Five Tech Platforms that Offers Support During Coronavirus Outbreak

The country has been exploring every step in their capacity to combat and contain the rapid spread of COVID -19. While it has set a good example in terms of dealing with crisis at initial stage itself, To fight the pandemic, several medtech companies have come forward and developed solutions, which can help in identifying the disease and take preventive measures on time to cure it.

These companies are using a range of technologies in their fight against the pandemic. Here is a list of some of the medtech platforms and solution being deployed in India to curb the virus :

Bione Microbiome Test

Bione has developed a COVID-19 focussed Microbiome test, which combined with its AI, predictive analysis tools can provide tailored recommendations to individuals to strengthen their particular microbiome and thus be more immune to Coronavirus and be able to fight off COVID-19. Bione is working towards boosting preventive healthcare and increasing life expectancy in India. With the vision of leapfrogging genetic testing and microbiome services in India, they have founded Bione Ventures which envisions to empower people to unlock their health and fitness through personalised genetics and microbiome. The genetic programme uncovers the disease predispositions and microbiome, and decode the secret to a healthy gut. It also leads to a healthy family genomic journey with Bione.

Abbott Laboratories Molecular point-of-care test

Abbott Laboratories on Friday announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued the Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA) for the fastest available “molecular point-of-care” test to check for Covid-19.The test can detect positive results in five minutes, while negative results take about 13 minutes. It will run on Abbott’s ID Now platform, which is small, lightweight and portable. It employs molecular technology, which is highly valued by the scientific community for its accuracy. Apart from quick test results, a selling point of the ID NOW platform is that it can be used in urgent care clinics, not just traditional hospitals.

Mylab Discovery Coronavirus testing kit

Mylab Discovery, in the western city of Pune, became the first Indian firm to get full approval to make and sell testing kits. It shipped the first batch of 150 to diagnostic labs in Pune, Mumbai, Delhi, Goa and Bengaluru (Bangalore) this week. The molecular diagnostic company, which also makes testing kits for HIV and Hepatitis B and C, and other diseases, says it can supply up to 100,000 Covid-19 testing kits a week and can produce up to 200,000 if needed.

Whatsapp Chatbot for Coronavirus

India is turning to WhatsApp,  to create awareness about the coronavirus pandemic and has urged social media services to tackle the spread of misinformation on their platforms. Narendra Modi, India’s Prime Minister, said on Saturday that citizens in the country can text a WhatsApp bot — called MyGov Corona Helpdesk — to get instant authoritative answers to their coronavirus queries such as the symptoms of the viral disease and how they could seek help.

Corona Kavach tracking app

The Government has launched a coronavirus risk-tracking app called ‘Corona Kavach.’ Jointly developed by the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the app uses a person’s location to assess whether they are in the high risk geographical zone or not. The app is now available for download — in beta — for Android phones on the Google Play Store. Corona Kavach is designed to provide information about COVID-19 and capture information. It will track the data of the users every one hour to alert them of whether they have crossed paths with any person who has tested positive for the infection.

Takeda Appoints Koki Sato AS New Country Head for Indian Market

Highlights

* Koki Sato to lead Takeda’s business in India, ensuring patient access to highly innovative medicines
* Seasoned biopharmaceutical leader with over 17 years of experience across geographies

Takeda India announced today the appointment of Koki Sato as the Country Head for the Company’s India business. In his current capacity, he will lead the company’s operations with a focus on the expansion of patient access to Takeda’s highly innovative portfolio in the country.

Koki joined Takeda in 2003 and, since then, grew within the company to hold various senior international roles across multiple functions, including Commercial Operations, Finance, and HR. Prior to this role, Koki was the General Manager of Ukraine, Belarus, and Moldova (UBM) Cluster in Takeda’s ICMEA* Area.

Commenting on his new role, Koki Sato said, “India is of significant importance for Takeda and we endeavor to develop initiatives which will lead to enhanced patient access to our highly innovative medicines locally. We remain committed to serving India’s patients, and aim to bring newer therapies for rare diseases, gastroenterology, and oncology to them in the coming years, along with hopefully, our Dengue vaccine candidate.”

Across its ICMEA* Area, and more broadly across the countries that span its Growth & Emerging Markets Business Unit, Takeda collaborates with healthcare providers, governments and regulators, to ensure that its portfolio of innovative medicines is made available to patients as quickly and safely as possible.

Koki will be officially assuming his position from April 1, 2020. He is a Japanese national and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Economics from Waseda University, Japan.

An Update on Twitter’s Efforts to Help You Find Credible Information About #coronavirus

A Message from Mahima Kaul, Director, Public Policy, India and South Asia, Twitter: “We understand our role as an essential service for both the government to communicate with citizens and for the public to stay connected with each other. We are ensuring that everyone on the service has access to the latest and credible updates as we all navigate the COVID-19 crisis. Online communities and conversations have never been more important and we are committed to protect and serve the public conversation and support the authorities as they navigate this unprecedented moment.”

For India specifically, we wanted to provide you with recent top-level updates around the work Twitter is doing. We’ll link to our blogs below so you can read more updates in detail.

Working closely with the Government of India and relevant stakeholders

We have open lines of communication with the relevant authorities in the central and state governments and public health officials, to ensure they can troubleshoot account issues, and seek strategic counsel as they use the power of Twitter to mitigate harm and connect with the public at large. We're working with the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, various State Governments to upskill various departments on COVID response management. We have also supported and enabled the Govt of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh to  set-up dedicated COVID-Response accounts. Govt. of karnataka, Maharashtra; Follow them here: DIPR Karnataka, Maharashtra  Control room, Jharkhand COVID Helpline, UP Covid helpline.  We have also published a Twitter List of key police accounts on Twitter for latest and credible information on #Lockdown21. People can Tweet to them for any queries. A strong example of this was @DelhiPolice using the service to host a Tweet Chat, addressing public queries and concerns related to the Lockdown.

COVID-19 Search Prompt

Twitter is dedicated to ensure people have uninterrupted and real-time access to the conversations that matter. To this end, Twitter offers a dedicated COVID-19 search prompt. When people come to the service to search for related COVID-19 conversation, the search prompt offers content from credible sources such as national health agencies and the World Health Organisation (@WHO). To make the search prompt as useful as possible, Twitter has partnered with local agencies in countries across the world. In India, the search prompt directs people to the official Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (@MoHFW) and @WHO websites.

The feature is being constantly monitored by the Twitter team to ensure that all related keywords, including common misspellings, generate the proactive search prompt.

Dedicated Bilingual Events Page

Twitter has launched an events page dedicated to COVID-19 information. The page, called “Coronavirus Tweets from Indian authorities”, is essentially a timeline of Tweets from verified Indian officials such as the Prime Minister Narendra Modi (@narendramodi), Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan (@drharshvardhan) and other state and central ministers, as well as public health agencies. Launched in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (@MoHFW), this page is an attempt to share the latest facts from verified sources. Every account holder in India can see this page on the top of their home timeline. If someone has their settings set to Hindi, then they will see the same page with Hindi Tweets. The timeline also let’s people track developments around the latest social distancing and healthcare information.

WHO’s #SafeHands / #Handwashing Emoji and #SafeHandsChallenge https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/TZ_WMlFgcrPGpLxjQb0xWQ7JpgJ-ZE9cvdyqK8NkTBDZ2GE3og9Vz3qJc0aQBOOTDrkacbVPfgx5OYx8nB3jgMagMMVhBISs8c1YF0WoX_hWj9TGuXAFe8zR6L1m9aJZmpCGRocN

In partnership with the World Health Organisation (@WHO), Twitter launched a #handwashing emoji to create awareness around the importance of cleaning hands in the current time and emphasize the importance of 'washing hands frequently' to curb spreading of the virus. People can unlock the emoji using any of the following hashtags #handwashing, #SafeHands, #HandWashChallenge, #WashYourHands, #हाथधोलेना, #हाथकीसफाईमेंभलाई, #हाथधोयाक्या.

Twitter’s Public Policy team is connected directly to the WHO team to offer advice on how best to use the service to connect their critical updates with the world.

Fight against misinformation around COVID-19

We are committed to working with the Government of India and focused on protecting the public conversation. We have expanded our safety rules and broadened our definition of harm to address content that goes directly against guidance from authoritative sources of global and local public health information. In addition to reports, we will enforce this in close coordination with trusted partners, including public health authorities and governments, and continue to use and consult with information from those sources when reviewing content. More information here.

An update on our continuity strategy during COVID-19
Our working guidance to our employees and partners to keep them safe
Our partnerships and public engagement strategies

Thank you for your continued support and do let us know if we can assist in any way for your stories/queries.  #StaySafeStayHome as #IndiaFightsCorona and #FlattenTheCurve

This message contains information which may be confidential and privileged. Unless you are the intended recipient (or authorized to receive this message for the intended recipient), you may not use, copy, disseminate or disclose to anyone the message or any information contained in the message. If you have received the message in error, please advise the sender by reply e-mail, and delete the message. Thank you very much.

Covid19 - ITC to Help Produce Additional 1,25,000 Litres of Savlon Hand Sanitisers

ITC's newly commissioned state of the art Perfume manufacturing Facility in Himachal Pradesh commences production of Savlon sanitisers -Addresses a larger societal purpose during this pandemic

To serve a larger national priority during these challenging times, ITC’s state-of-the-art Perfume manufacturing facility in Himachal Pradesh has commenced production of Savlon Sanitisers to cater to the soaring demand due to the outbreak of the Corona virus pandemic. Commissioned recently in November 2019, the factory at Manpura in Himachal Pradesh is a world class facility designed to produce premium fine fragrances.

Amidst the global health crisis and the unprecedented surge in demand for hand hygiene products like sanitisers, ITC, on a war footing, repurposed this world class perfume facility to help produce an additional 1,25,000 litres of Savlon Hand Sanitisers .

During these challenging times, ITC has redoubled its efforts to ensure enhanced supply and availability of Savlon range of products in the market. This intervention will enable ITC to meet the demand surge for sanitisers in the market.  In line with the Government order and in public interest, ITC has also reduced prices of Savlon sanitisers and is working overnight to reach the new stocks with the revised prices to the market. ITC has also reinforced its efforts to enhance awareness about the importance of hand hygiene through campaigns across digital, print and other communication platforms. 

Quote from Mr Sameer Satpathy, Chief Executive, Personal Care Products, ITC Ltd
Addressing a larger national requirement during the Coronavirus pandemic, ITC has repurposed its recently commissioned perfume manufacturing facility in Manpura, Himachal Pradesh to manufacture Savlon Hand Sanitizers. This initiative reinforces our efforts to enable enhanced production and supply of Savlon range of hygiene products in the market which is the need of the hour to help fight the virus and contain its spread.

SEEDS Joins Fights Against COVID-19, Activates Action in 7 States

SEEDS in partnership with Government of India and state governments of Bihar, Delhi, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha and Uttarakhand in India is reaching out to the most economically vulnerable people. The humanitarian organisation specialising in building resilience among communities is actively working in close coordination with the administration at various levels in each region to respond to the physical health, mental health and economic impacts of the pandemic.

The global outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has affected more than 195 countries. India with confirmed 562 cases and 9 deaths as of yesterday according to the data reported by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare is facing spike in the situation too. Daily wage earners with marginal savings have temporarily lost their jobs and are unable to access food and essential items to sustain themselves. Evidence shows that adults aged 60 years and older or those with chronic medical conditions seem to be at highest risk of complications and fatality rates. The elderly in old-age homes or living by themselves without adequate support systems face acute challenges.

SEEDS is committed in reaching out and supporting these invisible individuals – the elderly, children, and frontline health workers of the communities who are disproportionately impacted by coronavirus and the economic consequences of the outbreak in their time of need. The response appeal has been launched towards rapid de-escalation of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 with focus on:

Financial and essential services support to the daily wage earners
Support to district administration for complementing and supplementing public health systems
Supply of hygiene kits and food rations to marginalised families, old age homes and orphanages
Support to Government for establishment of temporary quarantine facilities, where needed

Join hands with SEEDS as your contribution can help save lives and help contain the spread on this critical and potentially fatal disease. Donate now and spread the word at http://www.seedsindia.org/covid19/

Together, this pandemic can be fought by making sure the most vulnerable among us are protected.

About SEEDS:

SEEDS (Sustainable Environment and Ecological Development Society) is a not-for-profit organisation that enables community resilience through practical solutions in the areas of disaster readiness, response and rehabilitation. Since 1994, the organization has worked extensively on every major disaster in the Indian subcontinent – grafting innovative technology on to traditional wisdom. It has reached out to families affected by disasters and climate stresses; strengthened and rebuilt schools and homes; and has invariably put its faith in skill-building, planning and communications to foster long-term resilience. SEEDS is also India’s first agency to be certified for the global Core Humanitarian Standards – an international certification system for quality and accountability in humanitarian response. SEEDS completed 25 years of outstanding service to humanity in 2019 and is re-anchoring its approach to building resilience through innovation. It continues to empower the most vulnerable across Asia to build a better future.

Five Students of LISAA Design Celine Dion's Red Carpet Dress Replica

5 Final Year Fashion Students of LISAA School of Design, a premier fashion school have designed Red Carpet dress worn by Canadian Pop Singer , Celine Dion .

The name of the design students are Parnika, Vidushi, Athira, Smriti and Kritika . These students were given a certificate of appreciation by the institute and the cost of the fabric was covered by the institute itself.

“Being teamed up with classmates made it both fun and efficient. We were able to strategically use each one's refined skill and accomplish the task.” says Parnika.

“The brains of some, the patience, sensibility and neatness of the others had enabled the division of work to be very simple.  Everyone knew their part and there was no need to worry about the outcome,” adds Vidushi, Final Year Student.

Athira further adds, “Moreover, all of us adored the design and hence put wholesome effort to ensure that our version of it would be just as elegant and charming as the original.”

“Right from figuring the construction and patterns multiple times, to choosing the fabric, to dealing with the length and bulk of the garment, which although seemed simple, had been quite challenging,” recounts Smriti, Final Year Student.

“This task also enabled us to learn the intricacies of haute couture, which is essential with our upcoming individual couture collections. We managed to do our job, whilst having an overwhelming experience, making it an endeavor we shall all always remember,” says Kritika , Final Year Student .

The teachers of the Pattern Making Department who helped out the students in re-creating the dress said,
'Through our years of experience ,each time re-creation project brings in new surprise and challenges to out do the past work.
Huge volume requires meterage from 30 to 250 meters , manipulating such scale is not only cumbersome but to validate a new beginning.'

Avi Keswani, Founder & Director, LISAA School of Design says, “It was an assignment part of the curriculum known as the Re-creation project to understand the importance of Haute Couture and how to replicate phenomenal couture designs of iconic designers. It took our students  about 1.5 months to complete this entire garment as a group project .The materials used were satin and  the technique of boning was used for corset.”

Electronics Production has Potential to Reach Upto US$260 Billion and Generate 1 Crore Jobs to IT Sector: EMD Report

India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA), the premier Industry Body committed to the development of a vibrant Indian Electronics System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) ecosystem and evangelizing the dream of ‘Make in India’ a reality has released the ESDM report today in collaboration with Frost & Sullivan. The report aims to provide definitive strategic direction to the ESDM ecosystem by assessing the current trends and providing strategic advice to accelerate growth and local value addition.

As a voice of the industry, IESA has been at the forefront in highlighting the heavy import bill in the ESDM sector and need to building strength in the domestic manufacturing value chain – with the focus to develop scale of domestic design and manufacturing companies. India’s dependency on imports for its electronic product needs, from smart phones to super computers has seen an exponential rise. IESA presented the ESDM report today, to capture the current status, map the trends and create opportunities to work closely with the industry, government and research institutes to promote electronics products & manufacturing in India.

The current COVID-19 crisis has again highlighted the need to have a strong and robust electronics research and manufacturing ecosystem in the country as intelligent electronics forms the backbone of all strategic sectors like healthcare, security, defence, transportation, financial inclusion and agriculture etc.

The key sectors covered in the report include Electronics Product Market, Electronics Component Market, Electronics Design Market, Electronic Systems Market and Electronics Manufacturing Services Market. The product segments that were looked at are Mobile Phones, Notebooks, CCTVs, FPD TVs, Led Lighting, Engine Control Unit, Gigabit Passive Optical Networks (GPON) & Energy Meters/ Smart Meters.

The key findings of the report:

Electronics Market is a sunshine market. Indian market has grown at a CAGR of 14% from 2016-19 and is expected to accelerate at a CAGR of 16.6% between 2020-25.
Electronics production currently contributes 3.3% to the economy. It will grow to US$320 Bn by 2025. With additional measures, It has potential to reach US$410 Bn, which will be 8.2% of US$ 5Tn India’s GDP target by 2025
Boost in ESDM manufacturing as a result of the massive capacity expansion can generate 1cr jobs providing an alternate source of employment to IT sector
Currently 50% of US$134 Bn of total Electronics products Demand is imported. By 2025, the total product Demand will reach to US$368 Bn, however, import can reduce to 29%, saving US$76 Bn of foreign exchange
IESA has set an ambitious target to play a catalyst in incubating 1000 Electronics Product and Fabless start-ups which will create 1,000 IPRs, generate business worth INR 1,000 crore and create 10 lakh jobs over next five years.
Jitendra Chaddah (JC), Chairman, IESA & Senior Director, Strategy & Operations, Intel India added, “With the goal of making India a hub for Electronics Design and Manufacturing, IESA has been working with the government, academia and industry players to suggest, influence and execute multiple strategies for the electronics and semiconductor industry. The IESA ESDM 2020 report is an attempt to project the needs of the electronics market and the steps to be taken to meet the demand and growth of the industry. The demand for electronics products is fast growing in the country and this sector will contribute significantly to the country’s GDP and the digital economy. The report underlines the importance of strengthening the design capabilities through research and IP development, promoting innovation in electronics product development across states in India, and enhancing value addition in the electronics manufacturing, through incentives.”

While presenting the ESDM report, Dr. Satya Gupta, Vice Chairman, IESA & CEO, Seedeyas Innovation said, “A strong partnership between industry and government is vital, in creating an ecosystem for the fabless start-ups and electronics products companies. This should not just focus on the indigenous market and substitute imports but focus on driving exports by the next five years. We are proposing the creation of $1Bn billion ESDM Innovation fund, move to high-value manufacturing through global partnerships and creation of the National Institute for Semiconductor & Electronics Research (NISER). We are envisaging the creation of National Electronics Mission on the similar lines of ISRO for spearheading all these activities and for making India a design led manufacturing hub for the world.”

Key Strategic Recommendations

The Industry has the potential to
Increase GDP contribution from present 3.4% to 8.2% in 2025
Create 1Cr Job Opportunities (Direct & Indirect)
$60B - $100B Reduction of imports
Creation of Electronics Products for New Use Cases
Medical, Agriculture, Defense, 5G or 6G, AI-ML, Automation, EV
Convert Semiconductor Design Talent to Fabless Product Companies

Recommendations:
Incentivize Training, Internship, IP Creation by Design Companies
Create $1B seed fund for 1K-10K-100K Start-up Program
100 Fabless companies; 900 Electronics Product Companies
Geographic Inclusion of all States & UTs for Innovation in Electronics
Incentivize Setting up ATMP, Display, LED & Power Electronics Fab
Make PLI Incentives link to Percentage of Domestic Value add
Setup National Institute of Semiconductor & Electronics Research (NISER)
On the Lines of IMEC, Belgium
Creation of National Electronics Mission: On the lines of ISRO

About India Electronics and Semiconductor Association: India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA) is the premier industry body committed to the development of a vibrant Indian Semiconductor and Electronics System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) ecosystem representing both domestic and multinational enterprises. IESA has been actively involved in evangelizing the dream of establishing ‘Brand India’ that is recognized worldwide as a go-to destination for Intelligent Electronics. The vision of IESA is to Make India the global hub for design-led manufacturing in Intelligent Electronics through continued partnership with the Industry, Government and Academia in

the Country and Global markets. IESA is working towards promoting Make-in-India & Designed in India products for the global markets, through publishing credible data, networking events and nurturing alliances. IESA works closely with the Government as a knowledge partner on the sector, both at the centre and state level. For more details, visit www.iesaonline.org