases, rheumatoid arthritis,lupus, certain cancers, and also major mental health disorders like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.”
An extremely interesting phenomena discovered during fasting is known as autophagy as the brain breaks down old and damaged cells and recycles them into new ones, Dr Neelofar said.
“Through this self-eating process, the toxins are removed from the brain delaying the development of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s. Most of these findings have been confirmed on lab animals because controlled studies on human brain is difficult,” she said.
Studies have shown that children suffering from epileptic seizures had fewer incidences of seizures when placed on calorie restriction diet or fasting as it counteracts the over-excited signals exhibited in epileptic brain, she added—(KNO)
SRINAGAR: Studies conducted across the world suggest that individuals who fast experience improvements in their symptoms of depression, anxiety and even stress levels.
Mental health experts note that fasting for a certain number of hours each day have a wide range of mental health benefits.
Dr Yasir Hassan Rather, Professor in Department of Psychiatry, IMHANS, GMC Srinagar said that research has found that fasting during Ramadan can have a positive psychological effect on individuals due to the feeling of connection with the community and spiritual well being.
“Studies have also shown that fasting can increase feelings of self discipline, self-control, empathy and compassion,” he said.
Additionally, fasting has been linked with improved mental health due to increased gratitude, mindfulness, and improved concentration, Dr Yasir said.
Dr Neelofer Jan Senior Resident at Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences-Kashmir said that several studies have shown that fasting can have positive effects on mental health. It can reduce stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms and also can help improve and decrease progression of various neurodegenerative diseases like dementia, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia.
“Fasting causes the human body to deplete its glucose stores. With no available glucose, body converts stored fats into ketones. Ketones further work as a fresh fuel to power-up the brain’s processes. Therefore, after the initial “brain fog” experienced during initial days of fasting, mind becomes much clearer and ability to focus is sharper. The neurons in the brain use this new fuel to enter a growth phase and create new synapses, which result in improved learning and memory,” she said.
A study published in Current Neuropharmacology in 2015 found that the short-term calorie restriction from fasting can boost anti-depressant chemicals in the brain.
Dr Nelofar said that after a few days of fasting, the body adapts to starvation and starts to release high amounts of happy hormones including endorphins, norepinephrine and dopamine into the brain.
“Some studies have also demonstrated improved sleep patterns in patients with insomnia compared to pre-fasting levels and a possible decrease in migraine due to serotonin levels going up. Depending on the length of the fast, there is also an improvement in chronic inflammation,” she said.
“Chronic inflammation increases the risk of developing illnesses, like cardiovasculardiseases, rheumatoid arthritis,lupus, certain cancers, and also major mental health disorders like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.”
An extremely interesting phenomena discovered during fasting is known as autophagy as the brain breaks down old and damaged cells and recycles them into new ones, Dr Neelofar said.
“Through this self-eating process, the toxins are removed from the brain delaying the development of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s. Most of these findings have been confirmed on lab animals because controlled studies on human brain is difficult,” she said. (KNO)
The Ruet-i-Hilal Research Council (RHRC) has stated that Eid-ul-Fitr would be celebrated on Saturday, 22 April across Pakistan.
The council’s Secretary-General, Khalid Ijaz Mufti, has announced that the committee’s meeting is scheduled to sight the Shawwal moon on Thursday, 20 April. However, the odds of being able to see the moon that evening are slim.
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If the moon is sighted on Thursday, Eid-ul-Fitr will be observed on Friday, 21 April. Yet, according to Mufti, Eid is more likely to be celebrated on 22 April after fasting for 30 days during the holy month of Ramadan.
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The moon will be born on Thursday, 20 April, at 9:13 a.m. Pakistan time, as per the council. The Mufti also stated that any reports of a crescent moon sighting on 20 April would be incorrect.
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Eid-ul-Fitr commemorates the completion of Ramadan, the holy month in which Muslims fast from dawn to sunset. Traditionally, the occasion is marked by prayers, family reunions, and feasts.
The sighting of the lunar crescent, which marks the start of the Islamic month of Shawwal, determines the precise day of Eid-ul-Fitr.
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