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(Eds: Combining related stories) New Delhi, Apr 24 () Nationwide cases of confirmed coronavirus infections rose on Friday by over 1,750 -- the maximum for a day -- to nearly 23,500 with several states including Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Gujarat detecting new patients, even as the government said the outbreak is under control and the tally could have reached one lakh by now without a nationwide lockdown. Government officials also credited a robust surveillance network and various containment measures for the spread being "under control", along with the lockdown, which was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi a month ago on March 24 in an address to the nation. Addressing village panchayat heads and members through video conferencing, Modi on Friday said the coronavirus pandemic has taught the country "to be self-reliant and self-sufficient" and not look for solutions abroad, as he stressed that every village, district and state should be able to provide for its basic needs. He also applauded rural India for its simple and motivating mantra of "Do Gaz Ki Doori" to popularise social distancing. Separately, several medical experts said the prevailing restrictions have been crucial in preventing a situation similar to the US or Europe, but cautioned that a "bigger challenge" awaits the country when it gradually move towards exiting the nationwide lockdown. Some scientists also warned that the trajectory of COVID-19 cases could have plateaued and might even fall for some weeks after the lockdown is lifted but India is likely to see a second wave in late July or August with a surge in the number of cases during the monsoon. "It looks apparent that the trajectory of daily new cases has reached a plateau and eventually it will take a downward fall, maybe for some weeks or even months," Samit Bhattacharya, associate professor at the Department of Mathematics, Shiv Nadar University, told . Rajesh Sundaresan, professor at Bengaluru's Indian Institute of Science (IISc), said, "Once we return to normal activity levels, there is a chance that infection may begin to rise again. China is seeing this to some extent post easing of some restrictions on travel." According to a tally of figures announced by various states and union territories, the number of confirmed cases has reached 23,577 with at least 743 deaths, while nearly 5,000 patients have recovered and have been discharged. In its 5 PM update, the Union Health Ministry put the nationwide tally of confirmed cases at 23,452 -- showing an increase of 1,752 since Thursday -- along with 723 deaths. The previous highest single-day increase was of 1,540 cases on April 20. According to the ministry, the number of active COVID-19 cases stood at 17,915 as 4,813 people have recovered and one patient has migrated, which translates into a recovery rate of 20.52 per cent. The total number of cases include 77 foreign nationals. Since Thursday evening, at least 37 deaths have been reported, of which 14 fatalities are from Maharashtra, nine from Gujarat, three from Uttar Pradesh, two each from Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh,Tamil Nadu and Telengana and one from Karnataka, ministry data stated. Overall, Maharashtra alone has reported 283 deaths, followed by 112 from Gujarat, 83 from Madhya Pradesh and 50 in Delhi. A four-month-old baby girl became the youngest victim of COVID-19 in Kerala on Friday. She was admitted to the Medical College Hospital in Kozhikode on April 21 with history of fever, cough, breathing difficulties and seizure after being treated at two other hospitals. The new cases of confirmed infections included seven police personnel, including four women, in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. The state on Friday announced a complete shutdown beginning Sunday in Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai and some other places, disallowing even grocery shops and fully curtailing the public movement. The Union Home Ministry, in the meantime, flagged that the COVID-19 situation is especially serious in some major or emerging hotspot areas including Ahmedabad, Surat, Hyderabad and Chennai. It also said that violations of lockdown measures reported in some parts of the country pose a serious health hazard to public and may lead to the spread of COVID-19. The Centre has sent 10 central teams for spot assessment of the COVID-19 hotspot districts across the country, including five new ones -- Ahmedabad and Surat in Gujarat, Thane in Maharashtra, Hyderabad in Telangana and Chennai in Tamil Nadu. Earlier, similar teams were sent for Mumbai and Pune in Maharashtra, Indore in Madhya Pradesh and Jaipur in Rajasthan, besides two teams for West Bengal. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh separately directed the country's top military brass to ensure that India's adversaries do not get any opportunity to push their "evil design" by taking advantage of the country's focus on fighting the coronavirus pandemic, officials said. Reviewing India's military preparedness at a high-level meeting, Singh also asked the armed forces to avoid wasteful expenditure and make sure judicious utilisation of funds considering the downturn in the economy triggered by the pandemic. Officials at the government's daily press briefing on the COVID-19 situation, however, sounded confident that the fight against the deadly virus outbreak was progressing well and the nationwide lockdown announced by Modi was a timely step. Niti Ayog member V K Paul said the lockdown has been effective in slowing the rate at which COVID-19 cases is doubling in India, and it now stands at 10 days, as against three days on March 21. Paul, who is also heading one of the empowered groups set up to deal with the COVID-19 crisis, said the curve has begun to flatten. "Had we not taken the decision of clamping the nationwide lockdown, we would have had around 1 lakh COVID-19 cases by now, as per a reasonable estimate. Now, the outbreak is under control," he said. Officials, however, said these projections are based on the growth pattern at a particular time. Director of National Centre for Disease Control S K Singh that surveillance has been the country's primary weapon in the fight against novel coronavirus. "We started our surveillance mechanism even before the first case was reported in India. This played an important role in helping us contain the spread of the infection," Singh said. He said around 9.45 lakh suspected coronavirus cases are under the surveillance network at present and upon detection of symptoms of the infection, samples are taken from these people for testing. Singh said the surveillance network has been set up at district level as well, so that household survey, quarantine and isolation are done as part of cluster containment plan. Joint Secretary in the Health Ministry Lav Agarwal said in the last 28 days, as many as 15 districts have had no new case, while there are 80 districts in the country that have not reported any new coronavirus case in the last 14 day. In Delhi, where more than 800 people have recovered so far including at least 723 in six days till Thursday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the plasma therapy trial conducted on four patients here has yielded "very encouraging" initial results, giving a ray of hope to seriously-ill coronavirus patients. Karnataka is also likely to start the Convalescent Plasma Therapy (CPT) for COVID-19 patients, who are critical, from Saturday, state's medical education minister K Sudhakar said. PLB ASG SAR JTR NAB ABS ACB MPB ASK BUN KSU VGN BJ VJVJ

Confirmed COVID-19 cases up by a record; Govt says outbreak under control

December 2016 marked 15 years since the designation of <keyword id="4497764" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="International-Volunteer-Day">International Volunteer Day</keyword> by the <keyword id="6355833" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="united-nations">United Nations</keyword>. The feeling of optimism, community spirit, and happiness in service that the act of volunteering evokes is in stark contrast to unfortunate reminders of hate and carnage that we witness across the world today. 
 
As Abraham Lincoln, arguably America’s most famous President said, “He has a right to criticize, who has a heart to help.” While philanthropy typically is associated with monetary actions, volunteerism symbolizes social responsibility. It is perhaps the oldest form of personal giving and cuts across societal and economic barriers. Manifestations of the spirit of volunteerism can be found in human society whenever there was a country forming or heightened human suffering. For example, in the U.S., it could be traced to the times when the west was being conquered. From the need to produce food to adjusting to new climate and combat diseases, community volunteerism was vital. What is impressive is that the wonderful community spirit continued to exist in the American society, thereafter. 
 
In 1736, Benjamin Franklin founded the first volunteer firehouse in the U.S. To this day, many small towns and cities have a volunteer fire department or more than 70% of firefighters in America are volunteers. Data presented in September 2015 showed that 62.2 million Americans, across all demographics and educational attainment had served as volunteers during the previous year. Many were engaged in food distribution; 9.2% in tutoring and teaching; a similar fraction in coaching and supervising in sports activities and helping in local hospitals in small communities. These volunteers are professors, doctors, small-shop owners, tradesmen, judges who come from all walks of life. The point is volunteerism is pervasive in all aspects of community life in the U.S. It is worth noting that volunteering work while at high school is a metric in most American college admissions. It is also a metric to go tuition free at some state community colleges. With such encouragement, there is a good chance that the volunteerism will continue to shape American society for ever. 
 In India, a much older and complex civilization, renunciation and charity are two highly venerated values of life. Volunteerism is an outcome of this and has therefore been more shaped by traditions and value systems rooted in the religion and cultural interactions. The tradition of shramdaan, offering to work in the service of humanity continues to be practiced by millions of Indians and thereby continues to create social capital. To cite some notable examples, Swami Vivekananda and his followers created the Ramakrishna Mission served by a new order of <keyword id="6470263" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Social-workers">social workers</keyword> to address the issues of poverty, disease, and ignorance that were widely prevalent. Later during the freedom movement, the unique leadership of leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi, Nehru, Ambedkar and many others was instrumental largely in creating greater awareness about the role of voluntary or selfless service. They laid great emphasis on the role of voluntary social workers in nation building. 
 
Institutionalising volunteerism 
According to a global Gallup survey of 2010 that measured volunteerism across countries, India ranked a not very flattering 28 on a civic engagement score, much below the US that was ranked at the top with a civic engagement score of 60. The score was calculated on three parameters including ‘donation of money’, ‘volunteered time’ and ‘helping a stranger’ where the allocation for India was 28%, 18% &amp; 39% respectively. Our neighbours including Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh ranked much higher than India (with scores of 51, 42, 35 and 32 respectively). China however had a score of only 20, ranking it among the lower quadrant of nations. 
 
Corporate volunteerism has slowly emerged as a relevant and viable form of ‘giving’ and has emerged as an integral form of corporate CSR. In India a trend that began with MNCs has increasingly been replicated by Indian companies. While Indian laws have made a 2% contribution of profits to charity by corporates above a certain size mandatory, employee volunteerism is over and above that. For corporates, offering their most valuable asset counts for more than just financial support to needy communities. By giving back, businesses can drive social change and employ their skills, resources and manpower to support organizations and working in the social sector. Benefits that companies can reap through corporate volunteer programs go beyond creating positive social and environmental impact. Volunteer programs also not only help organizations attract the best talent but also keep them engaged through causes and initiatives that they may be personally invested in. A transformative relationship between the organisation and the community ultimately helps enhance the triple bottom line that is framed on social, environmental and financial indicators. 
 
Volunteerism and the National Skills Development Mission Another important consideration is that around 60% of India’s population will be in the working age group by 2020. Can we see corporate volunteerism create enduring partnerships with the National Skills Development Mission to help meet the government’s target to skill and employ 500 million people by 2022? Given that <keyword id="46431" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="India-Inc">India Inc</keyword>’s biggest concern is creating a funnel for skilled manpower, perhaps a new roadmap to addresses this requirement can be considered. I see volunteerism addressing this need very effectively. While the states have some aspirational targets, there is serious doubt about if they are doing everything required to succeed. Efforts to realign this can help develop a fool-proof institutional and delivery model that can screen and evaluate the rapidly scaling programmes at the state level. This convergence of engagement will utilise technical and non-technical manpower that India Inc is best equipped to provide (in combination with academic institutions). The network would thereby integrate universities and vocational training centres and India Inc along with the 30 industry-led sector skills councils (SSCs). These SSCs would then link up district head-quarters with state capitals and metros (where representatives of India Inc are located) and leverage or set-up e-learning centres to engage with relevant youth in need of these initiatives. 
 
Conclusion 
Volunteerism at the individual level needs to be encouraged and inculcated as a structured approach right from school and then through university and finally at the workplace to become an institutionalised and integral part of an individual’s life. HR professionals, should consider volunteerism as an important element while finalizing their selection of the candidate. There exists a huge opportunity for professionals across the value chain to volunteer their time and services – not just limited to doctors and teachers but also lawyers, architects, ad-professionals, engineers, scientists and several others. Due to healthier lifestyle, people live longer but the retirement age has not changed much; a lot of men and women have plenty to offer or volunteer to their community after retirement. The true potential of volunteerism can only be leveraged when it is recognised as an intrinsic part living in a community of people and of bringing about positive social change. India may be one the fastest growing economies but also has glaring disparities in terms of human development when looked at indicators of income, health, education and opportunity. Volunteerism, both institutional and individual can play an inexpensive and rewarding role in helping reduce some of these disparities. 
 
References 
• <a href="http://charity.lovetoknow.com/History_of_Volunteerism_in_America">History of Volunteerism in America</a> 
• <a href="http://www.gallup.com/poll/145589/civic-engagement-highest-developed-countries.aspx">Civic Engagement Highest in Developed Countries</a> 
 
(Image Credits: Flickr) 
 
(About the Author: This article has been contributed by S.N. Balakrishnan – Chancellor, Shiv Nadar University)

Volunteerism & India Inc – Yeh Dil Maange More!

October to February is when India sees high spikes in both domestic and local tourism across India. This is the time when charter flights to Goa begin landing, this is when the hotels near the coffee plantations in south India hike their rates. This is also when domestic carriers typically increase rates – this year rates increased by almost 24% in October alone. Other than cooler climes, this is also when most of India’s large festivals are celebrated, many of which are linked to agrarian cycles of harvesting or sowing. 
 
There’s Dussera, Diwali, Christmas, Pongal and Chhath Puja celebrated during this period (Onam is another biggie but that was celebrated in September this year). Smaller ones such as Janmashtami or Govardhan Puja also happen during this time. Many of these festivals are celebrated in situ, and are becoming increasingly popular for non-traditional tourists who converge at temple towns to participate in the festivities and seek blessings. 
 
I’ve travelled across many of these towns and interacted with temple priests, tourists, shop-owners, craftswomen and craftsmen, local residents, hotel owners and finally the most ‘in-you-face’ category of people, the local tourist guides to understand how modern influences are affecting traditions in these temple towns, especially that of oral story-telling. Interestingly and contrary to what most of us might think given the immediate access to information we have via our smartphones, the demand for local stories has dramatically increased over the last few years. 
 Part of this is due to more tourist footfalls (including that of foreign tourists) while the other is due to a demand for more engaging narratives. A demand for more anecdotal and topical stories rather than just a historical narrative. Often this topicality is derived from local <keyword id="1225445" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="folk-tales">folk tales</keyword> and <keyword id="22258" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Folk-songs">folk songs</keyword> of that particular region and will be completely missing in the historical information dispensed in the formal tourist brochures. 
 
Take Govardhan Puja or Janmashtami, for instance. You have tourists converging at all places with important Krishna temples across the country. So there would be tourists flocking to Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh or other important temples such as the Guruvayur temple in Kerala, Dwarkadish in Gujarat, the ISKON temples (across India) or the Rajagopalaswamy Temple in Tamil Nadu among others. Domestic tourism is the economic mainstay of many of these towns, driving the local economy and providing a livelihood to the local population. In many of these places, the narration of folk tales and folk songs is an important local occupation. Yet, tourism, consumerism and other influences are subtlety influencing these tales and folklores – impacting both content and context. 
 
Nowhere is this more apparent than in Braj in Uttar Pradesh, the region associated with Lord Krishna’s early years and interestingly the region where he spent time with consort Radha. The ancient texts, epics, and folklore within this region create culturally (though not politically) defined borders and demarcations, so that Braj can be said to cover an area of approximately 5000 sq. kms. Braj ranks high in popularity as a pilgrimage destination and tales of Krishna and Radha abound in every household and resonate off every tongue. 
 
I would like to refer to a folktale that is narrated at two different towns of Braj Region, Gowardhan and Barsana. Radha and Krishna are at the focal point of many of narratives. While Barsana is recognized as the place where Radha grew up, Krishna is said to have spent his later childhood days at Nandgaon, 8 kms away from Barsana. Radha is considered to be Krishna’s ‘Shakti’ (strength). The folktale I refer to tells a very famous tale of adolescent Krishna at Gowardhan. In this, he lifted a hill named Giriraj or Gowardhan parbat on the tip of his little finger for seven days and nights to shield the Brajwasi (people of Braj) from a deluge of rain sent down by an angry Lord Indra. Most Indians are familiar with this narrative. However in neighbouring Barsana, where Radha grew up, the same folktale recounts the same plot and form but includes an important element missing in the other tale. It recounts that it was Radha, the embodiment of ‘Shakti’ (female supernatural power) who was the actual enabler of Krishna’s heroic act. The tale states that it was Radha who supported Krishna by giving him her divine power to lift the hill. The power came from her left eyelashes and also enabled her to remain invisible. 
 
The transmission of the folktales and folk songs from one generation to the next results in variations which leads to effective narration for eager audiences. The authenticity of these variations cannot be challenged as each version seems to be true. The narrators comprise the Pandas or Goswamis (local priests) and the local tourist guides. Unfortunately I did not find any female priests or female guides. The use of quotes, proverbs, folk metaphors, and other linguistic clichés is fairly common, depending on the narrator. The story-teller weaves in elements from festivals, social events, occasions and human relationships from across the region. The folk tales are so much a part of the cultural ethos of the region that they have also been converted into folk songs, sung by the young and old alike with local CD renditions of it – always in high in demand by tourists and locals both. Interestingly, the modern renditions of these popular folksongs have even used western songs and musical instruments – such as a popular version called ‘Happy Birthday Radhaji’. Symbolic references to other religions also creep in, often well integrated within the folktale itself. For example, in Barsana, local folklore includes the narratives of Gulab Sakhi, a Mughal soldier who became a devotee of Radha. Local narrators delight in highlighting the tale of Radha staying with an old soldier named Gulab Sakhi, disguised as his daughter. Gulab Sakhi’s own daughter had left him after her marriage and he missed her desperately, and was longing to see her. When Radha got to know this, she disguised herself and lived with him as his daughter. He eventually realized this and subsequently became one of her greatest devotees. 
 
It is through oral transmission that the stories continue to form the textures of the lives and livelihoods in these regions and many other regions as well. Elements of social justice, fairness and humanity combine into a rich tapestry enabling these traditional narratives survive. While it is interesting to see how the telling of these tales, many of which originated in oral traditions, continues to flourish, it will be fascinating to see how continuing modern influences will affect these narratives in times to come! 
 
 
(The article is authored by Tulika Chandra, Associate Professor, Shiv Nadar University)

India’s folk tales – Thriving in a digital age

2016 will surely go down as a watershed year in more ways than one. Violence across the world remains unabated; war continues to ravage Syria; Iraq and Afghanistan are no closer to returning to normalcy; the coup attempt in Turkey and the subsequent consolidation of power in that country promises to have a long lasting impact - the year had been eventful to say the least. But among all these, the two events (interestingly both delivered democratically) that have the potential to radically reshape the world that we live in are <keyword id="6355333" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Brexit">Brexit</keyword> and <keyword id="6354484" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Donald-Trump">Donald Trump</keyword> becoming the President elect. 
 
There are certain similarities between the two events, not least being that both were thought to be unlikely before they actually materialized. In both cases the key architects and their supporters have envisaged building walls around their respective countries - in one case literally. In both cases, a fear psychosis gripped the majority group and in both cases the majority of the young voted against the eventual outcomes. 
 A lot has been said about how <keyword id="3856945" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Trade-and-globalization">trade and globalization</keyword> has increased inequality and created a disenfranchised group that voted overwhelmingly for Trump. I do not disagree with either of the facts – that trade has increased and there is a disenfranchised group, or at least a group that considers itself disenfranchised. It is true that trade has increased, but trade openness in US has been increasing right from the 1970s; it is by no means a new phenomenon. This has not just increased the prosperity in the country, it has also helped ensure low prices and price stability, thereby benefitting the common man. Did it also increase inequality? The World Inequality Database, provided by UNU-WIDER, shows that inequality increased mildly in the 1980s, after a fall in the 1970s, and started increasing at a faster rate only in the 1990s. So, was it all led by trade? Or could it be something else? The 90s was a period of rapid technological progress, dramatically creating new jobs, the type of jobs that did not exist in the past. The resultant demand for skilled and educated workers soared. However those with lower skill levels saw opportunities shrink. This has caused rather widespread resentment and maybe many of them voted for a candidate who was projected as a rank outsider. 
 
In this context it has to be noted the group that is most aggrieved is probably not the poorest of the lot. Clinton received more votes than Trump from those whose income is less than $50,000 per annum. The discontent is highest among the group which feels their relative position is sliding from a position of privilege. They feel that this privilege is eroding, within local surroundings, but more so in the global context where, they might feel, the emerging middle class in countries like China and India is catching up, or even exceeding their living standards. Possibly that is why the rants and rhetoric of Trump against trade, against China and against “those who are stealing jobs” resonated with these people. Trump is the straw they want to hold onto to prevent this ‘perceived privilege’ from eroding – forgetting all the while that privilege is earned and not a right! 
 
This also brings us to the issue of immigration. Is the influx of immigrants really a threat to this group? To understand this it is instructive to look at the stretch between Philadelphia and Minneapolis, the so-called rust belt, encompassing a large part of the Upper Midwest. This is here that the election was won – and lost. This was supposed to be the blue wall – Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota along with Ohio. To understand how confident the Clinton campaign was about this region, just look at how much they spent in local media purchases in Wisconsin – zero. Eventually Trump won all the states except Minnesota, where Clinton barely hung on to a narrow victory. The county wise map is almost an unbroken red across for this region, with specs of blue near the big cities. Interestingly, these are also states with relatively low levels of immigration. The percentage of the population in this region of those born outside the US ranges from 4.2% to 7.8% in 2014 (the highest in Minnesota, 7.8%, which Clinton won). Compare this with California – 27.1%, New York – 22.6%, or even, Nevada – 19.4%, again all states where Clinton has won. So, it cannot be that in these states, which flipped, people felt displaced because of a huge surge in immigration, which made them feel like a stranger in their own neighborhoods. 
 This region did see some job loss, but <keyword id="943428" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="unemployment-rates">unemployment rates</keyword> in September 2016, just before the elections, stood at 4.1% in Wisconsin, 4.6% in Michigan, 4.8% in Ohio and 5.7% in Pennsylvania. This is lower or close to 5% in New York, or 5.5% in California. So it must be that either people who voted for Trump identified themselves with Trump, a billionaire who spewed venom against minorities, mocked the disabled, berated women and bragged about sexual prowess, or they believed that Trump, an outsider, will help them maintain their privilege relative to the rest. They believed that change, even if that takes them to an uncharted path, is better than status quo. In this nostalgia about their glorious past – real or imagined, sadly, race identity became important and even the majority of white women ended voting for Trump. 
 
What now? This is a particularly difficult question given the fickleness of Trump’s position, and perceived ignorance on issues of national and international importance. Not only from the campaign proclamations, but also observing Trump the businessperson, a certain degree of restlessness is observed. His clear lack of interest in anything but the immediate gains might lead to frequent change in policies and no long term commitment to any relationship. This means we should brace for a lot of volatility in the US and also the rest of the world. India has grown closer to US basis new geo-strategic compulsions and mutual interests. This policy has to be reconsidered. The other fallout can come from fructification of Trump’s xenophobic and anti-immigration policies, unless moderated by some sane voice within the government, which at this point looks quite improbable. History and experience shows that an election won from a platform which is divisive and based on exclusion, will sharpen social divisions notwithstanding other gains. As a result conflicts emerge and progress halts. However, history is but an imperfect guide to the future and let us hope our fears remain unfounded. 
 
(About the Author: This article has been contributed by Partha Chatterjee, the head of the department, Economics, Shiv Nadar University.)

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Confirmed COVID-19 cases up by a record; Govt says outbreak under control

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