More Indians in Singapore returning home due to job losses: Envoy

More and more Indian workers are returning home as Singapore businesses cut down on workforce following the severe impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic, an official said

International News: More and more Indian workers are returning home as Singapore businesses cut down on workforce following the severe impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic, an official said. “On an average, about 100 Indian nationals in Singapore continue to register daily with the High Commission here for flights back home, with over 11,000 having registered so far,” Indian High Commissioner P Kumaran said on Wednesday.

Special flights have been arranged as part of the ongoing Vande Bharat Mission and, wherever necessary, more flights are added to help meet the high demand for some destinations to help Indian nationals return home as they have lost their jobs, or going back for medical treatment or family-distress situation, he said. Kumaran said the high commission would continue to work to ensure enough repatriation flights, even though formal flights between Singapore and India have not resumed.

The high commission has repatriated over 17,000 Indian nationals by arranging 120 special flights since May, said Kumaran. Speaking to PTI, the envoy also listed out his priorities in working on the India-Singapore relationship during his tenure here, especially further intensifying the political engagement, focus on increasing trade and investment flows, and technology collaborations in the space of fintech and startups.

Coronavirus: UK, France urge citizens to leave China, Belgium has 1st case

More than 20,400 people have been infected with the virus in China and 425 have died

Britain on Tuesday urged all of its citizens in China to leave the country because of the outbreak of a respiratory illness from a new virus, while Belgium became the latest nation to announce a confirmed case.

An updated advisory issued by the U.K. Foreign Office said that while commercial flights remained available from most of mainland China, travel restrictions introduced by the Chinese government to contain the epidemic meant “it may become harder to access departure options over the coming weeks.

If you’re in China and able to leave, you should do so, the advisory said. France also issued an advisory, warning against any non-essential travel to China and suggesting that French citizens who were already there return home. More than 20,400 people have been infected with the virus in China and 425 have died. Two other people have died in the Philippines and Hong Kong and 20 other nations have reported cases.

Belgium, meanwhile, reported its first case of the coronavirus, found in one of the nine citizens who were repatriated from Wuhan over the weekend. The Belgian Health Ministry said the infected individual was in good health and didn’t show any symptoms of the disease. The person was taken to a special hospital for further care while the others remained under observation. Germany confirmed two more cases of the virus: one an employee of an auto parts company that a Chinese colleague visited two weeks ago and the other in a child of an infected company employee who previously had another child test positive.

New class of antibodies may protect against AIDS

A new study has zeroed in on a new defence against HIV-1, the virus that causes AIDS.

The team of researchers at Texas Biomedical Research Institute used an animal model, to show for the first time that an antibody called Immunoglobulin M (IgM) was effective in preventing infection after mucosal AIDS virus exposure.

Scientists first treated the animals with a man-made version of IgM, which is naturally produced by plasma cells located under the epithelium (the surface lining of body cavities). Half an hour later, the same animals were exposed to SHIV (simian-human immunodeficiency virus). Four out of the six animals treated this way were fully protected against the virus. The animals were monitored for 82 days.

“IgM has a high affinity for its antigens and grabs them very quickly and does not let go. Our study reveals for the first time the protective potential of mucosal anti-HIV-1 IgM. IgM has a five-times higher ability to bind to virus particles compared to the standard antibody form called IgG. It basically opens up a new area of research. IgM can do more than it has been given credit,” explained DR. Ruth Ruprecht, a researcher.

ARTICLE SOURCE :- BS